The Big 5 Flashcards
What is included in this paragraph?
The Big 5, Studio System, Star System
Who were the big 5?
MGM, Warner Bros, Paramount, RKO, and 20th Century Fox
How did they make large amounts of money?
By vertically integrating the entire movie process into their companies from production to exhibition
What was that process called?
The Studio System
What did the Studio System involve?
Hiring crew, actors, and directors on a contract as opposed to a film by film basis
What did they do to cinemas they didn’t own?
Block-booking
What is block-booking?
Selling a mix of high grade and low grade feature films in blocks to prevent them from losing money
What other system was created because of the studio system?
The Star System
What is the star system?
A method of creating, promoting, and exploiting stars. They would select promising young actors or actresses and glamorise and create personas for them, often inventing new names and even new backgrounds.
What did studio executives, public relations staff, and agents do?
Work with the actor to create a star persona and cover up incidents or lifestyles that would damage their public image.
Who is an example of someone who went through the star system?
Marilyn Monroe - Norma Jeane Mortenson
Why was the star system beneficial for these major studios?
They could star popular actors or actresses in their films and still be successful even if the movie was bad
