From Hitsville to Hollywood: Motown Productions on Film and Television

FAIN: FT-286132-22

Landon Palmer
University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0001)

Research and writing leading to a book about Black media representation, industry power and Motown Productions, the film and television arm of Motown Records active in the 1970s and 1980s.

I seek NEH funds for a research trip that will provide the foundation for a book on the history of Motown Productions, the film and television arm of Motown Records active in the 1970s and 1980s. Through media like Lady Sings the Blues (1972) and The Wiz (1978), Motown Productions sought to provide an alternative to the dominant, low-budget “blaxploitation” genre by incorporating Blackness into Hollywood norms of prestige. Visiting archives in the Midwest and West Coast that contain documents such as interview transcripts, memoranda, and screenplay drafts will allow me to chronicle how a Black-owned record company utilized its success to pursue a distinct vision of what a Hollywood that includes African Americans looks like. While this behind-the-scenes account of the company’s philosophy, successes, and failures is intended primarily for film and media scholars, its address of ongoing issues pertaining to Black media representation and industry power stands to reach a wider audience.