The rise of "talkies" from the late 1920s onwards led to a radical shake-up of the entertainment industry. Live entertainment went into decline and variety theatres became movie palaces, where eager punters could see exactly the same entertainment as their fellows in Los Angeles, Berlin or Bombay.
During the 1930s, the entire film industry transformed and “Hollywood” became synonymous with big studio pictures and became the standard for movies around the world. Films became cheaper to produce as studios vertically integrated the production process, which allowed the price of film attendance to go down.
The 1920s saw a vast expansion of Hollywood film making and worldwide film attendance. Throughout the decade, film production increasingly focused on the feature film rather than the "short" or "two-reeler." This is a change that had begun with works like the long D. W.
What major change happened to movies in the 1920s?
The arrival of sound produced a sharp upsurge in movie attendance, which jumped from 50 million a week in the mid-20s to 110 million in 1929. But it also produced a number of fundamental transformations in the movies themselves. As Robert Ray has shown, sound made the movies more American.
Advances in color film included Technicolor and Kodachrome. 1930 marks the start of what is considered to be the 'golden age' of Hollywood, a period which lasted through at least the 1940s. The studio system was at its highest in the 30s, with studios having great control over a film's creative decision.
These opulently appointed theaters were constructed in the exotic styles of French Baroque, Italian Renaissance, Egyptian Revival, as well as Aztec and Oriental imagery. The majority of these theaters could seat audiences of 1,000 to 3,000 people. Others, like the Roxy in New York City, could seat over 6,000 people.
A ticket for a double feature and a live show cost 25 cents. For a quarter, Americans could escape from their problems and lose themselves in another era or world. People of all ages attended the movies with far more regularity than today, often going more than once per week.
The classic Hollywood film style was perfected and significant film genres were established: the melodrama, western, historical epic, and romantic comedy, along with slapstick, science fiction, and fantasy.
People went several times a week, and long queues outside were normal. Cinemas were very popular with people because: films were a way of escaping from the world's problems. They showed a glamorous world.
Films became longer and storytelling, or narrative, became the dominant form. As more people paid to see movies, the industry which grew around them was prepared to invest more money in their production, distribution and exhibition, so large studios were established and dedicated cinemas built.
Movies were fun. They provided a change from the day-to-day troubles of life. They also were an important social force. Young Americans tried to copy what they saw in the movies.
Though radio and movies took audiences from traveling vaudeville shows, serious theater productions enjoyed serious audience attention. Musicals were especially popular on Broadway. Such hits as No, No Nanette (1925), Show Boat (1927), and A Connecticut Yankee (1927) could be seen in New York and other selected cities.
The American people in the 1930s and 1940s were no exception. They enjoyed many forms of entertainment, particularly if they could do so inexpensively. With the addition of sound, movies became increasingly popular. Comedies, gangster movies, and musicals helped people forget their troubles.
At an average price of $. 27 a ticket, movies offered a relatively inexpensive way to vacation from reality. Always popular, this sort of diversion was especially sought-after during the Great Depression. Audiences gloried in spectacular fantasies of high society and easy living that they would never know.
Why did so many Americans go to the movies in the 1930s?
In fact, the years of the 1930s are considered the golden era of Hollywood cinema. Eighty-five million people a week crowded movie theaters across America to escape their sometimes desperate financial situations.
The cinema has evolved from black-and-white silent films edited by physically cutting film strips to 3D digital content spliced together on computers. The digital age has allowed for better quality, color, sound, and even computer-generated imagery (CGI).
How did movies change during the Great Depression?
Most films of the depression years were grounded in the social realities of the time. The most realistic films were social problem films--like I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang - "torn from the headlines," usually by Warner Brothers or Columbia Pictures.
What is the difference between old movies and new movies?
According to previous studies, it is reported that older movies focused a lot more on character development and conversation. The moviemakers made these movies with the general assumption that people had the time to watch these longer films. Today, modern films are focused on actions that adapt to our everyday life.
It's true that in the first decades of cinema movies were shorter, they were on average 90 minutes long in early 1930s and reached 100–110 minutes in mid-'50s.
Before and during the 1920's films had used tinting and toning by putting it in dye and by 1920 80-90% of film had some form of tinting or toning. The first film camera was a two color camera that switched colors every frame called the kinemacolor camera used in Durbar at delhi.
Live theater flourished during the 1920s, with a steady flow of finely written, introspective dramas and fast-paced, cynical comedies from contemporary writers. Theatergoers in New York City could choose from an array of plays staged at various Broadway venues or in the outer neighborhoods, such as Greenwich Village.
The primary steps in the commercialization of sound cinema were taken in the mid-to-late 1920s. At first, the sound films which included synchronized dialogue, known as "talking pictures", or "talkies", were exclusively shorts. The earliest feature-length movies with recorded sound included only music and effects.
