The star system of the classical Hollywood era was an important catalyst in making many films still regarded as masterpieces today. Under the star system of the 50s, studios had a certain set of actors under contract, which meant they could only act in films for that studio, unless a deal was made with another studio. Having reputable stars under contract was mandatory because they were, virtual products, and represented the studios more than the films did.
Having certain stars under contract led to genre films. This means that certain actors, at certain studios, only made one or two kind of films. For example, the Marx Brothers from Paramount would just about always act in comedies. Audiences would hear about the new Marx Brothers film and immediately come to the conclusion that it was a comedic movie put out by Paramount studios.
A great example of an actress that went through the stat system would be Joan Crawford. Discovered by MGM when she was only 20, Joan had everything the studio wanted; she could dance, sing, and act. She was known to be in films about young, fervent young girls trying to beat the odds of and make it in the real world. These ‘rags to riches’ stories were popular among women. Throughout her career she made 94 films, all 70 of which with MGM. At her peak she was one of the most well paid women in the world, but eventually her films started to loses their spark. She was put in fewer and fewer films, and there was little she could do about it-one of the major flaws of the star system.
Here's an MGM owned video of Joan singing and dancing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNZCJn9uIBk
Here's an interview from 1957:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIc2zcy1TvQ&feature=related
No comments:
Post a Comment