When the depression hit, all studios suffered financially. They had to cut costs, close theaters, and reorganize everything in order to continue their work. They needed audiences, and used many tactics to get them. They incentives audiences with giveaways, sweepstakes, and drawings of raffle tickets. At that time, even a little more money was worth a lot. Tickets weren’t super expensive, so with these tactics movies were able to stay alive.
But people didn’t only come to the movies for the prizes being offered. They came for the experiences. Life was not good for most people during the depression. No jobs, little money, and a bleak atmosphere surrounded the United States. The theater was a place to escape it all. For just a small fee, people could forget the depression even existed and fall into a story. This was a chief reason movies were kept alive.
Filmmakers at the time adapted to the climate and made escapism movies, full of fantasies of high society and screwball comedy. Though some filmmakers ran with escapism, others found more balances or leaned into the darker tones of the era with their movies, reflecting the time. All sorts of movies were made during this era that each had different aspects of the depression. Rags-to-riches gangster films were very popular, such as Public Enemy and Little Ceaser in the very early 1930s. Scarface is another famous one. These films inspire gangster films to this day. Screwball comedy was also popular, as it showed the audience zany characters who could afford to laugh and be silly, when in the world outside the movies, all seemed dreary. Screwball comedy was similar to shakespeare comedy, and included films like It Happened One Night and Bringing Up Baby.
The stars of the films were also huge despite the depression, especially the one called Clark Gable, also known as the King of Hollywood. He starred in films all throughout the 30s, such as No Man of Her Own, Mutiny on the Bounty, The Call of the Wild, and most famously, Gone with the Wind. Another famous name known by the public at this time was Shirley Temple, a name many know today as well. She was in a plethora of movies, such as Bright Eyes, Heidi, Curly Top, and The Little Princess. Her popularity continues to this day.
The late 1930s marked the start of something big in Hollywood. The most famous movies I’ve listed previously, such as Shirley Temple’s movies and Gone With the Wind, were produced in later years, 1935 onward, particularly 1938 and 1939. Despite the hardships of the Great Depression, it started the golden age of cinema, with movies we still watch today. What movies could be made at such a time? Well, how about The Wizard of Oz, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and Robin Hood? All still classics today. Even in the early 1930s, though there were less sales and less huge hits, movies such as Frankenstein and King Kong were made.
We see the depression as an awful time where nothing good could happen, and it was true that jobs were lost, people starved, and it was terrible. But the movies brought hope and joy into the Great Depression, where all seemed lost. They brought comedy and laughter and movie stars that we still know the names of, and the 1930s remains largely thought of as a part of Hollywood’s golden age. These movies served as a reminder that even in hard times, there’s always laughter and joy and a place to escape inside the screen. A good lesson to remember today as well.
Sources:
https://geeks.media/film-and-the-great-depression
https://www.filmsite.org/30sintro3.html
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ug03/comedy/historicalcontext.html
https://livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/life_16.html
Google’s extensive knowledge of what films came out in the 1930s
I loved your article and especially how you portrayed cinema as something to look forward to amidst the suffering of the great depression. I had no idea that great classics such as the Wizard of Oz and Robin Hood came from that era. It's interesting to see how the depression can affect that aspect of society in such good way while it disparages other ways of life. I do however wonder what other aspects of society that was affected positively during the great depression and whether it was for the same reasons as the film industry.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading about the history of film and how it survived the depression. I found it interesting that many filmmakers chose to focus on escapism films and comedy to allow people to escape their woes because I think the entertainment people choose in a certain era reflected the atmosphere but I never thought of it reflecting how people wanted to escape their atmosphere. I thought that was an interesting insight into why the types of movies made during the depression were escapism.
ReplyDeleteI loved this post! It's interesting to see how a few people or type of people dominated the Hollywood scene. It's similar to how Hollywood is dominated now.
ReplyDeleteI found the role in cinema as a form of escape during the Great Depression very interesting. However, I also wonder how accessible cinema would be at this time. Aside from the issues of cost, I would also expect location to be one of the limiters for people who can enjoy such cinema. Those who would have the time to go to the movies in the first place would likely be relatively well-off, and it's surprising that cinema really did have this much of an impact during this time. Also escapism may be a very viable reason to attend, I wonder if the people willing to spend their precious money and time on leisure activities would really need the escapism provided.
ReplyDeleteI love all the specific details you included in your article! I also really like this idea of how cinema became popular during the Depression because it presented people with hope for better days. This idea of the success of Depression-era films reminds me of something else I read, about the people who ended up actually profiting from the Great Depression. In the article I read (http://mentalfloss.com/article/22504/10-people-who-made-fortune-during-depression), 2 out of the 10 people who made the biggest profit were movie stars, and 6 of 10 were associated in some way with entertainment (music, sports, producers, etc.).
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