City of Dreams

More about the book

Horror films, Deanna Durbin musicals, Francis the talking mule, and iconic theme parks are just a glimpse into the legacy of Universal Pictures. In February 1906, Carl Laemmle, a German immigrant, opened his first nickelodeon in Chicago, transitioning from exhibition to distribution and film production. A savvy promoter, he relocated to Southern California within a decade, establishing Universal Pictures as a major Hollywood studio and founding a city in the process. Universal carved its niche with horror films featuring Karloff and Lugosi, comedies with Abbott and Costello, and low-budget musicals. However, Carl Laemmle Jr. struggled with empire building, leading to his ousting amid financial troubles. This set the stage for a series of studio heads who came and went, marking the early arrival of corporate Hollywood at Universal. The 1946 Universal-International merger, Decca's stock takeover in the early 1950s, and MCA's buyout in 1962 signaled a shift where business often overshadowed filmmaking. Despite the constant changes in stars and executives that reshaped its image, Universal's iconic globe logo has remained a fixture on screens worldwide. Unlike many of its contemporaries, Universal continues to produce films today.