The Fox Film Corporation, 1915–1935

In 1929, Hollywood mogul William Fox (1879–1952) came close to controlling the entire motion picture industry. His Fox Film Corporation had grown from a $1600 investment into a globe-spanning $300 million empire; he also held patents to the new sound-on-film process. Forced into a series of bitter power struggles, Fox was ultimately toppled from his throne, and the studio bearing his name would merge in 1935 with Darryl F. Zanuck’s flourishing 20th Century Pictures. The 25-year lifespan of the Fox Film Corporation, home of such personalities as Theda Bara, Tom Mix, Janet Gaynor and John Ford, is chronicled in this thorough illustrated history. Included are never-before-published financial figures revealing costs and grosses of Fox’s biggest successes and failures, and a detailed filmogaphy of the studio’s 1100-plus releases, among them What Price Glory?, Seventh Heaven and the Oscar-winning Cavalcade.

Aubrey Solomon is a writer/producer whose television credits include The Fall Guy, Cagney and Lacey and RoboCop. He lives in Sherman Village, California.

Aubrey Solomon
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 390
Bibliographic Info: 106 photos, notes, filmography, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2016 [2011]
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6600-6
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8610-6
Imprint: McFarland

Preface  1
Introduction  5
Part I. History  9
1. Humble Beginnings  9
2. The Birth of Fox  19
3. A Major Player  37
4. Stability  50
5. Consolidation  68
6. The Rise of Winfield Sheehan  81
7. Talking Pictures  95
8. The Golden Age of Fox Films  112
9. The Fall of William Fox  122
10. Boom to Bust  134
11. Turmoil  156
12. Back from the Abyss  170
13. A Tour of the Studio  182
14. Survival  186
15. 20th Century Pictures  204
16. After the Merger  217
Part II. Filmography  227
Chapter Notes  361
Bibliography  367
Index  369

• “Thoroughly detailed and illustrated history”—Examiner.com
• “Solomon has written the most comprehensive and objective history of William Fox and the Fox Film Corporation…well-researched, well-written…essential reading”—Journal of American Culture
• “Detailed”—Western Clippings
• “Thorough account”—Leonard Maltin.com