Michael Haas writes: > > My answer to the question of US dominance is quite simple. When the American > film industry started, the country was a nation of so many immigrants who did > not understand English very well that only one formula would work--action > films with a minimum of dialog. Having established the genre to make money > with a diverse American audience, the same formula applies to the rest of the > world. Hollywood's technical professionalism of action films has remained > one leg up on all others. > Aloha, > Michael Haas > University of Hawai`i at Manoa I don't think that there is a single simple explanation. An explanation that disregards economic, political and other factors does have some shortcomings. One must remember that before WWI, several European cinemas were extraordinarily well represented in international distribution. In America, Pathe, Eclair, Solax, Great Northern, etc. were major presences in the industry. To a certain extent, the early American industry was colonized by companies like these. I am told that some "branch plant" studios in N.J. used French as the working language among management and top creative people, while the less skilled and poorly paid Americans spoke in the local dialect. The effect of WWI on the economic base of European companies and the opportunity that this presented to American film companies gave the U.S. an advantage in terms of production and distribution that it never really lost. While this doesn't completely explain American dominance (for example, access to capital through investment by such firms as Kuhn, Loeb & Co., a large and prosperous domestic market, haphazard but successful strategies to undermine competing cinemas, etc. were also factors), it certainly was a key event. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Mark Langer Email address: [log in to unmask] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Screen-L is sponsored by the Telecommunication & Film Dept., the University of Alabama.