{"product_id":"just-making-movies-company-directors-on-the-studio-system-paperback","title":"Just Making Movies: Company Directors on the Studio System - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eRonald L. Davis\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrom the late 1930s to the mid-1950s, five big movie studios-Paramount, Warner Bros., Twentieth Century-Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), and RKO-dominated Hollywood's film industry. This \"big studio system\" operated primarily as a series of assembly-line production factories. Ideally, each churned out fifty-two movies a year, enough to supply showcase theaters across the country with a new lineup each week-with profit being the overriding goal.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOf this era, veteran screenwriter Julius Epstein (\u003cem\u003eCasablanca\u003c\/em\u003e) said: \"It was not called the motion picture industry for nothing. [It] was like working at belts in a factory.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStudios assigned the majority of the lower-tier screenplays to directors under long-term contract and expected them to stick to the script and keep productions within the budget. These filmmakers, known as \"house directors,\" often made films quickly, inexpensively, and with limited resources. \u003cem\u003eJust Making Movies: Company Directors on the Studio System\u003c\/em\u003e collects twelve interviews with house directors from this era, all conducted by the author during the 1980s. These previously unpublished interviews provide a clear picture of how the big studio system operated, as told by those who knew it best.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDespite limitations, house directors sometimes made enduring film classics, such as Charles Walters's \u003cem\u003eEaster Parade\u003c\/em\u003e, Henry Koster's \u003cem\u003eThe Bishop's Wife\u003c\/em\u003e, George Sidney's \u003cem\u003eThe Three Musketeers\u003c\/em\u003e, and Vincent Sherman's \u003cem\u003eThe Hasty Heart\u003c\/em\u003e. In these interviews the filmmakers talk candidly about working with such superstars as Joan Crawford, Errol Flynn, Richard Burton, Bette Davis, Judy Garland, Cary Grant, Esther Williams, and Lana Turner.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRonald L. Davis\u003c\/b\u003e is professor emeritus of history at Southern Methodist University. He is author of \u003ci\u003eWords into Images: Screenwriters on the Studio System\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eZachary Scott: Hollywood's Sophisticated Cad\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eVan Johnson: MGM's Golden Boy, \u003c\/i\u003eall published by University Press of Mississippi.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 239\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.73 x 8.94 x 6.04 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 14, 2017\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51781187502368,"sku":"9781578066919","price":63.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/950648cebc31fc3a0670bbc46cde50b3.webp?v=1780544740","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/just-making-movies-company-directors-on-the-studio-system-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}