American comics: I drew Superman during the Great Depression

“I want to be alone… I want to be alone”

On the big screen of the cinema, the hysterical ballerina said her inner monologue.

And this sentence later became the symbol of Greta Garbo.

1932 was the worst year for all entertainment industries in the United States. Hollywood was the first to bear the brunt. In this year, the number of moviegoers dropped to the lowest of 15 million. You know, two years ago, in 1930, when the Great Depression occurred, the number of moviegoers at that time reached a record high of 80 million per week.

And the movie ticket price was reduced from 30 cents in the previous year to 20 cents. What’s worse is that with the popularity of sound films, production costs also began to soar, while overseas markets showed an inverse decline. During this period, the box office revenue of a blockbuster was about 400,000 to 500,000, but the production cost ranged from 300,000 to 800,000. Calculated in this way, the profit was close to zero. This situation made American studios in Los Angeles complain bitterly.

The decrease in audiences caused two-thirds of Broadway theaters to close.

Circuses and vaudeville theaters were on the verge of death, and theaters were forced to close every day.

In this situation, Variety magazine published a statement saying: "The motto that cheap entertainment is immune to all poisons at all times has become a joke. Nothing is immune to all poisons, not even government bonds!"

In order to survive the market winter, Hollywood also seemed to reverse its strategy.

MGM was one of the few studios that still maintained a weak profitability during this period.

And "famous works" were also a film trend born during this period, that is, big-budget films adapted from other literary and artistic forms with pre-sold copyrights, starring top stars from various studios.

"Grand Hotel" is such a work.

The plot of the movie is adapted from Vicki Baum's best-selling work, with a luxurious hotel in Berlin as the stage of life, showing the bizarre encounters of five main characters in one day.

This special story structure was the first time in Hollywood during this period.

Of course, what is more eye-catching is that the five protagonists of the film are all played by big stars from MGM Studios. This all-star film lineup has attracted the expectations of a large number of fans as soon as it was released.

Especially "Grand Hotel", as the first sound film in which Greta Garbo, the queen of silent films, participated, it has aroused the audience's expectations.

Finally, I came to Hollywood.

Colin would naturally not miss watching such a classic movie.

Therefore, at Disney Studios, after discussing the content of the joint plot, he took the initiative to propose the idea of ​​watching this movie.

To this, Walt and others also readily agreed.

In the cinema, the audience was quietly watching the content on the big screen.

Their emotions changed with the ballerina played by Greta Garbo.

With her dreamy eyes, fanatical and rapid voice, and slender figure, Garbo created a woman who was extremely lonely and insecure under the fame.

Classics will not fade with the washing of time, and "Grand Hotel" is obviously such a classic.

This all-star Oscar-winning masterpiece confines the story to the hotel, but through the bizarre encounters of five groups of characters on the same day, it presents various scenes of joy and sorrow in a three-line interlaced manner.

What is more commendable is that such a big production with many stars ends with a rather dark ending.

At the end of the film, some died, some were arrested, and some left, when all the actors left the stage.

The hotel as the background is still there quietly, welcoming new guests, people coming and going, giving people a sense of passing years.

This is obviously an unimaginable ending in Hollywood later.

Perhaps, it is precisely because of this that "The Story of the Grand Hotel" is so popular, and "The Berlin Hotel", which is the prototype of the story, has been adapted into a classic Broadway opera and continues to be passed down.

The movie ends.

"It's a wonderful movie."

As the scrolling subtitles appeared on the big screen, Colin breathed a sigh of relief and said with a sigh.

"It's a very cruel movie."

Next to him, Walt Disney gave a different opinion.

"It's a very realistic movie."

Royal Disney said in a low voice, pressing down his hat.

In "Grand Hotel", there is no clear main plot, but it is all the main plot, just like life.

"John is so pitiful..."

This is the feeling of Walt's wife Lillian. The John she mentioned is the actor of the male protagonist Baron von Gegen in the movie, a thief who is addicted to gambling and degenerates into a thief but still has an aristocratic demeanor. The ending of this male protagonist in the movie is very miserable.

Of course, no matter what their comments are, they all think that "Grand Hotel" is an excellent work.

"It has been a long time since Hollywood has seen such a good work. The last time I was moved by a movie was Chaplin's "City Lights."

Coming out of the cinema, Walt looked back at the huge poster of "Grand Hotel" on the wall and couldn't help saying.

Although Disney Studios is also developing in Hollywood, it is not obviously competing with these studios because of the type of movies.

"That's because the studios are losing money. In order to save money, many studios have laid off more than 20% of their employees. Among them, Paramount directly closed its Long Island studio, resulting in more than 5,000 employees losing their jobs. The news that penniless extras were left in Los Angeles almost became a national scandal..."

Compared to Walt, Royce Disney, who leads Disney's business department, seems to have a better understanding of the current situation in Hollywood.

Going out to watch theaters and movies requires money. This was obviously a very luxurious enjoyment for people during the Great Depression. Therefore, they would rather stay at home and listen to free radio programs than go out and spend money to buy a movie. Movie tickets.

For the first time, Hollywood's eight major studios suffered losses one after another.

"Today's Hollywood has long lost its glory. It is said that in less than half a year this year alone, Paramount has lost more than 10 million, and is still losing money. If this situation continues, I think next year there may be only seven of the eight major studios left..."

The downturn in Hollywood is also the reason why Disney frequently authorizes the production of peripherals. Compared with live-action movies, animated movies have a longer production cycle, but they can well avoid the problem of actor remuneration. In Disney's movies The only thing you need to worry about is making the story interesting.

Please remember the first domain name of this book: . Shuquge mobile version reading website: