From 1929 to 1939, the Great Depression has caused the downfall of many Americans and other people of other countries as well. Within the ten years of the decline in the United States economic turned for the worst and the only way they can escape is through the entertainment world. Which begs me to ask the question, What about the entertainment finances? Can the entertainment world try to bring up the financial crisis that we were in?
Well as it turns out that the film industry pays their workers an average of 15 cents per hour and a half. To put it in perspective, the money conversion from 1937 to 2017 is $2.59 per hour and a half. That just goes to show how the amount of inflation that has increased over the years and how much it has affected the economic state.
http://www.history.com/topics/great-depression
https://www.dollartimes.com/inflation/inflation.php?amount=15&year=1937
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ug02/film/hollywooddepression.html
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ReplyDeleteI found your post fascinating and looking deeper into the topic I was able to discover that the cost of viewing the movies for an hour and a half was roughly 27 cents. Converting this to what it would cost in modern days would be $4.66. This goes to show that the entertainment industry had a net gain during the Great Depression as the cost of the movies was more than workers were paid. While the Great Depression was a time of struggle for many people, not everyone was affected equally and the entertainment industry was able to flourish despite the hard times.
ReplyDeleteSources :
https://www.dollartimes.com/inflation/inflation.php?amount=15&year=1937
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ug03/comedy/historicalcontext.html
Interesting post! I wondered how people were able to pay for entertainment during the Great Depression, when so many people were suffering to buy food or pay for their homes. Much like today, people used entertainment as a distraction. Though people often didn't have money to spare, they were willing to pay 27 cents to go to the theater because they would enjoy themselves, when it was difficult to find enjoyment in the everyday. America was still a consumer culture, even when people were hard-pressed for money. The movies helped reinforce American ideals: individualism, progress, and, of course, consumerism. I found this article about why people went to the movies;
ReplyDeletehttp://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1399.html
Interesting post, Chi! I didn't know if 15 cents is a high wage or not, so I researched and found this document (http://www.nber.org/chapters/c2256.pdf). Based on this, we can tell that their wages were higher than other jobs like manufacturing or mining. Furthermore, if workers from the industries were paid 15 cents per 1.5 hour, how much were actors/actresses earning? I think that's an interesting topic to expand on as well!
ReplyDeleteInteresting question to ask! I also wondered how people went on with thier lives for months or sometimes years unemployed and with a family. Many of those fired took up "odd jobs" essentially doing anything for anything. Some 6,000 vendors would walk New York City selling fruit at 5 cents just trying to make some income. Not only theater but comics as well became popular during the depression. DC's Action Comic's #1 released in 1938 just after the depression, revamping American ideal and happiness
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