From the Publisher
“An interesting take on Hollywood studio-era history that challenges the narrow focus of existing scholarship and revises familiar perceptions of Warner Bros. The focus on acting and performance usefully opens up the relationship between theatre and cinema, and the impact of Broadway on film acting and studio working practices in the crucial period of the transition to synchronised sound. Highly recommended as a valuable contribution to the area of acting and performance studies.”(Pam Cook, Professor Emerita in Film, University of Southampton, UK. Editor of The Cinema Book Third Edition (BFI, 2007) and author of Nicole Kidman, BFI/Palgrave, 2012) “This book is a fascinating account of the creative symbiosis between stage and screen at a crucial juncture in Hollywood’s history. Shingler’s fully historicized and contextualized account revises what Warner Bros stood for and achieved with its prestige pictures and stars. By interweaving the histories of early sound technologies, Broadway’s acting traditions and the economic imperatives of studio filmmaking, this book highlights key performers and studio personnel long neglected in standard histories of Hollywood. With its refreshing focus on acting craft and method before ‘the Method’, the book produces a vital, new perspective on how films were made, played and received in 1923-39.” (Sarah Street, Professor of Film and Foundation Chair of Drama, University of Bristol, UK)
“Martin Shingler’s clearly argued and informative book offers a compelling new perspective on early Warner Bros. history. Moving past the studio’s reputation as the home of Rin Tin Tin and gritty gangster dramas, the book highlights Warners’ pursuit of Broadway talent, stories and audiences in the 1920s and 1930s. Exploring acting styles, the coming of sound, and key films and filmmakers, When Warners Brought Broadway to Hollywood is a lively, perceptive and important addition to the scholarly literature on the Hollywood studio era.” (Mark Glancy, Reader in Film History at Queen Mary, University of London, UK. Author of When Hollywood Loved Britain, 1999)
