Hearst Over Hollywood

Film and Culture Series

by Louis Pizzitola

Hollywood―crossroads of filmmaking, mythmaking, and politics―was dominated by one man more than any other for most of its history. It was William Randolph Hearst who understood how to use cinema to exploit the public's desire for entertainment and to create film propaganda to further his own desire for power. From the start, Hearst saw his future and the future of Hollywood as one and the same. He pioneered and capitalized on the synergistic relationship between yellow journalism and advertising and motion pictures. He sent movie cameramen to the inauguration of William McKinley and the front lines of the Spanish-American War. He played a prominent role in organizing film propaganda for both sides fighting World War I. By the 1910s, Hearst was producing his own pictures―he ran one of the first animation studios and made many popular and controversial movie serials, including The Perils of Pauline (creating both the scenario and the catchphrase title) and Patria . As a feature film producer, Hearst was responsible for some of the most talked-about movies of the 1920s and 1930s. Behind the scenes in Hollywood, Hearst had few equals―he was a much-feared power broker from the Silent Era to the Blacklisting Era.

Hearst Over Hollywood draws on hundreds of previously unpublished letters and memos, FBI Freedom of Information files, and personal interviews to document the scope of Hearst's power in Hollywood. Louis Pizzitola tells the hidden story of Hearst's shaping influence on both film publicity and film censorship―getting the word out and keeping it in check―as well as the growth of the "talkies," and the studio system. He details Hearst's anti-Semitism and anti-Communism, used to retaliate for Citizen Kane and to maintain dominance in the film industry, and exposes his secret film deal with Germany on the eve of World War II.

The author also presents new insights into Hearst's relationships with Marion Davies, Will Hays, Louis B. Mayer, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Mussolini, Hitler, and the Kennedys. Hearst Over Hollywood is a tour de force of biography, cultural study, and film history that reveals as never before the brilliance and darkness of Hearst's prophetic connection with Hollywood.

Genres: History, Biography, Film, Nonfiction

540 pages, Hardcover

First published March 8, 2002

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This may seem a weird reason for a not-great rating, but I there was almost too much information in this book to take in. It was nearly 450 pages (not counting notes) of teeny-tiny print. Because of its title, I expected it to be about Hearst and Hollywood (duh), but it covered every detail of Hearst's life: newspapers, politics, Tammany Hall, and more, down to the most minute detail. It was clearly well researched, but I wish it had been published in two separate volumes.

That said, Joseph Cotten's last name is not Cotton, Ruth Warrick's is not Warwick, and the battle the author refers to on p. 413 was almost certainly a public one, not pubic. Where have all the proofreaders gone?

[Lora · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not ready to abandon this, but I have started scanning it. The book is really well done, and incredibly detailed. I can only take a few pages at a time. Basically it's another 'powerful man and his corrupt life' histories. In contrast, I'm also reading "Women Making America", a positive historical account that covers the same era and much more.
Well, they may cancel each other out and I'll be left with my Bread Bible, "The Encyclopedia of Bread and Bread Machines".
The era of which Hearst was a part interests me, moderately. So I'll keep scanning. I'm very tired of hearing about brothels and prostitutes and I'm only about thrity pages in. Well, my husband likes history and wanted me to read one of his books, and when he offered this, I said I would. Sigh.
I liked "The Victorian Internet" much better.
Ooh...I'm glad I've been sticking with this. I came to a quote that included this sentence: "Where the editors of Yellow Journalism made a mistake was in not understanding the difference between stimulated growth and healthy growth."
Or, in the case, of much media then and now- 'simulated growth'. And really, do they not understand it, or understand it far too well...?
I have slowed down and am reading much more closely. Altho the very next page had yet more references to prostitutes, which I am wondering are meant as much as a reference to hearst and his life philosophies as much as to actual prostitutes.
Continuing on and scanning again. This is a very detailed examination (as in thorough post mortem) of Hearst and his ideas of massive manipulation of the tastes and thoughts of the populace. I kinda get the picture by now, ok, and each specifc account is starting to have less effect on me. I have since abandoned this book for the time being. I get the main point and the whole Hearst thing doesn't hold my attention.

[Jeff Russo · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I was reading the book and then looked up the author, I assumed him to be an academic or professional writer, but, no, he's none of these things. I say this because the writing shows tremendous confidence, style, and depth. It's very nicely done, and it merits four stars on quality.

That being said... and I do end up asking myself this more and more about nonfiction nowadays... did I really need to read it? It's so, so much detail. And it even finds time to stray afield of its intended narrow focus... at one point Mr Pizzitola is like "Hearst's magazines have been somewhat ignored by biographers" so he wanders off for some time on the magazines.

Given that I'd say you should read if you really find yourself motivated on this subject matter.

[Adrian Fowler]

It could be that this is the most powerful direction I could take, considering that the date of the title is from the early 2000s. Yea, bookmark

[Theo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a lot of interesting information, but it was very disorganized.

[Anne Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a remarkable book, containing meticulous research on media baron William Randolph Hearst and illuminating the birth of the American media industry. Pizzitola's attention to detail is fascinating. I loved his depictions of New York in the early 1900s, and the connections between Hearst's early newspaper and movie business with the bordellos of 14th St. He also works hard to set the record straight. Hearst didn't "start" the Spanish-American War, but his role was even more interesting than the legend.

I especially appreciated the passages dealing with Hearst's extensive dealings with Nazi Germany, which went on for years. He also energetically pursued the practice of political black-listing in the U.S. as part of his commercial business plan. Those of us who love and defend American print journalism in these difficult times need to be fully cognizant of the more unsavory elements of its past, and they are on vivid display here.

The problem with this book is that it's almost three books in one -- which reflects the way Hearst's extraordinary career spanned several chapters of American media history. It takes some patience, simply because there is so much rich information. Anyone teaching media history should keep it in mind.

[Jerry Wendt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book more a complete and well written and documented historical story of a time and place in relation to Hearst rather than a just a bio of the man. The backstories on things like Tallulah Bankhead, The "Yellow Man" and even the intrigue behind the sinking of the Maine were all fascinating to me. Some members of our club found it too detailed, but I don't believe in that as a critique. if I'm interested in a time and place, II want to know as much as I can. Mr Pizzitola did his homework and even more to his credit arranged it all into a linear recount so as to see the progression of the media growth under Hearst. The other players of the day from politicians to movie Czars are well-put into perspective. I loved this book . If you don't have any interest in this portion of American History you might find the book long. By no means is it a superficial breezy account. But, if you give it time, Pizzitola will give you a adventurous ride.