Those Who Made It

Speaking with the Legends of Hollywood
By John C. Tibbetts
30 September 2015
$32 | £19.99 | Paperback | 9781137541901

‘Those Who Made It is much like that box found tucked away in Grandma's attic – full of wonders and unexpected links to the past, all carefully preserved for future generations.’ – Cynthia J. Miller, Scholar-in-Residence, Emerson College, USA

For the first time, a selection of interviews with Hollywood’s most revered directors and crew will be published. In Those Who Made It, film historian, educator and broadcaster John C. Tibbetts gives an idea of what it was really like to work behind the scenes in Hollywood’s so-called ‘Golden Age’.

Tibbetts’ conversations with Steven Spielberg, Robert Altman, Bernardo Bertolucci, Terry Gilliam, Jim Henson, Philip Glass, and many more capture these filmmaking legends at critical points in their careers and personal lives, and give rare insights into the creative decisions that have shaped some of classical Hollywood's most-loved films.

From the early sound technology and animation of the ’20s and ’30s, through the chaos of the Second World War, into the early days of television in the ’50s and across the ‘New Hollywood’ of the ’70s and ’80s – spanning classics such as Citizen Kane, The Jazz Singer, The Color Purple, and Brazil – the compelling interviews in Those Who Made It give an insider’s view to some of Hollywood’s most definitive eras and films. Tibbetts’s interviews with directors, producers, cinematographers, writers, animators, editors, composers, stunt people, critics, and film historians embrace the full scope of influence throughout this ‘Golden Age’.

Tibbetts used his privileged credentials as a former CBS journalist and American Classic Screen editor, as well as his extensive network of inside Hollywood contacts, to gather these intimate interviews and conversations over the course of 35 years. Read together, they provide a fascinating running oral commentary on the history of classical Hollywood.

‘People often talk about movie legends, but in this star-studded collection of interviews John C. Tibbetts actually talks with those legends. Whether you're interested in cinematic innovators as different as Jim Henson and Michael Moore, great directors like Robert Altman and Steven Spielberg, or the masters of special effects, sound engineering, movie criticism and preservation, you'll want to read this insight-filled and extremely entertaining book.’ – Michael Dirda, Pulitzer Prize-winning weekly book columnist for The Washington Post

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About the Author

John C. Tibbetts is an author, broadcaster, pianist and artist with more than twenty books specializing in film and the related arts to his credit. He is a Professor of Film at the University of Kansas.

For more information or to get in touch with the author please contact:
Rebecca Krahenbuhl, rebecca.krahenbuhl@palgrave.com, +44 0207 014 6634