Sunset Boulevard, directed by Billy Wilder, was first released in 1950. In it, we are given a kind of behind-thescenes look at Hollywood filmmaking: the actors, the writers, the directors, etc. Hortense Powdermaker was
the first anthropologist to explore the Hollywood film industry from an anthropological perspective. Her book,
Hollywood: The Dream Factory, was also released in 1950. You were assigned to read the Introduction and
Chapter 1 of this book, and also Pertierra's chapter, "Worlds Collide," which discusses Powdermaker's study
of Hollywood on page 25-26. Powdermaker was not interested in studying Hollywood films themselves, but
rather the social world of Hollywood. What did she observe about the industry at that time that is also shown in
Sunset Boulevard?
Sample Solution