Light & Noir: Exiles & Émigrés in Hollywood, 1933-1950
The California History Museum is exhibiting Light & Noir: Exiles & Émigrés in Hollywood, 1933-1950 from May 16 – Oct. 15, 2017.
Carla Meyer in the Sacramento Bee describes the exhibit as follow: “As Adolf Hitler rose to power in the 1930s, many German-speaking actors and directors found refuge, and work, in Hollywood. These exiles – many but not all Jewish – included directing great Billy Wilder and much of the supporting cast of `Casablanca.’”
The exhibit “Light & Noir: Exiles & Émigrés in Hollywood, 1933-1950” showcases “how important German-speaking exiles were in shaping what we now call the Golden Age of Hollywood,” exhibit curator Doris Berger said by telephone.
Drawn from the collections of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Warner Bros., NBCUniversal, Paramount and more, artifacts from the 16 films featured in the exhibit tell the history of Hollywood’s formative era through the lens of the émigré experience, demonstrating experiences of immigration, acculturation and innovation that intersect with the flourishing of Hollywood as an American cultural phenomenon whose legacy continues to shape the industry today. Highlights include:
- Posters, costume and concept drawings, scripts, musical scores, lobby cards and props from the set of Rick’s Café from “Casablanca” (1942)
- Storyboards and set drawings from “The Killers” (1946) starring Burt Lancaster & Ava Gardner
- Dresses worn by Marlene Dietrich in “A Foreign Affair” (1948) and Joan Crawford in “Mildred Pierce” (1945)
- Oscar won by acclaimed director Billy Wilder for “Sunset Boulevard” (1950)
KJ