Reel Corner - September 2025

September 2025 Issue
Reel Corner by Donne Paine

The Rise of Hollywood

Over the past 20 years, The Reel Corner has focused on films, both on the big screen and streaming platforms, highlighting actors, directors, major productions, and independent films. While we have covered film festivals and film events, we have not delved into the development of Hollywood as we know it today.

I recently watched a Netflix docudrama, Titans: The Rise of Hollywood, about the history and power of Hollywood and wanted to share some key insights: The story of Hollywood’s evolution into the world’s premier film industry is one shaped by innovation, migration, and transformation. In the early 1900s, the film industry was primarily controlled on the East Coast, notably in New York and New Jersey. Inventors like Thomas Edison, who held patents related to film equipment, exerted considerable control over movie production, often suing independent filmmakers and strong-arming them for infringement. Films were made by the Edison Trust and distributed to movie houses. When movie exchange companies erupted so that movies could be shared, the Edison Trust shut them down, as well. Those determined to get into the filmmaking business had to go elsewhere like Cuba or France to compete.



Seeking relief from these constraints, and being attracted by the sunny climate and diverse landscapes, in 1910, pioneers, such as Nestor Studios, began setting up shop in Hollywood, which at the time was farmland and far away from the strong arm of the Edison Trust. Southern California’s consistent weather and variety of filming locations gave Hollywood a distinct advantage, quickly attracting talent and investment. Key entrepreneurial figures like Samuel Goldwyn, Carl Laemmle, Louis B. Mayer, and the Warner Brothers laid the groundwork for the powerful studio system that would define Hollywood for decades. These entrepreneurial figures who built the film studio empire were poor young men who had courage and vision.



Early Hollywood films were silent and short, relying on expressive visuals and live musical accompaniment. Interestingly, in the early days, actors were often known by nicknames rather than their real names; they were merely images without true identities. It was not until Mary Pickford allowed her name to be displayed on screen that the modern concept of celebrity emerged. As actors rose to fame and money so did deviant behaviors. After a series of scandals in the 1930s, movie studios implemented rigid and controlling practices over their glamorous stars, dictating what they could say to reporters, who they could date, and where they would live during their contracts, while employing “fixers” to manage any scandals that arose.


Because of this, movie stars Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks opened their own studio named United Artists. But it was not until decades later that film actors had freedom to live their lives without such control.

The transition to “talkies” in the late 1920s, revolutionized the industry. Challenges were many, including transforming film studios with recording devices and modifying theaters to accompany sound.

Then came the challenges of hiring actors with voices that would complement their persona in sound. Many actors were recruited from Broadway.

In those days, radio was the primary form of entertainment, and life experiences were largely confined to one’s neighborhood. Films transported audiences to foreign lands and adventures, offering a fantasy that many could only dream of experiencing.

Today, Hollywood exists as both a physical place and a symbol of creative possibility, cultural power, and cinematic tradition. The industry has further evolved with the rise of digital technology, streaming services, and global collaboration. Despite various challenges, Hollywood remains a dominant force, producing hundreds of films annually and shaping the world’s visual imagination.


References: Netflix: Titans: The Rise of Hollywood; www.wikipedia.com

Donne Paine, film enthusiast, once lived around the corner from the Orson Wells Theater in Cambridge, Massachu-setts, where her strong interest in films, especially independent ones, began. Supporter of the arts, especially films, she has traveled to local and national film festivals including Sundance, Toronto and Tribeca. There is nothing like seeing a film on the big screen. She encourages film goers to support Hilton Head local theaters, Park Plaza Theater and Northridge. To support her habit of frequent movie going, Donne is a vaccine medicine nurse consultant and also the author of 4 Interview Pillars available on Amazon. See you at the movies!