Hollywood: The Oral History

By: Jeanine Basinger, Sam Wasson

Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon, Marni Penning

Length: 28 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

The real story of Hollywood as told by such luminaries as Steven Spielberg, Frank Capra, Katharine Hepburn, Meryl Streep, Harold Lloyd, and nearly four hundred others, assembled from the American Film Institute’s treasure trove of interviews, reveals a fresh history of the American movie industry from its beginnings to today.

From the archives of the American Film Institute comes a unique picture of what it was like to work in Hollywood from its beginnings to its present day. Gleaned from nearly three thousand interviews, involving four hundred voices from the industry, Hollywood: The Oral History, lets a listener “listen in” on candid remarks from the biggest names in front of the camera—Bette Davis, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Harold Lloyd—to the biggest behind it—Frank Capra, Steven Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock, Jordan Peele, as well as the lesser known individuals that shaped what was heard and seen on screen: musicians, costumers, art directors, cinematographers, writers, sound men, editors, make-up artists, and even script timers, messengers, and publicists. The result is like a conversation among the gods and goddesses of film: lively, funny, insightful, historically accurate and, for the first time, authentically honest in its portrait of Hollywood. It’s the insider’s story.

Legendary film scholar Jeanine Basinger and New York Times bestselling author Sam Wasson, both acclaimed storytellers in their own right, have undertaken the monumental task of digesting these tens of thousands of hours of talk and weaving it into a definitive portrait of workaday Hollywood.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Jeanine Basinger and Sam Wasson (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers

Wow!

I’ve read a ton of books about the movies. But I learned more about filmmaking and its history from this book than any other.

Picky, Picky!

I don't know how, in a 29 hour audiobok, in which thousands of different names are mentioned, a narrator is supposed to figure out how every name is pronounced. What resource would you use to determine such info? Missing some names is OK. Come on people! You got 29 hours of interesting, well performed book for only one credit.. Give it a rest. How much fun are you to live with?

Confounding

What should have been entertaining and informative was instead a confounding listening experience made so by the arguably necessary announcement of each person’s name with every quote. No flow, and ultimately impossible to enjoy. Individual attributions are seemingly impossible obstacle for an audiobook to overcome.

VicenTAY Minnelli really?

Great book about great directors and the like! Unfortunately the audio version could have used a great director as the male narrator mispronounces so many famous legends names!Example: Vicente Minnelli is Vincent not VinceTAY, what is more Minnelli didn’t sound like Nintendo”s Mario! He was born in Chicago! Only one of many narration blunders!
Great book regardless!

Tedious

The first third was great, despite the narrator mispronoucing many names. Don't they have an editor who listens to the audio before it's released? The book became so tedious inches last third, I couldn't finish it.

Was hoping for more history…

This is a great collection of anecdotal testimony from a collection of Hollywood luminaries though I was truly hoping for more of a historical perspective from this. It’s a little short on information about the creation of Hollywood as a whole which is a story that is like to be told since I can’t find a really thorough narrative from a book on here. The narration by the male and female roles are pretty darn good though sometimes they pick their spots to try and match up their impersonations. Definitely recommend for any classic movie enthusiast.

Interesting but limited

Everyone's right-the male narrator must have been raised on some distant Island not to know who David Niven is. And there's much that was not mentioned so that a more complete picture of the folks could be painted. BUT how much longer could this book get? I think it's great.

Oral history of Hollywood

Excellent set of edited transcripts of interviews with people who worked in Hollywood. Audio book version is high quality but with some mispronunciations.

10 times more than I expected or hoped for

this really is American history. this book reflects who we are as a people what our history has been for the last 100 years. it speaks to our soul. it's an examination of the good the bad the ugly. and it's funny

Hollywood Insider

Opinions about all aspects of Hollywood movies from those within. Loaded with facts and stories. Not a narrative history. It’s all there from the first silents to today based on personal interviews. A unique book.