Definitive Books of history of MGM, Warners, Fox, Etc...

[Shane91]

I am starting to flesh out my classic film book collection. And I have been trying to track down the best books on the history of the studio era, Scott Eyman's Lion Of Hollywood has been recommended to me as the definitive book about MGM, and there are others about Warner Bro's I am considering purchasing. I was wondering if anyone here can give me some recommendations, particularly for books about Fox, as there does not seem to be many out there. Thanks

[wingate]

In relation to RKO can I suggest
RKO RADIO PICTURES,a titan is born Jewell
RKO the biggest little major of them all Lasky
There are the Octopus series of books which cover the film's and studio histories of all the majors except Fox.
I have to say that I am not that keen on Dylan's style as a writer.Also for some reason he wants to defend the indefensible ie L B Mayer.You could try Bosley Crowthers The Lions Roar.
As for Fox,that is a problem as I don't know a really good book on their entire history.Anyone else out there know one ?

[missdupont]

Aubrey Solomon has written FOX FILM CORPORATION, 1915-1935. He's also one of the co-writers of the book, THE FILMS OF TWENTIETH CENTURY-FOX.

Columbia - THE COLUMBIA STORY
MGM - THE MGM STORY
Paramount - THE PARAMOUNT STORY
etc.

Warners
Rudy Behlmer's INSIDE WARNER BROS.

THE GENIUS OF THE SYSTEM shows the evolution of the studio system through the prism of four studios.

[Shane91]

Thanks for the recommendations, there seems to be something of a blindspot when it comes to Fox. I would love a great history, particully the 1940's -1950's, a great era for them.

[Mike Gebert]

Another vote for The Genius of the System.

[JFK]

Habit has nothing to do with Fox, but it got DFZ into the industry

[Dean Thompson]

A third vote for The Genius of the System: it's an outstanding synthesis.

[Michael F. Blake]

MAYER & THALBERG: MAKE-BELIEVE SAINTS by Samuel Marx

Great history of Mayer, Thalberg before the formation on MGM and then up through Thalberg's death. Marx knew all of them and was there, which gives the book a LOT of gravitas.

I also heartily recommend GENIUS OF THE SYSTEM!

[Dean Thompson]

One more: while it's not the story of a single studio per se, Scott Eyman's THE SPEED OF SOUND: HOLLYWOOD AND THE TALKIE REVOLUTION 1926-1930 is a great overview of the industry at a pivotal point in its history. Really, though, nearly all of Eyman's biographies (of Wayne, DeMille, Ford, Lubisch, Mayer) will tell you much about the rise, zenith, and decline of the studio system and, depending on the subject, sometimes are quite studio specific.

[boblipton]

I think the net agreement here is that if you want to read a good, well-researched book about Hollywood, you won't make a mistake with Scott Eyman,

Bob

[Dean Thompson]

Amen to that, Bob.

[linquist]

As far as I can tell, there is no archives or books on the early years of Fox. I heard that the reason is that when the corporation took the company away from William Fox, they threw out all the records. I do have the Fox/Wurtzel book and there is a lot left out of those conversations that would be nice to know about. Very little on the major Fox films from DAUGHTER OF THE GODS to QUEEN OF SHEBA, although the problems with the actors are pretty entertaining. And, if I remember correctly, the Upton Sinclair book is mostly about William Fox's attempt to strike back at the corporate takeover of his company.
Can someone enlighten us on this situation?

Alan

[Dave Pitts]

One more vote for Genius of the System -- I keep going back to it and marveling at how much is conveyed, with concision, about how the studios were organized and how production teams operated. A couple of the studios survived because of the fluke of having a major new talent signed -- and they knew how to groom them and get every last dollar out of them. In this context, there's a compelling section on Universal and Deanna Durbin.
Inside Warner Brothers isn't on the same level of analysis, but it's totally addictive reading -- page after page of office memos, long personal letters, even (if I remember rightly) a transcript of a phone call from an angry Bogey. The letter Basil Rathbone writes, in deep humiliation, over a screen test he believes he flubbed (for the leading man in Dark Victory) is priceless. This one won't tell you everything about the power structure (although there are plenty of 'power lectures' from Sam Warner to his directors and producers), but it will bring the personalities involved to vivid life. I've done a lot of late night reading in this (and in the collected David O. Selznick memos -- in his case, talk about OCD!!)

[Dave Pitts]

Oy -- I absolutely meant to say JACK Warner. That's politely known as a brain burp, or the peril of keyboarding without coffee nearby.

[Brooksie]

Once you know the general sweep of individual studios' histories, a couple that get down to the nitty gritty:

Tino Balio's two-volume history of United Artists is a little dry but worthwhile - probably the first volume moreso than the second, because it explains the company's structure, which was significantly different from the major studios.

Another useful two-volume history - Richard B. Jewell's two books on RKO, the second of which came out last year. I only wish more of the original material he referred to was available to other researchers.

[Harlowgold]

I think the net agreement here is that if you want to read a good, well-researched book about Hollywood, you won't make a mistake with Scott Eyman,

Bob

Well, I for one disliked his Mary Pickford biography which I felt was overly negative and ungenerous to her on many levels. And I don't admire any writer who can't be bothered with sources for their claims.

[Harlowgold]

Aubrey Solomon has written FOX FILM CORPORATION, 1915-1935. He's also one of the co-writers of the book, THE FILMS OF TWENTIETH CENTURY-FOX.

Columbia - THE COLUMBIA STORY
MGM - THE MGM STORY
Paramount - THE PARAMOUNT STORY
etc.

Warners
Rudy Behlmer's INSIDE WARNER BROS.

THE GENIUS OF THE SYSTEM shows the evolution of the studio system through the prism of four studios.

Those THE [studio] STORY books are my favorites, there's also volumes on RKO, Warner Bros, and United Artists. None seem to be written with quite as much affection and detail as the original MGM STORY but all of them are very good and can often be found remarkably cheap online in used versions particularly considering how much they weigh.