Hollywood and the Baby Boom: A Social History [Paperback]

Between 1946 and 1964 seventy-five million babies were born, dwarfing the generations that preceded and succeeded them. At each stage of its life-cycle, the baby boom's great size has dictated the terms of national policy and public debate. While aspects of this history are well-documented, the relationship between the baby boom and Hollywood has never been explored. And yet, for almost 40 years, baby boomers made up the majority of Hollywood's audience, and since the 1970s, boomers have dominated movie production.

Hollywood and the Baby Boomweaves together interviews with leading filmmakers, archival research and the memories of hundreds of ordinary filmgoers to tell the full story of Hollywood's relationship with the boomers for the first time. The authors demonstrate the profound influence of the boomers on the ways that movies were made, seen and understood since the 1950s. The result is a compelling new account that draws upon an unprecedented range of sources, and offers new insights into the history of American movies.

James Russellis Principal Lecturer in Film Studies at De Montfort University, UK. His last book wasThe Historical Epic and Contemporary Hollywood(Bloomsbury, 2007). His short writing has appeared inCinema Journal, theJournal of American Studies, theGuardianand numerous edited collections.

Jim Whalleyis an independent scholar based in the UK. He writes on American cinema history, and is the author ofSaturday Night Live, Hollywood Comedy and American Culture(2010). His short writing has also appeared inThe New Review of Film and Television Studies.

Drawing on a unique blend of primary sources (archival records, trade press reports, interviews with filmmakers and an online audience survey as well as a large number of films), this groundbreaking study offers a fresh account of the development of mainstream American cinema since the Second World War.Hollyl#