When people think of Howard Hughes, they usually think of a billionaire who was obsessed with airplanes. This is true, but there was more to Howard than that. According to his friend Ava Gardner, Howard actually had four obsessions: ‘money, movies, aircraft and young women with beautiful breasts’. For the movies and the women, Howard …
‘Tis the season to make some hot chocolate, crawl under a blanket and watch It’s A Wonderful Life, White Christmas and A Miracle on 34th Street. Classic Hollywood excelled at Christmas and always made a big deal out of it. Christmas themed photo shoots were done, Christmas parties were thrown and articles were written about …
The Academy Awards ceremony (AKA The Oscars): an iconic event that Hollywood looks forward to every year. The glamour, the red carpet, the show and most importantly: the awards. Films are released on dates that will give them the most chance of getting nominated, actresses debate about the dress they’ll wear to the ceremony for …
Today marks the sixty-fifth anniversary of James Dean’s untimely death. James was 24-years old and had starred in just three movies (only one of which was released) when he died. In many ways he was just beginning. Still, he’s one of the few Classic Hollywood actors who’s fame survived the test of time.
If you know anything about Hollywood during its Golden Age, you will know that the studios were the ones with all the power. They were in total control of the movies that were made, the people that were involved, the distributing process and the P.R. But what do we really know about these omnipresent studios? …
The Hays Code may sound like a vague technical rule, it was incredibly important to the style of Classic Hollywood. It’s the reason why this era is known for its class, old-fashioned morals and etiquette. This industry code of moral guidelines forced Hollywood to not just portray men and women, but gentlemen and ladies. As …
Most of us have heard of the elusive It girl. She’s charming, charismatic, fashionable and popular. People are drawn to her and she seems to get by in life just by being herself. So it’s no wonder that these It girls have been a source of fascination for more than a century. But where does …
A television started to become a staple in households all over the world in the 1950’s. For Classic Hollywood this was very unfortunate timing: in 1948 the decline of the studio system had begun.
As you may recall, a year ago Classic Hollywood Central reported that a unique Marilyn Monroe archive was discovered in Holland. The archive used to belong to Emmeline Snively, the deceased owner of the Blue Book Modeling Agency and Marilyn’s former boss/confidante. Astrid en Ben Franse, who own a store called Bennies Fifties, found out …
Although the name ‘Rat Pack’ might give you visions of a smokey room where Sammy Davis Jr. and Dean Martin are drinking champagne and cracking jokes….
Exactly 50 years ago the world lost a beloved actress, a sex symbol, an icon, a legend. Marilyn Monroe passed away on august 5th 1962. She was 36 years old.
Just saying the name ‘Hollywood’ brings up visions of movies, stars and glamour. But how did this iconic part of Los Angeles begin? Who made Hollywood what it is today? The answer is simple: H.J Whitley. Don’t be ashamed if this name doesn’t mean anything to you, most people don’t know the man who was …
Method acting, or ‘The Method’, was an extremely popular approach to acting during The Golden Age of Hollywood. Some of its biggest fans were Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe and James Dean.
The Star System is the most famous part of The Studio System.
The Studio System was a big part of the success of Classic Hollywood. It was a system that made sure that the biggest studios in Hollywood were in total control of the movies they made and that the movies would be distributed.