Why do you think all of the immigrants and exiles in the novel are drawn to Hollywood and the film industry?

Why do you think all of the immigrants and exiles in the novel are drawn to Hollywood and the film industry?

I think, in part, it is because in Hollywood the exiles and immigrants can recreate their homeland, like the Italian palazzo set that draws Maria in again and again. It is a way to be at home again, even if it isn't real.

I think, too, that Hollywood and the film industry has always been more inclusive

California and L.A. seem to have always been a place of acceptance and opportunity. The weather was not that different from Southern Italy. The movie business was a newer industry that was very competitive and owners were always looking for new talent to take them in new directions. Since many stories being turned into films required different ethnic looks, there was an new occupation open to those who would never get jobs elsewhere.

Also, I think Hollywood was seen a place that was inclusive and accepting plus place for opportunity, support and to meet fellow immigrants going through the struggles and happiness they were

Hollywood films are the stuff of fantasy and dreams, and the new immigrants fleeing the atrocities of war were all dreamers in one way or another. As a general rule, these young hopefuls were willing to work hard from the bottom of the labor pool to make those dreams come true. Vincent is a case in point… willing to sit for hours watching German propaganda films … a tedious job no one else wanted to take on…so that he could keep a tenuous hold on studio life and get ahead as a photographer.

Hollwood I think has always had some kind of aura for certain people driven by dreams of "making it big" in movies. The 40s (and probably even back to the 30s) represented the heydays of movies in which glamor was so important since the country was coming off a great depression. For immigrants Hollywood probably represented a place where you could build the "American dream" and make money. But it seems to me it was a hard life and not exactly the easiest place to make a start. The effects of discrimination faced by these immigrants after war was declared is clearly shown in the book.

I agree with earlier comments that Hollywood was a place of acceptance for all and seen as a place to realize dreams. I also think that at the time of this story this was a good opportunity for employment over many other options for unskilled immigrants who also were not fluent in the language.

I agree with all the previous comments about Hollywood drawing immigrants to the movie making process. I also wonder if it is about the lack of employment opportunities in the world outside of movie creations.

I also agree with the comments about Hollywood being inclusive and also a place attracting immigrants who had big dreams. I kept thinking about how difficult it must have been for immigrants and how a fantasy type of life would be appealing.

Hooray for Hollywood. Up until this very day, the movie business is magical and attracts dreamers. California was known as the land of milk and honey, a location all immigrants knew of in their homelands.

As others have stated, Hollywood has always been inclusive. Many people who go to Hollywood reinvent themselves, it did not seem unusual that this would appeal to exiles.

I think Hollywood found a place for everyone. Even if it wasn't ideal, as with Eddie Lu being typecast as the Japanese character in every film he acted in, and the fact that women couldn't be editors, there was still work for the minorities, and they all formed a big melting pot where they could be friends and support each other in a place where they didn't always feel at home.

California has always been and still is a place where all are welcome and all belong. California provides the broadest civil rights protections of any state in America, and is not just one of the largest economies in the world. It is also a leader on many fronts, including technology and climate.

California was and is The Golden State, and was historically hailed as a place where dreams could come true, fortunes could be made, fame could be achieved.

In the 1930's and 1940's, Hollywood was known for its ingenuity, artistry, and diversity. Immigrants with a variety of skills, especially artistic, flocked to the area looking for work . . . and found it in a beautiful setting & climate. There were abuses within the old studio systems (Judy Garland's drug addiction is perhaps the best known) and Marra does an excellent job of depicting the ways in which stereotypes, bigotry, prejudice, and misogyny were rampant in the land of make-believe, just as with the rest of society.

But the big five studios were cranking out movies on almost a daily basis in order to keep up with the needs of their audiences. Americans wanted to go to the movie theater and escape for a couple of hours from all of the terrible things happening in the world. Hollywood provided relief for a weary nation.

And it's important to remember that the newsreels that preceded the double feature were an important source of news. My mother talked about how long it took for news to reach her on her parents farm in South Dakota as she waited for my father's safe return from the Pacific Theater. She described getting large packets of mail all at once -- letters that my father had written weeks before. And as with Maria's letters from her father, large chunks of my father's writing had been excised. In particular, any hints about his whereabouts or how the war might be going there -- no matter how unwittingly included by my father -- were redacted.