When They Were Making It
By Patrick Rankin
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Category: Film History
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Episodes: 22
Description
The real human stories behind classic Hollywood's greatest films and legends.
Marilyn Monroe. Casablanca. Audrey Hepburn. The Wizard of Oz. Charlie Chaplin. Breakfast at Tiffany's. Alfred Hitchcock. Sunset Boulevard.
What do they all have in common?
They had to make it first.
Each week, we go beyond the legend to explore classic Hollywood's biggest icons and most beloved films.
Not the myths. Not the takedowns. The whole human story.
From the silent era to the early 1960s — the people, the films, and the impossible work of becoming a legend.
WTWMI is written, produced, and hosted by Patrick Rankin. Original artwork by Simone Beech and original music by Lionel Ziblat.
A new chapter every Tuesday. Follow wherever you get your podcasts.
| Episode | Date |
|---|---|
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Fay Wray & King Kong (1933): The Making of the Original Scream Queen — RKO, Damsels in Distress, and Hollywood's Impossible Spectacle
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Oct 06, 2026 |
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Edward G. Robinson: Hollywood's Literal OG — Little Caesar, the Blacklist Era, and the Man Behind the Movie Gangster
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Sep 29, 2026 |
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Judy Garland's A Star Is Born (1954): Hollywood's Most Complicated Comeback — A Fragile Icon, Studio Butchering, and an Infamous Oscar Upset
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Sep 22, 2026 |
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Veronica Lake: The Making and Unmaking of a Movie Star — Film Noir Stardom, a Fallen-Star Story, and the Woman Behind It All
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Sep 15, 2026 |
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Charlie Chaplin, Part 2: The War Against Hollywood's Most Famous Man — Private Scandals, Political Persecution, and American Exile
|
Sep 08, 2026 |
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Charlie Chaplin, Part 1: The Making of the World's Greatest Comedian — Victorian Poverty, Silent Superstardom, and a Troubling Private Life
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Sep 01, 2026 |
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Shirley Temple: Hollywood's Most Famous Child Star — Depression-Era Stardom, the Studio System, and an Extraordinary Second Act
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Aug 25, 2026 |
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Dorothy Dandridge, Part 2: Hollywood's First Black Leading Lady — Island in the Sun, Porgy and Bess, and the Promise Hollywood Couldn't Keep
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Aug 18, 2026 |
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Dorothy Dandridge, Part 1: A Star of Her Own Making — Baptism by Show Business, Carmen Jones, and a Historic Oscar Nomination
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Aug 11, 2026 |
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Sunset Boulevard (1950): Hollywood's Autopsy — Billy Wilder, Gloria Swanson, and the Film That Shook an Industry
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Aug 04, 2026 |
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Mae West: The Most Dangerous Woman in Hollywood — Sex, Censorship, and the Star Who Redefined the Movies
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Jul 28, 2026 |
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Marlon Brando, Part 3: The Final Act — The Godfather, Last Tango in Paris, Apocalypse Now, and the Death of a Legend
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Jul 21, 2026 |
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Marlon Brando, Part 2: The Wilderness Years — Guys and Dolls, Mutiny on the Bounty, and the Road to The Godfather
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Jul 14, 2026 |
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Marlon Brando, Part 1: The Early Years — A Streetcar Named Desire, On the Waterfront, and the Oscar That Changed Everything
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Jul 07, 2026 |
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Lana Turner: The Sweater Girl Who Became MGM's Most Glamorous Star — Scandal, Survival, and a Very Hollywood Murder
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Jun 30, 2026 |
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Audrey Hepburn & Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961): How Hollywood Rewrote Holly Golightly — Truman Capote, Givenchy, and the Making of a Style Icon
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Jun 23, 2026 |
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Rudolph Valentino: Hollywood's First Sex Symbol — Desire, Masculinity, and the Myth That Outlived the Man
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Jun 16, 2026 |
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Marilyn Monroe, Part 3: JFK, a Hollywood Comeback, and the Last Summer — The Fight, the Mystery, and the Death of an Icon
|
Jun 09, 2026 |
|
Trailer — This Season on WTWMI
|
Jun 08, 2026 |
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Marilyn Monroe, Part 2: The Playwright, the Prince, and the Misfits — Fame, Control, and the Long Collapse
|
Jun 02, 2026 |
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Marilyn Monroe, Part 1: From Norma Jeane to Marilyn — Ambition, the Studio System, and the Birth of a Blonde Icon
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May 26, 2026 |
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Launch Trailer — When They Were Making It (WTWMI): A Classic Film Podcast
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May 13, 2026 |