John Ford at Work: Production Histories 1927-1939

John Ford at Work: Production Histories 1927-1939 explores the evolution of John Ford’s career in the Hollywood studio system of the 1930s as the system itself changed in response to the coming of sound and the business downtown instigated by the Depression. Based upon a decade of research utilizing the studio files of Twentieth Century-Fox, RKO and Samuel Goldwyn, it delineates the director’s collaborations with the producers, screen- writers, actors and cinematographers that had the most impact on his production practices. It traces the major literary, cinematic and musical sources from which he drew. It considers relevant changes in film technology and seeks to explain how they were incorporated into his style. Films analyzed include 4 Sons, The Black Watch, Arrowsmith, Air Mail, The Lost Patrol, The Informer, Judge Priest, Steamboat Round the Bend, The Prisoner of Shark Island, Wee Willie Winkie, Stagecoach and Young Mr. Lincoln.

Lea Jacobs, professor emeritus, University of Wisconsin-Madison, taught film history and aesthetics. Her books include: The Wages of Sin: Censorship and the Fallen Woman Film, Theatre to Cinema (written with Ben Brewster) and Film Rhythm After Sound: Technology, Music and Performance.