Henry Luce launched Life magazine in 1936, which became hugely popular for its photos and captions that dominated American visual culture before television. He also founded Fortune magazine in 1930 to explore business and the economy in depth. This period from 1930-1945 is considered Hollywood's Golden Age, where the major studios produced over 7,500 films that were hugely popular. Iconic films from this era included Snow White in 1937 as the first full-length animated feature film, The Wizard of Oz in 1939, and Gone with the Wind in 1939, which won numerous Academy Awards and was a massive financial success. Famous actors of the time included Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, and Judy Garland, among others.

1. CULTURE AND SOCIETY:
INTERACTIONS
1930-1945
BY
JUSTIN SAWYER

2. Magazines
Henry Robinson
Luce (April 3, 1898 –
February 28, 1967), a
magazine magnate, was
called "the most
influential private
citizen in the America
of his day". Life was a
picture magazine of
politics, culture and
society that dominated
American visual
perceptions in the era
before
television; Fortune
explored in depth the
economy and the world
of business

3. Magazines
Life Magazine
 In 1936 Henry Luce paid $92,000 to
the owners of Life magazine.
 Life is the third magazine published
by Luce, which launched on
November 23, 1936
 Life gave birth to the photo magazine
in the U.S.
 The format of Life in 1936 was an
instant classic: the text was
condensed into captions for 50 pages
of pictures. The magazine was
printed on heavily coated paper that
cost readers only a dime. It spawned
many imitators, such as Look, which
was founded just a year later in
1937, and folded in 1971.

4. Magazines
Fortune Magazine
Fortune is a global business magazine
founded by Time co-founder Henry
Luce in February 1930, four months
after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 .
 Single copies of the first issue cost $1
 At a time when business publications
were little more than numbers and
statistics printed in black and white,
Fortune was an oversized 11"×14",
using creamy heavy paper, and art on a
cover printed by a special
process. Fortune was also noted for its
photography


5. Movies
HOLLYWOOD’S GOLDEN AGE: 1930S-1940S

6. Movies

The decade marked by the Great Depression and leading into World War II is remembered as Hollywood‟s Golden Age.
During this period, new genres were formed, new stars were born, and the studio system rose to mammoth status. The
eight major studios, each known for its distinctive style and stars, collectively produced 95% of all American films. More
than 7,500 features were released by the studios between 1930 and 1945 to eager audiences. More than 80 million
people took in a least one film per week at the height of the cinema‟s popularity. This period also saw the introduction of
the Production Code, B-Films, and the first animated feature of Snow White. Hollywood‟s Golden Age began to decline
in the late 1940‟s due to the introduction of television, Hollywood blacklisting, and the ability of actors to become „free
agents.‟ A final blow to the industry occurred in 1948, when antitrust suits were filed against the major studios
(ils.unc.edu, 2003).

Even when the US entered WWII after the attack on Pearl Harbor, FDR issued a statement saying, “The American
motion picture is one of the most effective mediums in informing and entertaining our citizens. The motion picture
must remain free in so far as national security will permit. I want no censorship of the motion picture.”

Special-effects processes were advanced, making it possible for many more films to be shot on sets rather than on-
location, Three Stooges were born and tri-color film was introduced.

7. (1937) – “Snow White” –
The First full feature
animation film, in color
and with sound. Snow
White and her seven
Dwarfs are among the
most popular characters
in Disney history.

8. (1939) – “The Wizard of
Oz”– is a fantasy
adventure film musical
made by MGM , based
on a children's novel
'The Wonderful Wizard
of Oz' written in 1900 by
L. Frank Baum. The
movie has been seen by
more people then any
other and it has become
one of the best loved
classic family movies of
all time.

9. (1939) - “Gone with the
Wind”–The film grossed
nearly 192 million
dollars and received
more Academy Awards
than any other film up to
that time, It set an
Academy Award record
which lasted until 1959
when 'Ben-Hur' won
eleven awards.
The movie was derived from Margaret Mitchell's novel
published in 1936. Producer David O.Selznick acquired the
film rights to the novel for $50,000 – a record amount at the
time for a first novel and then spent a budget of 3.7-milliondollar - again, an unheard of amount - on the movie.

10. Movies
Famous Actors
This period was a time of actors like:











Cary Grant
James Stewart
Humphrey Bogart
Marilyn Monroe
John Wayne
Joan Crawford
Judy Garland
Fred Astaire
Marlon Brando
James Dean
Lucille Ball
In addition to directors like:
Alfred Hitchcock
Orson Welles
Billy Wilder
This period was simply the greatest collection of talent gathered in one place at one time in film history, which
inevitably led to an incredible outpouring of creative energy.




11. References











Wikipedia. ( December 13, 2013). Life (magazine). Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_(magazine)
Wikipedia. ( November 14, 2013) Fortune (magazine). Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortune_(magazine)
Picture of Henry Luce. Retrieved 28, April 2004 from
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/henry-luce/henry-r-luce-and-the-riseof-the-american-news-media/650/
Picture of Life Magazine. Retrieved 9, May 2009 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:LIFE_06191944_Eisenhower_cover.jpg
Picture of Fortune Magazine. Retrieved 24, July 2006 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fortune-1941-6.jpg
Hollywood‟s Golden Age. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodsgoldenage.com/
University of North Carolina. Retrieved from
http://ils.unc.edu/dpr/path/goldenhollywood/index.htm
Pictures of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Retrieved from
http://www.hollywoodsgoldenage.com/movies/snow_white.html
Gone With The Wind. Retrieved from
http://www.hollywoodsgoldenage.com/movies/gone_with_the_wind.html
The Wizard of Oz. Retrieved from
http://www.hollywoodsgoldenage.com/movies/oz.html