Genius of the System

Thomas Schatz is professor of communication at the University of Texas, Austin. He is the author of several books, including Hollywood Genres and Boom and Bust: American Cinema in the 1940s.

• Acknowlegements, Preface: The Center of Gravity, Introduction: “The Whole Equation of Pictures,” Part I: The 1920’s: Beginnings, 1. Universal: The System Takes Shape, 2. MGM: Dawn of the Thalberg Era, 3. Selznick at MGM: Climbing the Executive Ranks, 4. Warner Bros.: Talking Their Way to the Top, Part II: 1928–1932: The Powers That B, 5. Selznick at Paramount: From Boo to Bust, 6. Universal: Renaissance and Retrenchment, 7. MGM and Thalberg: Alone at the Top, 8. Selznick at RKO: At the Helm of a Foundering Studio, 9. Warner Bros.: The Zanuck Era, Part III: The 1930s: Golden Age, 10. MGM in the Mid-Thirties:Charmed Interval, 11. Selznick International Pictures: Going Independent, 12. Warner Bros.: Power Plays and Prestige, 13. Universal: Playing Both Ends Against the Middle, 14. MGM: Life after Thalberg, 15. Selznick and Hitchcock: Balance of PowerPart IV: 1941–1946: War Boom, 16. Warner Bros.: Warfare at Home and Abroad, 17. David O. Selznick Productions: Packaging Prestige, 18. Universal: The Best of Both Worlds, 19. MGM: The High Cost of Quality, 20. Selznick and Hitchcock: Separate Ways, Part V: 1947–1960: Decline, 21. Warner Bros.: Top of the World, End of the Line, 22. MGM: Last Gasp of the Studio Era, 23. Universal: Blueprint for the Television Age, 24. Epilogue: Into the New Hollywood, Notes on Sources, Photograph Credits, Index