#The silent age part 3 movie#

In 1929, the Academy Awards were founded. Smaller studios that didn't have the money to switch to sound got left behind and went bankrupt, solidifying the power of the 'Big Eight' Hollywood studios. Thousands of piano players who had played Background Music for silent movies also lost their jobs, unless they could compose film music or play piano on-set. Many silent film actors, including some of the biggest stars, saw their careers ruined by the rise of sound - some had bad voices or thick accents, others had trouble remembering their lines. Many former vaudeville actors and radio actors migrated to film to find work. Vaudeville vanished virtually overnight, unable to compete with the talkies. This had several major effects on the entertainment industry. Advances in technology combined with the success of The Jazz Singer meant that, by 1930, 'talkies' had completely overtaken silent films.

The first completely all-talking full-length feature movie, Lights of New York, made in 8 days with a $23,000 budget, grossed over a million dollars, despite being hated by critics.

#The silent age part 3 movie#

Or so its reputation says - in reality, only a few minutes of the movie had synchronized vocals, with most of the rest being silent. The dawn of talking pictures is generally held to be the year 1927, with the release of The Jazz Singer, the first motion picture to have synchronized sound.