Department of English

This is a course on the history of Hollywood. It seeks to unravel
Hollywood’s complex workings and explain how the business and politics
of the film industry translate into the art of film. We will trace the 
American film industry from Edison to the internet, asking questions 
such as: What is the relationship between Hollywood and independent 
film? How has the global spread of Hollywood since the 1920s changed
the film industry? How has Hollywood responded to crises in American 
politics (e.g., world wars, the cold war, terrorism)? And how have new
 technologies such as synchronized sound and color cinematography,
 television and the VCR, and new digital technologies changed film and
 the film industry? We will look closely at representative studios
(Paramount, Disney, and others), representative filmmakers (Mary
 Pickford, Frank Capra, and George Lucas, among many others), and
 we will examine the impact of industrial changes on the screen.