Produced by Irving Thalberg

Theory of Studio-Era Filmmaking

Add to my list

by Ana Salzberg

Type

Biographies

Subject

Others persons > Irving Thalberg

Keywords

Irving Thalberg, Hollywood, Studio, MGM

Publishing date

2020

Publisher

Edinburgh University Press

Language

English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Hardcover • 256 pages
6 x 9 ¼ inches (15.5 x 23.5 cm)

ISBN

978-1-4744-5104-8

User Ratings

(0 vote)

X

Average rating:

0	rating	= We can do without
0	rating	= Good book
0	rating	= Excellent book
0	rating	= Unique / a reference

Your rating: -

Book Presentation:
Explores Irving Thalberg's importance as not only a producer, but also a theorist of studio-era filmmaking
• Offers a critical reappraisal of Thalberg’s legacy
• Provides in-depth analyses of Thalberg’s productions at MGM from 1924 through 1936
• Examines Thalberg’s impact on film-historical turning points, including the transition to sound cinema and the development of the Production Code

Irving Thalberg was not just a critically important producer during Hollywood’s Golden Age, but also an innovative theorist of studio-era filmmaking. Drawing on archival sources, this is the first book to explore Thalberg’s insights into casting, editing, story composition and the importance of the mass audience from a theoretical perspective. It examines Thalberg’s impact on film-historical turning points, such as the transition to sound cinema and the development of the Production Code, and features in-depth analyses of Thalberg’s productions at MGM from 1924 to 1936, including films like The Big Parade (1925), The Broadway Melody of 1929 (1929) and Romeo and Juliet (1936). The book argues that Thalberg’s views represent a unified conceptual understanding of filmmaking – one that is still significant in the modern day.

About the Author:
Dr Ana Salzberg is is Senior Lecturer in Film Studies at the University of Edinburgh. She is the author of Produced by Irving Thalberg: Theory of Studio-Era Filmmaking (Edinburgh University Press, 2020) and Beyond the Looking Glass: Narcissism and Female Stardom in Studio-Era Hollywood (Berghahn Books, 2014).

Press Reviews:
In this original interpretation of Irving Thalberg’s role as MGM’s creative centre, Ana Salzberg makes an important contribution to the growing field of producer studies and to our understanding of the operation of the Hollywood studio system. Analysing his key filmmaking concepts of entertainment value, "oblique casting," and each film’s "one great scene," Salzberg creates a portrait of Thalberg as a scholar of his profession and a significant theorist of studio-era filmmaking.– Professor Richard Maltby, Flinders University

In this original interpretation of Irving Thalberg’s role as MGM’s creative centre, Ana Salzberg makes an important contribution to the growing field of producer studies and to our understanding of the operation of the Hollywood studio system. Analysing his key filmmaking concepts of entertainment value, "oblique casting," and each film’s "one great scene," Salzberg creates a portrait of Thalberg as a scholar of his profession and a significant theorist of studio-era filmmaking.– Professor Richard Maltby, Flinders University

See the publisher website: Edinburgh University Press