Overview

The early motion picture industry exploded in the 1910s when middle class audiences became hooked on the beautiful storytelling images flashing by them onscreen. As movie attendance exploded, more workers were required to produce this riveting new form of entertainment. Largely created by immigrants, the film industry creatively and scientifically evolved over its first few decades thanks to the work of people outside the traditional ruling class—immigrants, people of color, women—partly as a result of elites denigrating the fledgling field. As the moving picture business transitioned from neophyte to powerhouse, young and ambitious rebels—both men and women—energized and revitalized its output. At the same time, American culture was evolving as women sought the right to vote and work outside traditional fields, unions exploded, and immigrants contributed to flourishing businesses. Mostly written out of history, women provided an integral component for popularizing silent film and making it an enormous success, paving the way for Golden Age Hollywood. They often pioneered practices and established trends, leading several fields in its early days. Women were integral in producing enough films for exploding demand in the industry's second decade. Men often resented their power and success, and as the studio system of massive factories and industrialization took hold, women found themselves out of favor and replaced. First Women of Hollywood will explore and illustrate the invaluable role and contributions of these mostly forgotten and unacknowledged pioneers.

Full Product Details

9781493089307

Table of Contents

Reviews

""An impressive work of film history that puts a well-deserved spotlight on neglected talents, adding to our knowledge of how women artisans shaped and contributed to cinema throughout the silent period and well beyond.""--Farran Smith Nehme, film critic ""Mary Mallory has written a meticulously researched, compelling history of unsung pioneering women in Hollywood. Mallory introduces us to the likes of the first set dresser and Hattie Wilson Tabourne, a black hairdresser who coiffed such stars as Valentino and Gloria Swanson. Mallory's work is eye-opening.""--Susan King, writer and film historian (Praise for the author's previous book Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays) ""Irresistible . . .""--Leonard Maltin, Indiewire.com (Praise for the author's previous book Living with Grace) ""Readers will . . . come away with a new appreciation for Kelly as an ordinary person turned starlet."" --Publishers Weekly ""Mary Mallory has taken our ongoing study of early women filmmakers to a new height, and a new level of scholarship, with The First Women of Hollywood. Acknowledging the prominent place that women played as actors, directors, and screenwriters, she turns her attention to the work of Hollywood's female community in all manner of roles, including studio founder, stunt person, projectionist, costume designer, makeup artist, hairdresser, and animator. She identifies the first ethnic women in film and the women whose influence was crucial to the success of the new medium as critics, trade paper editors, fan magazine editors, and even archivists. The accompanying essays here are examples of scholarship at its best, readable and well documented. The First Women of Hollywood will stand the test of time as a leading reference source--and I might add as a good read.""--Anthony Slide, author of The Silent Feminists: America's First Women Directors and editor of The Memoirs of Alice Guy Blaché

Author Information

Mary Mallory is a motion picture historian. She is the author of Hollywoodland, Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays, Hollywood at Play, A Little Barn Started It All: The History of Hollywood Heritage’s Lasky DeMille Barn, and Living with Grace: Life Lessons from America’s Princess. She is also a blogger on Los Angeles and motion picture history for the LA Daily Mirror. She lives in Studio City, California.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available