Society and culture- Popular culture Flashcards
(46 cards)
how did nation connect pre 20’s and how did this change in the 20’s
-movie theatres and record industry
-changed when licences radio was introduced (but radio soon exploited for advertisement purposes)
How did the type of films produced change post-WWI?
- prewar, they had been silent, black and white films
- increasing colour and sound in the 20s
When was the first
1) all-colour feature
2) sound effects and music feature
3) talking sequences (talkie)
1922 - all colour - ‘Toll of the Sea’
1926 - sound effects - ‘Don Juan’
1927 - talkie - ‘The Jazz Singer’
What was the influence of CINEMA (from 1917-45)
1917 AND 20’S
-was the biggest entertainment media in 1917 that was introduced to cities first (silent movies until 20’s)
-1927, first ‘talkie’ called the Jazz singer, distinguished actors between look and sound
-movies boomed post WW1 and during war as a form of escapism- served as a night out
- affluent society: increased wealth (income) which people could spend on small luxuries
30’s
-Feature movies changed twice a week
-Genre movies developed
-popularity of hollywood stars started (e.g Clara bow specialised in flapper girl roles)
-movies reviewed in magazines (1 million readers of 20 fan magazines)
40’s
-by 1941 there were over 10 million movie theatre seats in the US
When/what was the ‘Golden Age of Hollywood’?
1920s
- 74 million went to see a movie each week by 1929 (up from 34 million in 1922)
- film stars emerged
- movie companies were founded
What was the cult of the film star?
magazines dedicated to film stars (20 fan mags by late 30s, each with 200k-1 mill readers)
- influenced youth e.g. people wanted to dress like Clara Bow
- household names: Charlie Chaplain
Which forms of cinema became popular during the depression?
escapist forms:
- Westerns: many dreamt they could be part of a rugged group like the cowboys
- ‘screwball’ comedy: laugh at romantic foibles of upper class
How did cinema change in WWII?
- industry more closely controlled by national governments to help war effort
- wanted to depict war in positive light, propaganda
What opportunities did cinema provide for manufacturers?
exposed Americans to commericial advertising
- filled the gaps in a cinema programme with ads for their products
How did cinema benefit the economy?
- adverts would generate a lot of money e.g. MGM made a 500k deal with Coca-Cola for stars to drink it between interviews
- movie budgets were high but they would generate tons too (Something to think about, 1920, 169K budget, made 10 million)
effect of the creation of the studio system in cinema in 1917-45
cost a lot to develop but proved more profitable
eight companies worked together and had control of stars and industry
-90 percent of films worldwide were made in Hollywood
influence of stars created by cinema from 1917-45
-Clara bow made 15 movies in 1925
-1925 Clarke Gable made movies
-popularisation of the movie star
-became a source of gossip when stars didnt stick to their screen image
-large earning potential of a star, Shirley temple earned 5000 dollars a week vs average wage in America to be 2000 dollars a year
-sponsor deals (MGM and coca cola 500,000 deal- saw stars sipping coke in ads)
controversies of movie impact from 1917-45
-mainly complaints towards late 20’s due to depiction of flapper girls and gangster genre provoked violence
-all movies conformed to strict code (MOTION PICTURE PRODUCTION CODE/ HAYES CODE) 1930/66
(no drug trafficking, slave trade, nudity, minimised detail of crime, no swearing, portray family life as a good thing, lust to a minimum)
influence of radio 1917-45
radio grew rapidly in 20’s and 30’s
-fisrt commercial station was KDKA in 1920- broadcasted election results
-soon exploited for advertisement purposes (roosevelt happy days are here again)
-1920 it broadcasted election results
-by 1924 there were 600 radio stations and they began to commercialise
-1926, first national station NBC
-1935, sales of record players dropped due to radio and depression meant less disposable income and radio played music for free
-spread political knowledge (fireside chats) (farther coughlin broadcasted sermons criticising KKK in 1930 with 30 mn listeners)
-1927 radio act regulated broadcasts and stations
When did the first radio station in the US begin broadcasting?
KDKA began broadcasting in 1922
Why was radio so popular from the outset?
- very important in communicating news as not everyone could read
- people wanted to listen to jazz which was becoming more popular
- could listen to sports matches (50 million listened to the 1927 Dempsey-Tunney boxing match)
How did the radio industry grow and survive (economically)?
companies paid to advertise their products on the medium
What was the impact of increased radio sales?
- sales of gramophone records fell
- the use of radio for advertising helped to fuel the economic boom of the 1920s
- encouraged new music trends (e.g. jazz = modern)
How did the popularity of dance increase with the popularity of radio?
- dance halls increased demand for pro musicians and dancers
- ballrooms sponsored dance contests (new moves developed etc)
- electric lighting led to evening dance halls and live music
- most popular = waltz, tango and the Charleston (feat. in two 1922 broadway shows)
Why was television arguably the most impactful medium on American post-WWII culture?
- main source of political information, defined electoral campaigns, used to maximise impact on the electorate
- increased standard and scale of cultural entertainment (growth of non-commercial networks)
- spread US culture worldwide
Who tended to have TVs post-WWII?
- metropolitan-area, wealth bias: of the 102,000 TV sets in 1948, 2/3 were in the New York area
- this was because tv station = high cost, only economically viable in heavily populated areas
what was the influence of MUSIC from 1917-45
POPULARISATION OF MUSIC
-jazz introduced implementing diversity in music due to African American roots (spread through radio and movies)
-jazz dances (like charleston0 were sexually suggestive and jazz swing players often black leading to discrimination and controversy
-by 1929 50 percent of homes had a gramophone and record industry was booming (75 million dollars of records sold that year)
-1935 record sales dropped due to depression
what was the influence of television in the 50’s
-FDR first president on TV
-1939, first commercial television shown at 1939 worlds fair
-media businesses given tax breaks post ww2 to help development of commercial TV
-deloberately were unliscenced to boost media from 1948-50
-no black americans shown till 1963
-increased consumer culture in 50’s due to commercials as people had more disposable income, post baby boom advertising grew larger
-helped transformation on views of racism
-used to show politicians (aired candidates) e.g nixon won due to televised debates, kennedy became known as good looking and a persuasive speaker
How did the ownership of TVs and number of stations increase in the 1950s?
- ownership increased from 0.4% in 1948 to 56% in 1954 and to 83% in 1958
- no. of stations rose from 16 in 1948 to 354 in 1954