Hollywood by David Thomson

Hollywood by David Thomson

Hollywood by David Thomson is 640 pages of photos not only from various movie sets but also individual photos of the Hollywood greats. The book also gives a story behind the image by incorporating a variety of information on the movies, actors and actresses caught on film. Thanks to these images (which are part of the Kobal Collection, one of the largest photo archives for cinema), readers get to take a glimpse into nine eras of Tinseltown. What does Hollywood have to offer?

1915-1929 Golden Age of Silents

The silent era of film made superstars out of some actors and actresses. This section includes photos of:

- Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle

- Theda Bara in her role as the silver screen’s premier Cleopatra

- The era’s “It” girl, Clara Bow

- Lon Chaney sans make-up as well as in character in his infamous roles as the title character in “Phantom of the Opera” (1925) and as Quasimodo in “Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1923)

- A young Charlie Chaplin (with and sans make-up)

- Gary Cooper

- Douglas Fairbanks

- Lillian Gish

- Screen siren Greta Garbo

- Buster Keaton

- The Keystone Cops

- Rudolph Valentino in several of his infamous film roles

Set pictures from a number of the era’s films included the controversial “Birth of a Nation” (1915), the original versions of “The Ten Commandments” (1923) and “Ben Hur” (1925) and the Cecil B. DeMille film “King of Kings” (1927).

1930s Studio Systems

With the immergence of “talkies” and eventual color films, the 1930s had plenty to offer moviegoers. Musicals, dramas, epics and Disney were popular in this decade. Hollywood represented this decade with photos that included:

- Dancing duo Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

- James Cagney from his “Little Caesar” role

- Joan Crawford in movies and a candid shot with other popular actresses of the day

- Bette Davis

- Marlene Dietrich

- The legendary Clark Gable

- Greta Garbo on the set of “Queen Christina”

- Jean Harlow in screen and publicity shots as well as a photo from her wedding to Paul Bern

- Boris Karloff in various film shots including The Mummy and a photo of the actor in the make-up chair for Frankenstein

- The comedy duo Laurel and Hardy

- The Marx Brothers

- Child star Shirley Temple in movie and off-set photos

- Spencer Tracy

- The sultry Mae West

- Fay Wray from 1933’s King Kong

A number of on-screen moments were immortalized in photos including “City Lights” (1931) with Charlie Chaplin, Cecil B. DeMille’s “Cleopatra” (1934) with Claudette Colbert, the Civil War epic Gone With the Wind and the timeless Wizard of Oz.

1940s The Dream Turns Dark

The 1940s saw the rise in popularity of film noir, westerns and war epics. Photos from this era in cinema included:

- On screen shots of legendary Hollywood duo Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart in such movies as “To Have and Have Not” (1944) and “Key Largo” (1948)

- Ingrid Bergman

- Errol Flynn

- Joan Fontaine

- Judy Garland in movie shots and on-set photos from various films

- Rita Hayworth in her title role as “Gilda” (1946) and on/off screen shots with then husband Orson Welles in 1948’s “The Lady from Shanghai”

- Another favorite on-screen duo, Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, in photos from some of their movies

- Lena Horne in publicity and on-set shots

- The swashbuckling Tyrone Power as Zorro

- Publicity still of Roy Rogers

- Barbara Stanwyck in her legendary role in “Double Indemnity”

- James Stewart in shots from some of his films such as It’s A Wonderful Life

Some of the infamous movies from the 1940s are represented in photos including the Disney classics “Fantasia” (1940), “Pinocchio” (1940) and “Bambi” (1942); the rise of Alfred Hitchcock’s notoriety in the films Rebecca, “Suspicion” (1941), “Shadow of Doubt” (1943), “Spellbound” (1945) and “Notorious” (1946); movie stills and behind the scenes photos of “Casablanca” and Citizen Kane.

1950s High Fever In The Atomic Age

Some of the timeless actors and actresses from the silver screen were part of the photos from this era, including:

- Marlon Brando in scenes from “A Streetcar Named Desire” (1951), “The Wild One” (1953) and “On the Waterfront” (1954

- America’s sweetheart, Doris Day

- James Dean from movie stills from his career

- Kirk Douglas on and off screen photos including a shot of him with a young Michael Douglas

- Cary Grant

- The early career of Audrey Hepburn

- Rock Hudson

- Gene Kelly from “An American in Paris” (1951) and “Singing in the Rain” (1952)

- Grace Kelly in photos from different movies as well as on the set of “To Catch a Thief” (1955)

- Marilyn Monroe in an array of movie stills, publicity shots and on-set photos

- Several shots of Paul Newman consisting of movie stills, cast rehearsals for “The Long, Hot Summer” (1958) and a photo of the actor with future wife Joanne Woodward at the 1957 Oscars

- Sidney Poitier

- Elvis Presley in a dance number from “Jailhouse Rock” (1957)

- Frank Sinatra

- Elizabeth Taylor in photos from “Giant” (1956) and on the set of “Suddenly Last Summer” (1958)

Hollywood included a variety of movie stills from a number of films including the alien flicks “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951 and “War of the Worlds” (1953), the musical “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” (1954), the classic “Shane” (1953) and the epic films The Ten Commandments and “Ben Hur” (1959) both starring Charlton Heston.

1960s Censorship Hangs Loose

The ‘60’s brought some new faces to the silver screen as well as some familiar favorites. Some of the stars immortalized in photos in the book Hollywood were:

- Audrey Hepburn in classic movies such as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961), “Charade” (1963), “My Fair Lady” (1964) and “Wait Until Dark” (1967

- Legendary actor Burt Lancaster

- Lee Marvin in different films including “Cat Ballou” (1965) and “The Professionals” (1966)

- Steve McQueen

- Peter O’Toole in between scenes on the set of “Lawrence of Arabia” (1962)

- Gregory Peck

- Sidney Poitier from movies such as “Lilies of the Field” (1963) and “In the Heat of the Night” (1967)

- John Wayne

- Natalie Wood from “West Side Story” (1961), “Splendor in the Grass” (1961) and “Gypsy Rose” (1962)

Popular horror flicks such as “Psycho” (1960), “The Birds” (1963) and “Night of the Living Dead” (1968) were captured in photos as well as the family favorites “Mary Poppins” (1964) and “The Sound of Music” (1965), the epic film “Cleopatra” (1963), the sci-fi “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968), “Planet of the Apes” (1968) and “Easy Rider” (1969).

1970s The Silver Age

Different faces and movies immerged to take over the silver screen in the 1970s. The book captured such stars as:

- Woody Allen in his films “Annie Hall” (1972), “Sleeper” (1973), “Love and Death” (1975) and “Manhattan” (1979)

- Faye Dunaway

- Clint Eastwood in his films “Dirty Harry” (1971) and “The Outlaw and Josey Wales” (1976)

- Jane Fonda

- Dustin Hoffman

- Jack Nicholson

- Ryan O’Neal and a young Tatum O’Neal in “Paper Moon” (1973)

- Al Pacino

- Robert Redford

- Acclaimed director Steven Spielberg

- John Travolta during the “Saturday Night Fever” (1977) and “Grease” (1978)

There were plenty of movies that defined the era. We get to see photos from such movies as “M*A*S*H” (1970), the disaster films Poseidon Adventure and “Towering Inferno” (1974), the classic films “Godfather” (1972) and “The Godfather II” (1974), the horror movie “The Exorcist” (1973), both of Mel Brooks’ 1974 films “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein”, the cult hit “Rocky Horror Picture Show” (1975), the sci-fi classics Star Wars and “Alien” (1979) and the war drama “Apocalypse Now” (1979).

1980s The Space Opera Begins

The ‘80’s brought in a new era of film favorites. Some of the actors and actresses caught in photos include:

- Jeff Bridges from several films including “Starman” (1984) and “The Fabulous Baker Boys”

- Glenn Close from “Jagged Edge” and “Dangerous Liaisons” (1988)

- Tom Cruise in some of his breakout roles in “Risky Business” (1983) and “Top Gun” (1986)

- Shots of Sally Field in a few of her ‘80’s films including “Places in the Sun” (1984)

- Harrison Ford in shots from Raiders of the Lost Ark and “Blade Runner” (1982)

- Richard Gere in “American Gigolo” (1980), “An Officer and a Gentleman” (1982) and “The Cotton Club” (1984)

- Jessica Lange from her two critically acclaimed 1982 movies “Tootsie” and “Frances”

- Eddie Murphy from different films including “Beverly Hills Cop” (1984)

- Jack Nicholson from such films as “Terms of Endearment” (1983), “Prizzi’s Honor” and Batman

- Sissy Spacek from “Coal Miner’s Daughter” (1980) and “The Three Sisters” (1986)

- Meryl Streep from “Sophie’s Choice” (1982) and “Silkwood” (1983)

- Sigourney Weaver in “Aliens” (1986), “Working Girl” (1988) and “Gorillas in the Mist” (1988)

The ‘80’s had plenty of movies for everyone. Some of the ones caught on film for Hollywood included the horror classic “The Shining” (1980), “Scarface” (1983), Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, the sci-fi treats “E.T.” (1982) and “Tron” (1982), the buddy films “48 Hours” (1982) and “Lethal Weapon” (1987), the teen flicks “Flashdance” (1983), “The Breakfast Club” (1985) and “Back to the Future” (1985), the thriller “Fatal Attraction” (1987) and the action packed Die Hard.

1990s The Cinema Goes Electronic

The 90’s had plenty of chills and thrills. Some of the actors and actresses caught in photos during this era were:

- Kevin Costner in an on-set shot of “Dances with Wolves” (1990) and movie photos from “JFK” (1991), “The Bodyguard” (1992) and “Waterworld” (1995)

- Russell Crowe in his critically acclaimed roles in “L.A. Confidential” (1997) and “The Insider” (1999)

- Tom Cruise from “The Firm” (1993), Mission: Impossible and “Jerry Maguire” (1996)

- Movie shots of Cameron Diaz from “The Mask” (1994), There’s Something About Mary and “My Best Friend’s Wedding” (1997)

- Leonardo DiCaprio in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and “Romeo and Juliet” (1996)

- Morgan Freeman from “Shawshank Redemption” (1994) and “Seven” (1995)

- Several photos of Tom Hanks from various films including “A League of Their Own” (1992), “Sleepless in Seattle” (1993), “Forrest Gump” (1994) and “Apollo 13” (1995)

- Anjelica Huston from “The Grifters” (1990) and “The Addams Family” (1991)

- Brad Pitt from “12 Monkeys” (1995)

- Keanu Reeves from “Speed” (1994) and The Matrix

- Bruce Willis from “The Sixth Sense” (1999) with co-star Haley Joel Osment

Hollywood showcases some of the blockbuster films from the 90’s with photos from the steamy “Basic Instinct” (1992), the animated hits “The Lion King” (1994) and “Toy Story” (1995), the action/thriller Jurassic Park, “Schindler’s List” (1993), “Pulp Fiction” (1994), “Braveheart” (1995), Titanic, the comedy Austin Powers, “Three Kings” (1997) and the drama American Beauty.

2000s The Future, The Meaning

Although there are plenty of movies yet to come, Hollywood included some photos of actors, actresses and movies that were released in the new decade (up to the book’s 2001 copyright). Some of these include:

- Johnny Depp from the 2001 film “Blow”

- Nicole Kidman from “Moulin Rouge” (2001)

- Julia Roberts from “Erin Brockovich” (2000)

The movies represented for 2000 and 2001 included “Almost Famous” (2000), “Gladiator” (2000) and Lord of the Rings.

My Thoughts:

Hollywood is 640 pages of compact (the book measures about 5” x 6”) cinematic delight. It was great starting out near the beginning of film making and seeing how movies and characters have progressed over each decade. Not to mention that it brings back memories of films, actors and/or actresses that might have been long forgotten. Since the book categorizes films by decade, it was easy to follow along. The chapter introductions and the description of each photo (who was in it and what’s going on) were also great additions. Besides wanting a few more “behind the scenes” or “away from the set” photos, the only other thing I would like to see in this book would be (hopefully) an updated version in a few years to include some photos from more movies from the 2000s or maybe even different pictures from the bygone eras. All in all I’d highly recommend this one for a fun read and a nostalgic look at the silver screen and some of the icons who graced it.

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