This book documents films produced in America during the 1940s, including 61 documentaries and 44 so-called "race movies," B Westerns and films from Poverty Row studios. Entries are alphabetically arranged by title and sequentially numbered. Where applicable, entries contain the following information: studio and/or production company, year of production and release, cast (sometimes with name of character played), running time, a brief synopsis, and awards won.

More than 150 articles provide a revealing look at one of the most tempestuous decades in recent American history, describing the everyday activities of Americans as they dealt first with war, and then a difficult transition to peace and prosperity. The two-volume World War II and the Postwar Years in America: A Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia contains over 175 articles describing everyday life on the American home front during World War II and the immediate postwar years. Unlike publications about this period that focus mainly on the big picture of the war and subsequent economic conditions, this encyclopedia drills down to the popular culture of the 1940s, bringing the details of the lives of ordinary men, women, and children alive. The work covers a broad range of everyday activities throughout the 1940s, including movies, radio programming, music, the birth of commercial television, advertising, art, bestsellers, and other equally intriguing topics. The decade was divided almost evenly between war (1940-1945) and peace (1946-1950), and the articles point up the continuities and differences between these two periods. Filled with evocative photographs, this unique encyclopedia will serve as an excellent resource for those seeking an overview of life in the United States during a decade that helped shape the modern world.

For decades, Screen World has been the film professional's, as well as the film buff's, favorite and indispensable annual screen resource, full of all the necessary statistics and facts. Now Screen World editor Barry Monush has compiled another comprehensive work for every film lover's library. In the first of two volumes, this book chronicles the careers of every significant film actor, from the earliest silent screen stars – Chaplin, Pickford, Fairbanks – to the mid-1960s, when the old studio and star systems came crashing down. Each listing includes: a brief biography, photos from the famed Screen World archives, with many rare shots; vital statistics; a comprehensive filmography; and an informed, entertaining assessment of each actor's contributions – good or bad! In addition to every major player, Monush includes the legions of unjustly neglected troupers of yesteryear. The result is a rarity: an invaluable reference tool that's as much fun to read as a scandal sheet. It pulsates with all the scandal, glamour, oddity and glory that was the lifeblood of its subjects. Contains over 1 000 photos!

More than 700 films from the classic period of film noir (1940 to 1959) are presented in this exhaustive reference book--such films as The Accused, Among the Living, The Asphalt Jungle, Baby Face Nelson, Bait, The Beat Generation, Crossfire, Dark Passage, I Walk Alone, The Las Vegas Story, The Naked City, Strangers on a Train, White Heat, and The Window. For each film, the following information is provided: the title, release date, main performers, screenwriter(s), director(s), type of noir, thematic content, a rating based on the five-star system, and a plot synopsis that does not reveal the ending.

An astute collection of inquiries into the rich history and impact of the National Barn Dance

Republic Pictures Corporation, began as a motion picture laboratory in 1915. By 1935, Republic had become a studio and released its first movie, Westward Ho! starring a young John Wayne, who would stay with Republic for the next 17 years. Republic would go on to produce highly successful Westerns starring singing cowboys Gene Autry and Roy Rogers as well as serial adventure series. The studio cranked out so many exciting (not to mention money-making) serials that it became known as "The Thrill Factory." Occasionally, Republic would produce and distribute "A" features, such as Macbeth and The Quiet Man, but it was the "B" Westerns and adventure serials that they knew best how to produce and market. Until its demise in 1959, Republic fed hungry moviegoers with a steady diet of "B" Westerns, serials, dramas, series pictures and musicals. The Republic Pictures Checklist provides a full listing of Republic releases, with plot synopses, release dates, alternate titles, chapter titles and awards. All of Republic's output, including documentaries and training films, is included.