Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios: Difference between revisions
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
no edit summary
imported>Trevor807 No edit summary |
imported>Logofan No edit summary |
||
| Line 33: | Line 33: | ||
===Background=== | ===Background=== | ||
'''Metro''' Pictures Corporation was founded on June 23, 1915, by Richard A. Rowland (1880-1947) and Louis B. '''Mayer''' ( | '''Metro''' Pictures Corporation was founded on June 23, 1915, by Richard A. Rowland (1880-1947) and Louis B. '''Mayer''' (1884-1957), and started out distributing films produced by [[Solax Studios]]. However, Mayer left the studio soon after operations began to form his own company, [[w:Louis B. Mayer Pictures|Louis B. Mayer Pictures Corporation]], in 1918. Richard Rowland would continue to produce a number of films in New York City, Fort Lee, New Jersey, and Hollywood, where he established a backlot at North Cahuenga Boulevard (which remains open and is today known as Red Studios Hollywood). [[Loews Theatres|Marcus Loew]], a theater magnate who had been seeking products for his ever-expanding collective of nickelodeons, vaudeville houses, and movie palaces, acquired Metro Pictures in 1920. | ||
Dissatisfied with Metro's output following his purchase of the studio, Loew later purchased [[Goldwyn Pictures|'''Goldwyn''' Pictures]] in 1924 and combined the two studios in the hope of creating higher-quality content for his theaters. The same year, Louis B. Mayer sold Louis B. Mayer Productions to Loew for $75,000 (around $1.17 million adjusted for inflation). On April 17, 1924, the three studios were merged to become '''Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.''' ('''MGM'''). With Mayer serving as head of the studio, MGM became one of the major players in the Golden Age of Hollywood, and was one of the "Big Five" film studios, alongside [[Paramount Pictures]], [[RKO Radio Pictures]], [[20th Century Studios|20th Century Fox]] and [[Warner Bros. Pictures|Warner Bros.]] At its peak in the 1930s, the studio was releasing 50 films a year. In 1952, Loews Inc. was forced to relinquish control of MGM due to the outcome of ''[[w:United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc.|United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc.]]'', which forced studios and theaters to separate. By the time the split was completed in 1959, MGM was in decline due to a combination of the split, the decline of the old studio system, and the rise of television. In 1957, the same year Louis B. Mayer died, the company filed a loss for the first time ever. | Dissatisfied with Metro's output following his purchase of the studio, Loew later purchased [[Goldwyn Pictures|'''Goldwyn''' Pictures]] in 1924 and combined the two studios in the hope of creating higher-quality content for his theaters. The same year, Louis B. Mayer sold Louis B. Mayer Productions to Loew for $75,000 (around $1.17 million adjusted for inflation). On April 17, 1924, the three studios were merged to become '''Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.''' ('''MGM'''). With Mayer serving as head of the studio, MGM became one of the major players in the Golden Age of Hollywood, and was one of the "Big Five" film studios, alongside [[Paramount Pictures]], [[RKO Radio Pictures]], [[20th Century Studios|20th Century Fox]] and [[Warner Bros. Pictures|Warner Bros.]] At its peak in the 1930s, the studio was releasing 50 films a year. In 1952, Loews Inc. was forced to relinquish control of MGM due to the outcome of ''[[w:United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc.|United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc.]]'', which forced studios and theaters to separate. By the time the split was completed in 1959, MGM was in decline due to a combination of the split, the decline of the old studio system, and the rise of television. In 1957, the same year Louis B. Mayer died, the company filed a loss for the first time ever. | ||
| Line 50: | Line 50: | ||
|Metro-Goldwyn Pictures Corporation| | |Metro-Goldwyn Pictures Corporation| | ||
{{ImageTOC | {{ImageTOC | ||
|MetroGoldwynPicture.png|Logo (1924-1928 | |MetroGoldwynPicture.png|Logo (November 9, 1924-June 14, 1928) | ||
}} | }} | ||
|Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc.| | |Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc.| | ||
| Line 85: | Line 85: | ||
* A sepia variant exists. | * A sepia variant exists. | ||
* On ''Cleopatra'', the logo reads "DISTRIBUTED BY Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer DISTRIBUTING CORP". The lion is also more realistic. | * On ''Cleopatra'', the logo reads "DISTRIBUTED BY Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer DISTRIBUTING CORP". The lion is also more realistic. | ||
'''Technique:''' A printed graphic filmed by a cameraman. | '''Technique:''' A printed graphic filmed by a cameraman. | ||
| Line 91: | Line 90: | ||
'''Audio:''' The closing theme of the film. | '''Audio:''' The closing theme of the film. | ||
'''Availability:''' This was used as an endcap on very early MGM-era movies such as ''He Who Gets Slapped'', and also as an opening logo, like on ''Greed''. | '''Availability:''' This was used as an endcap on very early MGM-era movies such as ''He Who Gets Slapped'' and ''Lady of the Night'', and also as an opening logo, like on ''Greed''. | ||
==Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc.== | ==Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc.== | ||
| Line 120: | Line 119: | ||
'''Audio:''' None or the opening theme of the film. | '''Audio:''' None or the opening theme of the film. | ||
'''Availability:''' It can be seen on the earliest films under the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer name. Some films were still around, while others are destroyed | '''Availability:''' It can be seen on the earliest films under the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer name. Some films were still around, while others are destroyed. | ||
* Due to the 1965 MGM vault fire, existing prints of most films from this era have the 3rd logo plastering this one, this is not easy to come across. | |||
* Currently, it is seen on ''He Who Gets Slapped'', ''Confessions of a Queen'', ''The Unholy Three'' (1925), ''The Circle'', and ''Battling Butler''. | * Currently, it is seen on ''He Who Gets Slapped'', ''Confessions of a Queen'', ''The Unholy Three'' (1925), ''The Circle'', and ''Battling Butler''. | ||
* It may have also been seen on some original prints of ''London After Midnight'', ''Lady of the Night'', and ''Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', respectively. | * It may have also been seen on some original prints of ''London After Midnight'', ''Lady of the Night'', and ''Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', respectively. | ||