Summarize the history of the American star system, including the golden age of film stars, and list benefits and drawbacks to being a film star

The American Star System

a. the backbone of the American film industry since the mid-1910s
i. the first stars: Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin
b. stars are the creation of the public, its reigning favorites
c. the public often fuses a star’s artistic persona with his or her private personality
d. audiences can be remarkably resistant to someone else’s notion of a star
e. the golden age—1930s and 1940s
i. the majors—MGM, Warner Brothers, Twentieth Century Fox, Paramount, RKO
ii. stars as commodity
1. in their first years under studio contract, stars were given maximum exposure
2. after a particularly popular performance, a star was usually locked into the same type of role
3. demand for stars was the most predictable economic variable in the business
4. majors viewed their stars as valuable investments
5. promising neophytes served an apprenticeship as starlets
6. top stars attracted the loyalty of both men and women
iii. mythology and iconography
1. mythology of stardom usually emphasizes the glamour
2. critic Parker Tyler observed that stars fulfill an ancient need, almost religious in nature
3. contemporary film stars have become quite savvy in exploiting the public’s fascination with their lives
4. stars must pay a high price for their wealth and fame; they must get used to being treated like commodities with a price tag
f. acting stars vs. personality stars
i. personality stars commonly refuse parts that go against their type
1. top box-office attractions tend to be personality stars
2. Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, etc.
ii. acting stars refuse to be typecast and attempt the widest array of roles possible
1. Daniel Day Lewis, Reese Witherspoon, etc.
2. undertake unpleasant character roles rather than conventional leads to expand their range
iii. many stars fall somewhere between the two extremes
iv. film theorist Richard Dyer has pointed out that stars are signifying entities
v. the distinction between a professional actor and a star is not based on technical skill, but on mass popularity
vi. sophisticated filmmakers exploit the public’s affection for its stars by creating ambiguous tensions between a role as written, as acted, and as directed