Haunted Hollywood Hour

Deep Hollywood Lore: the Scams & Shenanigans that Brought Cinema to California

October 9, 2025·1h 8m
Episode Description from the Publisher

The fact that Hollywood, California ended up being the home of motion pictures in the 20th Century was never a given. In fact, the motion picture industry in the United States came very close to not being possible at all in the early 1900s. So how did the movies come to Hollywood? And what were the circumstances that allowed American films to dominate cinema as an artform?Today on Haunted Hollywood Hour, we’re sharing a twisty, surprising tale about an eccentric man who has been forgotten by history but who, one historian argues, was responsible for the American film industry we know today.Research for this episode comes from the book Col. William N. Selig , the Man Who Invented Hollywood by Andrew A. Erish. https://www.amazon.com/Col-William-Selig-Invented-Hollywood/dp/029275437XFollow Haunted Hollywood Hour on Instagram at:https://www.instagram.com/hauntedhollywoodhourpodcast/Want to send us a note? Email: hauntedhollywoodhour@gmail.comWant to support me? Buy my YA novel, THE RECKLESS KIND, wherever books are sold: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/668136/the-reckless-kind-by-carly-heath/

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