Edward Jay Epstein Boeken

In this unprecedented, all-encompassing, and thoroughly entertaining account of the movie business, acclaimed writer Edward Jay Epstein reveals the real magic behind how the studios make their money.Epstein shows that in Hollywood, the only art that matters is the art of the Major films turn huge profits not from the movies themselves but through myriad other enterprises, from video-game spin-offs and soundtracks to fast-food tie-ins, and even theme-park rides. The studios may compete for stars and Oscars, but their corporate parents view wth one another in less glamorous markets such as cable, home video, and pay-TV.Money, though, is only a small part of the Hollywood story; the social and political milieus–power, prestige, and status–tell the rest. Alongside its remarkable financial revelations and incisive profiles of the pioneers who helped build Hollywood, The Big Picture is filled with eye-opening insider stories. If you are interested in Hollywood today and the complex and fascinating way it has evolved in order to survive, you haven’ t seen the big picture until you’ve read The Big Picture .

Some accuse Epstein of being a conspiracist, but that is incorrect. He is a puzzle solver. Instead of accepting the received wisdom, he searches for the missing pieces of the picture, such as the autopsy photographs of President John F. Kennedy that were kept from the investigation conducted by the Warren Commission. Finding suppressed or overlooked evidence may result in overturning an established narrative, as happened with the publication of  Inquest , Epstein’s book about the official probe into the JFK assassination. But that is very different from looking for a conspiracy. Sometimes, Epstein’s work has in fact uncovered a deep conspiracy, as with the world diamond cartel. Other times, it has discredited belief in a conspiracy, as when he delved into the murders of numerous Black Panthers. After his findings were published in the  New Yorker , newspapers including the  Washington Post  and the  Los Angeles Times  issued editorial apologies for their own reporting on the murders, which had suggested that an FBI conspiracy was behind them.Epstein’s primary interest has never been to advance an agenda, but rather to spot gaps in the conventional narrative and fill them in.  Assume Nothing  is the story of a lifelong quest for missing puzzle pieces, and also a story of self-actualization. 

"A biography of Lee Harvey Oswald, the alleged assassin of President John F. Kennedy. This book succeeds in finally breaking the legend created for Oswald. It begins by revealing an incredible series of contacts between rival intelligence officers concerning the JFK assassination and culminates in a series of events that turn the CIA inside out. Investigative author Edward Jay Epstein managed to obtain Oswald's address book and interview more than 150 people who knew him." -- Barnes & Noble

Co dnes živí velká hollywoodská studia? Už to nejsou jen tržby z pokladen kin, ale především prodej autorských práv, která je možno odkoupit. Příjmy tak plynou z prodeje licencí na DVD a práva na televizní vysílání až po výrobu figurek filmových hrdinů. Současný Hollywood není jen o umění, jde především o byznys. Jeho lesk, úspěch a bohatství nevzniká ve filmových ateliérech, ale na tichých schůzkách filmových producentů s agenty herců, zástupci multiplexů a výrobci občerstvení. Novinář Edward J. Epstein ve své knize odkrývá původ ohromných příjmů hollywoodských studií a odpovídá na otázky, které si možná občas klade každý, byť sváteční, návštěvník kina. Jak vypadá smlouva pro hereckou hvězdu? Znamená sex ve filmu výhodu nebo spíš problém? Proč má většina kinosálů méně než 300 křesel? Speciální kapitola je věnována produkci nezávislých filmů, která mj. přináší i několik rad jak nezávislý film financovat.