Hollywood in Color

Sonic Cinema: The Making of The Bodyguard

Jan 18 • 41 min

The Bodyguard, released in 1992, starring Whitney Houston in her first acting role and leading man Kevin Costner, was a mainstream film about an interracial relationship — with maybe very little to say about race.

Sonic Cinema: The Making of Selena

Sep 25, 2018 • 26 min

The movie Selena was without a doubt Jennifer Lopez’s big break, but it was also the completion of singer Selena Quintanilla’s much-anticipated crossover into American mainstream music.

Hattie McDaniel: The End

Jul 4, 2018 • 30 min

In the third and final episode of the season, Hattie finds it difficult to keep up as Hollywood and her community forge ahead to a new era of black representation and politics.

Hattie McDaniel: Winning and Losing

Jun 28, 2018 • 34 min

When Gone with the Wind was released, critics were flabbergasted by the willing participation from black actors to be in the film. Hattie McDaniel was at the center of this controversy. She really wanted the part, but she couldn’t foresee, or, maybe she…

Hattie McDaniel: The Beginning

Jun 19, 2018 • 29 min

“Mammy” is only one role of many that made up Hattie McDaniel’s multi-faceted career. She was also a singer, a songwriter, a stage and vaudeville veteran, a comedian, and a radio personality. In the first episode of the season, we follow her journey from…

Las Reinas of Los Angeles: The End

May 15, 2018 • 31 min

In the last episode of the season, we look at Lupe’s and Dolores’ careers in the late 1930s to the mid 1940s, when both women leave Hollywood when it becomes an unwelcome space and place. Season 2 begins June 19.

Las Reinas of Los Angeles: An Ominous Transition

May 8, 2018 • 36 min

In the fourth episode of the season, we look at Dolores’ career during the Hollywood transition to sound film. The coming of sound limited Dolores’ roles. They became more stereotypical and forgettable. With her accent, sound amplified the difference that…

Las Reinas of Los Angeles: Lupe Finds Fame

May 1, 2018 • 34 min

In this episode, we see how Lupe Vélez rose to stardom in Dolores’ shadow and how the differences between her and Dolores evolved along simple, fraught, lines. Dolores was the “good” Mexican, and Lupe, in her relationship with actor Gary Cooper, became…

Las Reinas of Los Angeles: Dolores Makes it Big

Apr 24, 2018 • 37 min

In this episode, Dolores Del Río becomes a transnational superstar when she undergoes a makeover where she seemingly leaves behind her Mexicanidad and assumes a Spanish identity. Interestingly, this parallels Southern California’s own transformation,…

Las Reinas of Los Angeles: The Beginning

Apr 17, 2018 • 29 min

Season 1: Lupe Vélez and Dolores Del Río, Las Reinas — the Queens — of Los Angeles starts in 1920s Mexico, where Lupe and Dolores grew up and found their love for performance. We’ll follow Lupe and Dolores as they make their way to Hollywood from Mexico…

Introducing Hollywood in Color

Mar 26, 2018 • 3 min

Hollywood in Color is a new podcast telling the stories of the stars usually left out of entertainment history — the people of color in front of and behind the camera who have been representing for over a century. Season 1 begins April 17, 2018.