Böcker utgivna av BearManor Media

FROM HELL TO HOLLYWOOD: An Encyclopedia of Warld War II Films offers the most comprehensive illustrated guide ever assembled for theatrical motion-pictures, English-language and international, dealing with the conflict that consumed America and the globe during the mid-20th century. Though United States official involvement did not begin until December, 1941, following the bombing of Pearl Harbor by Japan’s imperial air force, early battles and other precipitous moments, which led to legendary conflicts in Europe and the Pacific, can be traced back through the better part of a decade, many deriving from the unsatisfactory treaties that ended the initial Great War. This book also addresses WWII’s aftermath in America, Asia, and Europe, as varied filmmakers have portrayed that difficult period.In a unique approach to this complex, broad subject, specific films are grouped according to unifying themes that involve varied aspects of ‘The Big Picture.’ These range from training of civilians for a new, updated state-of-the-art armed forces to the impact of warfare on the development of commercial flight, also the unique roles played by spies, People’s Armies, and other misunderstood aspects of the war as writers and directors perceived them then, as well as more recent Revisionist portrayals.Included are hundreds of vivid photos, many never before printed in book form. This work is so immense that it had to be presented in two inter-dependent volumes—a first for Bear Manor Media!  This is volume 2 of 2.DOUGLAS BRODE is a screenwriter, novelist, graphic novelist, produced playwright, multi-award winning journalist, and multi-award winning educator. He created and taught the Film Classics program for The Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University until his retirement. Now Brode concentrates on turning out further books, both fiction and non-fiction. These include Deadlier Than the Male: Femme Fatales in 1960s and 1970s Cinema for Bear Manor Media. 

The untold stories of the British talent behind the biggest movie of all time…In the sweltering heat wave of 1976, the filming of Star Wars was underway at Elstree Studios in North London. No one who was working on the movie could have imagined just how successful the film and franchise would be…'The Galaxy Britain Built' has tracked down the most modest of British talent who brought the galaxy to life. In this book they reveal the secrets behind the creation of some of the most famous costumes, props and sets in movie history. Think you know everything there is to know about Star Wars? Think again…"We called it the laser sword because we were British! I knew the lightsaber was the Excalibur of this film! I made it from a flash tube from a 1940s camera.""We were going flat out to fill a cantina with aliens. We made foam latex, which filled the room with ammonia and we were painting with toluene paint. We were probably all high at the time!""I broke down my script; I had a list of weapons, robots, sets, vehicles. I just stared at it in horror thinking, 'I can't do this!' "We got wheelbarrow wheels, some plywood and some polystyrene and we built a Landspeeder.""Harrison, Carrie and Mark, being American, said they hadn't tried Yorkshire puddings before! So on that Sunday, we invited them round for lunch…"

After a little known suburb of Los Angeles named Hollywood became the center of the American film industry beginning in the 1910's, huge numbers of people poured into the southern California area. They came in all shapes and sizes, from every corner of the United States and the world, from every religious and ethnic background, and all economic groups. No one's reason for coming was identical, but the vast majority of the new Hollywood immigrants harbored a desire to find employment in the ever expanding industry of making movies. Many were chasing a dream of cinematic stardom which for most, would soon end in disillusionment.The twelve individuals profiled in this book: Nancy Carroll, Gloria Dickson, Claire Dodd, Richard Greene, John Hodiak, Marian Marsh, Karen Morley, Edward Norris, Jean Parker, Paula Raymond, Zachary Scott, and Gloria Stuart were among the tiny, elite group of new immigrants who achieved their initial goal of becoming successful actors on the silver screen. In fact, all twelve won major studio contracts, achieved fame, fortune, and acclaim. Yet, despite their achievements, all twelve failed to ascend to the very top of the professional ladder, never attaining their ultimate goal: superstardom. Given their abilities, ambition, and other significant assets, how could this be? With the invaluable assistance of major studio and library archives, recollections of the actors themselves and/or those who knew them, this book traces the lives and careers of the twelve in an attempt to determine what went right and what went wrong. The essays herein, (originally published in two acclaimed magazines, Classic Images and Films of The Golden Age), are also opportunities to offer a "tip of the hat" to twelve extremely gifted, hardworking, and unsung actors who coulda been contenders!A Michigan native, author, biographer Dan Van Neste has been chronicling vintage entertainment history for over thirty years. His work has appeared in innumerable newspapers, magazines, and film journals including Classic Images and Films of the Golden Age. He is the author of two acclaimed books: The Whistler: Stepping Into the Shadows (2011), and The Magnificent Heel: The Life and Films of Ricardo Cortez (2017). The latter was named one of the "Best Film Books of 2017" by The Huffington Post, and was a nominee for the 2018 Richard Wall Memorial Award given by the Theater Library Association to honor "English language books of exceptional scholarship in the field of recorded or broadcast performance."