The Producers Books

This book is pricey, but it is a must-read if you are interested in early films and nickelodeon films. Lubin is best-known for duping all his competitors' films in the early 1900's, and staging "reproductions" of famous boxing matches that Edison had the exclusive rights to film. If that is all that you know about Lubin, then you really don't know him at all.

Lubin taunted Edison's patent trust early on in trade ads nearly as much as Carl Laemmle did in the early 1910's. He gleefully filed patents on (mostly) useless inventions just to keep Edison's patent lawyers at bay. Lubin was the only Jewish mogul allowed to join the patent trust when General Film was formed. After that, he was staunchly loyal to Edison.

And if not for failing health and some bad decisions, Lubin might have been the last patent trust firm still standing. Lubin was smart enough to see the handwriting on the wall, and started early producing feature films. They were not just longer short films, but planned as features. Some were planned as disaster-genre films, long before these became a staple in the 1970s. For one feature, a huge city-block set was rigged to fall apart as an earthquake scene. For another feature, two trains were actually crashed head-on.

Beside's Lubin's Philadelphia studio, he had studios in other parts of the country. The most modern one was in Betzwood, Pennsylvania. After Lubin's company went belly-up, films were still produced there for several years. The book has an extra chapter documenting these films.

Lubin's Jacksonville, Florida studio made a lot of cheap comedies. Their main claim to fame is the discovery of comedian Oliver Hardy, from Georgia. Romaine Feilding's western studio churned out lots of high quality Western films. Lubin's main studio boasted a cafeteria, and everybody on the lot got a cheap meal.

I don't want to give the whole book away, but Lubin made a few mistakes that cost him dearly. While he went into features in a big way in the early teens, he never stopped churning out one-reel potboilers for nickelodeons. While they made great money for a few years, by the mid-teens he had too many companies making one-reelers for dwindling audiences. He also ended up with too many studios, with all of their extra overhead. Like Laemmle at Universal, he gave jobs to many of his sons-in-laws and relatives, and this began to hurt when his finances were short.

The book is very well researched, will many, many footnotes. There's lots of photos, that will make you actually want to see some Lubin films. I can highly recommend it. Joe Eckhardt runs a Betzwood Film Festival every year in Pennsylvania, that spotlights films made by Lubin and others there.

Joseph P. Eckhardt should be congratulated for this wonderful biography of pioneering film-maker Siegmund Lubin. I had assumed the book to be interesting, if probably a bit technical, and was not prepared for how entertaining the text would be. Using humor, understanding and affection for his subject, Eckhardt describes Lubin's rise from poor immigrant to King of the Movies; his battles with Thomas Edison; the creating of Lubinville, the producer's plant in Philadelphia, and, later, the move to suburban Betzwood. The benevolent mogul had enough chutzpah for two Goldwyns, it appears, and although he might not have paid his actors the salaries they could claim elsewhere, many nevertheless chose to stay in the congenial atmosphere of Lubinville. Like all the other pioneers, Lubin's era was over by the late 1910s, but until then, the German immigrant had entertained millions with his little "fillums." "The King of the Movies" is of course not only a biography of Siegmund Lubin himself, but an invaluable insight into the Lubin Mfg. Co., arguably the until now least understood of the early film companies.

For those of us, old enough to remember the "I search for Adventure" TV series, this is a fascinating book. We finally find out the background and the detailed travails of a great explorer. The discovery of the ancient tomb in the Peruvian desert has remained a secret that his partner Batanero has already taken to his grave. It reads well and adenture after adventure keeps the reader's interest until the last page is turned. It is too bad that the films have not been preserved.

Memoirs of a real-life professional explorer---a sort of "Indiana Jones with a dash of Lara Croft" who abandoned an acting career highlighted by study at the Pasadena Playhouse to travel abroad filming exotic and dangerous locales, which he then fashioned into programs for early broadcast television and the lecture circuit. This volume focuses on Latin America of the 1950's and includes a varied cast of characters from a former driver for the German general Erwin Rommel to an intrepid female journalist of the time, one Barbara Holbrook who clearly left a strong impression on the author.

The book was light and witty; but the best part was the obvious reference to JJ Sedelmaier as the animation producer who attempted to take credit for Beavis & Butthead. It's so true, he's messed with so many people and does nothing himself! Kudos to honesty, finally!!!!!

As a self confessed animation fanatic, Allan Neuwirth's MAKIN' TOONS is the kind of book that feels like it was written just for me! No where else have i found the kind of behind the scenes info on what went into the creation of my favortie animatd tv shows and movies from the industry's explosion over the past 15 years. This book gave me a real glimpse into how things work from the perspective of many of today's top animation professionals. Everyone from creators and directors to animators and voice talent...even producers! MAKIN' TOONS is comprehensive, well organized, filled with tons of great visuals and above all, an amusing and entertaining read. Could i say more about this book? Yeah, but JUST GET IT!!!!

The first Academy Awards announced in 1929 went to William Wellman's 1927 anti-war epic WINGS, the film which invented many techniques still used to film aerial battle scenes: Wellman went on to direct other films and stars, but WINGS remained his opus. THE MAN AND HIS WINGS: ROBERT A. WELLMAN AND THE MAKING OF THE FIRST BEST PICTURE could've been reviewed in our film section, but is featured here for its inclusion of family documents, mementos and personal correspondence from his father's World War I background to reveal the military influences of a director who would change Hollywood forever. A fine behind the scenes look at both Wellman and World War I experiences.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Success in Hollywood is often achieved by working within the system, but some of the greatest stars and directors were those who didn't fit in. William A. Wellman was one of the latter: "He was a square peg looking at round holes," writes his son William Wellman Jr. in _The Man and His Wings: William A. Wellman and the Making of the First Best Picture_ (Praeger). Wellman senior looked back on his career and reminisced: "I've been fired from every studio in Hollywood except Disney - they never hired me!" The junior Wellman has made his own way in show business, including making a documentary about his father's work and an upcoming movie biography. He obviously loves his subject, plainly writing in admiration. One of the attractions of the book is that much of it is written by the senior Wellman himself, letters and unpublished memoirs included in large chunks here. The book climaxes with the making and reception of the silent film _Wings_, which Wellman directed in 1927. It is perhaps Wellman's best work, although he made movies until 1958, including such standouts as _The Public Enemy_ with James Cagney in 1931 and the sardonic and hilarious _Nothing Sacred_ in 1937. Before Wellman made his great movie about pilots in World War One, he was himself a pilot in World War One, and his jaunty letters to his family from the time tell a great deal about the authenticity of _Wings_.

Wellman got kicked out of high school and was convicted of being a car thief before heading to France in 1917 to become a flier in the French Air Service (the US Air Service had turned him down due to his lack of education). Wellman joined the Lafayette Escadrille, and it is some sort of miracle that he learned to fly; the instructors spoke only French and then turned their charges over to a series of training aircraft, without ever getting into an airplane with a student. He was a bold pilot. In one of his first forays, he was the only volunteer for a risky mission, one that all the French pilots turned down; he just wanted to get into the action quickly, he explained. He had so many close calls in the air that he lost plenty of planes, each named Cecilia for his mother. Cecilia V was shot down just four months after Wellman had begun his service, and his head and back injuries were enough in this accident to get him discharged, fully decorated, from the Lafayette Flying Corps. Douglas Fairbanks sent him a cable of congratulations, and told him there was a job if he was ever in Hollywood. Wellman climbed from studio messenger to director of westerns, and Paramount only reluctantly rewarded him with the directorship of _Wings_. It was a big risk, budgeted at all of two million dollars (breaking all previous records), but Paramount reasoned that at least Wellman knew his subject. When we watch the still-exciting dogfight chases today, it is hard to remember that Wellman had no books or previous films to learn from. It was news to the executives who oversaw him, for instance, that a dogfight cannot be filmed in a cloudless sky, because in an open sky there is no sense of speed.

_Wings_ had good preview response, but the studio was still worried over public reaction. It opened in New York three months after Lindbergh's flight, a premiere to which Wellman was not invited. The movie was a sensation; it played in New York for two solid years. Wellman also wasn't invited to be at the first Academy Awards celebration, in which his film won the first Best Picture award, which was handed, by Douglas Fairbanks, to Adolph Zukor, the president of Paramount. How different things were back then; Fairbanks handed out all the awards himself, none of the recipients made speeches, and it took all of five minutes. Wellman would be handed his own Oscar eventually, for co-writing the original _A Star is Born_ (1937). _Wings_, however, is as good as any popular entertainment movie has ever been; if you ever get a chance to see it in revival, I guarantee that you will find that the audience still thinks the movie a rousing one. I find it listed as one of the few Best Picture winners that are not available on DVD, but there seems to be hope that one will be coming out soon. After reading this hugely entertaining book about the man who made it happen, I can't wait to see it again.

Examines Director Martin Scorsese's career from the beginning to Cape Fear (although it seems that the book had to go to press before Cape Fear was actually released, as there's a discernable lack of substance in that chapter).

To gather wonderful tales of how Scorsese works, Kelly interviews the director's friends, family members, casts, and crews. Oh, and the Secretary to the President of Cyprus!! (See details about The Last Temptation of Christ). Quoted stories, observations, and comments all contribute to a fine portrait of one of our greatest active cinema artists. (And, to the delight of film buffs everywhere, text shows that Scorsese is first and foremost an unabashed movie fan)! Kelly's system provides the reader to form own opinions about Scorsese, rather than making a lot of critical conclusions.

In pursuit of my undergrad degree, I used this book quite a bit for research toward essays I wrote about Scorsese's films. Not at all a chore to read, it was a very enjoyable book, great for the fan as well as the film scholar.

Good index, good filmography. Brief forewards by Michael Powell and Steven Spielberg hint at more than a bit of pure jealousy!

this is one of the best, in-depth bio's that I have read. And what a subject! Martin Scorsese is a god-like director that has made such films as Good Fellas Casino and Taxi Driver. The book is filled with interveiws from fellow directors and drew/cast etc. Great format! It's like reading a behind the scene's documentry.

BUy it!

With endpapers of a watercolor by Dong Kingman, the artist who did a number of paintings and art/title credits for films (as well as being a successful artist in his own right), photographs from Wuntch's personal collection, and gentle, yet perceptive recollections of a number of stars (the Audrey Hepburn and Judy Garland pieces are outstanding), this is a lovely book. A must-have for anyone interested in Hollywood lore. Beautifully done.

This is a treasure trove for the film lover. Lively, funny antidotes from a true Hollywood producer (Films include: The Pink Panther, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Terms of Endearment, Waltz Across Texas, etc.) about the actors, composers, writers, and directors that he has worked with while a theatrical agent and film producer. Each chapter is a delight. Treat yourself to a chapter a night of this well written book about the life of this Hollywood insider. Tales of Sinatra, Audrey Hepburn, Ava Gardner, Shelly Winters, Elvis, Kathrine Hepburn and more.

This is an excellence reference work, and it is chock full of sample contracts and release forms. Miller, an attorney himself, repeatedly states that the forms are a starting point and that the reader should obtain legal counsel. Each state has different laws, and Miller explains that different situations and different clients warrant professional review of forms and contracts.

I particularly liked the online reader. I needed the information immediately, and the online reader for only about $8 more, provided it. The reader lets you highlight and bookmark sections, and it worked quite well.

If you are a media producer and don't know about Focal Press, the publisher, check them out. They have been publishing books about media production for decades that are concise and informative.

Knowledgeably written by Philip H. Miller (an expert practicing attorney specializing in media law), and now in its fourth edition featuring new and expanded sections on option agreements, the use of copyrighted materials, developments in Internet law, as well as interactive productions, Media Law For Producers is a straightforward, 399-page guide to legal issues relevant to media projects for theatrical, television, radio, print, or electronic projects from production contracts, to copyright registration for finished programs, and more. Specifically written to be accessible to the non-specialist general reader, and to be as a solid resource with which to educate oneself before consulting with a media attorney who would charge by the hour for his expertise, Media Law For Producers is a "must-have" resource for anyone seriously involved in producing a media project regardless of the subject matter or format.

This book is well written and researched. It covers five horror film creators: James Whale, Willis O'Brien, Ray Harryhausen, Terrence Fisher and Freddie Francis.

The Whale section is good but covers ground that is equally covered from other sources.

The O'Brien and Harryhausen chapters are possibly the best available sources on the two greatest SPX artists.

The Fisher and Francis sections provide good coverage of these Britsh horror directors. The Freddie Francis chapter is the best source I've read for his wildly uneven career and his IMHO greatly superior to the Wheeler Dixon book on Francis.

There is no better biography of Willis O'Brien the man who brought dinosaurs to life and of his protege Ray Harryhausen who made more dinos move and was largely responsible for the original Mighty Joe Young. In addition, there are fine pieces on James Whale, Terence Fisher, and Freddie Francis who invented and re-invented the modern gothic horror film.

This film critic's survey of eight of Hollywood's finest directors and their works uses the interview process to explore the work of American filmmakers over the last decades. Hitchcock, Capra, Cuckor and others share their achievements in a revealing set of interviews covering special challenges and observations.

For more than 20 years, I relied on Schickel for guidance when determining which films to see; also, for gaining a better understanding of the films I had seen. In this volume, he provides interviews with eight great directors: Hitchcock, Capra, Minimill, Cukor, Hawks, Wellman, Vidor, and Walsh. In recent weeks, I have also read Robert J. Emery's two The Directors (Take One and Take Two) and Bogdanovich's Who the Devil Made It which also offer interviews and conversations with various great directors. Don't worry about duplications; that is, what Cukor, Hawks, Hitchcock, Walsh, and Wellman have to say. Bogdanovich, Emery, and Schickel have different questions to ask, different nuances of film making to explore, and approach the directors from quite different perspectives. The responses they obtain from the same directors differ. For that reason, I strongly urge fellow film buffs to purchase all of these volumes. The order in which they are read is unimportant.

What differentiates Schickel from Bogdanovich and Emery is the fact that, for many years, he wrote film reviews for Time magazine and thus had an immense audience with which to share his opinions about more than a thousand films. Also, he is the author of more than 20 books about film making which include biographies of Marlon Brando, Cary Brando, and James Cagney. Over the years, he has earned and richly deserves his reputation as one of the most thoughtful and knowledgeable of film authorities. In this volume, he interacts with eight of the greatest film directors. At no time does he seem intimidated by them nor does he ever disrupt the flow of information exchanged with self-serving observations. He guides each director into subject areas which are probably of great interest to most film buffs but he also allows each director to ramble, digress, etc. when reminiscing or when sharing specific opinions about films and actors with whom they were associated. Sure, there is some delicious gossip. And yes, some insights not otherwise available. However, for the most part, Schickel sets up various subjects and then allows each director (many of them a personal friend) to proceed wherever he may wish, at whatever pace he may prefer. His brilliant orchestration of responses ensures their scope and depth. That is to say, he did not merely turn on the recorder and then let each of the eight take it from there. On his reader's behalf, Schickel remains actively involved, indeed engaged in the exchange of information but at no time is intrusive. Within its genre, this is indeed a "classic."

Having just waxed euphoric about this book in a comment regarding her upcoming project Shantaram, it reminded me to come over here and talk a little about why the book is so great. I posted a review along with an excerpt a while back but I guess it was deleted because it was too long.

A shame because the excerpt was so insightful and beautifully written and it was about the film Kama Sutra.

Muir does an in-depth study of all of Nair's films with a chapter for each film, how it was conceived, the filming process and the common themes of her films (identity is the main one), and he also includes interviews with Nair and the people who have worked with her on almost each project over the past two decades.

I love this book because it is about an incredible woman and her passion for film and how it illuminates her work. It also talks about the critical aspects of films in a way that the average reader that doesn't know much about it will understand and thoroughly enjoy - and then learn to recognize the next time they watch one.

In the Namesake DVD's extra features section, there is also terrific footage from Nair's film course at Columbia...it's an awesome primer on how much work is involved in bringing the project to the screen and short of going there to learn more and taking the class yourself, this book, at a fraction of the cost, delivers.

For those of us who don't WANT to go to film school but are intrigued by the process, I also recommend The Devil's Guide to Hollywood by the irreverent Joe Eszterhas. WOOT!!!!

If you've never seen a Mira Nair film, you truly are missing out! The colors alone are breathtaking. I've only seen 'Vanity Fair' but after this book, I'm anxious to see her others. Muir does an excellent job of explaining the deeper meanings behind Nair's works, based on commentary by cast members, crew, and Nair herself. Long-hailed at international film festivals, these films have not always enjoyed blockbuster success in the U.S. The topics are fascinating - interracial romances, the role of women in society, the culture and conflict of 'East' and 'West,' and the strong bonds of family. Nair's newest film "The Namesake" is scheduled for release this year.