The Shark-Fighting Brothers behind 20,000 Leagues under the Sea
In 1916, the Williamson brothers used their father's underwater photography device to film a fight with a shark, piquing Universal Pictures' interest.
The Private Life of a Cat
Maya Deren was a fringe filmmaker who existed far outside the Hollywood machine, but she often borrowed its tactics to promote herself and her movies.
The Complications of “Outlaw Country”
Johnny Cash grappled with the many facets of the outlaw archetype in his feature acting debut, Five Minutes to Live.
The D-I-Y Origins of Night of the Living Dead
Night of the Living Dead’s production story reads like a means to an end: a rag-tag group of creatives makes a movie on nothing to get noticed.
The Bizarre Marvels of Segundo de Chomón, Father of Spanish Cinema
Segundo de Chomón made “trick films” that experimented with color and temporality, influencing the surrealist work of Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí.
Lon Chaney’s Movie Monsters
You might know him from Phantom of the Opera or The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
How Hollywood Sold Glamour
The complicated notion of glamour in classic Hollywood, suggesting that stars were aloof and unknowable, was also a means to sell products.
“Are You Popular?”
Mental hygiene films of the postwar era gave advice to American teens—and parroted specific cultural values.
How Annie Oakley Defined the Cinema Cowgirl
“Little Sure Shot” was famous for her precision, athleticism, and trademark femininity.