The history of Hollywood consists of alternating cycles of euphoria and despair, of confidence and uncertainty, of boom and bust. The boom periods, Hollywood’s “ golden ages, ” are characterized not only by profits and artistic successes, but also by active communication between moviemakers and moviegoers which reflects shared values. On the other hand, the bust periods are marked by decreased profits, a scarcity of masterworks, and the absence of communication between filmmaker and their audience, Historically, Hollywood crises have been associated with technological innovations : the coming of sound in the late 1920s brought an end to the great age of silent film ; the coming of television in the fifties speeded up the decline of the studio system ; and the increased popularity of cable television and videorecorders in the late 1970s marked the end of Political Hollywood, the brief but very golden age of the late sixties and early seventies when films reflected American concerns with political themes.