CH 15-SEC 4
Standard Addressed:
11.6 Students analyze the different
explanations for the Great Depression and
how the New Deal fundamentally changed the
role of the federal government.
Learning Objectives: Section 4 - Culture in the 1930's
• 1. Describe the entertainment provided by
motion pictures and radio.
• 2. Identify some of the artists and writers
of the New Deal era.
QUIZ!
First & Last Name
Fill in
your
ID
NUMBER!
CH-15-4
Section 4
Culture in the 1930s
Motion pictures, radio, art, and literature blossom
during the New Deal.
NEXT
THE NEW DEAL
AMERICA
GETS BACK
TO WORK
SECTION 4:
CULTURE IN THE 1930s
MOVIES:
• By the late 1930s, 65%
of Americans were
attending the movies at
least once per week at
one of the nation’s
15,000 movie theaters
Movies provided an escape from the
hardships of the Great Depression
SECTION 4:
CULTURE IN THE 1930s
MOVIES:
• Comedies, lavish
musicals, love stories
and gangster films
dominated the movie
industry
Movies provided an escape from
the hardships of the Great
Depression
MOVIE
STARS
• A new era of
glamour in
Hollywood was
launched with stars
like Clark Gable,
Marlene Dietrich
and James Cagney
1930s
FAMOUS FILMS
OF THE 30s
• One of the most famous
films of the era was Gone
with the Wind (1939)
• Other notable movies of the
era included The Wizard of
Oz (1939) and Snow White
and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
Guided Reading:
Films and Radio Drama
Gone with
the Wind
Clark Gable
Vivian Leigh
What was its
theme?
What was it?
Who created or
appeared in it?
Life among
Southern
plantation
owners during
the Civil War
Margaret Mitchell
FAMOUS FILMS OF
THE 30s
Guided Reading:
Films and Radio Drama
Mr. Smith
What was it?
Goes to
Washington
Film
Who created or
appeared in it?
Frank Capra
What was its
theme?
Honest,
Kindhearted
people winning
out over greedy
special interests.
Shirley
Temple
(Black)
• Most popular
artist 1935-1938
NEXT
RADIO: THE
ORIGINAL
ENTERTAINMENT
• Sales of radios greatly
increased in the 1930s,
from 13 million in 1930
to 28 million by 1940
• Nearly 90% of
American homes
owned a radio
Families spent hours listening to the radio
ROOSEVELT’S
FIRESIDE CHATS
• FDR communicated
to Americans via
radio
• His frequent
“Fireside Chats” kept
Americans abreast of
the government’s
efforts during the
Depression
POPULAR RADIO
SHOWS
• Popular radio
shows included
comedies with Bob
Hope, Jack Benny,
and the duo of
Burns and Allen
Benny
H
o
p
e
Burns
Allen
POPULAR RADIO
SHOWS
• Soap operas
(named because
they were
sponsored by
soap companies)
ran in the
mornings, kids
shows in the
afternoon and
entertainment at
night
Radio Entertains
FAMOUS RADIO
MOMENTS
• Orson Welles created a
radio special called War
of the Worlds
• It was an epic drama
about aliens landing in
America
• Unfortunately, many
thought it was a news
broadcast and panicked
Guided Reading:
Films and Radio Drama
War of the
Worlds
What was it?
Play
Who created or
appeared in it?
Orsen Wells
(H.G. Wells)
What was its
theme?
Martian
invasion of
earth
Radio Entertains
Guided Reading:
Films and Radio Drama
Waiting for
Lefty
What was it?
What was its
theme?
Play
Labor struggles
of the 1930’s
Who created or
appeared in it?
Clifford Odets
WRITERS DEPICT
AMERICAN LIFE
• The Federal Writers’
Project (branch of WPA)
paid writers to write
• Richard Wright’s
acclaimed Native Son
was written for the
project
• Deals with issues of
growing up black
Guided Reading:
Art and Literature
Native Son
What was it?
What was its theme?
Difficulties faced by a
young generation
surviving in a racist
Who created or
world
appeared in it?
Novel
Richard Wright
JOHN STEINBECK
RECEIVES ACCLAIM
• American writer John Steinbeck
received assistance from the
Federal Writers’ Project
• He published his most famous
book, Grapes of Wrath (1939),
as part of the program
• Portrays the struggles of a
family from the dust bowl.
Guided Reading:
Art and Literature
The Grapes
of Wrath
What was it?
Novel
Who created or
appeared in it?
John Steinbeck
What was its
theme?
Difficulties of
Oklahomans who
left the Dust Bowl
for California
• Radio captured news as
well as providing
entertainment
• One of the first
worldwide broadcasts
was the horrific crash of
the Hindenburg, a
German Zeppelin (blimp),
in New Jersey on May 6,
1937
• Such immediate news
coverage became a
staple in society
LIVE NEWS
COVERAGE
The Hindenburg caught fire and was utterly
destroyed within a minute Of the 97 people on
board, 13 passengers and 22 crew-members
were killed
The Arts in Depression America
Artists Decorate America
• Federal Art Project pays artists to
make art, teach in schools
• Aim to promote art appreciation,
positive image of America
• Murals typically portray dignity of
ordinary people at work
• Many outstanding works painted
by artists, including Grant Wood
•
• Federal Theater Project hires
actors, artists
Continued . . .
NEXT
ART DURING THE GREAT
DEPRESSION
• The Federal Art Project
(branch of the WPA) paid
artists a living wage to
produce art
• Projects included murals,
posters and books
• Much of the art, music and
literature was sober and
serious
PLAY – OUR TOWN
Guided Reading:
Art and Literature
Our Town
What was it?
What was its theme?
Play
Warmth and beauty of
small-town life in
New England
Who created or
appeared in it?
Thornton Wilder
ARTISTS HERALDED
• Painters like Edward
Hopper, Thomas Hart
Benton, and Iowa’s Grant
Wood were all made
famous by their work in
the WPA program
• Photographer Dorothea
Lange gained fame from
her photos during this era
(featured throughout this
presentation)
Wood’s American Gothic is perhaps the most
famous piece of the era (1930)
Artists Decorate America
• Federal Art Project pays artists to make art,
teach in schools
• Aim to promote art appreciation, positive image
of America
• Murals typically portray dignity of ordinary people
at work
• Many outstanding works painted by artists,
including Grant Wood
• Federal Theater Project hires actors, artists
Grant Wood’s Fall Plowing, 1931
Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks (1942)
Edward Hopper, Railroad Sunset (1929)
Mabel Dwight, In the Crowd (1931)
Thomas Hart
Benton, Mine
Strike
Thomas
Hart
Benton,
Lord,
Heal the
Child
(1934)
Nicolai
Cikovsky,
On the
East River
(c. 1934)
Guided Reading:
Art and Literature
American
Gothic
What was it?
What was its
theme?
Painting
Two stern-faced
farmers;
Who created or
appeared in it?
Wood Grant
rural life during the
Depression
GUTHRIE’S MUSIC
CAPTURES ERA
Singer Woody Guthrie
used music to capture
the hardship of the
Great Depression
• Guthrie traveled the
country singing about
America
• Singer, songwriter
Woody Guthrie sings of
plight of poor
Woody Guthrie
The Arts in Depression America
Woody Guthrie Sings
of America
• Singer, songwriter
Woody Guthrie sings of
plight of poor
Continued . . .
NEXT
QUIZ!
First & Last Name
Fill in
your
ID
NUMBER!
CH-15-4
Chapter 15: Section 4
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• A – Why did you think movies were so
popular during the Depression?
– Movies provided realistic portrayals as well
as escapist comedies and romances, all of
which helped people to cope with the
Depression reality
Chapter 15: Section 4
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• B – Why did the New Deal fund art
projects?
– New Deal officials believed
• -that art played an important role in the life of the
American people.
• -that artists deserved work relief just as other
unemployed Americans did
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• C – In what ways did the New Deal deliver
art to the public?
– The Federal Art Project paid to produce public
art.
– It also promoted the teaching of art in schools
and poster and mural paintings.
– The Federal Theater Project assisted
producing theater productions.
Chapter 15: Section 4
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• D – How did the literature of the time
reflect issues of the Depression?
– Writers depicted the difficulties of the
Depression Era, such as the Dust Bowl,
working class life, racism, and hardships in
America.