The Big Five And The little Three: The Golden Age Of Hollywood (1930-60)

Around the time of Buster Keaton, the American filmmaking industry was forming studios, producing content to maximise the amount of profit. Commercial filmmaking, unlike more artsy German expressionism, became commonplace within the industry and throughout the 1920s these studios became bigger and more refined in creating films that would sell to the American public.

Between the years 1930 and 1948, 8 major studios controlled 95% of all films made and exhibited in the US. These 8 major studios were therefore a true oligopoly and became known as The Big Five and The Little Three

A film from one studio is representative of their values – Auteur studios

The Big Five:

MGM –

• Established in 1924 by a merger of a nationwide theatre chain and three production companies.

• Known for stars, glamour and spectacle, producing films such as Gone With The Wind (1939, Victor Fleming), The Wizard Of Oz (1939, ‎Victor Fleming)
• High production values and high levels of investment in production. Notorious for keeping track of money.

• Boasted having ‘a galaxy of stars’ that were kept on contract so they couldn’t be employed by anyone else such as Greta Garbo, Judy Garland, Greer Garson, Jean Harlow, Norma Shearer, Mickey Rooney and Spencer Tracy.
• They successfully weathered the great depression, making $15 million profit in 1930 and $4.3 in 1933, but they never lost money because they were efficiently run and made escapist films that people wanted to see in difficult times but sold off in 1969 and merged with United Artists before being sold again to Turner and then sold to a French bank, then to Sony and bankrupt in 2010.

Paramount Picture Corp. –

• Established as a distribution company in 1914 and acquired by Adolf Zukor in 1917 who merged it with his production company and started buying theatres, making it the first fully integrated company (production, distribution, exhibition).

• Biggest silent era stars such as Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Gloria Swanson, ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle and the biggest silent movie directors such as Cecil B. DeMille, Eric von Stroheim, Mack Sennett and D. W. Griffith
• Known for comedy, light entertainment and occasional epics such as the Ten Commandments (1923, Cecil B. DeMille), later stars known for having include Mae West, Marlene Dietrich, Hedy Lemarr, Barbara Stanwyck, Marx Brothers, Bing Crosby, Bob Hope
• Produced 40-50 films annually at their peak but struggled in the Great Depression, making $18.4 million profit in 1930, $6.3 in 1931, $-21 million in 1932, receivership in 1933 and bankruptcy in 1935, shifting almost exclusively to tv in 1960’s by selling all the films they made between 1929-49 to another company and acquired by Golf and Western

Fox Film Corp./20th Century Fox –

• Established as an exhibitor 1913 by William fox, became 20th century fox after a merger in 1935 with a production company
• Known for musicals, westerns and crime films, such as the robe which was the first cinemascope film, directors such as John ford, stars such as Shirley Temple, Betty Grable, Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell,
• $10 million profit in 1930, $-4 million in 1931, $-7 in 1932. William Fox forced out of company in 1931. Owned by Rupert Murdoch since 1985.

Warner Brothers Films –

• Initially a production company but rose to prominence with the release of the Jazz Singer which was the first sound film, only becoming a fully integrated company between 1928-30 when they acquired a chain of theatres,
• The effects of great depression: $14 and a half million in 1929, $7 in 1930,$ -8 in 1931 but due to aggressive blood letting (fired) and assembly line budget productions they did not go bankrupt, making 60 films a year during the depression.
• Known for gangster, social realism and backstage musicals.
• Part of the success was because they had no stable, hiring the cast and production team on a film basis. Notable directors such as Howard Hawks, Raoul Walsh and stars such as Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney, Edward G. Robinson, James dean, Bette Davis, Ingrid Bergman and Joan Crawford
• Heavily into tv in the 1960’s and merged to make Warner 7 Arts then Warner Communications, now Time Warner

R.K.O Radio Pictures Inc. –

• Began in 1928 and owned a chain of theatres with its own custom sound system

• Pioneered unit production, contract directors on. short term basis for 3 films but in return they offered directors full creative control, fostering auteur directors, hence Citizen Kane (1941, Orson Welles), King Kong (1933, Merian C. Cooper), Bringing Up Baby (Howard Hawkes, 1938), Notorious (Hitchcock, 1946)
• Associated with horror films and film noire particularly in its B movies, fully integrated system, after 1940 B movies became there cheap product,
• Effects of Great Depression: $3.4 million in 1930, $-5.7 in 1931, followed by bankruptcy soon after but purchased by Howard Hughes in 1948. Then went from General Tyre and Rubber Company, to Desilu Productions, Gulf and Western, and merged with Paramount and owned by Viacom

The Little Three:

Universal Pictures –

• Formed in 1915 in San Fernando valley not Hollywood which helped them to keep costs lower and be competitive
• Early stars included Rudolph Valentino, Lon Chaney. Later stars include James Stewart, Charlton Heston, Orson Welles, Marlene Dietrich, Janet Leigh, they innovated by offering stars a percentage of profits
• Notable films such as Frankenstein (1931, James whale), Dracula (1931, Tod browning), All Quite On The Western Front (1930, Lewis Milestone), after 1948 they were known for thrillers, melodramas and westerns
• Effects of Great Depression: forced to sell all theatres which affected ability to compete but utilised blockbusters to keep themselves relevant such as: Jaws (1975, Steven Spielberg), ET (1982, Steven Spielberg), Jurassic Park (1993, Steven Spielberg). Bought and sold several times and is now part of NBC Universal

United Artists –

• Formed by Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, of those 4 only Chaplin was still producing films by the 1930s
• Turned to distributing rather than producing, only became one of the major after 1948
• High Noon (1951, Fred Zimmermann), Marty (1955, Delbert Mann), various James Bond films during 1960’s, three best picture oscars in a row 1975-77,: One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest (), Rocky (), Annie Hall (), however overextended in 1970s, spending too much on productions that didn’t make money back and later sold and merged with MGM

Columbia –

• Established in 1930, a producer of B movies that they then sold to the big five

• In 1932, Harry Cohn became the president of the company and transforms it into a bigger far player
• The success of It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934) led them to experiment with A film pictures
• They became known for adaptations of novels and stage-plays
• They had no stable but had successful association with people such as Frank Capra, Rita Hayworth, Judy Holliday
• Effects of Great Depression: survived because they only made low budget films and they didn’t own any theatres
• First of the majors to get into tv. They would make lavish foreign productions such as Lawrence of Arabia (1962, David Lean)
• Sold their studios in 1972 and bought by Coca Cola in 1982 then bought by Sony in 1989 and continues to this day