Those Who Made It by Palgrave Macmillan Humanities

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

© John C. Tibbetts 2015 Foreword © David Thomson 2015 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identiﬁed as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2015 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martin’s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries. ISBN 978–1–137–54189–5 hardback ISBN 978–1–137–54190–1 paperback This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Tibbetts, John C. Those who made it : speaking with the legends of Hollywood / John C. Tibbetts. pages cm ISBN 978–1–137–54190–1 (paperback) 1. Motion picture industry—United States—History—20th century. 2. Motion picture producers and directors—United States—Interviews. 3. Cinematographers—United States—Interviews. I. Title. PN1993.5.U6T53 2015 791.430973—dc23 2015019596 Typeset by MPS Limited, Chennai, India.

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Contents List of Figures

Foreword by David Thomson

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Interviews and Conversations

1 Innovations in 1920s and 1930s Hollywood Cinematography, Sound Technology, and Feature-Length Animation Cinematographer Glen MacWilliams: “We were trained by trial and error!” Sound engineer Bernard B. Brown: “Now hear this!” Animator Ollie Johnston: “We are just actors with a pencil!”

7 7 19 25

2 Hollywood at Home and at War in the 1940s Producer John Houseman: “It was a great magic act!” Catherine Wyler and the crew of The Memphis Belle: “In the crossfire of history and fiction”

34 34

3 Cold War Film and Television in the 1950s Writer Ray Bradbury: “All my short stories can be shot right off the page!” Television showman “Buffalo Bob” Smith: “Fifty years later Howdy is still just ten years old!” Hollywood stuntman Richard Farnsworth: “The ground got too hard!”

4 “New Hollywood” Filmmakers in the 1970s and 1980s Director Robert Altman: “My films are not factual; they are truthful!” (Additional remarks from set designer Stephen Altman) Director Steven Spielberg on The Color Purple: “I didn’t want to make another E.T.!” (Additional remarks from actress Whoopi Goldberg) Cinematographer Allen Daviau: “Every film I do is a year out of my life!” Director Terry Gilliam: “I see things with cartoonist’s eyes!” Director Michael Moore: “I’m supposed to be making a Buick!” (Additional remarks from producer Wendey Stanzler) Producer Jim Henson: “Kermit is always here!” (Additional remarks from production assistant Cheryl Henson)

vii

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

56 63 70

99 116 123 132

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 viii

Contents

Special effects producer Richard Edlund: “You only see the stars from the dark side of the moon!” Film editor Neal Travis: “I’m creating a pattern!”

137 143

5 Late Twentieth Century Cultural Inclusion Director Bernardo Bertolucci: “Movies are my sand mandalas!” Director Wayne Wang: “Epic radiance!” Director Mira Nair: “I love to choreograph the chaos!” Director George Miller: “People understand car crashes in any language!” Composer Philip Glass: “Films become history quicker than any other art!” Film critic Roger Ebert: “Everybody’s a critic!”

154 154 162 167

6 Epilogue: Past is Prologue Film preservationist Kevin Brownlow: “I never expected to make my living at film preservation!” Composer Carl Davis: “Why don’t I try to score a complete silent film?”

197

Notes

209

Index

227

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

171 178 188

197 200

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Introduction: Interviews and Conversations

“We had good talk, sir!” —Samuel Johnson The cover photo of this book depicts Steven Spielberg conferring with Whoopi Goldberg on the set of the director’s landmark classic, The Color Purple (1985). The film would not only have a profound impact on the career trajectories of both director and actor, but would mark a significant moment in the history of Classical Hollywood—from the 1920s to the waning years of the last century—as will be seen in this and many other interviews and conversations about films and filmmaking in this book. Hollywood, as we have come to know it, seems always to have been around. Even back in the dusty nickelodeon days, before that “mystic commotion” of flickering images became the big business of a global industry, we sensed its presence and its promise. Only the benefit of years of hindsight, however, rather than the application of calipers and measuring sticks, can gain us any sense of its proper proportion. Similarly, only now, as I take the long view of my more than 40 years of interviews—a selection of which is collected in this volume—can I grasp the composite portrait of Hollywood it affords. I could echo the words of Otis Ferguson, written in 1940: The movies were upon us before anyone had time to grow up and become a professor in them. They literally grew out of the people, the hundreds of thousands of people who jumped in to produce, distribute, exhibit, direct, write for, or act in a popular commodity.1 Thus, like Hollywood itself, Those Who Made It just sort of accumulated. Once inside these talks, I am now outside them. I can see that, taken together, they provide a kind of running oral commentary on the history of classical Hollywood. The result is not unlike the classic Grimm tale, “The Juniper Tree,” wherein those scattered bones hint at a deeper, collective shape and meaning. 1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 2

Those Who Made It

What was it like to work “behind the scenes,” away from the spotlight’s glare, in Hollywood’s so-called “Golden Age”? The complexity of the film industry involves a collective interchange among the directors, producers, cinematographers, writers, animators, editors, composers, stunt persons, critics, and, yes, historians and film preservationists. Differentiating their distinctive roles is, as always, a complicated endeavor. In its own modest way, the first-hand interviews and conversations in Those Who Made It provide some sense of identification. Moreover, they consider crucial moments and developments in the speakers’ personal and professional experiences.2 These were the years spanning the dawn of sound to the expanded global reach of the new century, when the so-called “classical modes” of studio production, technological innovation, narrative paradigms, genre paradigms, and business practices were developed, standardized, and extended. Despite the many shocks to that system, including federally-imposed consent decrees, the competition of television, an evolving social consciousness, experiments in narrative strategies, and the rise of independent filmmakers and modes of distribution and exhibition, etc., it can (and has) been argued that classical Hollywood absorbed them all and prevailed. As Jean-Luc Godard noted in 1980, “Hollywood no longer exists in the same way, but it re-exists in another way.”3 This chorus of voices, is a diverse lot, to be sure. Moving from one to the other pin-wheels us off in many directions. But the “voice” that unifies them all is mine. I sought out these encounters myself, video camera and tape recorder in hand; with no apologies, I approached them with respect and affection. The soul of good conversation, after all, is sympathy. Except for a few opportunities in television studios and on Hollywood studioorganized junkets, most were done in the more intimate, casual confines of private homes, classrooms, back stage, even a few bars and watering holes. I have found that in the relative unreserve of such private discourse, as William Hazlitt has observed, The subjects are more at liberty to say what they think, to put the subject in different and opposite points of view … to obviate misconception, to state difficulties on their own side of the argument, and answer them as well as they can.4 I took advantage of my privileged access as a former radio and television journalist for CBS television, pursued inside contacts in Hollywood as editor of the National Film Society’s American Classic Screen, and deployed academic connections as a Professor of Film at the University of Kansas. Finally, I found these people at specific moments in time. Some look back at their careers from the long end of history; while others are in the moment, reacting to the flux and change of their personal and professional lives.

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 Introduction: Interviews and Conversations

At this point, readers of this book might well ask, Can we expect these artists to talk as well as they practice their craft? Judge for yourself. Somewhat vexing is another question … are these talks interviews or conversations? There is a difference, although it is not easy to define. To my mind, some of the two-way exchanges in this book—most of which are published here in their complete state for the first time—encourage and enjoy the relative ease, give-and-take, and informality of a conversation. Others display the more formally interrogative agendas of an interview. If pressed to the wall, I would select as “interviews” my talks with cinematographer Allen Daviau, sound technician Bernard B. Brown, and special effects wizard Richard Edlund. They speak in almost clinical detail about, respectively, the collaborative process between cinematographer and director, the complexities of melding music and image, and the challenges of new digital effects technologies. By contrast, the conversations with critic Roger Ebert, veteran stuntman Richard Farnsworth, and maverick director Robert Altman are full of free-wheeling anecdotes and candid opinions. Somewhere in between are Terry Gilliam, Ray Bradbury, and Michael Moore who kick at the windmills of the Hollywood establishment. Conversations … or interviews? Best take Yogi Berra’s advice: If you come to a fork in the road, “Take it!” By the way, I have resisted the temptation to flesh them out into prose essays. I have left them in their original conversational form, exercising only a judicious use of punctuation and organizational clarity to ensure their readability on the page. My subjects are grouped in a rough chronology spanning almost 80 years, decade by decade. Chapter One takes us back to the 1920s through the 1930s, when cinematographer Glen MacWilliams, sound technician Bernard B. Brown, and Disney animator Ollie Johnston introduced new technologies and approaches to their craft. MacWilliams recalls shooting silent westerns in the ‘teens, grappling with early talking picture technology in the late 1920s, photographing musical films in the 1930s, and working with Alfred Hitchcock on the classic Lifeboat. Brown takes us back to the soundstage of the landmark The Jazz Singer; Ollie Johnston reveals the collaborative efforts of Disney’s “Nine Old Men” in the making of those enduring masterpieces, Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Peter Pan, etc. In Chapter Two, Hollywood takes to the skies to bring Second World War aerial combat to home front audiences with the classic documentary, Memphis Belle; and director Orson Welles collaborates with producer John Houseman to revolutionize film form and expression in the groundbreaking Citizen Kane. Producer Catherine Wyler and reunited crew members of the titular B-17 bomber debate the facts and the fictions of the film. And producer John Houseman wryly recalls the difficulties of working with Welles on stage and screen.

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 4

Those Who Made It

Chapter Three examines the Cold War in the 1950s and 1960s through the lenses of science fiction movies, action pictures, and the newly emerging medium of commercial television. Ray Bradbury, in 1990, on the occasion of his 50th anniversary as a professional writer, recounts his struggles to bring his fantastic visions to movies and television. Television producer “Buffalo Bob” Smith and his puppet “Howdy Doody” bring “live” children’s entertainment into the home. Finally, veteran stuntman Richard Farnsworth recounts the thrills and hazards of a career that spanned four decades, from top stuntman to featured player in a series of revisionist westerns. Chapter Four traces new directions in1970s and 1980s Hollywood in narrative and documentary structures, social themes, children’s entertainment, and special effects, as represented by conversations and interviews with Robert Altman, Steven Spielberg, Allen Daviau, Terry Gilliam, Michael Moore, Jim Henson, Richard Edlund, and Neal Travis. Robert Altman was the standard bearer of the so-called “Hollywood Renaissance” that brought a newly personalized and idiosyncratic attitude to filmmaking. In 1991 he looks back on his career and anticipates future film projects as he revisits his roots in his home town of Kansas City. Steven Spielberg and his cameraman, Allen Daviau, worked together during the formative years of Spielberg’s career in the 1980s. Here they talk in 1985 about their work on the newly released The Color Purple, the film that marked new directions in Spielberg’s growing sensitivity to the AfricanAmerican experience in America. (A brief note brings Whoopi Goldberg into the conversation.) As one of the screen’s Bad Boys, former Monty Python regular Terry Gilliam waxes wroth in 1985 about the censorship and studio interference dogging the release of Brazil. Indisputably America’s master cinematic provocateur, Michael Moore is just starting out on his career in 1989 as he anticipates the release of his breakout film, Roger & Me. In 1986 the creator of the Muppets, Jim Henson, talks about his life and work on the occasion of the release of the film Labyrinth, which took his Muppets into new, more dramatic directions (Kermit makes a special guest appearance). Richard Edlund is the dean of special-effects wizards, and when we met in 1984 he hailed the digital innovations of the newly released 2010, a sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey. Lastly, film editor Neal Travis had just completed editing of Patriot Games when he sat down with me in 1992 to talk about editing in general and, in particular, his work with first-time director Kevin Costner on Dances with Wolves. Chapter Five traces the years leading up to the new century as Hollywood adopts a new cultural and ethnic inclusiveness. The Italian master Bernardo Bertolucci is heard in two interviews, in 1987 and 1994; and he shares his

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 Introduction: Interviews and Conversations

experiences in filming The Last Emperor in the Forbidden City in China and Little Buddha in India. He concludes his remarks with a touching valedictory to Federico Fellini, who had just passed away at the time of the latter interview. Hong Kong-born and American educated, Wayne Wang has brought to the American cinema a distinctly Chinese-American subject and sensibility. Here he is in 1993 on the occasion of the release of his most commercially successful film, The Joy Luck Club. Mira Nair brought her Indian heritage and sensibility to Hollywood in 1988 with the first of her acclaimed films, Salaam Bombay! Here, on the threshold of her career, she shares the challenges of her multi-ethnic vision. George Miller was one of the leaders of the Australian New Wave in the late 1970s and 1980s, as he and others of his generation—Peter Weir, Bruce Beresford, and Gillian Armstrong—brought Australian history, landscape, and vernacular to American audiences. Here he is, in July 1983, on the occasion of the release of The Road Warrior, the second of his “Mad Max” trilogy. Philip Glass is a “cross-over” composer, successfully bridging classical and popular modes and venues in the concert hall and in his film scores. We find him here in 1987 as he works on the Koyaanisqat trilogy for Godfrey Reggio. Surveying it all is critic Roger Ebert. Speaking from his Chicago home in October 1991, he reassesses the practices and agendas of his work as a film critic, and, on a more personal level, anticipates his impending marriage to Chaz Hammel-Smith. Chapter Six serves as an Epilogue. With the new century, classical Hollywood seems to retreat into its own past, indulging in a succession of memorabilia auctions and museum displays; congratulating itself in endless awards ceremonies, nostalgia channels and celebrity cruises; and recycling its own past in endless sequels, reboots and retreads. Its once-glorious vision threatens to be reduced to the size of hand-held mobile devices. At the same time, thankfully, the last three decades have also seen an emerging generation of film preservationists working worldwide to honor and restore, not exploit, our film heritage. Speaking from their homes in London, in 1995, film historian/preservationist Kevin Brownlow and composer Carl Davis collaborate on restoring the glory days of the film past to new audiences and new venues. Past is prologue. We end where we began. I invite you to tilt your ear closely to these pages. And listen. You might well fancy that you hear the voices. Imagine, if you will, the warmly fluid cadences of “down under” Australian George Miller; the soft, slow, halting whisper of Richard Farnsworth; the insistent, rapid-fire barrages of Terry

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 6

Those Who Made It

Gilliam; the measured, “cultivated” cadences of John Houseman; the gruff growls of Allen Daviau; the flattened Midwestern drawl of Robert Altman; the clipped speech inflections of the Indian-born Mira Nair; and the rhythmic flourishes of the Italian Bernardo Bertolucci, etc. Their accents and diction may vary; but their lingua franca is the cinema itself. I invite you to read on … and, in a very real sense, lend an ear …

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Index NOTE: Unless otherwise indicated, all italicized titles designate motion pictures Acting Company, 34, see Houseman, John Air Force, 213chap2n16 see also Memphis Belle (documentary film) Allen, Dede, 147 Altman, Robert, 4, 6, 82, 83–84, 87 and Calvin Films, 84–85 and Hollywood Renaissance, 82–83 and Kansas City, 82–83, 89–90 and television, 83, 85 filmmaking techniques, 85–86, 87–88, 90, 91, 92 on films, Brewster McCloud, 83 on Come Back to the 5 and Dime, 83 on Long Goodbye, 86 on M*A*S*H, 83 on McCabe & Mrs. Miller, 83, 86 on Popeye, 83 on Rossini, Rossini, 91–92 on Shortcuts, 91 on Tanner’ 88, 83, 91, 218chap4n11 on Vincent and Theo, 86–89 student workshop, 89–90 Altman, Stephen, 87 as set designer, 87–89, 90, 217chap4n1 comments on father, 90 Amblin, 100 See Daviau, Allen American Classic Screen magazine, 2, 209chap1n2, 211chap1n28 Animation, see Disney, Walt Arliss, George, 22 Armstrong, Gillian, 5, 172 Association of Moving Image Archivists (AMIA), 225chap6n6 Australian New Wave, 224chap5n22–25 see also Miller, George Babbitt, Art, 29 See Johnston, Ollie Bad and the Beautiful, The, see Houseman, John

Bambi, see Johnston, Ollie Beresford, Bruce, 5, 172 Barhydt, Frank, 85 on Robert Altman, 217chap4n5 Bertolucci, Bernardo, 154 early years, 160 on Buddhism, 158–159 on China’s Cultural Revolution, 154, 156–157 on death of Federico Fellini, 162 on Forbidden City, 157, 222chap5n6 on films The Conformist, 154 Last Emperor, The, 154, 155–158, 159 Little Buddha, 155, 157–162 1900, 154 Red Harvest, 157 Spiders Strategem, The, 154 on the nouvelle vague/ neo-realism, 156 on Storaro, Vittorio, 161, 222chap5n10 on Verdi operas, 155, 156, 161, 221–222chap5n3–4 on Visconti, Luchino, 156 Bitzer, Billy, see MacWilliams, Glen Black, Gregory, 34 Blitzstein, Mark, 41 Booth, Margaret, 148, 221chap4n51 Boss Film Company, 138, see Edlund, Richard, Bradbury, Ray, 3, 4, 56, 70 love of movies, 56, 57, 60 on collaboration with Joseph Mugnaini, 60–61 on 50th anniversary, 57, 63 on films, Fahrenheit 451, 57 Halloween Tree, 61–62 Icarus Montgolfier Wright, 60–61, 214chap3n10 The Illustrated Man, 59 Moby Dick and John Huston, 58–59, 214chap3n5

227

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 228

Index

Bradbury – continued on Picasso Summer, 59 It Came from Outer Space, 56, 214chp3n2 The Martian Chronicles, 58, 62 Ray Bradbury Theater, 57, 62, 214chap3n3, 215chap3n11 Something Wicked This Way Comes, 59–60, 214chap3n9 on Jones, Chuck, 61–62 on metaphors, 57 on screenwriting, 56–63 on Truffaut, Francois, 57, 59 Brazil, 4, 116 see Gilliam, Terry Brewster McCloud, 83 see Altman, Robert Brown, Bernard B., 3, 7, 25 on Durbin, Deanna, 22 on early sound technology and Warner Bros., 19–25 on The Jazz Singer, 20–25 on Universal Studios, 19, 22 Brownlow, Kevin, 5, 70, 197, 201 as collaborator with Davis, Carl, 199–200 as silent- film preservationist, 197–200 on academia, 200 on Brown, Clarence, 198 on films, Hollywood television series, 199 It Happened Here, 198 Winstanley, 198 on Parade’s Gone By (book), 198 on Gill, David, 199 on Shepard, David, 200 Calvin Films (see Robert Altman) Campbell, Joseph, 172 Canutt, Yakima, see Farnsworth, Richard, Cassavetes, John, 83 Caton-Jones, Michael, 43 see Memphis Belle (theatrical movie) Cavens, Fred, see Farnsworth, Richard Chan Is Missing, see Wang, Wayne Chesterton, G.K., iii Citizen Kane, 3, x, 34, see Houseman, John Clarke, Arthur C., 141 Clark, Les, 29

Close Encounters of the Third Kind, see Spielberg, Steven Cocteau Trilogy, see Glass, Philip, Color Purple, The (book and movie), 4, 93, 99, 218chap4n13–14 see Spielberg, Steven Come Back to the 5 & Dime, 83 see Altman, Robert Comes a Horseman, 70 see Farnsworth, Richard Coogan, Jackie, 7 see MacWilliams, Glen Coppola, Carmine, see Davis, Carl, Coppola, Francis Ford, 83, 179 see Davis, Carl Costner, Kevin, see Travis, Neil Cowboys, The, 143 see Travis, Neil Cradle Will Rock (play) see Houseman, John Crisp, Donald, 10 Crosby, Bing, 22 Cujo, 143 see Travis, Neil Dances with Wolves, see Travis, Neil Dark Crystal, The, see Henson, Jim Daviau, Allen, 3, 4, 6, 82, 93, 99 collaborations with Steven Spielberg, 100–116 early career, 101–101 on films, Amblin, 102–103 Close Encounters, 105 The Color Purple, 100–116 Duel, 105 E.T., 106–108 Grey Fox, The, 102 Schindler’s List, 109 Twilight Zone: The Movie, 108 on photographic techniques, 102, 112–114, 115 on Technicolor, 109–110 on theater exhibition quality control, 100–101, 115–116 Davis, Carl, 5, 197 as collaborator with Kevin Brownlow, 199–200, 202–203 on affective properties in music, on American citizenship, 201–202

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 Index on composing for silent films, 202, 203, 205, 208 on composing for sound films, 200, 202 on films City Lights, 205 Flesh and the Devil, 205 French Lieutenant’s Woman, 206–207 The General, 205 Greed, 205–206 Hollywood television series, 202 Napoleon, 201, 203–204, 207 on Rainbow, The, 207 The Wind, 205 on World at War, The, 202 on Honneger, Arthur, 203 on Reisz, Karel, 200, 206–207 on Rozsa, Miklos, 206 on Russell, Ken, 207 Davis, Marc, 32 See “Nine Old Men” Der Fuehrer’s Face, see Johnston, Ollie Dim Sum, 162 see Wang, Wayne Directed by William Wyler (documentary film), 49 Disney Animation (book), see Johnston, Ollie Disney, Roy, see Johnston, Ollie Disney, Walt, see Johnston, Ollie Donald Duck, see Johnston, Ollie Duerksen, Menno, 43, 54–55 see Memphis Belle (documentary film) and revisionist history) Dumbo, see Johnston, Ollie Dwan, Allan, 14–15 Ebert, Chaz, 225chap5n31 See Ebert, Roger Ebert, Roger, 3, 5, 154, 167, 188 engagement to Chaz Hammel-Smith 188, 195 home life, 189, 195 on art collecting, 188, 189 on artist biopics, 194 on Compuserve, 192 on film criticism, 189–190, 192–193, 195–196 on Joy Luck Club, 223chap5n14

229

on laser-disc technology, 189–191 on Perfect London Walk (book), 224chap5n29 on Siskel, Gene, 190 Edlund, Richard, 3, 4, 82, 137 awards, 138 Boss Film Company, 220chap4n40 early career, 137–138 on Trumbull, Douglas, 142 on Entertainment Effects Group, 140 on films, Empire Strikes Back, 138 Return of the Jedi, 142 Star Wars, 139, 142 2010, 138–143 2001: A Space Odyssey, 140 on Hyams, Peter, 141, 143 on special effects, 139–143 on Kubrick, Stanley, 140 on “Showscan” process, 142–143 Industrial Light and Magic, 138, 140 Empire of the Sun, see Daviau, Allen, Empire Strikes Back, 138 See Edlund, Richard Entertainment Effects Group (EEG), see Edlund, Richard E.T.: The Extraterrestial, see Daviau, Allen Evergreen, 7 Fahrenheit 451, 57 see Bradbury, Ray Fairbanks, Douglas, Sr., 13, 78, 210chap1n6–7 see also MacWilliams, Glen Fantasia, 3 see Johnston, Ollie Farnsworth, Richard, 5, 6, 70, 102, 138 early years, 70, 75 on acting, 77, 79–80 on Canutt, Yakima, 77, 79, 216chap3n28 on Cavens, Fred, 78, 217chap3n32 on films Comes a Horseman, 80 Fort Apache, 74 Grey Fox, The, 71–73, 74 Sylvester, 81 Tom Horn, 74 The Warlord, 79 on Ford, John, 73–74, 77

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 230

Index

Farnsworth, Richard – continued on Hawks, Howard 76 on Mahoney, Jock, 77 on McQueen, Steve, 74–75 on Sharpe, David, 78 on stunting, 71–81 on westerns, 71–72, 74 Federal Theater, 213chap2n12 see Houseman, John Fellini, Federico, 156 see Bertolucci, Bernardo Ferguson, Otis, 1, 209Intron1 Fleming, Victor, 210chap1n7 see MacWilliams, Glen Fort Apache, see Farnsworth, Richard Ford, John, see Farnsworth, Richard Frank & Ollie, 26 French Lieutenant’s Woman, see Davis, Carl Gallipoli, see Miller, George Gance, Abel, 197, 201 Garland, Judy, 22 Gibson, Mel, 172 see Miller, George Gilbert, John, 22 Gill, David, 225chap5n4 see Brownlow, Kevin Gilliam, Terry, 3, 4, 6, 82, 116, 123 as cartoonist, 120–121 on Monty Python, 120–1 21 on Brazil controversy, 116–123 on Brazil special effects, 121–122 on religion, 119 on satire, 116–117, 120, 122 Glass, Philip, 5, 154, 178, 184 as film composer, 179, 180–181, 183 on Auric, Georges, 185 on home life, 187 on Jean Cocteau Trilogy, 184–186 on Koyaanisqatsi trilogy and Godfrey Reggio, 178, 180, 182 on minimalist music, 180 on Mishima,184 on Riesman, Michael, 186 on Schrader, Paul, 184 on stage concerts, 181–182, 186–188, Godard, Jean-Luc, 2, 209intron3 Goldberg, Whoopi, 1, 4, 93, 98–99, 109 See also Spielberg, Steven

Greed, see Davis, Carl Grey Fox, The, 70, 216chap3n25 see Farnsworth, Richard Halloween Tree, The see Bradbury, Ray Hammel-Smith, Chaz, see Ebert, Chaz Hammond, Percy, 36 Harryhausen, Ray, 56, 139, 220chap4n37 Hazlitt, William, 2, 209intron4 He Comes Up Smiling, see MacWilliams, Glen Hell’s Angels, see MacWilliams, Glen Henson, Jim, 4, 82, 132 creator of Muppets, 132–133 Creature Shop, The death of, 220chap4n32 on films, Dark Crystal, 134, 136 Labyrinth, 134–136 Muppet Show, The, 132 Muppets Take Manhattan, The, 136 Storyteller, The, 132 Wizard of Oz, The, 134 on Disney, Walt, 133 on family life, 134 on Kermit the Frog, 133–134, 136 on Sendak, Maurice, 134 sale of company to Walt Disney Company, 220chap4n32 Henson, Cheryl, 134 family life, 134, 136–137 on Labyrinth, 137 Herrmann, Bernard, 191 His Majesty the American (book), 15 Hitchcock, Alfred, 7 Lifeboat, see MacWilliams, Glen Hollywood, books about, 209intron2 censorship of, 116–123 Cold War, 4, 56, 63 cultural inclusion, 5, 154–155, 223chap5n16–18 “Golden Age,” of, 2, 197 “New Hollywood”/ “Renaissance”, 2, 4, 82–83, 217chap2n14 nostalgia, 1, 5, 197 patent war, 209chap1n4 photographic technologies, development of, 7–13

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 Index studio system, development of, 2, 7, 34 talkies, development of, 2, 3, 13–17, 20–25, 210chap1n14–19 World War II propaganda, 3, 30–31, 42–43, 213chap2n14 Hollywood (television series), see Brownlow, Kevin and Davis, Carl Honneger, Arthur, see Davis, Carl, Houseman, John, x, 3, 34 Acting Company, The, 34, 40 as producer Bad and the Beautiful, 36 Citizen Kane, 34, 38–39 Cradle Will Rock (play), 34, 40–42, 213chap2n13 Horse Eats Hat (play), 37 Julius Caesar, 34, 36 They Live By Night, 34, 39–40 Too Much Johnson (play and film), 37, 212chap2n5 “Voodoo Macbeth” (play), 36–37, 212chap2n2 War of the Worlds (radio drama), 37–38 controversy over the script of Citizen Kane, 39 Federal Theater, 34, 35–36, 41–42, 213chap2n12 in Hollywood, 34 memoirs, 34, 41, 42 Mankiewicz, Herman, 38–39 Mercury Theater, 34, 35–36 Welles, Orson, impressions of, 35 Howdy Doody Show, 56, 63 see Smith, “Buffalo Bob” Huston, John, see Bradbury, Ray, Hwang, David, 224chap5n28 Hyams, Peter, see Edlund, Richard, Illustrated Man, The, 57 see Bradbury, Ray India Cabaret, 167, see Nair, Mira Industrial Light and Magic, 138, see Edlund, Richard, It Came from Outer Space, 56 See Bradbury, Ray It Happened Here, 225chap6n2 see Brownlow, Kevin

231

Jazz Singer, The, 3, 19 see Brown, Bernard B. Johnson, Ben, see Farnsworth, Richard Johnston, Ollie, 3, 7, 25, 33 early days as Disney apprentice, 26–27 on films Bambi, 28–29 Cinderella, 29 Der Fuehrer’s Face, 30–31 Dumbo, 28 Fantasia, 28–29 Jungle Book, 29 “Old Mill, The,” 27 101 Dalmations, 29 Pinocchio, 28 Silly Symphonies, 27 Snow White, 27–28 “Steamboat Willie”, 27 Three Caballeros, The, 31 Victory through Air Power, 30–31 on character animation, 26–27 on Disney, Roy, 28 on Disney Animation (book), 26, 32 on Donald Duck, 30 on Mickey Mouse, 26, 27, 29 on “The Nine Old Men,” 31–32, 211chap1n24 Babbitt, Art, 29 Kahl, Milt 29, 32 Kimball, Ward 29, 30, 32 Moore, Fred 26, 29, 32 Reitherman, Woolie 29, 32 Thomas, Frank 26, 29–32, 33 Tytla, Bill 29, 30 on Stokowski, Leopold, 28 Disney, Walt, impressions of, 28, 30 Jones, Chuck, (see Bradbury, Ray) Jones, Quincy, see Spielberg, Steven Joy Luck Club, The, 5, 163 see Wang, Wayne Jungle Book, The See Johnston, Ollie Kael, Pauline, 154, 212chap2n9 Kauffman, Stanley, 154 Keaton, Buster, 198–199 Keeshan, Bob, 215chap3n17 Kennedy, Byron see Miller, George

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 232

Index

Koyaanisqatsi Trilogy, 5, 178 see Glass, Philip Kubrick, Stanley, 140 Labyrinth, 4, 132 see Henson, Jim Last Emperor, The, 5, 154 see Bertolucci, Bernardo Letter from an Unknown Woman, see Houseman, John Lewton, Val, 40 Lifeboat, 3 See MacWilliams, Glen Lindsay, Vachel, 176 Little Buddha, 155 see Bertolucci, Bernardo Little Nemo see Bradbury, Ray Loos, Anita, 17 “Mad Max Films”, 170–171, see Miller, George MacWilliams, Glen, 3, 7, 8, 199 early days, 7–9 on Bitzer, Billy, on Fairbanks, Douglas, Sr., 7, 13–15 on films Lifeboat, 18–19 Modern Musketter, A, 14–15 Say, Young Fellow, 15 Waltzes from Vienna, 17 on Hitchcock, Alfred, 17–19 on Matthews, Jesse, 19 on talkies, development of, 16–17 Mahoney, Jock, see Farnsworth, Richard Mankiewicz, Herman, see Houseman, John, Marsh, Oliver see MacWilliams, Glen Martian Chronicles, The, 58 see Bradbury, Ray M*A*S*H, 83 see Altman, Robert Matthews, Jesse, 7, 17, 19, 210chap1n11 see MacWilliams, Glen Mazursky, Paul, 83 Melville, Herman, 58 Memphis Belle (B-17 bomber) crew of, 213chap2n19 history of, 43, 213chap2n18

the “25th Mission,” 44, 50 the “26th Mission,” 44, 50 Memphis Belle (documentary film), and Air Force, 213chap2n16 and Polk, Margaret, 47–48, 51, 53 and co-pilot Verenis, Jim, 48 and waist gunner Winchell, Bill, 43–48, 55 and director Wyler, William, 34, 42–43, 44, 48, 49, 52 revisionist history and Duerkson, Menno, 50–54 Memphis Belle (theatrical film), and director Caton-Jones, Michael, 48–49 and actor Modine, Matthew, 47, 49 and actor Stolz, Eric, 48–49 and producer Wyler, Catherine, 3, 42, 48, 49–50 Mercury Theater (stage and film company), x see Houseman, John Mickey Mouse, see Johnston, Ollie Miller, Arthur, 17 Miller, George, 5, 154, 171, 178 early years, 172 as physician, 174–175 on Australian identity, 173–174 on Australian “New Wave,” 174 on “B” movies, 175 on “car-crash culture,” 175–176 on Corman, Roger, 175 on Gibson, Mel, 172–173 on Hollywood, 177 on Keaton, Buster, 175 on Kennedy, Byron, 175 on “Mad Max” films, 171–178 minimalist music, see Glass, Philip, Mishima, 178 Mississippi Masala, 167, 223chap5n17 see Nair, Mira Moby Dick (book and movie) see Bradbury, Ray Modern Musketeer, A, see MacWilliams, Glen Modine, Michael, see Memphis Belle (theatrical film) Mohr, Hal, 23 Monty Python, 4, 116 see Moore, Michael

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 Index Morgan, Robert, see Memphis Belle (documentary film) Moore, Fred, see Johnston, Ollie Moore, Michael, 4, 82, 123 and Stanzler, Wendey, 128–132 on Dog Eat Dog Film Company, 124 on lack of film experience, 128, 130–131 on Roger & Me, 124–125, 126 on Smith, Roger, 124–125, 126 on Warner Bros., 127–128 Mugnaini, Joseph, see Bradbury, Ray Muppet Show (television series), 132 see Henson, Jim Nair, Mira, 5, 6, 154, 167 early years, 167 as female filmmaker, 168 on Hindi identity, 168 on Indian cinema, 168, 170–171 on India Cabaret, 167 on Salaam Bombay! 167, 168–171 Napoleon, 197 See Brownlow, Kevin and Davis, Carl Nashville, 83 see Alltman, Robert National Film Society, 2, 7, 26, 33, 71, 138 as publisher of American Classic Screen magazine, 2 Natural, The, 71 see Farnsworth, Richard Negro Theater, see Houseman, John “Nine Old Men,” 3, 26 see Johnston, Ollie “Old Mill, The,” see Johnston, Ollie 101 Dalmatians, see Johnston, Ollie Orphee, see Johnston, Ollie Palmer, Tony, v Pakula, Alan, 80 Parade’s Gone By, The (book), see Brownlow, Kevin Patriot Games, 4, 143 see Travis, Neil Perfect London Walk, The, see Ebert, Roger Peter Pan, 3, 26 see Spielberg, Steven

233

Picasso Summer, see Bradbury, Ray Picnic at Hanging Rock, see Miller, George Pinocchio, 3, 26 See Johnston, Ollie Popeye, 83 see Altman, Robert Raiders of the Lost Ark, 93, 138 see Spielberg, Steven Rainbow, The, see Davis, Carl Ray, Nicholas, 40 Ray, Satyajit, 167 Ray Bradbury Theater (television series), see Bradbury, Ray Red Harvest (book), 154 see Bertolucci, Bernardo Reggio, Godfrey, 178 see Glass, Philip Reivers, The, see Travis, Neil Reitherman, Woolie, see Johnston, Ollie Reisz, Karel, 226chap6n12 see Davis, Carl Return of the Jedi, 138 see Edlund, Richard Riesman, Michael, see Glass, Philip Road Warrior, The, 5 see Miller, George Roger & Me, 4, 123 see Miller, George Rosenblum, Ralph, 144 Rozsa, Miklos, see Davis, Carl Salaam Bombay!, 167 see Nair, Mira Say, Young Fellow, see MacWilliams, Glen Schepisi, Fred, 174 Schoenberg, Arnold, 183 Scorsese, Martin, 83, 144 Sendak, Maurice, see Henson, Jim Schepisi, Fred, 172 Schindler’s List, 93 see Spielberg, Steven Sharpe, David, see Farnsworth, Richard, Shepard, David, 225chap5n5 see Brownlow, Kevin Silly Symphonies, 26 See Johnston, Ollie Short Cuts, 83 See Altman, Robert

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 234

Index

Smith, “Buffalo Bob”, 4, 56, 63 as a pioneer in early “live” television, 63–64, 67–68 early years, 65 on children’s entertainment, 66–67, 215chap3n18 on 50th Anniversary, 66, 69, 216chap3n21 on Howdy Doody (puppet), 63–64 on Howdy Doody Show, 63–69 on Swift, Allen, 69 on Tyler, Judy, 69–70, 216chap3n23 Smith, Roger, see Moore, Michael Snow White, 3, see Johnston, Ollie Something Wicked This Way Comes (book and movie), see Bradbury, Ray Sorceror’s Apprentice, see Bradbury, Ray Special photographic effects, see Edlund, Richard Spider’s Stratagem, 154 see Bertolucci, Bernardo Spielberg, Steven, 1, 4, 82, 92, 100 and Daviau, Allen, see Daviau, Allen early career, 92–93 on films Back to the Future, 96 Close Encounters, 94 Color Purple, The, 93–98 E.T, 96 Jaws, 96 Peter Pan, 94 Raiders of the Lost Ark, 93 Schindler’s List, 93, 95–96, on Goldberg, Whoopi, 97 on Jones, Quincy, 94–95 on Walker, Alice, 93–94, 95 Stanzler, Wendy, 123, 219chap4n18 see Moore, Michael Star Wars, 138 see Edlund, Richard “Steamboat Willie,” see Johnston, Ollie Steinkamp, Fritz, 146–147 Stepin Fetchit, 16–17, 210chap1n10 Stoltz, Eric, see Memphis Belle (theatrical film) Stokowski, Leopold, see Johnston, Ollie Storaro, Vittorio, see Bertolucci, Bernardo Straight Story, 71 Swift, Allen, see Smith, “Buffalo Bob,”

Tan, Amy, see Wang, Wayne Tanner ’ 88, see Altman, Robert “Talkies,” see Hollywood Taymore, Julie, 219chap4n31 Television, early history, 63–64, 215chap3n12–13 and 15–16 “live” telecasts, 63–64 movies, competition with, 63–64 silent films, vehicles for, 198 They Live By Night, 34 see Houseman, John Thomas, Frank, see Johnston, Ollie Thomson, David, x, 162 Three Caballeros, The, see Johnston, Ollie Time Bandits, 116 see Gilliam, Terry Tom Horn, 70 see Farnsworth, Richard Travis, Neil, 4, 82, 143 career, 143 on Costner, Kevin, 144–146 on editing, 144–153 on films Cujo, 151 Dances with Wolves, 144–146, 149, 221chap4n48–49 Idolmaker, 151 Patriot Games, 151, 152 Roots, 151 The Reivers, 151 The Cowboys, 151 Truffaut, Francois, see Bradbury, Ray Truman Show, The, 179 Trumbull, Douglas, 220chap4n41 see Edlund, Richard Twilight Zone: The Movie, see Daviau, Allen 2001: A Space Odyssey, 4, 138 see Edlund, Richard Tyler, Judy, see Smith, “Buffalo Bob” Tytla, Bill, see Johnston, Ollie Van Gogh, Vincent, see Altman, Robert Verenis, James, 43 see Memphis Belle (documentary film) Victory through Air Power, see Johnston, Ollie Vincent and Theo, 83 see Altman, Robert

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1

Copyrighted material – 978–1–137–54190–1 Index Visconti, Luchino, see Bertolucci, Bernardo “Voodoo Macbeth,” see Houseman, John Walker, Alice, see Spielberg, Steven Wang, Wayne, 5, 154, 162 on Tan, Amy 164 early years of, 162 on Asian-American films/identity, 161–163, 164, 165–166 on films Chan Is Missing, 166 Dim Sum, 163–164 Joy Luck Club, The, 163–167 Walt Disney Company, 220chap4n32 Waltzes from Vienna, see MacWilliams, Glen

235

Warner Bros., see Brown, Bernard B. Universal Pictures, see Brown, Bernard B. War of the Worlds (radio drama), see Houseman, John Weir, Peter, 5, 172, 174 Welles, Orson, x, 3 see Houseman, John Wind, The, see Davis, Carl Winchell, Bill, 43, 54–55 see Memphis Belle (documentary film) Winstanley, 225chap6n2 See Brownlow, Kevin World at War (documentary series), see Davis, Carl Wyler, Catherine, 3, 43, 49 see Memphis Belle (theatrical film) Wyler, William, 213chap1n14 see Memphis Belle (documentary film)