Bringing Up Oscar: The Story of the Men and Women Who Founded the Academy

by Debra Ann Pawlak

  Merchant of Dreams: Louis B. Mayer, MGM and The Secret Hollywood by Charles Higham. Published 1989 by Abbeville Press, New York.

  MGM, When the Lion Roars by Peter Hay. Published 1991 by Turner Publishibng, Inc., Atlanta.

  Movies and American Socity edited by Steven J. Ross. Publlished 2002 by Blackwell Publishers, Ltd., Malden, Mass.

  My Autobiography by Charles Chaplin. Published 1964 by Simon and Schuster, New York.

  My Secret Mother, Lorna Moon by Richard DeMille. Published 1998 by Farrar, Strauss and Girous, New York.

  One Thousand Laughs From Vaudeville (no author given). Published 1908 by I. & M. Ottenheimer, Baltimore.

  Palisades Amusement Park by Vince Gargiulo. Published 2005 by Arcadia Publishing, Charleston.

  Pickford, The Woman Who Made Hollywood by Eileen Whitfield. Published 1997 by The University Press of Kentucky, Lexington.

  Silent Players by Anthony Slide. Published 2002 by The University Press of Kentucky, Lexington.

  Silent Stars by Jeanine Basinger. Published 1999 by Alfred A. Knopf, New York.

  Silent Topics: Essays on Undocumented Areas of Silent Film by Anthony Slide. Published 2005 by Scarecrow Press, Inc., Lanham, MD.

  Stanwyck by Axel Madsen. Published 1994 by HarperCollins Publisher, Inc., New York.

  Stardust and Shadows: Canadians in Early Hollywood by Charles Foster. Published 2000 by Dundern Press, Ltd., Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

  Thalberg, Life and Legend by Bob Thomas. Published 1985 by Doubleday and Company, Inc., New York.

  Thalberg, The Last Tycoon and the World of MGM by Roland Flamini. Published 1994 by Crown Publishing, Inc., New York.

  The Academy Awards: A Pictorial History by Paul Michael. Published 1968 by Bonanza Books., New York.

  The American Theatrical Film: Stages in Development by John C. Tibbetts. Published 1985 by Bowling Green State University Popular Press, Bowling Green.

  The First 100 Noted Men and Women of the Screen by Carol Lowrey. Published 1920 by Moffat, Yard and Company, New York.

  The Grove Book of Hollywood edited by Christopher Sylvestor. Published 1998 by Grove Press, New York.

  The Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Legend of Louis B. Mayer by Scott Eyman. Published 2005 by Simon and Schuster, New York.

  The Master by Hermann Bahr and Benjamin Floyer Glazer. Published 1918 by Nicholas L. Brown, Philadelphia.

  The Men Who Made Movies by Richard Schickel. Published 1975 by Atheneum, New York.

  The Movies, Mr. Griffith and Me by Lilliamn Gish. Published 1969 by Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.

  The Parade’s Gone By by Kevin Brownlow. Published 1968 by University of California Press, Berkely and Los Angeles.

  The Salad Days by Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Published 1988 by Doubleday, New York.

  The Speed of Sound: Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution 1926–1930 by Scott Eyman. Published 1997 by Simon and Schuster, Inc., New York.

  The Times We Had, Life with William Randolph Hearst by Marion Davies. Published 1975 by Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., New York.

  The Valentino Mystique: The Death and Afterlife of the Silent Film Idol by Allen R. Ellenberger. Published 2005 by McFarland & Company, Inc., Jefferson, NC.

  The Warner Brothers Story by Clive Hirschhorn. Published 1979 by Crown Publishers, Inc., New York.

  What Happens Next: A Hisotry of American Screenwriting by Marc Norman. Published 2007 by Crown Publishijg Group, New York.

  Without Lying Down: Francis Marion and The Powerful Women of Hollywood by Cari Beauchamp. Published 1997 by University of Calilfornia Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles.

  World Film Directors Volume One 1890–1945 Edited by John Wakeman. Published 1987 by The H.W. Wilson Company, New York.

  Writing the Photoplay by J. Berg Esenwein and Arthur Leeds. Published 1913/1919 by The Home Correspondence School, Springfield, Mass.

  QUOTES

  Preface

  The Academy is the … The Academy Bulletin, April 2, 1928.

  Chapter One: The Flickers

  I went to a 100 schools … Time Magazine, 3/1/1943, Theater: Back Where He Started (No author), http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,932975,00.html.

  Don’t let even the wind … Time Magazine, 3/1/1943, Theater: Back Where He Started (No author) http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,932975,00.html.

  One day, a man came around … Hollywood Be Thy Name, The Warner Brothers Story, pp. 39–40.

  What I saw in front of me … Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Legend of Louis B. Mayer, p. 31.

  Chapter Two: Welcome to Hollywood!

  We were more concerned … Stardust and Shadows: Canadians in Early Hollywood by Charles Foste, p. 30.

  I know a business … Goldwyn: A Biography, p. 32.

  Kindhearted publicisits who have … Cecil B. DeMille: A Life in Art, p. 20.

  Jesse, I’m pulling out … Cecil B. DeMille: A Life in Art, p. 49.

  If that’s pictures … Wolrd Film Directors Volume I, p. 208.

  Flaggstaff no good … Grove Book of Hollywood, p. 9.

  Authorize you to rent … Grove Book of Hollywood, p. 9.

  Welcome to Hollywood, Jesse! … www.youtube.com “This is Your Life Jesse L. Laskey Part 2.

  Chapter Three: Team Biograph

  Mr. Griffith wasn’t in … Photoplay Magazine, Volume 10, June 1916, p. 96.

  A determination was born … Pickford, The Woman Who Made Hollywood, p. 19.

  Who’s the dame? … Pickford, The Woman Who Made Hollywood, p. 78.

  How dare you sir insult me … Pickford, The Woman Who Made Hollywood, p. 78.

  Our stage consisted of … D. W. Griffith: The Years at Biograph, p. 97.

  Motion pictures are at last … Film Study: An Analytical Bibliograph Volume I, p. 123.

  Frank Woods, a kindly … Lillian Gish, The Movies, Mr. Griffith and Me, p. 122.

  The Makers of the Picture … Writing the Photoplay, p. 226.

  Chapter Four: The Scribes

  … a story told largley in pantomime … Writing the Photoplay, p. 2.

  … Mr. Wilson is as close to … Dynamic Carey Wilson Refused to Rest Until the Studio Locked Him Out by Theodore Strauss, New York Times, 6/1/1941, p. X3.

  … Characterization in pictures is … Here Are Rules for Scenario Writing, But It’s a Hopeless Task for Amateur by Carey Wilson, Pitttsburgh Press 4/24/1924, p. 5.

  One actor, who had left his … The Master, 1918, p. 8.

  If it were not for … The Parade’s Gone By, p. 299.

  The sub-title should be … Writing the Photoplay, p. 226.

  Many people believe that … The Los Angeles Times, 10/30/27, p. 29.

  Chapter Five: The Silent Types

  The motion picture enables … Movies and American Society, p. 94.

  The walls are literalliy lined … Photoplay Magazine, Volumes 13–14, December 1917, p. 87.

  … For the survival of the … Film Production Theory, pp. 58–59.

  … The other day at the studio … The Los Angeles Times, 4/26/25, p. 19.

  … I didn’t know whether to go … The Parade’s Gone By, p. 458.

  Whatever the plot … The New York Times, 3/9/1971, p. 40.

  From the time we made … An American Comedy, p. 122.

  Chapter Six: The Idols

  [Douglas] was always on … Love Laughter and Tears, p. 108.

  Bounding, spinn, diving … New York Review of Books, Volume 56, Number, Februry 26, 2009; The Silent Superstar by Robert Gottlieb (www.nybooks.com).

  I ran a car off a cliff … Silent Stars, p. 105.

  Grey Duck arrived late today … The New York Times, 12/15/1919, p. 1.

  Not once, but twenty times … Hollywood Anecdotes, pp. 18–19.

  He started his vactionless … The Los Angeles Times, 5/11/1924, p. 36.

  Chapter Seven: Calling the Shots

  I got the company together … www.youtube.com “Hollywood: Early Directors” Part 1.r />
  Once the director is satisfied … Behind the Motion-Picture Screen, p. 26.

  … I got off the horse and looked … New York Magazine, 4/5/1974, p. 73.

  I thought to myself … The Men Who Made Movies, p. 25.

  Director Frank Lloyd will … New York Times, 10/3/1915, p. 91.

  earned himself a place … World Film Directors, Volume I: 1890–1945, p. 684.

  We spend hours discussing … The Los Angeles Times, 3/11/1923, p. vii.

  [Stahl] was trying to imitate … Lion of Hollywood, p. 66.

  We are at the stage … L.A. Times, 9/18/1921, p. 1013.

  All the Americans … One Thousand Laughs from Vaudeville, pp. 28–29.

  By this time my father was … World Film Directors, Volume I: 1890–1945, pp. 535–536.

  At that time San Fernando … www.youtube.com “Hollywood: Early Directors” Part 1.

  Chapter Eight: How Did They Do That?

  Any art which makes its … The American Cinemtographer, Volumes 3–4, August, 1923, p. 4.

  … the audience must be made … Behind the Motion-Picture Screen, p. 110.

  The technical director must … Behind the Motion-Picture Screen, p. 118.

  … art directors have a great … The Los Angeles Times, 12/16/1920, p. III16.

  Never let a motion-picture set … The Los Angeles Times, 12/16/1920, p. III16.

  … a fairy would appear in a … Behind the Motion-Picture Screen, p. 194.

  We had discovered Pomeroy … Grove Book of Hollywood, pp. 106–107.

  Chapter Nine: Head of the House

  My father’s early movies … Back Lot: Growing Up With the Movies, p. 1.

  Almost everyone wants to get … The Los Angeles Times, 8/14/1927, pp. C15–16.

  I would never bet on … New York Times, 10/23/1962, p. 29.

  Lou Anger, my friend and … The Los Angeles Times, 2/1/1923, p. II1.

  The properties consisting of … The Los Angeles Times, 1/3/1922, p. II5.

  The Motion-Picture Exposition … The Los Angeles Times, 7/2/1923, p. IV5.

  Many producers who have … The Los Angeles Times, 10/13/1924, p. A16.

  With his personality there is no … The Moving Picture World, Volume 18, Isses 8–23, December 6, 1913, p. 1156.

  When I was with Universal … Silent Players, p. 141.

  Never hold an unassailable … The Los Angeles Times, 10/15/1922, p. III38.

  Chapter Ten: The Guardians

  Spain when she blew up … The Los Angeles Times, 7/3/1898, p. B5.

  My brother Edwin handled the … Oral History of Joseph P. Loeb taken by Claremont Graduate School on February 19, 1965.

  Had motion pictures been in … The Los Angeles Times, 7/7/1926, p. A5.

  I believe we are on the right … The Los Angeles Times, 1/251924, p. A1.

  To do away with … The 22nd Biennial Bureau of Labor Statistics of California for the State of California, 1926, p. 149.

  Chapter Eleven: On Top of the Mountain

  a very convenient … World Film Directors, Volume I: 1890–1945, p. 208.

  This will be my first trip … The Los Angeles Times, 8/20/1919, p. H14.

  … I should like to say a good … The Los Angeles Times, 9/15/1921, p. 16.

  The pictorial qualities … The Los Angeles Times, 10/14/1922, p. H1.

  He is a picture technical … Silent Topics: Essays on Undocumented Areas of Silent Film, p. 77.

  Chapter Twelve: Lions and Tigers and Brothers, Oh My!

  [The representsative] said … Hollywood Be Thy Name, The Warner Brothers Story, p. 46.

  Soap I can sell … Hollywood Be Thy Name, The Warner Brothers Story, p. 53.

  If effervesence of spirits has … The Los Angeles Times, 3/1/1925, p. 17.

  Perfection of a new appartus … New York Times, 4/26/1926, p. 7.

  Who the hell wants to hear … Personal quote taken from wwwimdb.com.

  Chapter Thirteen: The Lunatics

  The lunatics have taken charge … Pickford, The Woman Who Made Hollywood, p. 192.

  From Constance I had heard … My Autobiography, p. 199.

  They intended putting … My Autobiography, p. 222.

  We believe [United Artists] is … Pickford, The Woman Who Made Hollywood, pp. 191–192.

  Douglas Fairbanks and Mary … Silent Stars, p. 117.

  Here is magic … Douglas Fairbanks (Vance), p. 177.

  the same old melodramatic … World Film Directors, Volume I: 1890–1945, p. 1151.

  Chapter Fourteen: In The Zoo

  Louis B. chose the … Hollywood Dreams Made Real Irving Thalberg and the Rise of MGM, p. 19.

  That’s the kind of people … Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Legend of Louis B. Mayer, p. 57.

  To me, the ideal picture … New York Times, 12/14/1924, p. C29.

  Tell him if he comes to work for … Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Legend of Louis B. Mayer, p. 69.

  The merger greatly … The Los Angeles Times, 4/28/1924, p. A1.

  This is a great moment for me … Merchant of Dreams, Louis B. Mayer, MGM and the Secret Hollywood, p. 70.

  Carey’s the kind of guy … Lawrence Journal World, 2/8/1962, p. 3.

  You would be working with … What Happens Next: A Hisotry of American Screenwriting, p. 126.

  The only thing … Personal quote taken from wwwimdb.com.

  Fine! That’ll add some … Thalberg: The Last tycoon and the World of MGM, p. 67.

  Chapter Fifteen: The Rest of ’Em

  Our office has nothing to do … The Los Angeles Times, 11/27/1924, p. A7.

  I believe the entire field of … The Los Angeles Times, 8/24/1924, p. B22.

  Mr. Charles Christie, finding … Dog Fancier, Volumes 31–32, November, 1922, p. 9.

  I’d be with Doug Fairbanks … New York Times, 3/9/1971, p. 40.

  Well, we carried on … The Parade’s Gone By, p. 110.

  There were 213 cannon … The Los Angeles Times, 8/24/1924, p. B37.

  Close and sealed forever … The Los Angeles Times, 10/1/1925, p. A7.

  Chapter Sixteen: The Gang’s All Here

  The greatest public … New York Times, 1/2/1927, p. X7.

  It is on the sets … The Los Angeles Times, 1/10/1926, p. C35.

  Chapter Seventeen: Let’s Go On With the Show!

  … the title ‘Academy of … A Historical Study of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (1927–1947), p. 37.

  If we producing workers, … A Historical Study of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (1927–1947), pp. 38–39.

  The academy has been … The Los Angeles Times, 9/23/1928, p. 26.

  Chapter Eighteen: Scholars, Tough Guys and Bishops

  As is the case with … The Los Angeles Times, 9/18/1927, p. B7.

  The membership clings … New York Times, 6/17/1928, p. 102.

  How can I compete with … New York Magazine, 8/29/1988, p. 20.

  Movies aren’t made … The Leading Man of MGM, p. 36.

  No more epics for me … Without Lying down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood, p. 332.

  The world of art is poorer … Thalberg, Life and Legend, p. 297.

  Credit you give yourself … Hollywood Dreams Made Real IrvingThalberg and the Rise of MGM, p. 6.

  To the Memory of … Irving Thalberg: Boy Wonder to Producer Prince, p. 377.

  It is impossible now for any … The Los Angeles Times, 6/25/1931, p. A4.

  … always a credit to his … The Los Angeles Times, 5/4/1939, p. A4.

  I’ve never felt better … Douglas Fairbanks (Vance), p. 306.

  Chapter Nineteen: Three Men and a Lady

  While other authors gave … www.taylorology.com (Motion Picture July 1921 the Literary Dynamo by Barbara Beach).

  [DeMille] held her hand … My Secret Mother, Lorna Moon, p. 23.

  He will take advice from … The Los Angeles Times, 4/6/1042, p. A4.

  So our first talkie was … I Blow My Own Horn,
p. 215.

  Look, this guy’s got locks … The Speed of Sound: Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution 1926–1930, p. 211.

  I enjoyed an all-talkihg picture … Spokane Daily Chronicle, 9/7/1929, p. 3.

  At home, Dad was strict.… www.silentsaregolden.com/articles/ frednibloarticle.html.

  Dear Sam—It is only in time … American Silent Film, Discovering Marginalized Voices, p. 233.

  not the llittle fellows … The Los Angeles Times, 8/14/1927, p. 15.

  Chapter Twenty: Mad Hatters, Macho Men and Mexican Divorces

  It’s my commercial instinct … The Los Angeles Times, 3/22/1936, p. C1.

  … everything depends on … The Los Angeles Times, 9/18/1921, p. H113.

  I feel like the face on the … Life Magazine, 9/30/1940, p. 63.

  … essentially half the … Box Office Magazine, October 1997, p. 16.

  Among his intimiate friends … City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 1940s, p. 4.

  To my wife, Margaret … The Los Angeles Times, 2/1/1951, p. 18.

  … The motion-picture is … The Los Angeles Times, 9/23/1928, p. 26.

  … improved sharpness … The Los Angeles Times, 6/7/1931, p. C9.

  To Arthur Ball, in … Quote received from Ball’s grandson, Kevin Ball via email dated 6/12/2010.

  North Hollywood is destined … The Los Angeles Times, 6/3/1928, p. F8.

  Los Angeles is the best … The Los Angeles Times, 8/18/1929, p. D2.

  Chapter Twenty-One: Businessmen, Artists and Mediators

  The Don’ts and Be Carefuls … http://teaching.arts.usyd.edu.au/history/hsty3080/3rdYr3080/3080site/don’ts:2fbe%20carefuls.

  1. No picture shall be … www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hays_code.

  Activity in the motion picture … The Los Angeles Times, 11/4/1932, p. A2.

  Our present property … The Los Angeles Times, 11/30/1927, p. A1.

  All the agreements connected … The Los Angeles Times, 9/30/1930, p. 15.

  I can give you a closeup … The American Theatrical Film: Stages in Development, p. 235.

  The court ruled that the part … The Los Angeles Times, 6/28/1946, p. 2.

  Some of us walk the earth … The Los Angeles Times, 3/21/1956, p. 2.

  Chapter Twenty-Two: Mogul to Mogul

  Spare nothing, neither … Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Lelgend of Louis. B. Mayer, p. 111.

  going to be more active … MGM, When The Lion Roars, p. 282.

  Mr. Motion Picture is Gone … ww.time.com.