The Film Industry In The 1940's

Between the 1930’s and the 1940’s the United States of America was going through an economic depression. The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in history. Through 1929 to 1939 consumer spending and investing dropped drastically causing a decline in industrial output and employment to drop. The film industry face many changes due to the depression. Hollywood was also facing a huge transition from silent films to sound. The only big competition during this time was radio and theatre as well but they were more expensive. In 1929 the introduction of sound to films occurred but many still could not afford it. Admissions at theaters was a dime and many also could not afford to spend money on anything other than necessities. By 1933 the cinema

Hollywood was hit hard during the depression but they eventually managed to recoup their profits through an assortment of methods. One way they attracted their audiences was by offering sweepstakes and drawings at theaters for prize money and also the movies was at an average prices of 27¢ a ticket which offered a way for people to get away from reality. The perceived messages too many of the audiences who were suffering during the depression was to distract them from their hardships. This is not entirely accurate because the Hollywood films eventually started matching the grimness of their times.
When the Hollywood film industry was in the silent era it developed into an oligopoly. Since the film industry was an oligopoly many companies cooperated to close the market from any competition. With the introduction of sound into films this resulted in many changes with the structure of the film industry. As a result of film introducing sound RKO was created and they exhibited the sound system Photo-phone. The studio system consisted of eight major studios ad each studio contributed to 80% of Hollywood’s film output. By 1930,