Chickasaw Hollywood: The Fox Brothers and the Studio System, 1914-1954

FAIN: FA-252169-17

Joanna Megan Hearne
Mizzou (Columbia, MO 65211-3020)

A book-length study of brothers Finis Fox, Wallace Fox, and Edwin Carewe (the stage name of Jay Fox)--the first family of Native American writer-director-producers in the Hollywood studio era.

Chickasaw Hollywood: The Fox Brothers and the Studio System, 1914-1954 retrieves the history of the first Indigenous family of writer-directors in Hollywood—the Chickasaw brothers Finis Fox, Edwin Carewe (stage name for Jay Fox), and Wallace Fox. Taken together, the Fox brothers’ careers writing, directing and producing films in Hollywood spanned 40 years, from Carewe’s directorial debut in 1914 to Wallace Fox’s last television show in 1954. This project expands our understanding of Indigenous, American, and international film history beyond stereotyped images of Indians on screen to consider issues of creative control, production practices, and the breadth, complexity and mobility of Indigenous representational politics in the studio era, bringing together theoretical models from Indigenous studies and cinema studies, and close textual analysis with extensive archival research.

Associated Products

“Chickasaw Television: Wallace Fox and the Gene Autry Enterprise/Flying A Pictures television series The Range Rider" (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: “Chickasaw Television: Wallace Fox and the Gene Autry Enterprise/Flying A Pictures television series The Range Rider"
Author: Joanna Hearne
Abstract: This paper recovers the story of Wallace Fox’s role in early television production, using budgetary records and especially scripts and handwritten script revisions of the specific episode "Big Medicine Man," from the Gene Autry Enterprise/Flying A Pictures television series The Range Rider, and explores new ways of locating Indigenous agency in the mid-century film industry.
Date: 10/28/2017
Conference Name: Western Literature Association conference

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