Russians in Hollywood, Hollywood's Russians: Biography of an ImageNortheastern University Press, 2007 - 314 pages This book is the first look at the colorful yet largely unknown story of Russian émigrés who worked in the American film industry, and the representation of Russians and Soviets in Hollywood movies. Among the artists who gravitated towards Hollywood in the 1920s and ’30s were the legendary directors Lewis Milestone and Rouben Mamoulian, composers Dmitri Tiomkin and Constantin Bakaleinikoff, and actors Alla Nazimova, Akim Tamiroff, and Maria Ouspenskaya. Many had to overcome obstacles of heavy accents, being cut off from their cultural base, being forced to work beneath their talents, and taking roles that promoted ethnic stereotypes. As with most Hollywood stories, there are also great artistic and personal triumphs; many relished the opportunity to pursue their crafts largely free of political entanglements. In addition to the story of Russian émigrés, Robinson also discusses the impact of such Soviet artists as Sergei Eisenstein and Sergei Prokofiev and their visits to Hollywood. The book is also an informed and entertaining analysis of the representation of Russians and Soviets in American cinema. Rarely has a country loomed so large in the American zeitgeist yet remained so unknown. As a result, it was mainly through the medium of film that Americans’ images of and attitudes towards Russia were shaped. From the 1920s to the 1950s these depictions often mimicked the contemporary state of U.S./Soviet relations at that time: the anti-Soviet Ninotchka, establishing the trope of the seduction of a Soviet by Western charm; the WW II films such as Mission to Moscow and Days of Glory which lent a positive spin to the tribulations of our erstwhile ally. The Cold War brought a slew of Red-baiting genre films (along with notable action and spy films), while the intermittent post-Stalin “thaws” are represented by such classics as David Lean’s Doctor Zhivago and Warren Beatty’s Reds. Russians in Hollywood, Hollywood’s Russians is an original contribution to our knowledge of the early Hollywood film community and a lively blend of film analysis and social and political history. |
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Russians in Hollywood, Hollywood's Russians: Biography of an Image Harlow Robinson Limited preview - 2007 |
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Academy of Motion accent actress Akim Tamiroff American film Anastasia Angeles Anna anti-Soviet artistic Balalaika ballet Baryshnikov became Berlin Boris Brynner career cast character Chekhov cinema Cold Cold War commissars Communism Communist composer culture dance dancer directed director Doctor Zhivago early Eisenstein émigré Empress English feature film industry film's friends Fyodor Chaliapin German Godunov Gregory Ratoff Hollywood Hollywood film Ibid ideological Josef von Sternberg Khrushchev Konchalovsky later Lewis Milestone living Lubitsch Mamoulian Margaret Herrick Library Maria Maria Ouspenskaya Mikhail Mischa Mischa Auer Mission to Moscow Motion Picture Arts movie Nemirovich Ninotchka novel Nureyev Ouspenskaya Paris Pasternak Pilnyak played political pro-Soviet Prokofiev Rachmaninoff Ratoff released role Romanov Russian émigré Russians Are Coming scene score screen screenplay script Sergei sian Sokoloff Song of Russia Soviet Soviet film Soviet-American Stalin Stanislavsky starring Sternberg story Stravinsky studios Tanya Tchaikovsky theater Tiomkin tion United USSR Ustinov Vladimir World York