Film Charts of the Nazi Era

The dataset contains the film charts of the Nazi era for the seasons 1933/34 to 1944/45. They were calculated on the basis of the POPSTAT method developed by John Sedgwick (2000: 70-73) and modified by Joseph Garncarz (2021: 69-80). The dataset is based on a representative sample of cinemas in Germany during the Nazi era, which has been validated by selective audience figures that have been handed down. The information on the sample is contained in the file "Cinemas.csv". The "Screenings" files contain information on all films screened in the sampled cinemas, as well as other data relevant for the calculation of the POPSTAT indices (such as the weighting of each cinema in terms of their potential to attract viewers, the index of average cinema attendance per weekday and month). The POPSTAT indices have been converted into admission figures. The "Charts" files contain the hit lists of films, sorted in descending order according to the POPSTAT indices or the number of admissions. The files labelled "Version1" are those used by Garncarz (2021). Minor errors were discovered and corrected in the data for some seasons. These files are labelled "Version2". Garncarz (2021: 45-100) discusses the data collection methodology used here in terms of concepts, survey and calculation methods, and sample construction. Garncarz, Joseph (2021): Begeisterte Zuschauer: Die Macht des Kinopublikums in der NS-Diktatur. Köln: Herbert von Halem. [Enthusiastic Viewers: The Power of the Cinema Audience During the Nazi Dictatorship] Sedgwick, John (2000): Popular Filmgoing in 1930s Britain: A Choice of Pleasures. Exeter: University of Exeter Press.