In response to Professor Frank's question about textbooks, I have found that Mast and Kawain's "Short History of the Movies" is more than up to the task of teaching an introductory course.  Combining it with Corrigan's "Short Guide to Writing about Film" I find that students are more than challenged with the level of insight and information.  The publishers have even created a 'shorter' history of the movies that still comes in at well over 300 pages if you're trying to find a streamlined, yet substantive history for an introductory class.

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