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Russians in Hollywood, Hollywood's Russians
Harlow Robinson
Biography of an Image
Northland Publishing
December 2007
On Sale: November 30, 2007
304 pages
ISBN: 1555536867
EAN: 9781555536862
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction | Non-Fiction Biography
The story of Russian émigrés in Hollywood and the
depiction of Russians in Hollywood films This book is the first look at the colorful yet largely
unknown story of Russian émigrés who worked in the American
film industry, and the representation of Russians and
Soviets in Hollywood movies. Among the artists who
gravitated towards Hollywood in the 1920s and ’30s were the
legendary directors Lewis Milestone and Rouben Mamoulian,
composers Dmitri Tiomkin and Constantin Bakaleinikoff, and
actors Alla Nazimova, Akim Tamiroff, and Maria Ouspenskaya.
Many had to overcome obstacles of heavy accents, being cut
off from their cultural base, being forced to work beneath
their talents, and taking roles that promoted ethnic
stereotypes. As with most Hollywood stories, there are also
great artistic and personal triumphs; many relished the
opportunity to pursue their crafts largely free of political
entanglements. In addition to the story of Russian émigrés,
Robinson also discusses the impact of such Soviet artists as
Sergei Eisenstein and Sergei Prokofiev and their visits to
Hollywood. The book is also an informed and entertaining analysis of
the representation of Russians and Soviets in American
cinema. Rarely has a country loomed so large in the American
zeitgeist yet remained so unknown. As a result, it was
mainly through the medium of film that Americans’ images of
and attitudes towards Russia were shaped. From the 1920s to
the 1950s these depictions often mimicked the contemporary
state of U.S./Soviet relations at that time: the anti-Soviet
Ninotchka, establishing the trope of the seduction of a
Soviet by Western charm; the WW II films such as Mission to
Moscow and Days of Glory which lent a positive spin to the
tribulations of our erstwhile ally. The Cold War brought a
slew of Red-baiting genre films (along with notable action
and spy films), while the intermittent post-Stalin “thaws”
are represented by such classics as David Lean’s Doctor
Zhivago and Warren Beatty’s Reds. Russians in Hollywood,
Hollywood’s Russians is an original contribution to our
knowledge of the early Hollywood film community and a lively
blend of film analysis and social and political history.
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