Life in Hollywood No. 3

The Brothers Warner(en)

An intimate portrait and saga of four film pioneers--Harry, Albert, Sam and Jack who rose from immigrant poverty through personal tragedies persevering to create a major studio with a social conscience.

Yesterday and Today(en)

A compilation of early-day silent films that serves as a glimpse back to the formative days of the movie industry as a salute to Hollywood's Golden Year, so proclaimed by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce as 1953.

Famous Movie Dogs(en)

Well-known canine performers of the 1930s vie for a part in an upcoming movie.

Esther Williams: Hollywood's Mermaid(fr)

The story of Esther Williams is that of an improbable encounter. That of the glamorous Hollywood of the 1940s with a swimming champion. A meeting that gave birth to the most kitsch and flamboyant genre films in Technicolor: the Aqua-musicals! A dive into the troubled waters of post-war Hollywood, where only her qualities as an athlete allow an extraordinary actress to fight to emancipate herself and avoid the traps of the predators who lurk around her

To Be Frank: Sinatra at 100(en)

The life of Frank Sinatra, as an actor and singer and the steps along the way that led him to become such an icon.

Gene Tierney: A Forgotten Star(fr)

Martin Scorsese is among those paying tribute to Gene Tierney, the Academy Award-nominated American actress who was a leading lady in Hollywood throughout the 1940s and '50s.

Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies(en)

The definitive documentary on the history of nudity in feature films from the early silent days to the present, studying the changes in morality that led to the use of nudity in films while emphasizing the political, sociological and artistic changes that shaped that history. Skin will also study the gender inequality in presenting nude images in motion pictures and will follow the revolution that has created nude gender equality in feature films today.

Charlie Chaplin, The Genius of Liberty(fr)

The whole world knows him. Burlesque comedy genius, popular actor, author, director, producer, composer, choreographer, Charlie Chaplin (1899-1977) used his talent to serve an ideal of justice and freedom. But his best scenario was his own destiny, a story written into the political and artistic history of the 20th century.

With Love, Doris!(en)

An in-depth documentary built around never-before-heard audio tapes of Day responding to letters from fans. Day dictated her responses over the phone to her longtime assistant, Judy Ruby (who lived far from Day’s home in Carmel, CA); Ruby then transcribed the tapes and sent them back for revision and signature before the letters were mailed to fans. Ruby shared the recordings with Dunlap after Day’s passing in 2019 at the age of 97.

Marilyn Monroe Declassified(en)

Declassified FBI and CIA documents help director Paul Davids unravel the puzzle of Marilyn Monroe's demise, which was officially ruled a "probable suicide," while providing detailed evidence supporting the conclusion that Marilyn was murdered.

King Kong: Monster and Myth(fr)

In 1933, Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, two audacious and visionary directors, dared to create a motion picture that eclipsed everything seen until then: when King Kong was released, it was celebrated as an artistic and technical revolution and became the first myth created by the young cinematic art.

Becoming Cary Grant(en)

For the first time one of Hollywood's greatest stars tells his own story, in his own words. From a childhood of poverty to global fame, Cary Grant, the ultimate self-made star, explores his own screen image and what it took to create it.

Garbo, by Joan Crawford(en)

Joan Crawford narrates this documentary about the career of Greta Garbo.

Lauren Bacall, ombre et lumière(fr)

A War in Hollywood(es)

The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) caused a great impression on the lives of most of the American artists of that era, so many movies were made in Hollywood about it. The final defeat of the Spanish Republic left an open wound in the hearts of those who sympathized with its cause. The eventful life of screenwriter Alvah Bessie (1904-1985), one of the Hollywood Ten, serves to analyze this sadness, the tragedy of Spain and its consequences.

RKO Production 601: The Making of “Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World”(en)

The astonishing story of the genesis, production, worldwide success, and legacy of King Kong (1933), directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, a landmark of cinema, one of the most influential motion pictures in history.

Hollywood: Style Center of the World(en)

This short promotes the premise that movies often create a demand for the fashions seen in them. It starts with a vignette in rural America. A mother and daughter go to town to buy a new dress. In the dress shop window is a designer dress worn by Joan Crawford in a recent movie. We then go to Hollywood and visit Adrian, MGM's chief of costume design, and see how multiple copies of a single clothing pattern are produced. The film ends with short segments of several MGM features.

Out of the Closet, Off the Screen: The Life of William Haines(en)

Chronicles the life of William Haines, Hollywood's first openly gay movie star, who sacrificed his career to live openly with his lover.

Hollywood on Parade No. B-5(en)

Comedian Lloyd Hamilton escorts a group of beauty contest winners to various Hollywood night spots.

Unknown Beauty: François Nars(en)

Photographer and make-up artist François Nars reveals his visually stunning inner world in this feature-length documentary by filmmaker Lisa Immordino Vreeland. Mr. Nars takes us on a tour of the fashions, designers and models of '70s Paris, the underground of '90s New York, and the timeless world of cinema, filled with actors, actresses, and directors who have shaped his visual aesthetics.