nues were higher than ever. In 1989, these revenues
totaled $5.03 billion. The industry also reaped prof-
its from movie-related merchandise, such as books,
clothing, toys, and computer games. There was also
a renaissance in the art and technology of special ef-
fects. Research and technological development in-
tensified to meet increasing audience expectations.
The leading studio, Industrial Light and Magic, con-
tinued to provide groundbreaking effects for films,
music videos, television commercials, and theme-
park attractions.
Further Reading
McCarthy, Robert.Secrets of Hollywood Special Effects.
Boston: Focal Press, 1992. Comprehensive, in-
depth source on special effects techniques, in-
cluding case studies and over two hundred illus-
trations. Discussions of wire flying and levitation,
rain and water, snow, steam, smoke, fire, and
chemical effects.
Pinteau, Pascal.Special Effects: An Oral Histor y—Inter-
views with Thirty-Eight Masters Spanning One Hun-
dred Years. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 2004.
Fascinating revelations about special effects tech-
niques used in film, television, and theme parks.
Includes over one thousand photographs and il-
lustrations.
Rickitt, Richard.Special Effects: The Histor y and Tech-
nique.New York: Billboard Books, 2000. A beauti-
fully illustrated, comprehensive history, includ-
ing interviews with hundreds of special effects
masters, a helpful glossary, and a section on spe-
cial effects landmarks.
Vaz, Mark Cota, and Patricia Duignan.Industrial
Light and Magic: Into the Digital Realm.New York:
Ballantine Books, 1996. Behind-the-scenes ac-
count of ILM’s accomplishments from 1986
through the mid-1990’s. Includes over six hun-
dred illustrations and a foreword by Steven Spiel-
berg.
Alice Myers
See also Academy Awards; Action films;Aliens;
Back to the Future;Blade Runner;Empire Strikes Back,
The;E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial; Film in the United
States; Ford, Harrison;Raiders of the Lost Ark; Science-
fiction films; Spielberg, Steven;Tron;Who Framed
Roger Rabbit.
Spielberg, Steven
Identification American film director and
producer
Born December 18, 1946: Cincinnati, Ohio
In many ways, the 1980’s was cinematically Spielberg’s
decade. Not only did all three of his Indiana Jones movies
appear during the decade, but alsoE.T.: The Extra-
Terrestrialbecame the decade’s single most successful film,
andThe Color Purplerelaunched Spielberg’s career as
a serious, albeit at times controversial, filmmaker.
Steven Spielberg’sJaws(1975) began a transforma-
tion in Hollywood, as the blockbuster film changed
the studios’ expectations and strategies in produc-
ing and marketing motion pictures. It immediately
defined Spielberg as a major force within the indus-
try, although he ended the 1970’s with one of his
rare failures, 1941 (1979). In 1981, Spielberg’sRaiders
of the Lost Ark, the first film in the Indiana Jones series,
introduced the daring, resourceful hero.Indiana
Jones and the Temple of Doom(1984) andIndiana Jones
and the Last Crusade(1989) also pitted the heroic in-
dividual American against the forces of darkness, a
conflict in which the United States was triumphant.
These nostalgic films, set in the 1930’s and delib-
erately designed to be stylistically reminiscent of old
Saturday afternoon serials, capitalized on the 1980’s
nostalgia for earlier, idealized decades. They reso-
nated with similar themes of nostalgia and of the role
of the United States in the battle between good and
evil that were central to Ronald Reagan’s presidency.
By most filmmakers’ standards, all three Indiana
Jones films were popular and financially successful,
but the second failed to live up to the extremely high
expectations that had attached to every Spielberg
project by the time it was released.
Spielberg’s reputation was furthered by the huge
impact of his science-fiction filmE.T.: The Extra-
Terrestrial(1982), which gave American culture the
phrase “E.T. phone home” and expanded the mar-
ket for a chocolate-covered, peanut-butter candy. In
the movie, Spielberg explored the impact of an alien
on conventional, placid middle-class suburban life, a
theme he had touched on previously in an earlier
science-fiction movie,Close Encounters of the Third
Kind(1976).
Spielberg’s critical reputation increased consid-
erably with the release ofThe Color Purple(1985), set
in the segregated South and based on the celebratedThe Eighties in America Spielberg, Steven 903