Two books tell histories of innovation in Hollywood but reach very different conclusions.

 

Inventing the Movies a new book by journalist Scott Kirsner, advances this thesis: “From Edison to the iPod, from the Warner Brothers to George Lucas, the story of how the movies became America’s favorite form of escapist entertainment — and retained their hold on our imaginations for more than a century — is a story of innovators prevailing again and again over skeptics who prefer to preserve the status quo.

 

For a contrary history, which holds that Hollywood has prospered by successfully retarding innovation for as long as possible — read Misunderstanding Media by Brian Winston.