10.060 minSeason 1 • Episode 7
LatestIn the 1960s America was in the midst of the most jarring political and social upheaval in decades. Without the old Hollywood structure, as studios were bought, sold and reconfigured, moviemakers searched for new ways to survive and prosper. The grand movie palaces were being replaced by multiplexes, and television was here to stay. In this shifting landscape, the power of the moguls was usurped by super-agent Lew Wasserman, whose aggressive business strategies turned MCA into a powerhouse that absorbed Universal Pictures in 1962. Old-style entertainments such as The Sound of Music (1965) and the James Bond adventures still prospered, but low-budget productions for a younger audience -- such as the works of Roger Corman -- gained importance. Movies would never again be quite the same.
Each installment focuses on a different era of American movie history, from the invention of the first moving pictures to the revolutionary, cutting-edge films of the 1960s.
Direction
Elegant structure tracing power from Edison to Easy Rider.
Writing
Plummer's narration elevates standard doc material.
Production
Rare archival footage that actually feels rare.
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Plummer recorded his narration in his 80s, making this his final extensive documentary work before his death in 2021.
The series originally aired on Turner Classic Movies as prestige programming, essentially TCM justifying its own existence as keeper of the flame.
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