1950
The Hollywood Ten begin one-year prison sentences.
Broken Arrow, released by 20th Century Fox and directed by Delmer Daves, is one of the first Westerns to portray Native Americans sympathetically.
1951
Louis B.Mayer resigns from MGM. Dore Schary becomes head of the studio.
Columbia establishes Screen Gems for the production of TV movies.
1952
United Artists release Bwana Devil, the first film in 3-D.
This Is Cinerama introduces audiences to the widescreen process.
Stanley Kramer’s High Noon, directed by Fred Zinnemann. John Wayne calls it “the most un-American thing I’ve ever seen in my whole life”.
1953
20th Century Fox release The Robe, directed by Henry Koster, the first film in Cinemascope.
24 3-D films are released, marking the height of the 3-D craze.
1954
3,000 drive-in theatres are in operation.
Major companies abandon production of 3-D films.
Paramount’s White Christmas, directed by Michael Curtiz, is the first film released in VistaVision.
1955
62% of films released are in colour, 38% are in widescreen.
20% of prime-time television programming is being produced by the major studios.
On The Waterfront, released by Columbia and directed by Elia Kazan, wins eight Academy Awards.
1956
A revision of the Production Code allows for references to prostitution and drugs.
Warner Bros sells television rights to its library of pre-1948 films.
Kirk Douglas, Randolph Scott and John Wayne form their own production companies.
1957
RKO ceases movie production.
58% of movies released by majors are independent productions.
268 films are released by the major studios.
1958
There are 4,700 drive-in theatres in the US.
Alfred Hithcock’s Vertgio is released by Paramount.
Touch of Evil, directed by Orson Welles and released by Universal, is one of the last film noir.
1959
MGM’s remake of Ben-Hur, directed by William Wyler, is released. At the time, the film is the most expensive ever made and wins an unprecedented 11 Academy Awards.
Eastman Kodak introduces single-strip colour stock.
Rio Bravo, produced by WB and directed by Howard Hawks, is made as a direct response to High Noon.
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