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00:00:00,837 --> 00:00:04,076
Made it, Ma! Top of the world!
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00:00:04,174 --> 00:00:05,676
[explosion]
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00:00:07,978 --> 00:00:12,216
[Morgan Freeman]
After nearly 50 years,
the Warner family was gone.
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00:00:15,352 --> 00:00:17,489
{\an8}The studio system
had vanished,
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00:00:17,587 --> 00:00:20,224
and, with it, the Golden Age
of Hollywood.
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{\an8}A new generation of leaders
would break with custom
at Warner Bros...
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00:00:27,931 --> 00:00:29,467
{\an8}[explosion]
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00:00:29,566 --> 00:00:32,837
{\an8}...and pioneer an age
of creative independence.
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00:00:32,936 --> 00:00:34,473
{\an8}[Martin Scorsese] The thing
about Warner Bros.,
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00:00:34,571 --> 00:00:37,909
{\an8}they gave serious filmmakers
a real home.
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[Matthew Modine] Warner Bros.
had the courage
and the innovation
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00:00:40,610 --> 00:00:43,114
{\an8}to tell
those heroic stories...
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{\an8}Don't you understand
what you're on to?
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00:00:45,482 --> 00:00:49,087
{\an8}...about individuals
who spoke truth to power.
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{\an8}[Freeman]
While filmmakers pursued
their passions...
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00:00:51,756 --> 00:00:53,591
{\an8}Action!
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00:00:53,689 --> 00:00:56,261
{\an8}[Freeman] ...the studio chased
the dollars to bring them
to the screen.
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{\an8}[gasps]
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{\an8}Voila!
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00:01:01,131 --> 00:01:04,063
{\an8}[George Clooney]
Warner Bros.
had such bravery.
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00:01:04,167 --> 00:01:06,770
{\an8}Just, "Let's try it," you know?
"We don't know if it'll work."
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00:01:06,868 --> 00:01:12,543
{\an8}[Freeman] A tug of war between
art and commerce would drive
the company to bigger risks...
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00:01:12,643 --> 00:01:14,478
{\an8}- [slaver] What's your name?
- Kunta.
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{\an8}[Freeman] ...higher heights...
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{\an8}[Kunta] Kunta Kinte.
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{\an8}[Freeman]
...and steeper falls.
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{\an8}Our stock plunged.
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{\an8}[Keanu Reeves]
There's always been a battle
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00:01:23,753 --> 00:01:26,790
{\an8}between the studio
and filmmakers.
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00:01:26,890 --> 00:01:31,090
{\an8}That tension and relationship
with Warner Bros...
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{\an8}I feel has made better movies.
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{\an8}What are you,
outta your mind?
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{\an8}[Kevin Costner] We can keep
making formulaic movies,
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{\an8}but when
we take that formula
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{\an8}and we bother
to give it edge...
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{\an8}[laughing hysterically]
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{\an8}She's driving us crazy
and loving every minute of it.
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[Costner] ...and the studio
is strong enough to say,
"We'll accept that edge,"
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it stands a chance
to become classic.
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[inspirational music playing]
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[chanting] Ho, Ho, Ho,
Ho Chi Minh!
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00:02:14,738 --> 00:02:16,775
[man] We have gone
on the offensive.
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00:02:16,873 --> 00:02:19,211
[Robert F. Kennedy]
I have some very sad news
for all of you.
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00:02:19,308 --> 00:02:23,248
Martin Luther King was shot
and was killed tonight
in Memphis, Tennessee.
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[people screaming]
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{\an8}We're going to remake
this country in the streets!
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{\an8}[Freeman] Against
the backdrop of late 1960s
culture and politics...
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{\an8}You had all these radical
new things coming in.
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{\an8}Drugs, Vietnam,
everything colliding
all at once.
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{\an8}[Freeman]
The Warners' successor,
Warner Bros.- Seven Arts,
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{\an8}made daring choices.
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{\an8}[Scorsese] Suddenly you see
the savagery of what
was happening,
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{\an8}and people wanted to burst out,
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{\an8}and not mince words anymore.
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00:03:03,319 --> 00:03:05,824
{\an8}[Jacqueline Stewart]
The audiences were
not interested in having
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00:03:05,924 --> 00:03:09,028
{\an8}the same kind of
mainstream entertainment.
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00:03:09,125 --> 00:03:12,297
{\an8}Their tastes were changing,
values were changing.
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00:03:12,391 --> 00:03:18,198
{\an8}What we've got here is
failure to communicate.
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Fire!
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00:03:21,137 --> 00:03:23,342
[Freeman]
Attentive to the mood
on the streets,
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Warner Bros. made history
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00:03:25,308 --> 00:03:29,014
when they signed
multitalented artist
Gordon Parks,
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00:03:29,112 --> 00:03:34,619
the first Black director
to helm a major
studio-financed film.
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00:03:34,719 --> 00:03:35,587
Action!
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00:03:38,688 --> 00:03:43,395
{\an8}[Stewart] Gordon Parks
was a incredibly talented photographer
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00:03:43,493 --> 00:03:45,330
{\an8}who worked
for Life Magazine.
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He was a composer.
He was a playwright.
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He wrote novels and poems.
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We don't think of him
as an auteur
in the space of cinema,
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00:03:55,939 --> 00:03:58,377
but when a small window
opened up,
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he was, in many ways,
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00:04:00,677 --> 00:04:04,116
the perfect person
to enter that door.
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00:04:04,214 --> 00:04:07,519
[Oprah Winfrey]
So, 1969, I think the country
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00:04:07,619 --> 00:04:09,054
{\an8}was opening itself up to
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00:04:09,153 --> 00:04:13,025
{\an8}the possibility of stories
from Black creators.
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00:04:13,122 --> 00:04:15,494
[Freeman] Working from
a screenplay he adapted
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00:04:15,593 --> 00:04:18,030
from his own
autobiographical novel,
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00:04:18,128 --> 00:04:20,599
Parks didn't shy away from
bitter truths.
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[man] Tuck!
Damn it, I'll shoot!
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00:04:24,969 --> 00:04:26,738
[dramatic music plays]
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00:04:31,308 --> 00:04:33,312
You didn't have to shoot Tuck.
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00:04:34,845 --> 00:04:37,782
And now you can see
what happens to criminals.
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00:04:37,881 --> 00:04:39,484
[LeVar Burton]
The Civil Rights Movement
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00:04:39,583 --> 00:04:43,155
was a part of daily life
for me as a kid.
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00:04:43,253 --> 00:04:47,927
{\an8}And hearing the adults
around me talk about
the importance of
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00:04:48,024 --> 00:04:50,862
here's this Black man
directing a movie
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00:04:50,961 --> 00:04:55,968
about a young kid who was
really wanting education,
wanting to learn,
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00:04:56,067 --> 00:04:57,336
you know, I heard that.
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00:04:57,434 --> 00:05:00,405
That penetrated to me.
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00:05:00,504 --> 00:05:03,742
[Freeman] But the gentleness
at the heart of the story
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00:05:03,841 --> 00:05:06,611
was its own radical act.
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00:05:06,710 --> 00:05:09,448
It's an incredibly important
film to point to because
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00:05:09,546 --> 00:05:11,311
it's a really tender love story
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00:05:11,414 --> 00:05:14,853
and representation
of Black family
and community out west,
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00:05:14,952 --> 00:05:17,522
based on his childhood
in Kansas.
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00:05:17,620 --> 00:05:23,495
It's a rare picture
of Black life
with sensitivity and nuance.
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00:05:23,592 --> 00:05:27,532
[Freeman] Warner Bros.
released the film
to critical acclaim.
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00:05:27,631 --> 00:05:31,403
Now, I think because
of the success of the film,
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00:05:31,502 --> 00:05:35,574
I think that it'll allow
other Black boys to
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00:05:35,667 --> 00:05:38,577
aspire to become directors
and producers and so forth.
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00:05:40,209 --> 00:05:43,482
[Freeman] But while
filmmaking advanced,
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00:05:43,581 --> 00:05:46,919
the studio itself
was falling into decay.
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00:05:47,017 --> 00:05:50,956
{\an8}It wasn't just at Warner Bros.,
it was all throughout Hollywood.
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00:05:51,054 --> 00:05:52,992
[Scorsese] The studios
were disintegrating,
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00:05:53,090 --> 00:05:56,628
and that means all their props,
all their costumes, everything.
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The factory system was
breaking down.
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00:06:00,164 --> 00:06:03,268
[Freeman] Production
had moved off the lot.
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00:06:03,366 --> 00:06:06,405
{\an8}It was the last nail
in the coffin, I think,
of the studio system.
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00:06:06,502 --> 00:06:12,411
It was impossible to have
all these people gainfully
employed all year long.
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00:06:14,177 --> 00:06:17,049
{\an8}[Freeman] Unable to keep up
with their overhead,
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00:06:17,147 --> 00:06:21,286
{\an8}some of the Big Five
began auctioning off
their past.
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00:06:21,384 --> 00:06:26,125
{\an8}When I got here
in 1970, early '70s,
everyone was running scared.
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00:06:26,224 --> 00:06:27,960
{\an8}It was all very Darwin.
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00:06:28,058 --> 00:06:30,229
{\an8}They don't even know
if they have a job tomorrow.
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{\an8}The '60s and '70s could have
been the death of the studio.
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It looked like
it was going to be.
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00:06:37,133 --> 00:06:40,772
[Freeman] Situated on
a prime swath
of LA real estate
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00:06:40,871 --> 00:06:44,276
and a treasure trove
of intellectual property,
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00:06:44,374 --> 00:06:48,280
{\an8}Seven Arts attracted buyers
looking to cash in.
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00:06:48,379 --> 00:06:52,217
Steve Ross, a poor Jewish kid
from Brooklyn
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00:06:52,315 --> 00:06:55,854
who'd made a fortune
in car rentals
and funeral homes,
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00:06:55,952 --> 00:07:00,625
was attracted to the glitz
and glamor of the
entertainment business.
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00:07:00,724 --> 00:07:02,294
[Steve Ross]
I always loved movies.
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00:07:02,392 --> 00:07:05,164
{\an8}Oddly enough, in 1969,
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00:07:05,261 --> 00:07:09,468
{\an8}that's not the reason we
acquired a company called
Warner-Seven Arts.
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00:07:09,567 --> 00:07:11,103
We wanted to be
in the record business,
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00:07:11,202 --> 00:07:14,639
and Warner-Seven Arts
had Atlantic Records.
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00:07:14,738 --> 00:07:17,176
We said, "Let's give ourselves
a year and a half
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00:07:17,275 --> 00:07:19,711
to see if there is such a thing
as a movie industry.
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00:07:19,809 --> 00:07:25,150
If not, we'll sell
the film library and
we'll sell the real estate."
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00:07:28,752 --> 00:07:31,223
And then some of the record
people came in and said,
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00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:35,827
"Gee, there's something
going on in a small town
in upstate New York."
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00:07:35,927 --> 00:07:38,063
That was Woodstock.
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00:07:38,162 --> 00:07:40,199
{\an8}[rock music playing]
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[Freeman] Camped out
on the festival grounds
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00:07:50,140 --> 00:07:53,545
was a scrappy pack
of independent filmmakers,
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00:07:53,644 --> 00:07:56,381
documenting the historic event.
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I was on the stage
for three days
and three nights.
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The music was transcendent.
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00:08:00,851 --> 00:08:04,756
There were a number
of people hovering
around the stage
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00:08:04,855 --> 00:08:06,725
to pick up the rights
for the film
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00:08:06,824 --> 00:08:09,962
because they realized
something special
was happening.
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00:08:10,060 --> 00:08:12,063
{\an8}And next thing I know,
it was a Warner Bros. picture.
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00:08:12,162 --> 00:08:16,101
{\an8}I think you people have proven
something to the world.
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00:08:16,199 --> 00:08:19,471
[Scorsese] Success
of that film
was a major coup...
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00:08:19,570 --> 00:08:23,608
for the sense of a studio
that was looking forward,
not backward.
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00:08:27,578 --> 00:08:30,014
All of a sudden,
we said, "Gee, this is
a pretty good business
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00:08:30,114 --> 00:08:31,951
if you have good people
running it."
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00:08:34,050 --> 00:08:37,056
{\an8}[Freeman] To lead the studio,
Ross assembled a team
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00:08:37,154 --> 00:08:41,093
{\an8}whose sympathies
lay with the counterculture.
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00:08:41,191 --> 00:08:43,262
{\an8}[Terry Semel] Steve Ross,
when I met him the first time,
152
00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:46,764
{\an8}as I entered, there were beads
on all the doors.
153
00:08:46,863 --> 00:08:49,068
There weren't doors, actually.
There were just beads.
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00:08:49,165 --> 00:08:54,039
And I could smell something
like incense or something
in the room.
155
00:08:54,138 --> 00:08:56,708
And, as I came in,
the key executives,
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00:08:56,807 --> 00:09:00,845
they were all sitting
on the floor, on pillows,
in the office.
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00:09:00,944 --> 00:09:04,883
And I thought, "There's
something wrong with these
people from New York."
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00:09:04,982 --> 00:09:08,220
My job, at that point,
was to oversee a movie,
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00:09:08,319 --> 00:09:09,654
and that was Woodstock.
160
00:09:09,753 --> 00:09:11,790
And these guys were,
like, living Woodstock.
161
00:09:13,523 --> 00:09:17,196
[Freeman] CEO Ted Ashley
was an early adopter
162
00:09:17,294 --> 00:09:22,334
of Zen-inflected
New Age philosophy.
163
00:09:22,431 --> 00:09:26,538
Vice Chair Frank Wells,
a Beatles-loving
Rhodes scholar,
164
00:09:26,637 --> 00:09:31,243
dreamed of scaling
the world's tallest peaks.
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00:09:31,341 --> 00:09:33,878
And head of production
John Calley
166
00:09:33,977 --> 00:09:37,349
had spun a first job
in an NBC mailroom
167
00:09:37,446 --> 00:09:42,121
into friendships
with some of the era's
more defiant artists.
168
00:09:42,218 --> 00:09:44,322
[John Calley]
I was having breakfast
with Tony Perkins.
169
00:09:44,421 --> 00:09:47,960
{\an8}Then I got a call, and it was
Steve Ross and Ted Ashley.
170
00:09:48,059 --> 00:09:50,695
{\an8}They asked if I wanted
to run a studio.
171
00:09:50,795 --> 00:09:52,097
{\an8}I was astonished.
172
00:09:52,196 --> 00:09:54,233
{\an8}I said to Tony,
"I don't think I can do that."
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00:09:54,332 --> 00:09:56,868
He said, "How many people have
you known that run studios?"
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00:09:56,967 --> 00:09:58,803
I said, "Lots." He said,
"They're schmucks, right?"
175
00:09:58,902 --> 00:10:00,304
I said, "Yeah."
He said, "You can do it."
176
00:10:01,938 --> 00:10:04,977
There were no more suits
and ties on the studio lot.
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00:10:05,075 --> 00:10:10,149
And I think Warner Bros.
was a lot freer than
other studios were at the time
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00:10:10,247 --> 00:10:14,119
because they were so inspired
by all these changes
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00:10:14,217 --> 00:10:17,522
that had been happening
in the culture
and in filmmaking.
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00:10:17,620 --> 00:10:22,061
[Freeman] With Calley as guide,
Warner's progressive-minded
executives
181
00:10:22,159 --> 00:10:27,566
went after edgy stories,
and singular storytellers.
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00:10:27,665 --> 00:10:31,303
{\an8}You know what I want?
I want ideas. I want one idea.
183
00:10:31,402 --> 00:10:34,406
{\an8}One idea could get us
out of here!
184
00:10:34,505 --> 00:10:37,242
{\an8}Having been somebody
that worked on films a lot,
185
00:10:37,341 --> 00:10:39,344
{\an8}what you do is work
with the filmmakers.
186
00:10:39,442 --> 00:10:42,313
{\an8}It's their judgment.
It's their taste.
187
00:10:42,412 --> 00:10:44,083
{\an8}It's their vision.
188
00:10:44,181 --> 00:10:46,718
{\an8}[Ben Mankiewicz]
These young filmmakers,
they were...
189
00:10:46,817 --> 00:10:49,721
{\an8}bold. They broke norms
190
00:10:49,819 --> 00:10:55,394
{\an8}that had existed since
sound came to the movies,
and probably before that.
191
00:10:55,492 --> 00:10:59,031
{\an8}[Muller] The new era
at Warner Bros.
was very much,
192
00:10:59,130 --> 00:11:00,660
{\an8}"Let's find a hot director,
193
00:11:00,765 --> 00:11:03,035
{\an8}and let them
do their thing."
194
00:11:03,134 --> 00:11:05,704
{\an8}Which Jack Warner
never would have tolerated.
195
00:11:05,802 --> 00:11:11,510
{\an8}And you got movies
that were unthinkable
ten or 15 years earlier.
196
00:11:11,607 --> 00:11:15,380
{\an8}[Freeman]
Throughout the early 1970s,
the studio turned out films
197
00:11:15,479 --> 00:11:20,552
{\an8}that exposed and upended
the dominant power structures.
198
00:11:20,651 --> 00:11:23,388
{\an8}Klute at Warner Bros.
was a controversial picture.
199
00:11:23,488 --> 00:11:25,157
Oh, my angel!
200
00:11:25,256 --> 00:11:27,559
The emptiness of it
and the sadness of it,
201
00:11:27,658 --> 00:11:29,628
I think Klute is just
a masterpiece.
202
00:11:29,726 --> 00:11:33,365
Sometimes you have
to lose yourself
before you can find anything.
203
00:11:33,457 --> 00:11:36,696
{\an8}[Muller] I always love
that story about
making Deliverance
204
00:11:36,801 --> 00:11:38,697
{\an8}where they read the cover.
205
00:11:38,802 --> 00:11:41,773
{\an8}It's like, "Guys" go on
a canoe trip
and a kid plays the banjo
206
00:11:41,872 --> 00:11:44,443
{\an8}and then a guy
gets raped in the woods"?
207
00:11:44,541 --> 00:11:48,780
{\an8}It's like, "We're not making
this movie, are we?"
208
00:11:48,878 --> 00:11:51,483
{\an8}[Scorsese] At that point then,
we all looked to Warner Bros.
209
00:11:51,581 --> 00:11:55,955
{\an8}for films that had
a special quality to them
and took chances.
210
00:11:56,052 --> 00:11:57,621
{\an8}[Stone] These were
very gutsy films.
211
00:11:57,722 --> 00:11:58,889
{\an8}[people clamoring]
212
00:11:58,989 --> 00:12:01,126
{\an8}And gave us,
the younger people,
213
00:12:01,225 --> 00:12:03,095
{\an8}the feeling that things
could be made.
214
00:12:03,194 --> 00:12:05,264
{\an8}- Help!
- [gunshot]
215
00:12:05,361 --> 00:12:10,235
And they could be bloody
because America makes
violent movies.
216
00:12:10,334 --> 00:12:12,371
You've gotta ask
yourself a question.
217
00:12:13,771 --> 00:12:14,974
"Do I feel lucky?"
218
00:12:16,040 --> 00:12:17,809
Well, do you, punk?
219
00:12:17,908 --> 00:12:19,078
[whimpers]
220
00:12:19,177 --> 00:12:20,379
[gunshot]
221
00:12:23,012 --> 00:12:29,989
{\an8}[Freeman] Dirty Harry
was a rogue cop who took
justice into his own hands.
222
00:12:30,086 --> 00:12:33,725
[Clint Eastwood] There was
a few people that thought
it was too violent,
223
00:12:33,824 --> 00:12:36,561
{\an8}but I don't care
what anybody else thinks.
224
00:12:36,660 --> 00:12:38,964
[gunshot]
225
00:12:39,062 --> 00:12:42,067
[Freeman] The character
played to America's lifelong
romance with law and order...
226
00:12:42,166 --> 00:12:45,337
- Halt!
- [alarm ringing]
227
00:12:45,435 --> 00:12:49,141
[Freeman] ...and did well
with mainstream audiences.
228
00:12:49,239 --> 00:12:51,010
[Eastwood] Dirty Harry is
a very romantic film.
229
00:12:51,102 --> 00:12:54,246
I think everybody would like
to believe that there's...
230
00:12:54,345 --> 00:12:56,615
a Dirty Harry
on every street corner,
231
00:12:56,713 --> 00:13:01,353
the man who would expend
himself to that degree
on their behalf.
232
00:13:01,452 --> 00:13:03,655
[Freeman] Veering away from
the experimental techniques
233
00:13:03,754 --> 00:13:06,125
and revolutionary themes
of the era...
234
00:13:06,223 --> 00:13:07,892
Do I come down to the station
and tell you
235
00:13:07,992 --> 00:13:09,929
how to beat a confession
out of a prisoner?
236
00:13:10,026 --> 00:13:13,432
[Freeman] ...the film
introduced a lucrative model
to the studio.
237
00:13:15,966 --> 00:13:17,669
The franchise.
238
00:13:17,768 --> 00:13:21,572
Man's got to know
his limitations.
239
00:13:21,671 --> 00:13:25,677
{\an8}[Freeman] Warners had
the first bankable movie star
of the Ross Age
240
00:13:25,776 --> 00:13:29,915
{\an8}and a relationship
that would endure for decades.
241
00:13:31,882 --> 00:13:37,156
{\an8}But there was room
at the studio for a very
different brand of artist, too.
242
00:13:37,253 --> 00:13:39,458
{\an8}[Christopher Nolan]
When you look at the
history of Warner Bros.,
243
00:13:39,556 --> 00:13:41,894
{\an8}I think there are two figures
that stand out
more than any other.
244
00:13:41,992 --> 00:13:43,595
{\an8}You have to look at
Clint Eastwood's
245
00:13:43,694 --> 00:13:45,530
{\an8}extraordinary history
with the studio,
246
00:13:45,629 --> 00:13:48,233
{\an8}and then I think, in a
completely different realm,
247
00:13:48,332 --> 00:13:50,369
{\an8}I think you have to look
at Stanley Kubrick.
248
00:13:52,402 --> 00:13:54,505
{\an8}[Freeman]
By the time he came
to Warner Bros.,
249
00:13:54,604 --> 00:13:58,944
{\an8}Stanley Kubrick
had proved himself
an original in every sense.
250
00:14:01,005 --> 00:14:03,048
{\an8}With a reputation
for brilliance
251
00:14:03,147 --> 00:14:05,450
{\an8}and obsessive attention
to detail.
252
00:14:05,549 --> 00:14:08,954
{\an8}I was very young
when I was exposed
253
00:14:09,053 --> 00:14:10,621
{\an8}to Kubrick
for the first time.
254
00:14:10,721 --> 00:14:13,959
{\an8}And I was completely in awe
with him immediately,
255
00:14:14,058 --> 00:14:16,195
{\an8}because there was always
something new.
256
00:14:16,293 --> 00:14:19,898
{\an8}Kubrick is the ultimate
filmmaker that filmmakers love.
257
00:14:19,997 --> 00:14:22,534
{\an8}You cannot stop watching.
258
00:14:22,632 --> 00:14:25,570
{\an8}[Freeman] Each movie Kubrick
had made at other studios
259
00:14:25,669 --> 00:14:28,173
{\an8}was a unique story
in a different style,
260
00:14:28,272 --> 00:14:30,209
{\an8}with its own kind of risk.
261
00:14:30,306 --> 00:14:35,614
{\an8}Stanley was the most
provocative, intelligent
filmmaker I've ever known.
262
00:14:35,714 --> 00:14:37,516
{\an8}And we were good friends.
263
00:14:37,615 --> 00:14:40,685
{\an8}He was intrigued by things
that caused him concern.
264
00:14:40,784 --> 00:14:44,356
{\an8}And as a consequence of it,
they would almost,
by definition, be troubling.
265
00:14:49,492 --> 00:14:53,032
[Freeman] But his
first film greenlit
at Warner Bros.
266
00:14:53,130 --> 00:14:55,067
would test all limits.
267
00:14:55,165 --> 00:14:56,897
{\an8}[woman]
There's a young man here.
268
00:14:57,001 --> 00:14:58,303
{\an8}He says
there's been an accident.
269
00:14:58,402 --> 00:15:00,172
{\an8}He wants to use the telephone.
270
00:15:00,270 --> 00:15:03,808
{\an8}It's a stinking world
because there's no law
and order anymore!
271
00:15:03,908 --> 00:15:07,146
{\an8}[men whooping and cheering]
272
00:15:07,243 --> 00:15:11,416
{\an8}To this day, Clockwork Orange
is a film that
challenges people.
273
00:15:11,515 --> 00:15:13,652
I mean, those scenes,
the rape scenes and everything,
274
00:15:13,752 --> 00:15:15,587
they're very, very brutal.
275
00:15:15,686 --> 00:15:17,722
[Calley] We fought terribly
over Clockwork.
276
00:15:17,821 --> 00:15:21,326
You didn't move in and say,
"We're shutting this down,"
277
00:15:21,425 --> 00:15:23,462
because you're making
a Kubrick movie.
278
00:15:23,561 --> 00:15:25,664
My colleagues,
Frank Wells and Ted Ashley,
279
00:15:25,762 --> 00:15:28,100
would ask me a lot about,
"Jesus, is it never
going to stop?"
280
00:15:28,197 --> 00:15:32,671
And I'd say, "I don't know,
but, you know, that's what
you do with him."
281
00:15:36,206 --> 00:15:39,644
[Todd Phillips] There's
no bigger control freak,
and he chooses Warners.
282
00:15:39,743 --> 00:15:43,682
{\an8}To me, that basically says
everything about Warner Bros.
283
00:15:43,781 --> 00:15:48,120
That inclination to swing
for the fences
and trust filmmakers.
284
00:15:49,686 --> 00:15:51,623
[Freeman] From that
atmosphere of trust,
285
00:15:51,721 --> 00:15:54,193
Kubrick delivered
a controversial portrait
286
00:15:54,292 --> 00:15:59,231
of the conflict between society
and the individual.
287
00:15:59,329 --> 00:16:03,602
He would make Warner Bros.
his home for the rest
of his career.
288
00:16:05,936 --> 00:16:08,941
In a sign of Steve Ross'
confidence in the future,
289
00:16:09,038 --> 00:16:13,545
he sold off the
non-entertainment assets
in his business empire
290
00:16:13,644 --> 00:16:17,249
and rebranded
as Warner Communications.
291
00:16:18,382 --> 00:16:20,752
{\an8}Just four years
into his tenure,
292
00:16:20,851 --> 00:16:23,588
{\an8}the studio was going
like gangbusters,
293
00:16:23,687 --> 00:16:27,059
{\an8}stretching the confines
of established forms.
294
00:16:27,157 --> 00:16:29,061
{\an8}[gunshots]
295
00:16:29,159 --> 00:16:33,697
{\an8}While Clint Eastwood
would probe the mythology
of the Western,
296
00:16:35,266 --> 00:16:38,203
{\an8}Mel Brooks roasted the genre,
297
00:16:38,302 --> 00:16:41,406
{\an8}and the bigotry embedded
in it, whole.
298
00:16:44,809 --> 00:16:46,245
{\an8}[Keanu] Blazing Saddles.
299
00:16:47,479 --> 00:16:48,713
{\an8}What?
300
00:16:48,812 --> 00:16:51,383
{\an8}I saw that at the cinema.
It's so good.
301
00:16:53,183 --> 00:16:55,654
{\an8}[Mel Brooks] The only executive
that read the script
302
00:16:56,687 --> 00:16:58,457
{\an8}was probably John Calley.
303
00:17:00,524 --> 00:17:02,127
Well, that's the end
of this suit.
304
00:17:02,225 --> 00:17:04,329
[Brooks] And while we were
filming, I went up to him,
305
00:17:04,427 --> 00:17:07,766
I said, "John, can I really
punch the shit out of
a little old lady?"
306
00:17:07,866 --> 00:17:09,601
[groaning in pain]
307
00:17:09,699 --> 00:17:12,304
Calley said, "Mel,
if you're going to go up
to the bell, ring it."
308
00:17:12,402 --> 00:17:15,207
Have you ever seen
such cruelty?
309
00:17:15,305 --> 00:17:19,311
And I never forgot.
Boy, and I've been ringing
that bell ever since.
310
00:17:21,746 --> 00:17:23,348
[flatulence]
311
00:17:23,446 --> 00:17:26,085
{\an8}You know, the guys farting
around the fire
and all that other stuff.
312
00:17:26,182 --> 00:17:29,354
{\an8}Because you figured
that cowboys eat
a lot of beans,
313
00:17:29,453 --> 00:17:32,557
so there must have been,
you know.
314
00:17:32,656 --> 00:17:34,493
It was like one of the funniest
things I've ever seen.
315
00:17:34,591 --> 00:17:36,361
How 'bout some more beans,
Mr. Taggart?
316
00:17:36,460 --> 00:17:38,430
I'd say you've had enough.
317
00:17:39,030 --> 00:17:40,532
[band playing]
318
00:17:42,266 --> 00:17:44,403
[Freeman] Just below
the surface gags
319
00:17:44,501 --> 00:17:47,406
lay a biting social critique.
320
00:17:48,939 --> 00:17:50,275
[band stops playing]
321
00:17:52,610 --> 00:17:56,281
The insertion of this
Black sheriff in town
322
00:17:56,380 --> 00:17:58,283
and the racist response
to him,
323
00:17:58,382 --> 00:18:00,752
Mel Brooks is taking
a cinematic trope...
324
00:18:01,886 --> 00:18:03,888
to disarm audiences.
325
00:18:03,988 --> 00:18:05,424
To recognize...
326
00:18:06,623 --> 00:18:09,694
the prejudices that they
continue to hold.
327
00:18:12,396 --> 00:18:14,366
It's parodying the Western,
which is
328
00:18:14,464 --> 00:18:19,071
the most cherished genre
in the history of American filmmaking.
329
00:18:19,170 --> 00:18:21,240
Excuse me
while I whip this out.
330
00:18:21,338 --> 00:18:23,175
[crowd screams]
331
00:18:23,274 --> 00:18:24,944
[crowd] Oh. [sighing in relief]
332
00:18:25,042 --> 00:18:30,615
{\an8}They've smashed racism
in the face
and the nose is bleeding,
333
00:18:30,714 --> 00:18:33,052
{\an8}but they're doing it
while you laugh.
334
00:18:33,150 --> 00:18:35,487
{\an8}Hey, boys!
Look what I got here.
335
00:18:37,821 --> 00:18:40,259
Hey, where are
the white women at?
336
00:18:40,356 --> 00:18:43,828
[Freeman] More than
a few executives
questioned the wisdom
337
00:18:43,928 --> 00:18:45,664
of putting the film out at all.
338
00:18:47,998 --> 00:18:51,070
{\an8}[Brooks] You know,
there were, like, 12 guys
in that screening room.
339
00:18:51,167 --> 00:18:56,108
And they were kind of
all agreeing that we should
shelve the movie,
340
00:18:56,201 --> 00:18:58,643
take the tax write-off
and bury it.
341
00:18:58,742 --> 00:19:02,814
We opened in maybe
50 or 60 theaters,
342
00:19:02,913 --> 00:19:06,418
because of John Calley's
stubbornness, God bless him.
343
00:19:06,517 --> 00:19:08,653
Come on, let's check out
the end of the flick.
344
00:19:08,752 --> 00:19:11,456
Yeah. Gee, I sure hope
there's a happy ending.
345
00:19:11,555 --> 00:19:13,492
[Chris Columbus] I had never
seen an audience react
346
00:19:13,591 --> 00:19:15,155
to a film like that
in my life.
347
00:19:15,258 --> 00:19:18,663
{\an8}They were literally falling
into the aisle with laughter.
348
00:19:18,762 --> 00:19:21,766
Mel Brooks took it
to a whole other level.
349
00:19:21,865 --> 00:19:24,303
You were in a Western,
but you're in
a Warner Bros. backlot
350
00:19:24,401 --> 00:19:25,604
on the set of a musical.
351
00:19:29,340 --> 00:19:31,243
[people clamoring]
352
00:19:31,341 --> 00:19:34,546
[Brooks] I remember
when they broke through
the scenery, you know,
353
00:19:34,644 --> 00:19:37,416
and came on to
Bus Berkeley's stage,
354
00:19:37,514 --> 00:19:39,484
cowboys and horses
and everything.
355
00:19:39,584 --> 00:19:41,620
It was true anarchy.
356
00:19:42,386 --> 00:19:44,184
[people exclaim]
357
00:19:44,287 --> 00:19:47,159
[Freeman]
Crashing through the boundaries
between content and style,
358
00:19:47,256 --> 00:19:50,429
Brooks made every chapter
in the studio's own history
359
00:19:50,528 --> 00:19:52,697
fair game for satire...
360
00:19:52,797 --> 00:19:54,566
I feel refreshed.
361
00:19:54,664 --> 00:19:59,371
[Freeman] ...and set
an impossibly high bar
for comedy in Hollywood.
362
00:19:59,470 --> 00:20:01,006
Has anybody got a dime?
363
00:20:01,105 --> 00:20:02,607
[all clamoring]
364
00:20:03,741 --> 00:20:04,709
[all grunting]
365
00:20:12,115 --> 00:20:14,987
[Freeman] With Bruce Lee's
Enter the Dragon,
366
00:20:15,084 --> 00:20:18,190
Warners expanded into
unfamiliar terrain.
367
00:20:18,288 --> 00:20:20,159
[exclaims]
368
00:20:20,257 --> 00:20:23,095
[Baz Luhrmann]
Who could see, like,
a kung fu film in the '70s
369
00:20:23,188 --> 00:20:25,197
{\an8}was going to
revolutionize cinema
370
00:20:25,295 --> 00:20:29,568
{\an8}and kids in Times Square
from the Bronx were going to
turn it into dance moves?
371
00:20:31,202 --> 00:20:34,907
{\an8}Here was an Asian actor,
kicking ass.
372
00:20:36,474 --> 00:20:37,943
And that's what
I wanted to do.
373
00:20:38,041 --> 00:20:42,414
I wanted to be as badass
as he is up on the screen.
374
00:20:42,512 --> 00:20:44,683
[eerie music playing]
375
00:20:46,550 --> 00:20:48,287
[Freeman]
The movie that followed...
376
00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:51,390
took a well-worn tradition...
377
00:20:52,656 --> 00:20:54,826
and gave it
a terrifying update.
378
00:20:59,263 --> 00:21:01,433
[dramatic music playing]
379
00:21:04,835 --> 00:21:06,838
Now, The Exorcist is based
on a true story, right?
380
00:21:06,938 --> 00:21:09,909
{\an8}In actual fact,
it's a case history
381
00:21:10,008 --> 00:21:14,274
{\an8}that took place in 1949,
about a 14-year-old boy.
382
00:21:14,378 --> 00:21:16,315
{\an8}And as a kind of
a last resort,
383
00:21:16,412 --> 00:21:20,085
{\an8}the Catholic Church
was called in to see
what they could do.
384
00:21:20,183 --> 00:21:23,822
[Freeman] The Exorcist
had climbed The New York Times'
Best Seller List
385
00:21:23,921 --> 00:21:26,625
before landing on the desk
of John Calley,
386
00:21:26,724 --> 00:21:29,061
who pounced on it for Warners.
387
00:21:29,159 --> 00:21:33,293
Director William Friedkin
started his career
in documentary.
388
00:21:33,396 --> 00:21:37,836
And made his way
to an Oscar win
for The French Connection.
389
00:21:37,935 --> 00:21:45,277
But, in 1973, he returned
to his roots with a film
depicting real events.
390
00:21:45,376 --> 00:21:47,112
{\an8}I never thought of it
as a horror film.
391
00:21:47,210 --> 00:21:51,750
{\an8}I always thought of it
as a film about
the mystery of faith.
392
00:21:51,848 --> 00:21:54,253
How difficult will it be
to cast a 12-year-old girl?
393
00:21:54,350 --> 00:21:56,989
Because it's going to be
quite a harrowing experience
for her, isn't it?
394
00:21:57,087 --> 00:21:59,624
As a matter of fact,
I just cast the girl today.
395
00:21:59,723 --> 00:22:02,261
Her name's Linda Blair.
She's 12 years old.
396
00:22:02,359 --> 00:22:03,929
She's really dynamite.
397
00:22:04,027 --> 00:22:08,033
At least I hope she can
survive this experience.
398
00:22:08,131 --> 00:22:11,836
[Linda Blair]
There were many things
that a young girl
399
00:22:11,936 --> 00:22:15,474
{\an8}would not want to do
in this movie.
400
00:22:17,708 --> 00:22:19,478
Let Jesus fuck you!
401
00:22:19,576 --> 00:22:22,647
A lot of the language
is not in the screenplay.
402
00:22:22,746 --> 00:22:27,652
Billy Friedkin rewrote
a lot of the horrific dialogue.
403
00:22:27,751 --> 00:22:30,589
Motherfucking worthless
cocksucker!
404
00:22:30,687 --> 00:22:32,891
- Be silent!
- [groaning]
405
00:22:32,989 --> 00:22:37,496
And then they had to deal
with what came out of my mouth.
406
00:22:39,228 --> 00:22:41,967
[Friedkin] I shot it
almost like a documentary.
407
00:22:42,065 --> 00:22:44,769
I did it as realistically
as possible.
408
00:22:44,868 --> 00:22:47,572
And we had tested
the effects here,
409
00:22:47,671 --> 00:22:50,842
on the backlot at Warner Bros.,
for six months,
410
00:22:50,941 --> 00:22:54,879
so that, when we got
to the set, we were prepared.
411
00:22:56,680 --> 00:22:59,518
The studio came around occasionally
412
00:22:59,616 --> 00:23:03,989
to watch, and didn't know
what the hell we were doing,
so they left.
413
00:23:04,088 --> 00:23:05,925
[screaming]
414
00:23:09,927 --> 00:23:12,998
[Friedkin] When I showed it
to the executives
here at Warners,
415
00:23:13,096 --> 00:23:16,735
they thought we'd get busted
and get an X rating.
416
00:23:16,834 --> 00:23:19,905
[Freeman] But the studio
beat back its own fear
417
00:23:20,004 --> 00:23:22,274
and released the film anyway,
418
00:23:22,373 --> 00:23:25,777
the day after Christmas, 1973.
419
00:23:25,876 --> 00:23:29,248
What an excellent day
for an exorcism.
420
00:23:29,346 --> 00:23:31,411
[reporter] The film business
headline could read,
421
00:23:31,510 --> 00:23:33,085
"The devil
knocks out the Mafia.
422
00:23:33,184 --> 00:23:35,587
The old box-office champ,
The Godfather,
423
00:23:35,685 --> 00:23:37,556
is being flattened
by that movie
424
00:23:37,655 --> 00:23:39,959
about diabolical possession,
The Exorcist.
425
00:23:40,057 --> 00:23:43,095
It was, uh,
a traumatic experience.
426
00:23:43,194 --> 00:23:44,163
I passed out.
427
00:23:44,261 --> 00:23:45,830
I think it's disgusting.
428
00:23:45,929 --> 00:23:48,633
[Friedkin] It was a monster hit
all over the world.
429
00:23:48,732 --> 00:23:51,870
People staggered out,
throwing up,
430
00:23:51,968 --> 00:23:55,674
lying down on the street
outside the theaters.
431
00:23:55,772 --> 00:23:57,876
[chuckling] They were
unable to handle it.
432
00:23:58,442 --> 00:23:59,678
Is it over?
433
00:24:00,278 --> 00:24:01,914
No.
434
00:24:02,011 --> 00:24:05,517
[Freeman] For some at the time,
the overflow of evil on screen
435
00:24:05,615 --> 00:24:09,888
was a metaphor
for the country's
own shame and horror.
436
00:24:14,524 --> 00:24:17,062
[Scorsese] This is the time
of the Cambodian bombings.
437
00:24:17,161 --> 00:24:19,698
This is the time
of newsreels at 6:30,
438
00:24:19,796 --> 00:24:23,302
and suddenly you see
the war in Vietnam
up close and personal.
439
00:24:23,401 --> 00:24:26,238
The Exorcist had just put it
out there.
440
00:24:26,337 --> 00:24:27,973
There's still blood
being spilled everywhere
441
00:24:28,071 --> 00:24:30,470
and, for a lot of it,
we were responsible.
442
00:24:30,574 --> 00:24:32,144
It's all coming home to roost.
443
00:24:33,072 --> 00:24:35,214
[gunshots]
444
00:24:37,348 --> 00:24:39,684
{\an8}Johnny! It's me, Charlie.
445
00:24:39,783 --> 00:24:43,388
{\an8}Hey, watch this.
I'm gonna shoot the light on
the Empire State Building.
446
00:24:43,487 --> 00:24:45,357
[Freeman] Martin Scorsese,
447
00:24:45,455 --> 00:24:50,129
raised in a neighborhood
under the thumb
of organized crime,
448
00:24:50,226 --> 00:24:53,632
brought a gritty,
self-produced movie
to Warner Bros.,
449
00:24:53,731 --> 00:24:56,135
based on the world
he knew best.
450
00:24:56,234 --> 00:24:58,803
- Come on.
- Don't fucking
touch me, scumbag.
451
00:24:58,903 --> 00:25:00,973
- Hey, hey, hey...
- Shut up!
452
00:25:01,072 --> 00:25:02,374
Hey, hey...
453
00:25:02,472 --> 00:25:04,776
[Scorsese] Mean Streets
came out of my own experiences
454
00:25:04,874 --> 00:25:06,645
growing up
on the Lower East Side.
455
00:25:06,744 --> 00:25:10,215
{\an8}At the street level,
there was no sugarcoating
anything. Anything.
456
00:25:11,583 --> 00:25:12,617
You dirty--
457
00:25:16,955 --> 00:25:18,490
[Harvey Keitel] I was scared.
458
00:25:18,589 --> 00:25:20,425
I was still in my 20s.
459
00:25:20,519 --> 00:25:22,694
{\an8}I was trying to learn
how to act.
460
00:25:22,793 --> 00:25:24,930
- That's because you're stupid.
- I'm stupid?
461
00:25:25,029 --> 00:25:26,999
You should've ran and left
safely with me.
462
00:25:27,097 --> 00:25:31,603
I remember Marty one time
saying to me, "Harvey,
you have to face the camera."
463
00:25:31,702 --> 00:25:34,639
I kept sort of dodging away
from the camera,
464
00:25:34,738 --> 00:25:37,509
exactly what I was supposed
to not do.
465
00:25:37,607 --> 00:25:40,913
[Freeman] Earlier attempts
to shop the movie
had not gone well.
466
00:25:41,011 --> 00:25:44,149
[Scorsese] I didn't know,
really, if it ever was
going to be released.
467
00:25:44,248 --> 00:25:48,653
Paramount just stopped the film
and said, "Please leave."
468
00:25:48,751 --> 00:25:52,357
It's like suddenly waking up
and realizing "Who the hell
do you think you are?
469
00:25:52,455 --> 00:25:54,726
You know, not everybody
is going to like this
kind of thing,
470
00:25:54,825 --> 00:25:58,363
and don't expect anything
from anybody."
471
00:25:58,462 --> 00:25:59,999
[Freeman] Expecting nothing,
472
00:26:00,098 --> 00:26:03,635
Scorsese lined up
the next screening.
473
00:26:03,734 --> 00:26:06,438
And we were sitting
in this decrepit old
screening room,
474
00:26:06,537 --> 00:26:08,507
with John Calley
and Ted Ashley,
475
00:26:08,605 --> 00:26:12,444
and about 15 minutes into
the film, lunch comes in.
476
00:26:12,543 --> 00:26:14,146
"Who's got the roast beef?
477
00:26:14,244 --> 00:26:16,615
Who's got...
No, that's not mine.
No, wait a second."
478
00:26:16,715 --> 00:26:18,483
And suddenly they all stopped.
479
00:26:18,582 --> 00:26:20,785
- How much you got there?
- Charlie, I'm going
to pay him next week.
480
00:26:20,885 --> 00:26:22,321
I'm going to pay him!
481
00:26:22,419 --> 00:26:24,623
You're gonna, you're gonna,
and you don't do nothing.
482
00:26:24,720 --> 00:26:26,425
[Scorsese] It was the scene
with De Niro and Harvey
in the back room,
483
00:26:26,523 --> 00:26:28,894
talking about the card games
and everything.
484
00:26:28,993 --> 00:26:30,462
They were locked in.
485
00:26:30,561 --> 00:26:32,564
"Hey, watch the...
Watch this part.
Watch this part."
486
00:26:32,663 --> 00:26:33,832
[laughing]
487
00:26:33,932 --> 00:26:35,300
And then Teddy turned to me
and said,
488
00:26:35,399 --> 00:26:37,436
"I used to live around
the corner right..."
489
00:26:37,535 --> 00:26:39,038
[laughing]
490
00:26:40,404 --> 00:26:42,274
They came from there.
491
00:26:42,372 --> 00:26:45,605
They knew it,
and they understood
that street stuff.
492
00:26:45,709 --> 00:26:47,212
That was it.
Picture was bought.
493
00:26:47,311 --> 00:26:50,582
We walked out
even more stunned. [laughing]
494
00:26:50,681 --> 00:26:53,852
[Freeman]
Mean Streets exploded
onto the screen
495
00:26:53,951 --> 00:26:58,657
and launched its director
as a central voice
in modern cinema.
496
00:26:58,754 --> 00:27:00,859
[Scorsese] One person
criticized the film, too,
for pointless violence.
497
00:27:00,957 --> 00:27:04,897
I said, "No, there's
no such thing. It comes
from something."
498
00:27:04,996 --> 00:27:06,899
{\an8}Marty knew
what he was doing.
499
00:27:06,997 --> 00:27:11,336
{\an8}He knew the world that he was
making the movie about.
500
00:27:11,435 --> 00:27:13,205
[Freeman] The film
also reached back
501
00:27:13,303 --> 00:27:16,909
to one of the studio's
oldest practices.
502
00:27:17,007 --> 00:27:21,013
Faithful representation
of harsh reality.
503
00:27:22,714 --> 00:27:24,216
[explosion]
504
00:27:25,750 --> 00:27:27,552
[sirens blaring]
505
00:27:27,651 --> 00:27:32,557
Warner Bros. took risks
more than any other studio.
506
00:27:32,655 --> 00:27:36,161
{\an8}They were the ones
that told true stories
ripped from the headlines,
507
00:27:36,259 --> 00:27:39,464
and, you know, really put the
social realism on the screen.
508
00:27:39,564 --> 00:27:41,200
[people clamoring]
509
00:27:41,297 --> 00:27:44,970
[Sidney Lumet]
It seemed to be
a worldwide eruption
510
00:27:45,068 --> 00:27:47,572
that makes us dramatists
really rather weak
by comparison.
511
00:27:47,671 --> 00:27:50,409
We're having a tough time
keeping up with reality.
512
00:27:50,508 --> 00:27:52,177
{\an8}And maybe that's why
we're so interested
513
00:27:52,276 --> 00:27:54,413
{\an8}in doing movies about
actual events that did happen.
514
00:27:54,512 --> 00:27:57,082
[Scorsese] Well, even Lumet's
Dog Day Afternoon
515
00:27:57,181 --> 00:27:59,751
took on a kind of a cult
following at that time.
516
00:27:59,851 --> 00:28:01,586
[man] Come on out!
517
00:28:01,685 --> 00:28:03,923
[Freeman] It was
the real-life story
of a bank robber
518
00:28:04,021 --> 00:28:05,590
desperate for cash
519
00:28:05,689 --> 00:28:08,293
to fund his partner's
gender affirmation surgery.
520
00:28:08,392 --> 00:28:10,229
He wants to kill me so bad,
he can taste it.
521
00:28:10,327 --> 00:28:13,032
- [man] Nobody's
gonna kill nobody.
- Attica! Attica!
522
00:28:13,129 --> 00:28:17,802
[Columbus] Sidney Lumet
took documentary footage
of New York at the time.
523
00:28:17,901 --> 00:28:21,701
{\an8}That's exactly the way I felt
when I was living in the city
and it was August,
524
00:28:21,806 --> 00:28:23,342
and it was 125 degrees.
525
00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:25,510
Someone took their hand
and brought me into that world.
526
00:28:25,610 --> 00:28:27,479
[people clamoring]
527
00:28:27,578 --> 00:28:29,915
- [woman] When do we want it?
- [crowd] Now!
528
00:28:30,014 --> 00:28:31,984
[Freeman]
Demand swelled for movies
529
00:28:32,082 --> 00:28:34,553
that challenged the norms
of American life.
530
00:28:34,651 --> 00:28:39,891
{\an8}Everybody, listen.
We got us here a new girl.
531
00:28:39,990 --> 00:28:41,826
{\an8}And her name is Alice.
532
00:28:41,925 --> 00:28:43,996
{\an8}[Scorsese] Alice Doesn't
Live Here Anymore,
533
00:28:44,095 --> 00:28:45,931
{\an8}it reflects the spirit
of the moment.
534
00:28:46,030 --> 00:28:48,300
{\an8}The 1970 Supreme Court,
535
00:28:48,398 --> 00:28:51,403
{\an8}sexual discrimination,
unconstitutional, '71,
536
00:28:51,502 --> 00:28:54,173
{\an8}Roe v. Wade, '73,
537
00:28:54,272 --> 00:28:56,375
the Fair Housing Act
was a year later.
538
00:28:56,473 --> 00:28:58,443
{\an8}There was a lot of progress
at the time
539
00:28:58,542 --> 00:29:01,741
{\an8}for women's rights
and women's strike
for equality.
540
00:29:02,879 --> 00:29:04,783
{\an8}[Freeman]
Warners rocked the country
541
00:29:04,881 --> 00:29:08,687
{\an8}when it released
a film that indicted
the nation's leaders,
542
00:29:08,785 --> 00:29:13,725
{\an8}after it became clear
the leaders were liars.
543
00:29:13,823 --> 00:29:17,629
[man] It's an indication
of a dimension
that has been introduced
544
00:29:17,728 --> 00:29:21,466
in American politics
that has never existed
in the past.
545
00:29:21,565 --> 00:29:23,936
- Do you think the President
should be impeached?
- Yes, sir, I do.
546
00:29:24,034 --> 00:29:25,404
No comment at all right now.
547
00:29:27,038 --> 00:29:28,507
[Clooney] It's a masterpiece.
548
00:29:28,606 --> 00:29:30,770
{\an8}We know how it ends
549
00:29:30,874 --> 00:29:33,212
and you're chewing
your fingernails off
the whole way,
550
00:29:33,310 --> 00:29:34,846
like maybe they're
not going to get them.
551
00:29:34,945 --> 00:29:36,982
[Dickerson] We really
feel the danger
552
00:29:37,080 --> 00:29:39,779
that the two reporters
put themselves in in
investigating what had happened
553
00:29:39,884 --> 00:29:41,353
with the Watergate
break-in.
554
00:29:41,452 --> 00:29:43,255
[Mankiewicz] These two
long-haired reporters
555
00:29:43,354 --> 00:29:45,424
were just standing up
for America.
556
00:29:45,522 --> 00:29:48,160
Right? The idea of America,
for the rule of law.
557
00:29:49,227 --> 00:29:50,930
{\an8}Years later,
when you look back,
558
00:29:51,028 --> 00:29:53,966
{\an8}the applications
to journalism school
559
00:29:54,065 --> 00:29:56,635
went up for a decade.
560
00:29:56,733 --> 00:29:58,570
If there's any doubt
we can run it tomorrow.
561
00:29:58,669 --> 00:30:00,872
You don't have to.
The story's solid.
We're sure of it.
562
00:30:00,971 --> 00:30:02,374
[Mankiewicz]
It's a movie about truth.
563
00:30:02,473 --> 00:30:03,803
Okay, we go with it.
564
00:30:03,907 --> 00:30:07,079
It definitely created
a generation of reporters
565
00:30:07,178 --> 00:30:09,514
who wouldn't accept
being lied to.
566
00:30:12,416 --> 00:30:14,719
{\an8}[Freeman] In the mid-1970s,
567
00:30:14,819 --> 00:30:17,056
{\an8}Warner movies felt current...
568
00:30:21,025 --> 00:30:22,127
{\an8}and vital.
569
00:30:24,027 --> 00:30:28,400
{\an8}- [man] Om!
- Isn't there a church
where you can do that?
570
00:30:28,500 --> 00:30:30,102
{\an8}Om!
571
00:30:30,201 --> 00:30:32,104
{\an8}[Freeman]
But on the small screen,
572
00:30:32,203 --> 00:30:35,407
{\an8}the brand was bogged down
in the past.
573
00:30:35,506 --> 00:30:40,045
In 1971, Warners had
a single show on TV.
574
00:30:40,144 --> 00:30:41,613
[announcer on TV] The FBI.
575
00:30:44,609 --> 00:30:47,252
A QM production.
576
00:30:47,351 --> 00:30:49,849
[Freeman] Determined to win
a spot on primetime,
577
00:30:49,953 --> 00:30:53,525
and rev up production
on vacant Warner soundstages,
578
00:30:53,623 --> 00:30:58,998
the studio endowed
Warner TV producers
with new freedom...
579
00:30:59,097 --> 00:31:01,433
{\an8}but they had a lot
of catching up to do
580
00:31:01,532 --> 00:31:04,803
{\an8}with shows other studios
already had on the air.
581
00:31:04,901 --> 00:31:07,907
{\an8}Unbelievable.
Those television series,
like All in the Family,
582
00:31:08,005 --> 00:31:09,341
I don't think you could
make them today.
583
00:31:09,439 --> 00:31:12,544
Really something
to take on those issues.
584
00:31:12,642 --> 00:31:14,146
[Freeman] In the search
for material
585
00:31:14,245 --> 00:31:16,715
that would feel relevant
but different,
586
00:31:16,813 --> 00:31:20,719
Warner writers mined
the company's
publishing library,
587
00:31:20,818 --> 00:31:22,654
and struck TV gold
588
00:31:22,753 --> 00:31:25,524
with a character
from its comic division.
589
00:31:25,622 --> 00:31:27,887
[Wonder Woman
theme music playing]
590
00:31:31,129 --> 00:31:34,699
A feminist superhero
for '70s kids.
591
00:31:34,798 --> 00:31:39,304
I think that's important
and necessary. Don't you?
592
00:31:39,403 --> 00:31:42,841
{\an8}It was perfect time
for Wonder Woman to come along.
593
00:31:42,939 --> 00:31:46,211
[Freeman] The tone of the show
was earnest and optimistic,
594
00:31:46,305 --> 00:31:51,683
and reframed the idea of what
great strength was for.
595
00:31:51,781 --> 00:31:53,986
{\an8}With Wonder Woman,
I was imagining that I was her.
596
00:31:54,083 --> 00:31:58,757
{\an8}What if you could
also be beautiful,
yet strong, yet kind?
597
00:31:58,855 --> 00:32:01,093
With the concept of being
Wonder Woman,
598
00:32:01,192 --> 00:32:03,395
also comes the concept
of being a good person.
599
00:32:03,493 --> 00:32:06,065
Which isn't always synonymous
with superheroes.
600
00:32:08,531 --> 00:32:13,272
{\an8}I thank Warner Bros.
for taking a chance
on a struggling actress.
601
00:32:16,072 --> 00:32:19,178
There are so many times
when characters
602
00:32:19,276 --> 00:32:21,513
didn't take Wonder Woman seriously...
603
00:32:22,714 --> 00:32:24,945
and it was their mistake.
604
00:32:28,985 --> 00:32:33,625
[Freeman] Wonder Woman ran
from 1975 to 1979,
605
00:32:33,724 --> 00:32:36,728
but Warners TV hit
an even bigger high
606
00:32:36,827 --> 00:32:39,798
with a series about
a real-life superhero,
607
00:32:39,898 --> 00:32:41,500
a single mom.
608
00:32:41,599 --> 00:32:42,767
{\an8}That's clean now.
609
00:32:42,866 --> 00:32:45,470
{\an8}It ought to be.
You just did it last night.
610
00:32:45,569 --> 00:32:50,109
{\an8}It was about
a single working mother,
611
00:32:50,207 --> 00:32:52,011
and a boss who didn't get it.
612
00:32:52,109 --> 00:32:53,778
We really can use your help.
613
00:32:53,877 --> 00:32:56,548
$2.60 an hour
is more than I was
getting at my last job.
614
00:32:56,647 --> 00:32:58,383
[Lavin] Her boss has
hired a guy,
615
00:32:58,482 --> 00:33:01,954
and he names a number
that's way above minimum wage.
616
00:33:02,053 --> 00:33:03,984
And Alice says, "You're what?"
617
00:33:04,087 --> 00:33:07,059
And he says, "Why?
What are you getting?"
And Alice says...
618
00:33:07,158 --> 00:33:08,360
Rooked.
619
00:33:10,862 --> 00:33:12,564
"We're getting rooked."
620
00:33:12,663 --> 00:33:15,400
It may be a few cents,
but it's a hell
of a big principle.
621
00:33:15,499 --> 00:33:21,306
- Oh, don't give me
that women's lib junk.
- Junk?
622
00:33:21,405 --> 00:33:24,977
[Lavin] Alice represented
the blue and pink-collar women
623
00:33:25,076 --> 00:33:26,946
who make the machinery run
624
00:33:27,043 --> 00:33:29,748
and who go home
and make dinner
and raise their kids.
625
00:33:29,847 --> 00:33:34,086
So there was a conscious choice
to speak up and say,
626
00:33:34,184 --> 00:33:39,058
"We're in television.
Once a week,
we must reflect society."
627
00:33:40,591 --> 00:33:42,794
The core of the story is,
628
00:33:42,893 --> 00:33:46,498
how do you deal
with your daily life...
629
00:33:47,164 --> 00:33:49,368
when it's tough?
630
00:33:49,466 --> 00:33:52,071
And how do we laugh
at ourselves?
631
00:33:52,168 --> 00:33:55,607
[Freeman] Warners TV embraced
the power of laughter
632
00:33:55,706 --> 00:33:56,475
with funny,
633
00:33:56,574 --> 00:33:58,643
{\an8}topical sitcoms for teens.
634
00:33:58,742 --> 00:34:01,813
{\an8}Vinnie, look.
Don't look at it
like you're getting left back.
635
00:34:01,911 --> 00:34:06,952
{\an8}Look at it like you're sort of
majoring in tenth grade.
636
00:34:07,050 --> 00:34:09,021
{\an8}[Schneider] Chico and the Man
and Welcome Back, Kotter were
637
00:34:09,119 --> 00:34:12,157
young-skewing shows
about this new generation
638
00:34:12,255 --> 00:34:16,056
and didn't necessarily
look like the kind of sitcoms
that we watched in the '60s.
639
00:34:16,160 --> 00:34:17,596
You can't do that!
640
00:34:18,362 --> 00:34:20,599
I'm Vinnie Barbarino!
641
00:34:22,266 --> 00:34:24,536
[Freeman] But in January 1977,
642
00:34:24,635 --> 00:34:27,006
the studio premiered
a television event
643
00:34:27,105 --> 00:34:29,174
directed at all Americans.
644
00:34:29,273 --> 00:34:30,709
- Hyah!
- [roars]
645
00:34:38,248 --> 00:34:41,081
{\an8}[Winfrey] You can pass out
history books all day long,
646
00:34:41,184 --> 00:34:45,490
{\an8}but most people in this
country didn't grow up
hearing about the history
647
00:34:45,589 --> 00:34:48,293
of how Black people
came to be in America,
648
00:34:48,392 --> 00:34:52,597
so, to have
an entire television series?
649
00:34:54,065 --> 00:34:56,001
It was unheard of.
650
00:34:56,099 --> 00:35:00,005
[Freeman] The TV saga
began with author
Alex Haley's journey
651
00:35:00,103 --> 00:35:05,444
to trace his own family
back seven generations
to Africa.
652
00:35:05,542 --> 00:35:07,879
[Alex Haley]
I have gone many miles,
653
00:35:07,979 --> 00:35:09,982
{\an8}researching, and finally
was able
654
00:35:10,075 --> 00:35:12,952
{\an8}to determine
that our forefather,
655
00:35:13,050 --> 00:35:17,722
whose name was Kunta Kinte,
came from this village.
656
00:35:17,821 --> 00:35:20,525
[Freeman] To bring Haley's
vision to the screen,
657
00:35:20,624 --> 00:35:23,595
Warners turned to producer
David Wolper.
658
00:35:23,694 --> 00:35:25,864
{\an8}[Peter Roth] David Wolper,
who was an iconic player
659
00:35:25,962 --> 00:35:28,367
{\an8}and part of the fabric
of Warner Bros., specifically,
660
00:35:28,464 --> 00:35:32,771
{\an8}had this relationship
with Alex Haley that enabled
him to get the rights
661
00:35:32,870 --> 00:35:35,975
and to bring
this story to life.
662
00:35:36,072 --> 00:35:38,877
[Freeman]
Wolper's first challenge
was to find the actor
663
00:35:38,975 --> 00:35:41,914
who would play
Haley's protagonist ancestor.
664
00:35:43,347 --> 00:35:45,850
After more than 150 auditions,
665
00:35:45,949 --> 00:35:51,151
he screen-tested
an untried sophomore at USC.
666
00:35:51,254 --> 00:35:54,393
[LeVar Burton]
Kunta was everything that
my consciousness was about.
667
00:35:54,491 --> 00:35:58,263
Waking and sleeping,
that's all I was about,
668
00:35:58,362 --> 00:36:00,799
{\an8}was this boy
and his journey.
669
00:36:00,898 --> 00:36:02,367
{\an8}Becoming a man
670
00:36:02,461 --> 00:36:05,070
through this process
of being captured and enslaved.
671
00:36:05,169 --> 00:36:06,738
[slaver] What's your name?
672
00:36:06,838 --> 00:36:08,941
Kunta. Kunta Kinte.
673
00:36:09,038 --> 00:36:11,443
[LeVar Burton]
Roots was the beginning
of an enlightenment.
674
00:36:11,542 --> 00:36:14,113
Slave was not our identity.
675
00:36:14,211 --> 00:36:18,883
It was a condition of servitude
that was enforced upon us.
676
00:36:18,982 --> 00:36:20,986
You mentioned David Wolper
being a genius.
677
00:36:21,085 --> 00:36:23,755
You're damn skippy he was.
678
00:36:23,854 --> 00:36:28,393
David Wolper hired all
of America's famous TV dads
679
00:36:28,492 --> 00:36:29,929
to play villains in Roots.
680
00:36:30,027 --> 00:36:32,164
Ed Asner, Lloyd Bridges,
681
00:36:32,261 --> 00:36:36,001
Lorne Greene, Robert Reed,
Papa Brady, for God's sake,
682
00:36:36,099 --> 00:36:39,804
played a slave master
in Roots, y'all, come on.
683
00:36:39,903 --> 00:36:42,307
The question was,
how is America going to respond
684
00:36:42,406 --> 00:36:44,910
to the whites
being the villains
685
00:36:45,009 --> 00:36:47,112
and the Blacks
being the heroes?
686
00:36:47,211 --> 00:36:49,848
Is America going to watch?
687
00:36:49,947 --> 00:36:52,952
[Freeman]
ABC Television wasn't
convinced the story
688
00:36:53,049 --> 00:36:56,721
would keep audiences engaged
at an episode per week.
689
00:36:56,821 --> 00:36:57,656
[groaning]
690
00:36:57,754 --> 00:36:59,992
[Freeman] At the last minute,
691
00:37:00,084 --> 00:37:04,329
the network decided to
broadcast the show on
eight consecutive nights.
692
00:37:06,330 --> 00:37:07,666
[LeVar Burton]
It was a gamble.
693
00:37:07,760 --> 00:37:08,867
It was a risk.
694
00:37:08,967 --> 00:37:10,535
No one had any clue
695
00:37:10,629 --> 00:37:14,907
how it was going to take
this nation by the throat.
696
00:37:15,004 --> 00:37:17,742
I was a street reporter,
and that's how I saw Roots.
697
00:37:17,841 --> 00:37:21,513
I watched Roots as a reporter,
watching other people
watch Roots.
698
00:37:21,613 --> 00:37:22,982
It was a phenomenon.
699
00:37:23,080 --> 00:37:24,283
[reporter] The country went
Roots-crazy.
700
00:37:24,381 --> 00:37:26,351
Restaurant business dropped,
701
00:37:26,449 --> 00:37:28,653
bars either closed
or showed Roots
instead of sporting events.
702
00:37:28,752 --> 00:37:30,822
[Winfrey] People couldn't
believe it. White people
couldn't believe it.
703
00:37:30,921 --> 00:37:32,891
Black people
really couldn't believe it.
704
00:37:32,989 --> 00:37:35,460
[LeVar Burton] It reminds us
of what's possible for us.
705
00:37:35,559 --> 00:37:39,932
The idea that we can create
and maintain light
within ourselves
706
00:37:40,031 --> 00:37:42,167
in the midst of
all of that darkness?
707
00:37:42,266 --> 00:37:44,937
That's humanity on display.
708
00:37:45,035 --> 00:37:49,041
[Roth]
110 million Americans
stopped their lives
709
00:37:49,140 --> 00:37:51,510
to watch this saga.
710
00:37:51,607 --> 00:37:56,515
Therein lies the greatest
example of the Warner
Bros. credo.
711
00:37:56,613 --> 00:38:00,352
It entertained,
it enlightened, it educated.
712
00:38:00,451 --> 00:38:03,455
[Freeman] The executive team
had lifted Warner Television
713
00:38:03,554 --> 00:38:05,824
to the top
of the ratings chart.
714
00:38:05,923 --> 00:38:11,063
But back on the lot,
they were living under
a humiliating compromise.
715
00:38:13,664 --> 00:38:17,402
{\an8}In 1971, Steve Ross had
engineered a deal
716
00:38:17,501 --> 00:38:19,471
{\an8}that brought Columbia Pictures
717
00:38:19,571 --> 00:38:20,572
{\an8}to Burbank
718
00:38:20,672 --> 00:38:22,207
as Warner's roommate.
719
00:38:22,306 --> 00:38:24,876
[Bob Daly] The reason why
it became the Burbank studio
720
00:38:24,975 --> 00:38:28,613
{\an8}was they basically decided
in order to cut costs,
721
00:38:28,712 --> 00:38:31,583
{\an8}that Columbia would sell
their studios
722
00:38:31,681 --> 00:38:33,986
and come in with Warner Bros.
723
00:38:34,084 --> 00:38:37,189
At that time, it seemed
to make sense.
724
00:38:37,288 --> 00:38:38,757
- [cork pops]
- [glasses clink]
725
00:38:38,856 --> 00:38:41,160
But, like everything else
in the business is concerned,
726
00:38:41,257 --> 00:38:46,498
a lot of times, short-term
thinking turns out to be
a bad-term loss.
727
00:38:46,597 --> 00:38:49,434
[Freeman] A clash
of housekeeping styles
728
00:38:49,533 --> 00:38:51,403
would lead to
an unhealthy stalemate.
729
00:38:51,501 --> 00:38:54,606
They didn't put any money
into the studio because
they needed both sides
730
00:38:54,704 --> 00:38:58,677
to agree on what money
would be spent.
731
00:38:58,776 --> 00:39:02,681
And Columbia didn't really
want to spend any money.
732
00:39:02,780 --> 00:39:05,084
[Freeman] As a tactical move, however,
733
00:39:05,183 --> 00:39:06,618
the arrangement worked,
734
00:39:06,717 --> 00:39:09,521
freeing up money
for new ventures.
735
00:39:09,619 --> 00:39:14,593
By the mid-'70s, far from
his beginnings as a
down-market wheeler-dealer,
736
00:39:14,691 --> 00:39:20,165
Ross inhabited the role
of movie mogul
with zest and gusto.
737
00:39:20,264 --> 00:39:22,834
[Daly] Steve Ross always was
looking to the future.
738
00:39:22,933 --> 00:39:25,270
He said, "I want to know,
what are you gonna do
in five years?
739
00:39:25,368 --> 00:39:29,141
What are you gonna do
in three years? What are you
gonna do in ten years?"
740
00:39:29,238 --> 00:39:34,413
[Freeman] In 1976,
Ross saw dollar signs
in the arcade craze
741
00:39:34,511 --> 00:39:36,415
taking hold of America's youth,
742
00:39:36,513 --> 00:39:40,452
and put skin in the game,
when he acquired
a hot new company.
743
00:39:40,551 --> 00:39:43,322
Atari. Well, they may generally
be considered kids' games,
744
00:39:43,420 --> 00:39:45,524
but, as Ray Brady reports,
745
00:39:45,621 --> 00:39:48,093
they're taking giant-sized
bites out of the holiday
season stock market.
746
00:39:48,192 --> 00:39:50,262
[video game beeping]
747
00:39:50,359 --> 00:39:53,698
[Freeman] Meanwhile,
Ross' hands-off
management style
748
00:39:53,797 --> 00:39:58,137
empowered his studio execs
to take creative leaps
of their own.
749
00:39:58,234 --> 00:40:00,739
[Daly] Steve Ross set
the culture for the company,
750
00:40:00,837 --> 00:40:02,374
but he knew
what he didn't know.
751
00:40:02,472 --> 00:40:05,544
See, a really good executive
knows what they don't know,
752
00:40:05,643 --> 00:40:07,846
and he wasn't a...
He never read a script.
753
00:40:07,946 --> 00:40:10,315
He never greenlit a movie.
754
00:40:10,414 --> 00:40:12,017
The way Steve ran the company,
755
00:40:12,116 --> 00:40:14,519
each division,
we ran our own company.
756
00:40:14,618 --> 00:40:18,457
The reason why I love
Warner Bros. so much,
I felt it was my company.
757
00:40:18,556 --> 00:40:19,925
I mean, I was the boss.
758
00:40:20,023 --> 00:40:22,227
[Freeman] It was
a liberating environment,
759
00:40:22,325 --> 00:40:27,532
but it put pressure on
Calley, Wells, and Ashley
to make hits happen.
760
00:40:29,500 --> 00:40:32,237
[people screaming]
761
00:40:32,336 --> 00:40:33,906
[Freeman] Supersized-hits.
762
00:40:34,005 --> 00:40:36,175
{\an8}[ Superman theme music playing]
763
00:40:44,315 --> 00:40:46,185
[Freeman] In 1978,
764
00:40:46,283 --> 00:40:50,422
Warner Bros.
released the most
expensive movie yet made.
765
00:40:50,521 --> 00:40:52,091
[Mankiewicz]
We now are living in
766
00:40:52,189 --> 00:40:55,727
a world of superhero movies,
superhero franchises,
767
00:40:55,826 --> 00:40:58,998
and that really begins in 1978
with a Warner Bros. film.
768
00:41:02,633 --> 00:41:04,464
[people cheering]
769
00:41:04,568 --> 00:41:06,466
All everyone was saying
at the time, you probably
remember this, was,
770
00:41:06,571 --> 00:41:07,606
"He really flies.
771
00:41:07,705 --> 00:41:09,374
You believe he can fly."
772
00:41:09,473 --> 00:41:11,911
[Freeman] But getting Superman
off the ground
773
00:41:12,009 --> 00:41:15,180
wasn't a hop, skip,
or a jump.
774
00:41:15,279 --> 00:41:17,349
After a number of false starts,
775
00:41:17,448 --> 00:41:20,019
John Calley found director
Richard Donner,
776
00:41:20,117 --> 00:41:23,188
who would bring
the project home.
777
00:41:23,281 --> 00:41:27,726
In the comic books,
Superman's origin story
was always given short shrift,
778
00:41:27,826 --> 00:41:29,194
but how he got there...
779
00:41:31,361 --> 00:41:33,432
is an amazing story
and well told.
780
00:41:33,531 --> 00:41:38,037
One thing I do know, son,
and that is you are here
for a reason.
781
00:41:38,135 --> 00:41:41,673
[Jenkins] I was seven
years old, and my father
had just passed away.
782
00:41:41,771 --> 00:41:45,577
And watching Superman
go through
such a similar loss, twice,
783
00:41:45,676 --> 00:41:47,246
he loses two fathers,
784
00:41:47,345 --> 00:41:48,613
in the beginning...
785
00:41:48,713 --> 00:41:50,215
[explosion]
786
00:41:51,782 --> 00:41:53,885
...but then is very much
who you're allied with
787
00:41:53,984 --> 00:41:57,156
as he goes forward
into the world and
becomes a superhero,
788
00:41:57,254 --> 00:41:59,858
capable of doing
the things that he is.
789
00:41:59,957 --> 00:42:03,195
It just changed my life,
you know.
790
00:42:03,294 --> 00:42:06,098
It showed me a path
forward through hardship,
791
00:42:06,197 --> 00:42:08,433
which is what those
stories are meant to do.
792
00:42:08,532 --> 00:42:12,905
This country is safe again,
Superman, thanks to you.
793
00:42:13,004 --> 00:42:14,773
Don't thank me, Warden.
794
00:42:14,873 --> 00:42:17,176
We're all part
of the same team.
795
00:42:17,275 --> 00:42:19,945
[Freeman] Superman soared
at the box office,
796
00:42:20,043 --> 00:42:23,882
banking $81 million
in its first year in theaters
797
00:42:23,980 --> 00:42:27,286
and jetting Warners
into the blockbuster age.
798
00:42:27,385 --> 00:42:29,854
Yeah, okay. Danny,
you gotta listen to Stanley.
799
00:42:29,954 --> 00:42:31,823
{\an8}He's coming!
Come on, scared!
800
00:42:32,757 --> 00:42:34,726
Fast as you can.
801
00:42:34,825 --> 00:42:38,697
[Freeman] Long gone
were the days of incense
and bead curtains.
802
00:42:38,797 --> 00:42:40,799
As the 1980s dawned,
803
00:42:40,897 --> 00:42:44,937
the producing team
geared up to follow
Stanley Kubrick once again
804
00:42:45,034 --> 00:42:48,140
into the darkness
of the human mind.
805
00:42:48,907 --> 00:42:51,076
[eerie music playing]
806
00:42:59,615 --> 00:43:03,755
{\an8}You know, what I really love
is that The Shining
was so dismissed
807
00:43:03,855 --> 00:43:05,257
{\an8}when the movie came out.
808
00:43:05,356 --> 00:43:06,791
And it's now considered
809
00:43:06,890 --> 00:43:10,262
one of the top five horror
movies maybe ever made.
810
00:43:12,296 --> 00:43:14,133
[both] Hello, Danny.
811
00:43:14,230 --> 00:43:17,302
The Shining just gets better
and better. It gets more
and more frightening.
812
00:43:21,738 --> 00:43:25,244
The way Stanley
used the camera,
813
00:43:25,342 --> 00:43:28,880
you always feel
like you're being watched.
814
00:43:28,979 --> 00:43:30,983
You always feel like
there's a third,
815
00:43:31,081 --> 00:43:33,485
an unseen person is
looking at everything.
816
00:43:33,583 --> 00:43:36,221
Those really unnerving silences
817
00:43:36,315 --> 00:43:38,290
from the characters
818
00:43:38,389 --> 00:43:41,193
where you don't really know
what's going on.
819
00:43:41,286 --> 00:43:42,995
To me, the best horror
820
00:43:43,094 --> 00:43:45,297
is when you don't know
what's going on.
821
00:43:45,396 --> 00:43:48,033
[Freeman] Calley's patience
with Kubrick's process
822
00:43:48,131 --> 00:43:51,937
allowed the director to control
every facet of the film.
823
00:43:52,036 --> 00:43:54,173
[Dickerson] He basically
had a schedule
824
00:43:54,270 --> 00:43:56,775
where he could just kind of
figure out how to make it
as he went along.
825
00:43:56,875 --> 00:43:59,111
He's re-typing the script,
826
00:43:59,209 --> 00:44:02,847
you know, while everybody's
kind of sitting around
and waiting for him.
827
00:44:02,946 --> 00:44:05,985
[Calley] He's a genius.
I mean, Stanley would never
say, "Oh, forget it,
828
00:44:06,083 --> 00:44:08,420
you know,
nobody's going to notice."
829
00:44:08,519 --> 00:44:10,956
[Freeman] The result would
ultimately be hailed
830
00:44:11,054 --> 00:44:14,426
as a masterpiece
of style and precision,
831
00:44:14,523 --> 00:44:20,399
but the intensive,
artist-first, producing style
took a toll.
832
00:44:20,498 --> 00:44:22,367
Here's Johnny!
833
00:44:22,467 --> 00:44:23,936
Roll video.
834
00:44:24,034 --> 00:44:26,972
[Calley] Everybody was
going nuts it went on so long.
835
00:44:27,070 --> 00:44:29,841
Jack, I think,
was getting crazy
and wanted to come home.
836
00:44:29,941 --> 00:44:31,843
- Let me explain this to you.
- Okay.
837
00:44:33,177 --> 00:44:34,947
[Freeman] Back at the studio,
838
00:44:35,045 --> 00:44:38,417
Calley and company
had reached
the end of the road.
839
00:44:38,516 --> 00:44:42,821
In November 1980,
after a decade of firsts,
840
00:44:42,919 --> 00:44:48,460
Calley, Ashley, and Wells
announced they would be
passing the torch.
841
00:44:48,559 --> 00:44:51,130
[Daly] When I came in,
Frank Wells said,
842
00:44:51,228 --> 00:44:53,798
after one year, he was going
to leave to go climb
843
00:44:53,897 --> 00:44:55,968
the seven highest mountains
of the world.
844
00:44:56,768 --> 00:44:58,137
And he did.
845
00:44:58,236 --> 00:44:59,939
[Freeman]
For the outgoing team,
846
00:45:00,036 --> 00:45:03,342
the handover
was a return to balance.
847
00:45:03,440 --> 00:45:05,010
For the new guys,
848
00:45:05,103 --> 00:45:08,280
it was like stepping onto
a moving roller coaster.
849
00:45:08,379 --> 00:45:10,182
{\an8}[people screaming]
850
00:45:10,274 --> 00:45:14,253
{\an8}[Freeman] Bob Daly
and Terry Semel
were industry insiders
851
00:45:14,351 --> 00:45:17,689
{\an8}intent on making their mark,
following a simple rule.
852
00:45:17,789 --> 00:45:18,718
{\an8}[people cheering]
853
00:45:18,823 --> 00:45:20,825
{\an8}[Freeman] More is more.
854
00:45:20,919 --> 00:45:23,996
{\an8}The name of the business
we're in is show business,
855
00:45:24,095 --> 00:45:26,631
{\an8}so we decided we wanted
to make 20 movies a year.
856
00:45:26,731 --> 00:45:28,100
{\an8}- We can do that.
- Fine!
857
00:45:28,199 --> 00:45:30,135
{\an8}We don't even
have to have a reason.
858
00:45:30,229 --> 00:45:31,170
{\an8}Then do it, man!
859
00:45:33,202 --> 00:45:37,409
{\an8}Cinema was taking a new jump,
quite honestly, at that point.
860
00:45:37,507 --> 00:45:39,878
{\an8}[Ron Howard] Warners,
over the years, has recognized
861
00:45:39,978 --> 00:45:43,015
{\an8}a range of genres,
862
00:45:43,114 --> 00:45:46,285
{\an8}from drama through comedy,
863
00:45:46,384 --> 00:45:48,487
{\an8}into fantasy.
864
00:45:48,585 --> 00:45:50,055
{\an8}[Costner] Lower budget,
865
00:45:50,154 --> 00:45:52,958
{\an8}big budget, action movies,
866
00:45:53,057 --> 00:45:55,227
{\an8}and a lot of
coming-of-age movies.
867
00:45:56,760 --> 00:46:00,099
{\an8}Opportunity makes your future.
868
00:46:00,197 --> 00:46:04,336
{\an8}Every now and then,
say, "What the fuck."
869
00:46:08,239 --> 00:46:10,142
{\an8}I had come from distribution,
870
00:46:10,240 --> 00:46:13,245
{\an8}where we normally earn
a fee of somewhere
between eight and 10%
871
00:46:13,344 --> 00:46:15,915
{\an8}on other people's movies
that we don't have to finance,
872
00:46:16,014 --> 00:46:17,416
{\an8}but just distribute.
873
00:46:17,514 --> 00:46:19,318
{\an8}That could be a fabulous
business for us.
874
00:46:19,416 --> 00:46:23,255
{\an8}So we went full speed ahead
on more and more content.
875
00:46:23,353 --> 00:46:26,558
{\an8}Benjamin, you are not fit
to wear that uniform!
876
00:46:26,657 --> 00:46:28,127
{\an8}No shit.
877
00:46:28,225 --> 00:46:29,728
[Freeman]
The secret sauce behind
878
00:46:29,826 --> 00:46:34,099
the Daly-Semel duo's success
was quality time.
879
00:46:34,999 --> 00:46:36,735
The two commuted together,
880
00:46:36,834 --> 00:46:38,938
lunched together.
881
00:46:39,037 --> 00:46:40,872
We have never had an argument.
882
00:46:40,972 --> 00:46:42,541
- Never.
- And that's unusual.
883
00:46:42,639 --> 00:46:45,877
Our rule was,
we were equal partners,
884
00:46:45,976 --> 00:46:49,848
and our people knew
that you could not divide us.
885
00:46:49,947 --> 00:46:51,783
There was no way
886
00:46:51,882 --> 00:46:55,020
that anybody could
come between the two of us.
887
00:46:55,118 --> 00:46:58,423
[Semel] And Steve was
like the best cheerleader
in the world.
888
00:46:58,522 --> 00:47:00,559
If he liked
what you were doing,
889
00:47:00,652 --> 00:47:02,161
he just did everything possible
890
00:47:02,259 --> 00:47:04,496
to help you make it successful.
891
00:47:04,594 --> 00:47:07,266
[Freeman] This didn't mean
every choice the studio made
892
00:47:07,364 --> 00:47:09,534
during production
helped a picture.
893
00:47:11,535 --> 00:47:15,908
{\an8}In 1982, Warners came out
with a sci-fi detective drama
894
00:47:16,006 --> 00:47:20,980
{\an8}that captured a gnawing
tension behind the
consumerism of the moment.
895
00:47:21,078 --> 00:47:24,416
[Nolan] One of the most
influential films on me
when I was a teenager,
896
00:47:24,516 --> 00:47:26,018
was Blade Runner.
897
00:47:28,753 --> 00:47:30,089
[Roy Batty] I've...
898
00:47:30,187 --> 00:47:31,890
seen things
899
00:47:31,989 --> 00:47:35,327
you people wouldn't believe.
900
00:47:35,425 --> 00:47:39,098
[Edward James Olmos]
The reality that Ridley
created was overwhelming.
901
00:47:39,197 --> 00:47:41,100
{\an8}It's a brilliant vision
902
00:47:41,199 --> 00:47:44,136
{\an8}of what was in store
for the world.
903
00:47:44,234 --> 00:47:47,239
Wake up! Time to die.
904
00:47:47,337 --> 00:47:51,410
[Freeman] Revered today
by audiences and critics alike,
905
00:47:51,509 --> 00:47:54,179
the movie had
a difficult birth.
906
00:47:55,779 --> 00:47:59,184
Director Ridley Scott
would have to wait ten years
907
00:47:59,283 --> 00:48:02,187
to see his version
on the screen.
908
00:48:02,286 --> 00:48:05,724
The studio cut,
with pasted-in voiceover
909
00:48:05,823 --> 00:48:08,593
and a happy ending, flopped.
910
00:48:08,692 --> 00:48:11,863
[Daly] We never pointed
a finger at either
the filmmakers,
911
00:48:11,956 --> 00:48:14,366
our executives,
or our marketing team.
912
00:48:14,465 --> 00:48:17,269
The answer is, when it worked,
we all shared in the success.
913
00:48:17,367 --> 00:48:20,205
When it failed,
we all took the blame.
914
00:48:20,304 --> 00:48:22,074
[Gaff] It's too bad
she won't live!
915
00:48:22,974 --> 00:48:25,110
But then again, who does?
916
00:48:25,209 --> 00:48:27,947
A lot of times,
the industry tells itself
917
00:48:28,044 --> 00:48:31,316
what happens on
its opening weekend
is what a movie is about.
918
00:48:31,415 --> 00:48:33,914
It's not just about that
opening weekend.
919
00:48:34,018 --> 00:48:36,455
It's about 30 years from now.
920
00:48:36,553 --> 00:48:40,359
Movies have a chance
to change us forever.
921
00:48:40,456 --> 00:48:44,229
[Freeman] The corporate
media-saturated world
of Blade Runner
922
00:48:44,327 --> 00:48:49,368
looks like a bleaker version
of our own increasingly
virtual reality.
923
00:48:49,466 --> 00:48:53,238
Commerce is our goal here
at Tyrell.
924
00:48:53,337 --> 00:48:55,507
[Freeman] But at the time
of the film's release,
925
00:48:55,606 --> 00:48:58,210
the age of the information
and entertainment merger
926
00:48:58,309 --> 00:49:00,245
was just getting started.
927
00:49:02,278 --> 00:49:05,217
Steve Ross' talent
as a business strategist,
928
00:49:05,316 --> 00:49:08,587
savvy futurist,
and nerves-of-steel gambler
929
00:49:08,685 --> 00:49:11,123
{\an8}showed in the number
and variety of pots
930
00:49:11,222 --> 00:49:14,994
{\an8}his company
was stirring all at once.
931
00:49:15,091 --> 00:49:17,958
{\an8}[Zaslav] Steve Ross just had
incredible ambition
932
00:49:18,062 --> 00:49:19,231
{\an8}in the '80s.
933
00:49:19,330 --> 00:49:21,100
{\an8}Nobody would have
thought that Warner
934
00:49:21,198 --> 00:49:24,069
{\an8}would have been in
the music business,
935
00:49:24,163 --> 00:49:27,106
{\an8}in the cable business,
in the gaming business.
936
00:49:28,039 --> 00:49:29,942
[Daly]
We created MTV.
937
00:49:30,041 --> 00:49:32,777
[all] I want my MTV!
938
00:49:32,877 --> 00:49:34,947
We created Nickelodeon.
939
00:49:35,045 --> 00:49:36,215
[man] It's not so bad.
940
00:49:36,314 --> 00:49:38,317
- It's not so bad?
- No, it's all right.
941
00:49:38,414 --> 00:49:43,222
[Freeman] Atari,
known as the industry leader
in home computer games,
942
00:49:43,320 --> 00:49:47,592
generated 60% of company
profits in 1981.
943
00:49:47,691 --> 00:49:50,029
You know, new technology
is always a big friend
944
00:49:50,127 --> 00:49:51,530
to the entertainment business.
945
00:49:51,628 --> 00:49:53,365
{\an8}[Jenkins] The world
had no limits.
946
00:49:53,463 --> 00:49:55,867
{\an8}It felt like that everything
could go on and on forever.
947
00:49:55,966 --> 00:49:58,137
{\an8}[upbeat music playing]
948
00:50:09,680 --> 00:50:13,818
{\an8}[newscaster] This year, Atari
is $300 million in the hole.
949
00:50:13,917 --> 00:50:16,821
{\an8}[Ross] You and I
can make many
mistakes each day,
950
00:50:16,920 --> 00:50:21,093
{\an8}but the world doesn't know
about most of my mistakes
that I've made.
951
00:50:22,393 --> 00:50:24,296
{\an8}Some others they do. Atari.
952
00:50:24,395 --> 00:50:26,065
[video game beeping]
953
00:50:26,163 --> 00:50:31,370
[Freeman] By 1983, Atari was
a victim of its own success.
954
00:50:31,468 --> 00:50:33,272
The company was slow to react
955
00:50:33,370 --> 00:50:35,707
to a horde of new competitors,
956
00:50:35,805 --> 00:50:40,145
but a fatal error at the wheel
hastened its demise.
957
00:50:40,243 --> 00:50:44,116
Seeing the phenomenal
popularity of
Steven Spielberg's E.T.,
958
00:50:44,214 --> 00:50:49,049
Steve Ross moved
aggressively to secure
the gaming rights to the story,
959
00:50:49,152 --> 00:50:54,759
and committed Atari developers
to unmeetable deadlines.
960
00:50:54,858 --> 00:50:58,730
E.T., the game
failed to launch.
961
00:50:58,830 --> 00:51:00,432
For Ross and Warners,
962
00:51:00,531 --> 00:51:02,902
it was
a massive system crash.
963
00:51:03,000 --> 00:51:04,803
[video game beeping]
964
00:51:04,901 --> 00:51:09,874
Atari went bankrupt
and our stock plunged.
965
00:51:09,974 --> 00:51:11,476
[reporter] A one-day paper loss
966
00:51:11,575 --> 00:51:15,747
for them, of around
one billion dollars.
967
00:51:15,847 --> 00:51:17,950
So it was a shock.
968
00:51:18,048 --> 00:51:21,486
[Freeman] At a moment
when companies were
swallowing each other whole,
969
00:51:21,585 --> 00:51:26,025
Ross looked weakened,
and Warners looked vulnerable.
970
00:51:26,122 --> 00:51:29,929
{\an8}The threat of
a hostile takeover
put the company's ability
971
00:51:30,026 --> 00:51:33,498
{\an8}to champion creative
visionaries in check.
972
00:51:34,998 --> 00:51:38,037
Everybody knew
there would be blood.
973
00:51:38,130 --> 00:51:41,306
The only question was,
how much?
974
00:51:43,174 --> 00:51:45,510
[closing music playing]