3. How were they financed?
•
•
•
•
Independent from 1918-1982
Coca-Cola Company 1982-1987
Columbia Pictures Entertainment 1987-1991
Sony 1991-present
4. Distribution and Exhibition
•
•
•
•
Five major companies
Did not have as much money
Owned their own small theatre
Have to receive permission from major
companies to show their films in big theatres
5. What did they control?
• Small theatre
• Liked to use Jean Arthur and Cary Grant in
their films.
16. Screwball Comedy
• During the 1930’s and 40’s
Columbia became one of the
main homes of screwball
comedy.
• Screwball comedy is an
American genre of comedy
film.
• In these films the male and
female usually have a battle of
the sexes.
• Screwball comedies often
depict social classes in conflict.
This can be seen in Columbia’s
‘It Happened One Night’
(1934).
17. Frank Capra
• American film director.
• Three Oscars for Best
Director.
• ‘It Happened One
Night’ (1934) became
the first film to win all
five top Oscars, which
boosted Capra’s career.
• Directed many films for
Columbia.
18. Jean Arthur
• American actress who
was contracted to
Columbia.
• Nominated for an
Academy Award for Best
Actress in 1944 for her
role in ‘The More the
Merrier’.
• Arthur starred in many of
Columbia’s famous
screwball comedy movies.
19. Cary Grant
• Grant was contracted to
both Columbia Pictures and
RKO.
• Grant was an English stage
and Hollywood film actor
who became an American
citizen in 1942.
• He is often considered one
of classic Hollywood’s
definitive leading men.
• Nominated for a Golden
Globe Award for Best Actor
five times during his career.
20. Rita Hayworth
• American actress and
dancer.
• Hayworth appeared in a
total of 61 films over 37
years.
• She is one of six women
who has danced on
screen with both Fred
Astaire and Gene Kelly.
• She triumphed when cast
in the musical You'll
Never Get Rich.
