The protagonist of Citizen Kane is said to have been based on real-life magnate William Randolph Hearst
Was Citizen Kane based on a real person?
With a story spanning 60 years, the quasi-biographical film examines the life and legacy of Charles Foster Kane, played by Welles, a fictional character based in part upon the American newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst and Chicago tycoons Samuel Insull and Harold McCormick.
Who is Citizen Kane modeled after?
Newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst is the primary inspiration for CITIZEN KANE's protagonist, Charles Foster Kane. Mankiewicz created Kane's dialogue using — almost verbatim —lines from Hearst's own writings and speeches. 6.
Why was Citizen Kane so controversial?
Mayer of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was said Hearst was particularly angry over the movie's depiction of a character based on his companion , Marion Davies, a former showgirl whom he had helped become a popular Hollywood actress.
Was Xanadu a real place Citizen Kane?
Xanadu is the fictional estate of Charles Foster Kane, the title character of the film Citizen Kane (1941). ... Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California , is the obvious inspiration for Xanadu, due to the Hearst/Kane comparison that is central to the film.
What did Rosebud really mean?
“Rosebud is the trade name of a cheap little sled on which Kane was playing on the day he was taken away from his home and his mother . In his subconscious it represented the simplicity, the comfort, above all the lack of responsibility in his home, and also it stood for his mother's love, which Kane never lost.”
Why was Citizen Kane taken away from his mother?
Charles Foster Kane was born of humble origins in the small settlement of Little Salem, Colorado, circa 1863. A mine given to his parents — to settle a bill for room and board — happened to be rich in gold, making the family suddenly wealthy. ... However, Kane blamed Thatcher for ripping him away from his family.
Why is Citizen Kane considered the greatest movie ever made?
For many critics and film fans, Citizen Kane can lay claim to the title of the greatest movie ever made precisely because, even if only in the form of in-camera effects and a wealthy, lonely anti-villain , Welles' movie even influenced the direction of Rotten Tomatoes' highest-rated movie, 2017's Paddington 2.
Why does Kane fire Leland?
Over time, Kane's questionable morals and paternalistic attitude disturb Leland to such an extent that Leland eventually requests a transfer to Chicago to escape Kane. Kane ultimately fires him for writing a negative review of Susan Alexander's disastrous operatic debut .
How did Citizen Kane get his money?
Early years. Kane is born of humble origins in the fictional settlement of Little Salem, Colorado, in 1862 or 1863. A supposedly worthless mine given to his mother in 1868—to settle a bill for room and board by Fred Graves — is discovered to be rich in gold , making the family suddenly fabulously wealthy.
What's the point of Citizen Kane?
Some of the points are made by the people questioned; some are made in what there is of story as it moves over the years from back to front; but the main point is that Citizen Kane wanted love from the world and went to most of his fantastic extremes to get it, yet never had any love of his own to give .
What was the moral of Citizen Kane?
Kane has the plutocrat's obsession with trying to control those around him in the way that he controls his media empire, whose purpose in turn is to control the way people think. And this is the final unspoken moral of Citizen Kane: a terrible tragedy of ownership and egotism – a narcissistic drowning.
What is considered the greatest movie of all time?
The Shawshank Redemption (1994) was voted the greatest film of all time by Empire readers in “The 201 Greatest Movies of All Time” poll undertaken in March 2006. Titanic (1997) was voted the greatest hit of all time in a poll of 6,000 movie fans conducted by English-language newspaper China Daily in March 2008.
What happened at Xanadu?
In the 13th century, the Mongol Empire ruled most of Asia and their capital was moved from Karakorum (Qaraqorum) in Mongolia to Xanadu in northeast China in 1263. ... Xanadu survived the fall of the Yuan Dynasty , but after a period of neglect, it was definitively abandoned around 1430.
What does the name Xanadu mean?
: an idyllic, exotic, or luxurious place .
