History unit 2

• Silent movies


  Movies without sound, only visual
• Features of silent movies


  • Movies were silent
  • Had sound effects
  • Often had live musicians
  • Sometimes had commentary by cinema staff
• Projectionists


  Operated the projectors in most cinemas
• Pianist


  Played fast music and tunes during the film, e.g. for chase scenes or actions
• Improved cinema facilities


  • To attract more people, e.g. Roxy Theatre in New York with 6,000 luxurious seats and a full orchestra
• Types of films in silent movie era


  • Comedies (Charlie Chaplin)
  • Romances (Clara Bow)
  • Adventures
  • Westerns
• Escapism


  People loved cinema for the escapism it provided, for just a few cents
• Growth in cinema industry after WWI, becoming important to American economy


  By 1910
• Growth of cinema industry


  • 8,000 cinemas by 1910
  • 17,000 cinemas 4 years later
  • 303,000 4 years later Americans visited cinema several times a week, making it the most popular form of entertainment
• First film shot in Hollywood area (In Old California)

  1910
• Major film companies


  • Paramount
  • Warner Brothers
  • RKO
  • Columbia
• Stars moved to Los Angeles area


  Not everyone welcomed this, as films were seen as lowering moral standards
• Hays code


  Strict rules set about what could be shown in films
• Popular silent movie stars

  • Charlie Chaplin
  • Mary Pickford
• People wanted to know more about the stars, leading to the publication of fan magazines
• Release of The Jazz Singer, the first film with sound, ushering in a new era for cinema


  1927
• Silent movie stars lost their jobs as the industry transitioned to talkies because their voices were not fit
• By 1930, 100 million cinema tickets were sold every week
• Hollywood introduced its own awards scheme, the Oscars
• Jazz


  Developed from traditional black music like blues and ragtime, originated in the southern states and became popular with the younger generation
• Some cities prohibited the public performance of jazz in dance halls, but it was a great attraction in nightclubs and speakeasies
• White musicians


  Imitated the jazz style, e.g. Paul Whiteman
• Cotton Club


  The most famous jazz venue, located in New York
• Famous jazz musicians


  • Bessie Smith
  • Louis Armstrong
  • Duke Ellington
• Bessie Smith, the greatest blues singer of all time, died in a car accident and was refused admission to a white hospital
• Radio


  Developed into one of the most popular forms of entertainment, reaching 50 million people (40% of the population) by 1930
• Content broadcast on radio

  • Sporting events
  • Music
  • Jazz
  • Advertisements
  • News
• Radio enabled the easy relaying of information and content into millions of homes, creating a dramatic change in social awareness and communication
• Gramophone


  Grew rapidly after 1900, peaking in 1921 with $106 million in sales, but was then destroyed by the rise of radio
• The stock market crash led to the demise of smaller gramophone companies, with many going out of business or being bought by larger companies
• New dance styles in the 1920s


  • Charleston
  • Jive
  • Black Bottom
  • Other styles that shocked the older generation
• Dance marathons


  Contests of self-endurance and human record setting, with non-stop dancing until a couple remained
• Dance marathon participants hoped to win money and fame, even if it was short-term
• Some dance marathon competitors thought of themselves as show business stars
• Speakeasies

  Drinking clubs that provided entertainment, often featuring African American jazz musicians, which attracted young audiences from all social classes
• The widespread belief that jazz indicated sexual activity caused large numbers of people to oppose it whenever possible
• At the Small's Paradise speakeasy in Harlem, New York, waiters danced the Charleston while carrying trays of cocktails
• Contributions by women


  • Equality
  • Demands
  • Hard to resist
  • Advances
  • Few women made political power
• Nellie Taylor of Wyoming became the first woman governor of a state
• 12 years later Bertha Knight Landes became the first female mayor of an American city