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Period: to
Silent Film Era
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American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
Oldest movie company in America. It was founded in 1895 to 1928. It was the first in the US devoted to entirely to film production and exhibition. -
Battle of Chemulpo Bay
A historical re-enactment of a naval battle in Chemulpo Bay off the coast of Korea during the Russo-Japanese war. Shows a Japanese ship damaging one Russian vessel and sinking another. Only 3 minutes long. -
Tinted films
Tinting was used in the beggining of the 1910's as another mood setter (other than music) for films. -
Lillian Diana Gish
She was a major film star of the 1910s-1920s, particularly associated with the films of director D.W. Griffith, including her leading role in Griffith's seminal Birth of a Nation. Her film appearances were sporadic. She did considerable television work from the early 1950s into the 1980s. The American Film Institute named Gish 17th among the greatest female stars of all time. -
Saved From The Titanic
The film is told in flashbacks and was shot in less than two weeks in black and white, with color scenes. Reportedly the dress Gibson wore in the movie is the actual dress she was wearing when rescued from the Titanic. The film was shot in Fort Lee, New Jersey where Éclair and other early film studios in America's first motion picture industry were based at the beginning of the 20th century.It is now considered a lost film with the only prints destroyed in a fire at Éclair Studios in 1914. -
Companies set up in Southern Cali.
By 1912, a lot of major film companies set up their studios in Southern Cali, near LA and Mexico, because of how close it was to Mexico and because of its great weather. -
The Musketeers of Pig Alley
The first gangster movie of all time. Location shots at New York City used actual street gangs as members in the film. -
The Birth of a Nation
Silent film co-written with Frank E. Woods, co-produced with Harry Aitken, and directed by D. W. Griffith. The film is about 2 families in Civil War and Reconstruction-era America: the pro-Union northern Stonemans and the pro-Confederacy Southern Camerons.it was banned in several cities. The outcry of racism was so great that D.W. Griffith was inspired to produce Intolerance the following year. It was the first motion picture to be shown at the White House! -
Technicolor
a color motion picture process invented in 1916 it has been improved for over several decades. -
Cleopatra
Directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starred Theda Bara in the title role.It was one of the most elaborate Hollywood films ever produced at that time, with/particulerly lavish sets and costumes. According to the studio, the film cost $500,000 (approximately $8.3 million in 2009) to make. The story of this silent film was very loosely based on the plot of William Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. -
Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio
Refered to as Disney, was founded on October 16, 1923, by brothers Walt Disney and Roy Disney. -
MGM Corporation
Owned their own chains of new theatres. Cedric Gibbons and Herbert Stothart always worked on films for this company. -
20h Century Fox
Owned their own chains of Theatres. Alfred Newman would make most of his movies for this company for twenty years and director Henry King's films were mostly made for Twentieth-Century Fox too. -
The Big Parade
An idle rich boy joins the US Army's Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I. He Becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.It heavily influenced all subsequent war films.The film is the highest grossing silent film in cinema history, grossing $18–$22 million. -
Ben-Hur: A Tale of The Christ
It was a blockbuster hit for newly merged Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.In 1997, Ben-Hur was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".Costing $3.9 million to film, Ben-Hur is the most expensive silent film ever made. -
The Gold Rush
Silent film comedy written, produced, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin in his Little Tramp role. The film also stars Georgia Hale, Mack Swain, Tom Murray, Henry Bergman, Malcolm Waite.Chaplin declared several times that this was the film that he most wanted to be remembered for. Even though it was a silent film, it received Academy Award nomination for Best Sound Recording. -
Period: to
Golden Cinema Age
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The Jazz Singer
The release of this movie started the golden age when released in 1927. It increased box office profits for films. -
Warner Brothers gains success
They were able to acquire their own string of movie theaters, after purchasing Stanely Theaters and First Ntional Production -
The Circus
Film written and directed by Charlie Chaplin with Joseph Plunkett as an uncredited writer.The story once again follows Chaplin's Little Tramp character.The production of the film was the most difficult experience in Chaplin's career. Numerous problems and delays occurred, including a studio fire, the death of Chaplin's mother, as well as Chaplin's bitter divorce from his second wife. The Circus was the seventh highest grossing silent film in cinema history, taking in more than $3.8 million. -
Paramount
Already acquired Balaban and Katz in 1926, They bought a number of theaters in the late 1920s as well, before making their final purchase in 1929, through acquiring all the individual theaters belonging to the Cooperative Box Office, located in Detroit.The offer was for $250,000 – an enormous sum of money for that time. They also dominated all the theaters in Detroit. -
Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio is reincorporated
In 1929, The Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio company was reincorporated as Walt Disney Productions, Ltd. -
Dubbing
Dubbing had advanced and it was used more often in movies. -
Hays (Production) Code
President Will Hayes founded this company that follows censorship guidelines but the code was never enforced until 1934. -
MGM dominates the industries, has all the top Hollywood stars, and creates Hollywood Star System
MGM stars included at various times: Clark Gable, Norma Shearer, Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow, Gary Cooper, Mary Pickford, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Judy Garland, Ava Gardner, James Stewart, Katharine Hepburn, Vivien Leigh, Grace Kelly, Gene Kelly, Gloria Stuart, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, John Wayne, Barbara Stanwyck, John Barrymore, Audrey Hepburn and Buster Keaton. -
Hays production code
President Will Hayes founded this company in 1930 that follows censorship guidelines. The code was allowed to enforce in 1934. -
Paramount-Publix goes bankrupt
Though Paramount-Publix went bankrupt in 1935, it would soon reinvent itself as United Paramount Theatres. But then they eventually were out of business forever. -
Walt Disney's Snow White
In 1937, Disney created the most successful film of its time, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. -
Forty Fort Films
Forty Fort Films takes its name from the borough of Forty Fort, Pennsylvania. Founder Tom Alexander and his family had owned and operated the Forty Fort Theatre. It is now based in South Florida. -
Walt Disney Productions
Became publicly-traded as Walt Disney Productions in 1938. Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into live-action film production, television, and travel. -
The Wizard of Oz
Musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by Victor Fleming. Notable for its use of special effects, Technicolor, The Wizard of Oz has become over the years one of the best-known of all films. It was a box office failure, but won 2 academy awards. MGM'S most expensive film at the time. -
Walt Disney Studios at Burbank, CA
Using the profits from Snow White, Disney financed the construction of a new 51-acre (210,000 m2) studio complex in Burbank, California. The new Walt Disney Studios, in which the company is headquartered to this day, was completed and open for business by the end of 1939. -
Casablanca
Directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Henreid, and featuring Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre and Dooley Wilson. Set during World War II, it focuses on a man torn between love and virtue. He must choose between his love for a woman, and helping her and her Czech Resistance leader husband escape from the Vichy-controlled Moroccan city of Casablanca to continue his fight against the Nazis. -
Hays retires
Hays retires and the hays production code is changed to the Motion Picture Association. -
It's a Wonderful Life
Produced and directed by Frank Capra and based on the short story "The Greatest Gift" by Philip Van Doren Stern. The film stars James Stewart as George Bailey, a man whose death on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody. Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and the contributions he has made to his community. It was a box office flop at the time of its release, but is considered a classic film for Christmas. -
Studios battle anti-trust laws
Between 1948 and 1954 the studios battled anti-trust laws that eventually ruled studios could no longer monopolize their product by playing it exclusively in their own theatres. All of the studio’s theater divisions were forced to either sell off or close. -
Studios battle anti-trust laws
Between 1948 and 1954 the studios battled anti-trust laws that eventually ruled studios could no longer monopolize their product by playing it exclusively in their own theatres. All of the studio’s theater divisions were forced to either sell off or close. -
JFK and Hollywood
John F. Kennedy was a new, young face for Washington, and his strong friendship with Frank Sinatra exemplified this new era of glamor. Newer executives and producers began generating more liberal ideas. -
Period: to
American New Wave (New Hollywood)
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Bonnie and Clyde
With a mix of graphic violence, sex and humor as well as its theme of glamorous disaffected youth, it was a hit with audiences, and received Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress and Best Cinematography. Its portrayal of violence and ambiguity in regard to moral values, and ‘shock’ ending, divided critics. -
The Graduate
Comedy- Drama film motion picture directed by Mike Nichols.The film is #19 on the list of highest-grossing films in the United States and Canada. The film tells the story of Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman), a recent university graduate with no well-defined aim in life, who is seduced by an older woman, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), and then proceeds to fall in love with her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross). -
2001: A space Odyssey
In 2010 it was named the #1 greatest film ever made by the Moving Arts Film Journal.A1968 American epic science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, and co-written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke. The film deals with thematic elements of human evolution, technology, artificial intelligence, and extraterrestrial life.It is notable for its scientific realism,special effects,imagery, sound in place of traditional narrative techniques, and minimal dialogue. -
New Rating System
The MPAA started working on a rating system. The New Rating System went in affect on November 1, 1968. All films had to have a rating of either: G, M, R, or X. -
Lucasfilm Ltd.
Based in San Fransico, CA,Lucasfilm Limited is an American film production company founded by George Lucas in 1971.They are also best known for The Deep Note and THX. -
The Godfather
American gangster film directed by Francis Ford Coppolla and an uncredited Robert Towne.The fictional story, which spans ten years from 1945 to 1955, chronicles the development of the Italian American Corleone crime family. Two sequels followed later years. -
Jane Fonda against the Vietnam War
Fonda has been an activist for many political causes, one of the most notable and controversial of which was her opposition to the Vietnam War. She has also protested the Iraq War and violence against women. She describes herself as a liberal and a feminist. -
The Exorcist
1973 horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty.The film earned ten Academy Award nominations—winning two, one for Best Sound and Best Adapted Screenplay. The film is one of a cycle of 'demonic child' movies produced in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including Rosemary's Baby and The Omen. -
The Godfather 2
The film is both a sequel and a prequel to The Godfather, chronicling the story of the Corleone family following the events of the first film while also depicting the rise to power of the young Vito Corleone. The Godfather Part II was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and won six. -
Jaws
Jaws was based on the bestselling novel of the same name, written by Peter Benchley. Director Steven Spielberg took what was classic B-movie fare and turned it into a masterclass in suspense. It was a huge success - from a budget of $12M US its total gross was well over $400M - and began the era of the modern Hollywood blockbuster. It was the first film to exceed $100M in box office receipts. -
Star Wars
Written and directed by George Lucas.Produced with a budget of $11 million, the film went on to earn $460 million in the United States and $337 million overseas, surpassing Jaws as the highest-grossing film at the time.It had gained 10 Academy Award nominations, winning six; the nominations included Best Supporting Actor for Alec Guinness and Best Picture. The film is widely ranked among the best films of all time. -
US receives its first VHS Based Device by Japan
Like many other technological innovations, each of several companies made an attempt to produce a television recording standard that the majority of the world would embrace, whcich was VHS. -
Pixar
Pixar was founded as the Graphics Group, 1/3 the Computer Division of Lucasfilm. -
Japanese Cinema gets popular
Japanese cinema experienced a revival, largely due to the success of anime films. -
ScarFace
American epic crime drama movie directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone, produced by Martin Bregman and starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana.The film is dedicated to Howard Hawks and Ben Hecht, the director and screenwriter of the original 1932 film, respectively. -
Ferris Buellr's Day Off
American teen coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by John Hughes.Hughes wrote the screenplay in less than a week and shot the film – on a budget of $6 million – over several months late '85. Released by Paramount Pictures it became one of the top grossing films of the year and was enthusiastically received by critics and audiences alike. -
Pretty in Pink
A 1986 American teen romantic comedy-drama film about teenage love and social cliques in 1980s American high schools. It is one of a group of John Hughes films starring Molly Ringwald, and is commonly identified as a "Brat Pack" film. The film was directed by Howard Deutch, produced by Lauren Shuler and written by John Hughes. -
The Godfather 3
It completes the story of Michael Corleone, a Mafia kingpin who tries to legitimize his criminal empire. The movie also weaves into its plot a fictionalized account of real-life events.Coppola and Puzo originally wanted the title to be The Death of Michael Corleone. However, Paramount Pictures would not accept that title. Part III received mixed to positive reviews, grossed $136,766,062 and was nominated for seven Academy Awards! -
Toy Story
American computer-animated film released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is Pixar's first feature film as well as the first ever feature film to be made entirely with CGI. The film was directed by John Lasseter and featuring the voices of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. It was written by Lasseter, Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow, and featured music by Randy Newman. -
DVD's are created
Invented by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic, DVD's rapidly replaced VHS -
Titanic
American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. Stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson and Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater.The film earned $8,658,814 on its opening day. it got fourteen Academy Award nominations and eleven Oscar wins, receiving the prizes for Best Picture and Best Director. It was the first film to reach the billion $ mark. Titanic is also ranked as the sixth best epic film of all time.
