Hollywood: A Celebration of the American Silent Film (1980)

Hollywood is eminent movie historian Kevin Brownlow's blockbuster miniseries about the American silent movie era. It is one the finest and most informative documentaries about silent Hollywood or any period in Hollywood in terms of the scope and history it covers. The documentary is a movie lover's dream and essential viewing. Over the course of four years in the mid-to-late 1970's Brownlow interviewed hundreds of silent movie stars, directors, producers, technicians, journalists and writers who were employed in Hollywood during the first fifteen to twenty years of the movie business  British produced, shamefully this documentary never received proper distribution in the U.S., but now can viewed on Youtube. Here is the link.

The genesis of Hollywood started with the publication of Brownlow's The Parade's Gone By.. in 1968. The book is considered a classic among movie buffs, and with Hollywood being the standard bearer of movie documentaries, Parade is the definitive book about silent era Hollywood. Thames television produced the series Hollywood and according to Brownlow spent about $1 million making it, big money back then especially for British television. Though reluctant at first to work in television, Brownlow was also a filmmaker, he decided to do it after being impressed by the company. In some instances Brownlow had to pay film stars like Gish and Swanson, and a few stars like Alice Terry were interviewed but didn't want to appear on camera after 50 odd years. Most, however, were open with Brownlow, sharing their memories of this early golden era in movies.

In an interview with UPI in 1980 when Hollywood aired Brownlow stated: "Hollywood is not a history of the silent screen era. It is a homage - but clear eyed and realistic - of the 15 dramatic years in the life of an industry whose films are the closest we will get to H.G. Wells' Time Machine."

The movie has 13 episodes:

PIONEERS
IN THE BEGINNING
SINGLE BEDS AND DOUBLE STANDARDS
HOLLYWOOD GOES TO WAR
HAZARD OF THE GAME
SWANSON AND VALENTINO
THE AUTOCRATS
COMEDY - A SERIOUS BUSINESS
OUT WEST
THE MAN WITH THE MEGAPHONE
TRICK OF THE LIGHT
STAR TREATMENT
END OF AN ERA