Once upon a time...there was a glorious world of motion picture entertainment produced at magnificent dream factories known as the studio lots of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Twentieth Century Fox, Warner Brothers, Columbia, Paramount, Universal, RKO, and Republic.

These were times of soaring imagination and unparalleled craftsmanship. It came to be known as "the Golden Age of Hollywood Cinema." I equate the beginning of this era with Columbia's release of "It Happened One Night" in 1934 and the end of this era with MGM's release of "Ben Hur" in 1959. Obviously, there were a number of landmark films produced earlier during the silent film era, "The Birth of a Nation" in 1915 and "Intolerance" in 1916 to name two, but the release of "The Jazz Singer" in 1927 heralded the passing of the "silents" and ushered in the "talkies." Similarly, there have been some quality films released since 1959, Meredith Wilson's "The Music Man" in 1961; Lerner and Loewe's "My Fair Lady" in 1964; and Rogers and Hammerstein's "The Sound of Music" in 1965. However, in the age of the "R" rated big budget special effects films, quality family films have nearly ceased to be produced.

The major studios were known for their powerful top executives such as Louis B. Mayer, Harry Cohn, Jack Warner and Darryl Zanuck. The films their studios released featured glamorous stars--Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Fred Astaire, Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, Gary Cooper, Robert Taylor, Tyrone Power, Errol Flynn, Cary Grant, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, Burt Lancaster, William Holden, Gene Kelly, Claudette Colbert, Myrna Loy, Barbara Stanwyck, Olivia de Havilland, Katherine Hepburn, Judy Garland, Ginger Rogers, Betty Grable, Lana Turner, June Allyson, Deborah Kerr, Esther Williams, Ava Gardner, and Elizabeth Taylor, to name but a few.

Most of all, these were times of collaborative genius where individuals of diverse talents worked together to create magic on the silver screen. There were directors: Cecil B. DeMille, John Ford, Frank Capra, William Wyler, Michael Curtiz, George Stevens, Vincente Minnelli; composers: Max Steiner, Bernard Herrmann, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Franz Waxman, Alfred Newman, Dimitri Tiomkin; art directors: Cedric Gibbons, William Cameron Menzies, Hal Pereira, Lyle Wheeler; screenwriters: Robert Sherwood, Ben Hecht, Ernest Lehman; cinematographers: James Wong Howe, Gregg Towland, Robert Surtees; special effects: Arnold Gillespie; Warren Newcombe; Ray Harryhausen; George Pal; color consultant: Natalie Kalmus; choreographers: Busby Berkeley, Charles Walters, Hermes Pan, Michael Kidd; costume designers: Helen Rose, Walter Plunkett, Edith Head, Irene Sharaff; makeup and hair: William Tuttle; Sydney Guilaroff; the Westmore brothers, among many, many others who worked tirelessly behind the cameras to contribute their art to the collaborative magic.

It was an era that encompassed three decades (the thirties, forties and fifties). It was also governed creatively by a production code that was put into effect in 1934 and established standards for story content and production values. The production code was administered by Will Hays and had the effect of heightening creativity and not limiting it as some may think. General principles of the code required that "no picture shall be produced which will lower the standards of those who see it. Hence, the sympathy of the audience should never be thrown to the side of crime, wrongdoing, evil or sin." Sadly, by 1966, Supreme Court decisions concerning obscenity and the pressure of civil liberty groups ultimately brought an end to the code which sought to uphold moral decency and good taste.

However, the death of the production code was merely the last act of an unfolding tragedy. This golden age of motion picture production and the studio system which fostered it, began to unwind in 1951 when Louis B. Mayer was forced out as the head of MGM. Mayer was a staunch conservative, and the typical MGM film largely reflected his belief in wholesome entertainment and his moral convictions regarding virtue, patriotism and family life. A perfect example of this is the Andy Hardy film series that featured Mickey Rooney, one of the most talented performers in film history. One of Mr. Mayer's proudest moments occurred in 1942 when the series was awarded a special Oscar "for its achievement in representing the American Way of Life."

What followed the departure of Mayer from MGM and indeed eventually permeated all the studios was a production philosophy that sentimentality and traditional idealism should be played down, if not abandoned altogether. It was replaced by the "realism of the streets" school of movie making, which had originated in New York. This gritty, cynical and pessimistic view of life ushered in the role of the anti-hero, vulgar language, nudity, graphic violence and sex, and story themes that assaulted traditional values.

It was all done in the name of profit by individuals sadly lacking any vision of spiritual ideals or commitment to traditional values. Regrettably, they failed to heed the Savior's admonition "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" (Matthew 16:26)

Alas, the golden age, which produced the greatest of all films, is no more. Just consider some of them: "The Adventures of Robin Hood," 1938; "Gone With the Wind," 1939; "The Wizard of Oz," 1939; "Casablanca," 1943; "Yankee Doodle Dandy," 1943; "Meet Me in St. Louis," 1944; "The Best Years of Our Lives," 1946; "It's a Wonderful Life," 1946; "Miracle on 34th Street," 1947; "Easter Parade," 1948; "The Day The Earth Stood Still," 1951; "Singing In the Rain," 1951; "High Noon," 1952; "North By Northwest," 1959; "Ben Hur," 1959; "The Music Man," 1961; "My Fair Lady," 1964; and "The Sound Of Music," 1965, as examples of many marvelous motion pictures produced during this era which inspired, uplifted and moved us. Oh, how I would love to revisit that time. Alas, we cannot, except through the viewing of those classic films on television, in art houses, or at the occasional retro film festival.

However, I have a dream. I want to establish a latter-day creative environment (the corporate campus) where talented individuals in all disciplines of filmmaking, who share a love for inspiring family entertainment that celebrates the American ideal, can gather. Here they will be able to collaborate in producing, once again for a new century and millenium, the very best in entertainment for the entire family! Our production code will reflect the teachings of the apostle Paul:
 

"...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."
 
Philippians 4:8

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