Sixth RTF Post Early Hollywood

In the "Classical Hollywood" years, from the 1920's to the 1940's, there were many distinct aspects, which aided in helping the studios function properly. The vertical integration system worked well with studios, allowing them to own all the means of production. One of the most important ways in which the studio system worked best was through the star system. Certain studios would contract stars and keep them exclusive to only their studio, which would bring not only publicity, but also a constant source of work for many stars. Certain studios would use the same star for more than one movie a year, and pay the actor to sell their products outside of the studio.

The star system allowed for certain studios to become known for their association with actors. For example, when MGM became associated with Judy Garland. In class, the speaker discussed how many times, she would play the same character but with a different role to fill. This star system deeply effected what kinds of films the company created. If the company contracted a more serious man, they might begin creating mystery or action genre movies. With Judy Garland, MGM was limited to stories based around a girl with a less serious personality. The best example given was of John Wayne, who was used throughout his lifetime to create over 100 films of near similar roles. Although he wasn't directly associated with a certain company, John Wayne became so well known as a western genre character, that many directors would look to him first to create a movie based around his role. Many companies used these contracted stars to their advantage, and would mass-produce quite a few films with the same star as a central character. Through this, moviegoers would hear of the new "John Wayne film" and flock to see it in the theatre. This form of advertising was not used much after the Classical Era, when a few companies got into disputes with stars over what they were asking, and some wanting to be free from their career binding contracts. "Classical Hollywood's" use of the star system brought about some of the best movies to be seen, despite it having a slight downfall in the later years of its use. The importance of this system will not soon be forgotten for its impact on the movies created during that time.