Tao Te Ching
Gilbert Seldes
1893 – 1970 CE
Maker of the first full-length documentary film
Producer, author, critic, director, editor, and educator; Seldes created an immeasurable impact on Western Civilization with his insightful critiques and comments on popular American culture, cultural democracy, and popular history. The first CBS News television director, he pioneered innovative approaches to media and entertainment, hosted popular TV shows, created the the first full-length documentary film; wrote, directed and produced many educational programs. He praised Ernest Hemingway but only earned his disdain; strongly criticized F. Scott Fitzgerald's work but remained close friends. He helped legitimize popular entertainment but called soap operas 'corrupting influences’. An influential advocate for fairness and balance in reporting, his efforts delayed but unfortunately could not prevent the rise of propaganda-TV like Fox News.
Eras
Western
Post-Romantic Age (1850 – 2018 CE)Great Depression (1929 – 1941 CE)
Roaring Twenties (1920 – 1929 CE)
Generations
The Lost Generation (1883 – 1900 CE)Unlisted Sources
Against Revolution, 1932
The Public Arts
The Stammering Century
Quotes by Gilbert Seldes (8 quotes)
“I came gradually to want to prove nothing.”
from The Stammering Century
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“Comedy is the last refuge of the nonconformist mind.”
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“All great ideas are controversial, or have been at one time.”
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“as long as we are prevented from thinking about the process by which we are hypnotized into not thinking, we remain at the mercy... of our most childish sensations, and they can be exploited”
from The Public Arts
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“the arts most useful to the public are essentially those which can be most effectively turned against the public good.”
from The Public Arts
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“Comedy is the last refuge of the non-conformist mind.”
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“Revolutions appeal to those who have not; they have to be imposed on those who have.”
from Against Revolution, 1932
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“The poor have given to the rich palaces and yachts, an almost infinite freedom to indulge their doubtful taste... under which have been hidden the excess labor and extravagant misery of the poor.”
from Against Revolution, 1932
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