My Amazing Research Paper: Part Deux

As I have developed more ideas about my research paper and have done research, I have decided there are a few specific sub topics of filmmaking in the 1920’s and 1930’s that I want to focus on. These include the major stars of the era and their influence on American culture, the human perspective on the transition from silent movies to “talkies,” the types of movies during the era and which were the most popular, and, finally, the lasting impact this time left on movies in the future, including today. I chose these subtopics because they seem the most interesting to me. I have also found many different books and online sources that will help me collect information for these subjects. There are so many directions I could have taken with the topic I chose, but I think the four aspects of film in the 1920’s and 1930’s will be the most interesting to learn about and to write about.

I have already found a book that is completely devoted to the influential women in motion pictures during the silent era. This should be helpful and give information about the stars of the era and their importance in society. I have also found a book about the remnants of old Hollywood in movies today. This matches perfectly with one of the main ideas I want to discuss in my paper. There have also been other various sources with useful information that I have already looked through. I am ready to start some actual research and serious consideration of what information I will actually be using in my paper.

I would still like to find more information about stars of the 1930’s and their impacts on society, as well as more personal accounts of the transition to motion pictures with sound from silent movies. I know the first movie to do this was The Jazz Singer and it was made by Warner Bros, but that is the only knowledge I have so far. I want to know what it was like for the stars, the directors, the producers, and the people in charge of the music and sound of the movies. This is information I have yet to find, but I am still conducting research so I am not too worried.

Not Always Entertainment...

It seems to me that lately the more Oscar buzz a movie gets, and the more Oscars it wins, the worse the movie. Maybe I am just a small town girl who likes movies about love and romance. But I also like war movies and action filled 007 films. I’m not a picky movie person, honestly. I give movies a chance, but movies like No Country for Old Men, 3:10 to Yuma, and even last years movies like The Departed really did nothing for me. I bring this up because I had the unfortunate experience of watching No Country for Old Men last weekend.

From my knowledge of classic movies, it used to be common place for comedies and movies that didn’t necessarily have a deep message to win the Oscar for best picture. I really don’t feel that is true anymore. This year No Country for Old Men won, year before that was The Departed, before that Crash, and before that Million Dollar Baby. All of these movies are: a) depressing b) violent or c) depressing AND violent. Is this really what America loves, and if so what does that say about us as people? If the general American loves cursing, tears, and blood, then why have the Academy Awards had increasingly lower ratings during the broadcast? Why do people not vote these movies into the best movies of all time on the numerous lists put together in the world? All of these questions fail to be answered by the nominations and the choices made by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

I am a movie lover at heart. I find it easy to connect to the words and the acting in the films that touch my heart. But no matter how hard I try, I cannot understand the decisions made by the members of the Academy during award season. Everything from costumes to music to the actual picture are the wrong choices in my opinion. The members of the Academy are trying to make motion pictures TOO powerful and TOO meaningful when all audiences really want, usually, are entertaining film experiences. Whether it is a drama or comedy, romance or musical, Americans want an enjoyable experience, and lately the motion pictures distinguished by the Academy Awards seem more painful than enjoyable.

Jamie Lynn Spears: Mother AND Wife?

Jamie Lynn Spears has become the latest poster girl for teen pregnancy. Although it is not a very coveted position, she seems to be taking to the role well. With a sister that creates chaos like Britney, it is no wonder that Jamie Lynn felt some need to take responsibility after the predicament she got herself into. She is sleeping in the bed she made, and she seems to be comfortable.

After the popular 17-year-old TV star of a popular tween show, Zoey 101, revealed to the world that she was expecting a child with her boyfriend we were all shocked. There were numerous daytime talk shows buzzing about it. Popular stories included, “How to talk to your kids about it,” and, “What will happen with her show?” Of course the media used the opportunity and ran the story for as long as possible. For fifteen seconds, Jamie Lynn overshadowed her big sister and took over the tabloids.

Today, a few months after the reveal of Jamie’s big secret there is very little talk of the teen star who is about to be a mother. A couple weeks ago we heard about her completion of high school education with her getting her GED. Today, we learn that she may be planning to marry her boyfriend. Although some people may be interested in this story more than what Paris Hilton ate for lunch, others are not. This just goes to show that pop culture junkies have very short attention spans, and once a story has played out, we all lose interest. Of course, there are exceptions. Paris Hilton and Britney Spears are the first to come to mind. But whatever fifteen seconds of fame Jamie Lynn had enjoyed over her bundle of joy, is over. At Least until the baby pictures come out. Who knows how much will be paid for those. But that insanity can be discussed at another time.

How much is too much?

This easter weekend, The Sound of Music was on THREE times. I wont lie to the millions of people who are hanging on my every word right now, i like The Sound of Music. I am a sucker for the VonTrap family singers and their fight with the Nazi troops inside the Abbey's cemetary. It makes for great entertainment. But even this amazing movie can get a little old when it is played three consecutive nights. In retrospect, i didn't necessarily have to watch it all three times, but there is something entrancing about the harmonies of Liesl, Louisa, Friedrich, Kurt, Brigitta, Marta, Gretl, and of course Fräulein Maria. Cap'n VonTrap isn't bad either, but that is beyond the point. What is the purpose of putting the same movie, on the same channel, for three nights in a row?!

This is not an uncommon practice among TV networks. FX, USA, and TBS continually do this when premering a new to TV movie. But Sound of Music is definitely NOT new. Networks also do this around holiday seasons when promoting the holiday that is quickly approaching, like A Christmas Story. Although, this theory does not really work because i cannot see the relevance to easter in a movie about a singing family of eight whose father marries the nanny. In Fact, The nanny actually leaves the abbey where she is trying to become a nun, a religious role that could be related to the easter holiday, to marry a rich naval captain. Not to mention the heavy Nazi influence in the movie, i cannot fathom why this movie would be played so much during the easter weekend.

I may not understand it, and i may find it a bit annoying by the third time i'm watching it, but i know if it should ever be on again i will be right there watching it. It is a classic that just can't, and shouldn't, be ignored! The VonTraps will forever live on in our culture, and if i ever feel the need, i can always be enchanted by them by reaching into my DVD collection.

Stress

Yesterday was monumental. For the first time, maybe this whole year, I had the opportunity to spend an evening doing absolutely nothing. I had no homework and no activities. It should have been relaxing, it should have been fun, but it was still stressful. How can that be? Do we as young Americans really have so much stress that we are kept up at night, or nervous about absolutely nothing? Or maybe it is just me, but I have seen similar trials faced by peers, whether they are my friends, my acquaintances, or simply the celebrities I see facing so many evils in Hollywood.

Lindsay Lohan, a few years my senior, is a prime example of what stress can do to a person. The once innocent Disney sweetheart evolved into a media spectacle after car crashes, drunken nights, and a couple rehab stints. Now, I am not saying that my stress is comparable to that of her. Of course she has a few more pressures in life, but stress has similar effects for everyone. It runs you down, makes you desperate for an out, whether it be through drinking, over-eating, not eating, or smoking stress causes many of the problems facing America today. Not just young Americans, our elders face similar problems, but it is up to us to make the changes in our country now, which, ironically, is a stressor. Obviously the idea of stressors and stress is a nasty circle of frustration and anxiety.

I am not claiming to have the answers to the problems of stress, nor am I insinuating that stress is an inescapable evil. I am simply pointing out the fact that more and more people seem to be facing it, or at least facing it in a more public fashion. Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears, and many more darlings of young Hollywood are a prime example of the nasty and bumpy road stress can take you down. Whether someone is famous or not, stress happens to everyone at some point or another. The test is not whether you get stressed or not, but how you deal with stress when it happens.

Uninspired

Blogging is not something that can have a schedule in my opinion. You have to be inspired with a brilliant idea or have a lot of feelings you need to get out. Maybe you just heard something interesting and felt like sharing it with the world, or in my case, the three people that look at my posts. Unfortunately, since this is an assignment, I do have a schedule. Even more unfortunately, I am feeling completely vacant of good or even decent ideas of what to write about. So here I am, rambling on to you about absolutely nothing. I will try my best to end up with something entertaining in the end, but I would not be offended if you decided to simply skip this post, there are much better ones. So here I go…

When I woke up this morning I knew I would have to write a blog entry. Naturally I looked for inspiration in the news and media that morning. After watching a couple lame music videos and an hour of Saved by the Bell, all I was left with was a disappointed feeling that I wasted yet another hour of my life. I went downstairs where my loving father had prepared me breakfast and turned on the news. Like my previous post said there was nothing new to write about. Recession, War, and Clinton were the main stories and took up the fist half-hour which was all I had time for. This should explain why I am so desperate for a blog entry that I am writing about my lack of blog topics.

Maybe I am just not creative enough, or not open enough to share what is really on my mind, but all I can think of is how desperately I strive to entertain in my writing, and how hard that is. It drains a lot of creativity and effort out of me every time I write an entry. It is also difficult because I realize that no matter what I write: a) only a few people will actually see it and b) there is no guarantee that what I write will entertain or even hold the attention of the readers. These facts are a heavy weight on my mind when writing on this blog, yet I have to keep working. Writing does not come easily to me, and sometimes what I say or think only really makes sense to me. But on this blog, I am trying my best to help you understand me and understand what I think about the world.

So even on days like today, when I have lost all hope in finding a suitable subject for the day’s blog and I find myself writing meaningless nonsense. I am trying to take my story or my ideas somewhere. I guess today, it took me to the conclusion that not every blog entry can be meaningful or entertaining, but I will still keep writing, even when I feel like all my originality is gone.

Rainbows and Sunshine

Sometimes I feel like I am trapped in an endless circle of dull news stories. Everyday, it seems as though I am only watching the news from the night before, or the night before that, or even last Tuesday evening’s broadcast. This web of tedium can become extremely frustrating for us civilians who are just waiting for new information ponder for a while. It is for this reason that I tend to watch more MTV, FX, and E!. They may not have the hard hitting news that will affect my life and deepen my understanding of the world, but at least I see something interesting.

For about the past three months the only news I have been hearing is Obama versus Clinton, and what sounds like their endless bickering. This was interesting at first because there is nothing I like more than a good cat fight between two prominent politicians who are supposed to be above that kind of nonsense, but even that can get a little old. The next most frequent story is recession. Are we in one or not? I can only take so much of this stock market jargon. Bears, bulls, dow, the list is an endless headache of words that mean nothing to me. And if I’m being honest, home foreclosures being on the rise is NOT considered a breaking news story anymore, sorry ABC. Finally, the war makes a constant appearance on the evening news. It isn’t even about changes in the status of the war, but another suicide bombing killing more and more people. I am not saying any of these matters are not important (except the not-so-racist remarks of some random lady. That doesn’t make my breaking news list). Obviously there are problems in the world, but I doubt it is impossible to find a really new news story every once in a while.

Not only is the news like a broken record, but it is such a downer. Sometimes I feel like the journalism world is trying to show us mere citizens the world is going to you-know-where. Like thrusting these depressing and sometimes infuriating stories into our homes morning, evening, and night, is somehow helping us become more aware of how bad the world is. I believe I am speaking for almost everyone when I say, we KNOW the world is screwed up. We knew it last night, last week, last year, and we will still know tomorrow. So all I am asking is that the news world gives us 1 day, just 1, to have the childish idea that maybe there is still a glimmer of hope for civilization. One day without bashing our politicians, learning of looming economic disaster, and death and destruction in other countries. Just one day with rainbows and sunshine.

Paris Hilton?...No Thanks!

When has a celebrity officially become an annoyance in my life? It's when the very mentioning of their name or the sound of their voice makes me cringe. Paris Hilton, the overexposed hotel heiress, has way overstayed her welcome on my popular culture radar. So you may be asking yourself why i am wasting my time writing this about her. Because i feel compelled to point out the stupidity and desperation of her actions, specifically her latest attempt at fame.

The tabloid favorite known as Miss Hilton has now sunken to, what i belive to be, an all-time low of going on national tv to find a new best friend. My immediate reaction to this was, "how can this show even exist when i can't think of anyone in the world who would want to deal with the drama of Paris and be her friend?" My second reaction was to sigh and accept the fact that the world will never cease to give this celebrity (what she did to become one, i don't know) the attention she craves. The heiress went SO far as to hold a press conference to announce her search for a new best friend. She may find this news as vital, but i see it as a sad. However, Hilton has always had a few issues.

Between the jail time drama that took the country by storm last year, the not-so-appropriate movie debut of Paris, and the disaster that was her music career, i shouldn't be surprised by anything she does these days. I just don't want to see her on tv, in the magazines, or hear her on the radio anymore. If she wants a new best friend, can't she do it without the television crews. Honestly?! It is only making the American people suffer more than they need to.

My Amazing Reseearch Paper!

I have decided to write my research paper on early filmmaking in America. The time period I wil be focusing on is between 1920 and 1940. I chose this because it was a high point for the film industry. Throught my paper I will be attempting to answer many questions including...

• When was the first commerical film made?


• What were popular silent movies?


• What were popular talking movies?


• Who were common stars in silent movies and what were their lives like?


• What affect did films have on Americans?


• When did films move from silent to talking and what was the transition like?


• How did this change affect Hollywood in general?


• What were popoular storyline of movies during this time?


• Who were major stars of the time?


• What were the major studios?


• How did these movie stars influence Americans?


• What were average inclomes of people in the movie industry?


• Can any influence of early filmmaking still be seen in hollywood today?

By answeringh the question I hope to find a clear understanding and appreciation of the work and lives of these early workers in the movie making business.

Allowance Taken to a Whole New Level

Many children throughout the world anticipate their weekly allowance. Whether it be five, ten, or twenty-five dollars the excitement is always present. Most kids outgrow their allowance by the time they get a job, but this is not the case for Britney Spears. We all know the trials and tribulations she has been through in the past three years, and apparantly the only way to get her help is to strip away many routine freedoms of a 25-year-old.

Britney Spears has been in a downward spiral since the day she decided to hook up with a Mr. Kevin Federline. This random back-up dancer who became her husband thoroughly ruined the greatness that was Britney Spears. She was America's pop princess with a bright and shining future filled with love and success. Today, she is a pathetic, bald, psychotic excuse for a woman who wears Ugg boots in the summer. Maybe I'm being a little harsh, but its time for her to figure out her problems. Her father, and the California courts apparently agree with me. Now that she is in her father's care she seems to be improving. Of course i only say this because she hasn't been a part of daily gossip for a couple weeks, until now. It has come to my attention that now under her father's loving care, Britney Spears will be recieving allowance. Although this is not your typical twenty-five dollar a week earning. Oh no. She will be recieving 1,500 dollars a week. Ridiculous, i think so.

In my opinion, Britney Spears doesn't need 1,500 dollars to get her through one week. What she really needs to do is follow Michael Jackson's lead and leave the country for a while to figure out how to become a normal, functioning, independent human being again. She should want to leave the country if you ask me. She has embaressed herself enough in this one, it is time for her to leave her mark on another innocent society.

In all honesty, i'm pulling for Spears. I think she had some talent and could even dance at one time in her life. I'm ashamed to admit, she was one of my favorite singers when I was a child. With all her screw ups, mishaps, and embaressments, i truly hope her father giving her 1,500 dollars every week will solve all her problems, but i'm not counting on it.

When Bringing SexyBack Isn't Enough...

The man who brought SexyBack is a musical genius. There is little denying he can belt out a successful track and dance his way to the top of numerous charts. But when I heard Mr. Timberlake was now playing executive producer to a new NBC series I couldn’t help but be a little disappointed.

Justin Timberlake became a household name back in my childhood as a member of N’Sync. Unless you lived under a rock during the late 1990’s and early 2000’s you know the phenomenon of teen pop during the time. Timberlake, who had been a part of the entertainment biz for many years prior to N’Sync as a part of the Mickey Mouse Club was finally making it to the big time during the “boy band” era. If we are being honest, he was the most popular member of N’Sync due to his boyish good looks and astounding musical talent. He had it all, a successful career, a beautiful girlfriend (Britney Spears), and the love of American teens everywhere. Then, the world began changing, as it tends to, and boy bands were out.

This caused many popular songbirds to nosedive into failure and ultimately become a forgotten aspect of history, but Justin Timberlake began to truly thrive. With the release of his first solo CD, Justified, Justin Timberlake left his boy band persona behind in favor of a darker, more mysterious attitude. He ditched his girlfriend (or his girlfriend ditched him…who knows?), lost the curly gold locks, and was all of a sudden the hottest thing since, well, since N’Sync. I was a fan. He was an individual who was doing what he did best, singing and dancing. Then he caught the contagious disease of Hollywood, the desire to become a triple threat.

Anybody who pays an iota of attention to pop culture and the lives of the famous know the popularity of becoming a triple threat. Apparently, in today’s world, it is not enough to be an amazing actor, a talented musical artist, or an unbelievable dancer. Suddenly, you have to be all three! Something that is almost impossible to do successfully. Many have tried and almost all have failed. Whether it is greed, boredom, or simple drive that pushes celebrities to attempt such impossible feats, I wouldn’t know, but I think it is about time they stop. Unfortunately, nobody is asking for my opinion.

The triple threat bug bit JT, that’s for sure. We always knew he could sing and dance. He was doing that during his MMC days. Acting was supposedly required for that job too, but I don’t know if I would exactly call what they were doing acting. However, he has acted in a few things over the years so I suppose we can consider that one of his lesser talents. That would qualify Timberlake as a triple threat already, but there is more. He also has a clothing line with his friend, he has opened a restaurant in New York City, and, as of today I am aware, he is now an executive producer. Timberlake is a mere 26 years old. I ask you, what else is he supposed to do for the next 60 years of his life?

This new show I have been informed Justin Timberlake is producing is an adaptation from a popular sitcom from Peru. It is to be called My Problem with Women. How he came to be executive producer of this somewhat random television show is only anyone’s guess, but he says he is very excited for the upcoming TV comedy. The ways in which already successful stars are striving to become even more successful never ceases to amaze me. All I can say, is I miss the good old days when being a hugely popular, rich, and famous singer was enough to be happy.

Nonfiction Hitchcock?

While being forced to watch the evening news a few nights ago, I was shocked by a particular story being reported. It wasn’t the messy political campaigns of the two democratic front-runners, and it wasn’t even the severe weather that seems to be taking over the nation. It was the large-scale immigration of thousands of birds (grackles to be exact) to the downtown district of Fort Worth, Texas.

I suppose to understand why this particular story was so distressing for me; one must understand that I have a kind of bird phobia. It began about two years ago when I was going through my “Hitchcock thriller” phase. At this time I watched several of his movies, from the little known, Rebecca, to the legendary, Psycho. Naturally, one of the movies I had an intense desire to watch was The Birds. The movie starts off friendly enough, just a few birds here and there, but then they turn on the small California town and before you know it people are getting killed by the attacking birds. Of course, this is fiction, but for some reason it began to strike a fear in me. The grackles of Fort Worth, Texas are not the man killing sort, but it does seem quite odd.

It is important to understand the thousands of birds taking up residence in the trees of this trendy downtown district have not hurt anybody. They have been a mess, an annoyance, and have detracted from the beauty of the town, but they are not flying throughout the city attacking school children like the famous scene Hitchcock depicted. However, the entire story does have that creepy, if not disturbing feel to it.

So, you may be asking yourself, “What are they doing to get rid of the birds?” Well, the city leaders in charge of coming up with a solution to this nuisance believe the answer lies in laser pointers. Yes, laser pointers. They have workers sitting outside and pointing the lasers at the trees so the birds will get scared and leave. So far this has not been very successful. Apparently, the birds are bright enough to figure out a light being shot towards them is not a threat. This is when the city brought in the big guns, or should I say hawks. As of now, trained hawks, a natural predator of the grackles, are being sent out to hunt and kill the thousands of birds in Fort Worth. I suppose we shall see if this resolution succeeds. It is just a shame the small California town taken over by birds in Hitchcock’s masterpiece didn’t have any laser pointers or hawks.

Researh Paper?

1. 1920's culture: I think this could be really interesting to write about because i think that era is fascinating and there is a lot more i would like to know about it.

2. Early Filmaking (1920's-1930's): I love watching movies, especially old ones, so this seems like a good topic for me to do research on. I don't know a lot about the actual processes of filmaking and the topic would hold my interest.

3. Aviation: This could be a good topic because there is so much information in the field from early aviation to today. There are also a lot of influential aviators I could research for the paper.

Spring Break

The college student's spring break vacation is stereotypically filled with drinking, partying, and only a vague recollection of what actually happened over the week long hiatus from school. This aspect of college life is one that is coveted by many students throughout the country. My older brother is no exception. He will be traveling to Mexico with six of his friends. The week long break in March is rapidly approaching. The reservations at the Mexican resort have been made, the plane tickets purchased, and the excitement is already stirring inside my brother and his buddies. Of course, I am extremely jealous of the opportunity my brother has to go on a mexican holiday, so being the evil little sister I am, I did everything in my power to sabotage it.

My evil plan went into action when I was surfing the channel on my tv one day about 6 months ago. I stumbled upon the documentary style show, THS. In this episode it was investigating the dangerous side of spring break. I knew this was my opportunity to get some useful information and keep my brother from this crazy idea he had of going to cancun. I watched intently as the reporters and former spring breakers told their horror stories. There were anecdotes about stolen identity, gang violence, and drink poisoning. I began to understand the reality of spring break, as portrayed by MTV, wasn't exactly what they made it out to be.

I told my parents about these true stories and about all the danger of the spring break environment, but was defeated in my arguments. My brother will be going on his mexican spring break in a couple weeks, and most likely nothing will happen. There will probably be no identity theft, no close calls with mexican gangs, and not a hint of alcohol poisoning, but it still doesn't stop the family from worrying. It is just something i will be thinking about when it is my turn to experience the quintessential spring break in the coming years.