Multiple Choice Quiz

1		In the mid-1920s, the film industry adopted sound technology, in part because:
			A)	the industry was suffering from chronically falling profits from its speechless features.
			B)	the first systems for synchronizing sound with recorded pictures finally became available.
			C)	“talkies” meant that studios would no longer have to worry about translating their films for overseas audiences.
			D)	the boom in broadcasting made the economic climate more conducive to the promotion of sound conversion.
2		One early breakthrough in sound technology synchronized an already-completed silent film with a musical score played by the New York Philharmonic:
			A)	The Birth of a Nation (1915), directed by D. W. Griffith.
			B)	Don Juan (1926), starring John Barrymore.
			C)	The Jazz Singer (1927), starring Al Jolson.
			D)	King Kong (1933), starring Fay Wray.
3		The greatest breakthrough in sound technology came with this film, which featured recorded vocal performances and brief exchanges of dialogue as well as a synchronized score:
			A)	The Birth of a Nation (1915), directed by D. W. Griffith.
			B)	Don Juan (1926), starring John Barrymore.
			C)	The Jazz Singer (1927), starring Al Jolson.
			D)	King Kong (1933), starring Fay Wray.
4		According to most critics, the early sound films
			A)	featured acting that was more complex and nuanced than in silent films.
			B)	incorporated editing that was more sophisticated than in silent films.
			C)	increased the number and flexibility of camera positions available to the director.
			D)	contributed to a general loss of stylistic flexibility in comparison to earlier sound films.
5		At the advent of sound, silent-screen stars like John Gilbert, Clara Bow, and the Talmadge sisters, Norma and Constance,
			A)	immediately met with great success as audiences were eager to hear them speak onscreen.
			B)	eventually became stars in the talkies, but only with the help of hired elocution experts.
			C)	saw their careers suffer, in part because their recorded voices did not match their onscreen personae.
			D)	were rarely offered roles in talkies and disappeared quickly from the Hollywood scene.
6		The first years of the sound era proved to be pivotal for female writers and directors, who in general
			A)	lost what strides they had made in the previous decade.
			B)	came to the forefront of American moviemaking, with women directing and writing the majority of the era’s films.
			C)	were blacklisted from A-list studio efforts for their suspected anti-war efforts.
			D)	were thought to suffer from laws prohibiting the contributions of women in the workplace.
7		A cinematic form that came into its own during the 1920s, the documentary film was pioneered by Robert Flaherty, whose Nanook of the North gained commercial success; as with most fictional films, the documentary form
			A)	attempts to “record” a reality objectively, rather than provide a certain stylized means of representing it.
			B)	requires filmmakers to make choices about cameras, lenses, and lighting during the shooting phase.
			C)	requires the use of a purchased script, constructed sets, and paid actors.
			D)	aims primarily to garner commercial success by attracting audiences with appealing stars and imaginative set design.
8		During the early 1930s, the star system in place in the studios
			A)	allowed most stars the freedom to refuse unattractive roles or work for other studios at their own discretion.
			B)	provided its stars with leisurely work hours, rewarding stock options, and attractive salary bonuses.
			C)	required absolute exclusivity of its actors, who were not allowed to work for competitors.
			D)	required even high-paid stars to work long hours and follow studio dictates governing appearances and publicity.
9		Among the developments under the harsh economic climate of the 1930s was
			A)	the establishment of the writers, actors, and directors guilds in response to Academy policies.
			B)	the breakup and downfall of the studio system at the hands of government deregulation.
			C)	the mass exodus of American productions to overseas locations.
			D)	the loss of profits to competitive media, including radio, news outlets, and television drama.
10		Antitrust suits filed by the U.S. government against the “big five” studios in 1938 (and amended in 1940) charged Hollywood
			A)	with harboring, espousing, and purveying pro-Communist sentiments in and across the recorded picture industry.
			B)	with suppressing the right of the writers’, actors’ and directors’ guilds to organize labor unions.
			C)	with restraining trade and monopolizing the production, distribution, and exhibition of motion pictures.
			D)	with failing to report, for the proposes of evasion, all proceeds and profits pursuant to the industry’s productions.
11		The eventual result of the antitrust suits was a “consent decree,” in which the accused (in this case the studios)
			A)	admit no wrongdoing, but promise not to continue the action.
			B)	agree to have their profits garnished by the government in exchange for the supposition of innocence.
			C)	plead guilty to the alleged misdoings, but suffer no punishment as a result.
			D)	are found guilty of the alleged misdoings and are subject to harsh penalties as a result.
12		In the years following the breakout of the second World War in Europe, Hollywood responded by
			A)	shutting down production so that its actors and technicians could join overseas battle.
			B)	releasing a flock of anti-Nazi features and enlisting great talents and fictional characters alike in propaganda efforts.
			C)	refusing to assist the government’s efforts, which resulted in many Hollywood artists being accused of Communism in the decade to follow.
			D)	hiring more women in key roles, in order to replace the men who had left Hollywood for overseas combat.
13		President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Office of War Information incorporated a Bureau of Motion Pictures which
			A)	found its oversight generally welcomed by the major studios.
			B)	tried to influence motion picture content towards the demands of the government.
			C)	raised the wrath of a coalition of politicians who thought its leanings too conservative.
			D)	eventually required its own seal of approval for all of Hollywood’s wartime domestic productions.
14		Among the fictional characters enlisted by Hollywood to aid in World War II propaganda were:
			A)	Donald Duck, Blondie, and Sherlock Holmes.
			B)	Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the Red Baron.
			C)	Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four.
			D)	Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys.
15		During World War II, Hollywood’s economic state
			A)	suffered greatly due to the loss of talent to the war effort, with box office receipts dropping to all-time lows.
			B)	worsened as a result of a lack of interest and sympathy at the movie theatres across the U.S.
			C)	prospered, with profits and receipts reaching record highs in 1946.
			D)	was unhinged by the competition with television, which had grown rapidly during the war years.