Hollywood!, by Dagoberto Gilb. Hollywood! Dagoberto Gilb

¶ … Hollywood!," by Dagoberto Gilb.

HOLLYWOOD!

Dagoberto Gilb is a Hispanic writer who grew up in Los Angeles, and now lives in Austin, Texas. He spent sixteen years working in construction carpentry before he began to write for a living. He wrote "Hollywood!" For a short story anthology, "Pieces of the Heart: New Chicano Fiction," which was published in 1993. He is a visiting faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin, and has written many other short stories and books.

The central idea of this story is the family's trip to California, where it is "warm" even in the winter. It is the "promised land" to many, but this family does not experience all that the state has to offer. As the narrator says, the father is too "cheap," but says it is not the money. They sit on a beach eating sandwiches, when the wife really wants to go to Disneyland. "What would a place like Disneyland teach him besides cartoons?"

The underlying theme here is that the family does not fit in, and they are out of their comfortable surroundings. They see a commercial being filmed, and Luis says cynically, "They're all blondes." His wife is quick to point out that there are some actors with dark hair, too, but the idea is that they do not belong here. The author implies that they speak little English, but the son, Ramon does, and surprises them. This is another underlying theme -- that the second generation Hispanics are the ones who fit into the American lifestyle more easily. They give up the old ways, and assimilate more quickly.

Just like they are the only ones on the beach, they do not fit in, and they know it. The meaning is clear, the Hispanics are the "outcasts" of society, whether there are many of them living there or not. California has a large Hispanic population, the largest in the United States, but they are still the people alone on the beach, trying to fit in. They dream of the lifestyle of warm and sunny California, but when they get there, they realize it really is not what they expected. The family even leaves two days early, and goes home, because they are not enjoying California.

The characteristics of the story are a very simple writing style, and simple language for the characters. They are clearly simple people, who have come to California for some kind of "dream" vacation, only to sit on a beach on a cold winter's day, when no one else is there but a film company.

The style is simple to get across the simplicity of the characters, and their needs and wants. It also shows they are a close-knit family, but suffering from the issues that every family faces, no matter what nationality they are. The wife does not agree with her husband, and thinks he is "cheap," and the husband removes himself from the family a bit, and does not know what they really want.

The contrast in the story is the simple family, watching the commercial being filmed, and being moved away. It is like that in society, most of the Hispanics are "outside looking in," and they do not have a place in many things. It is only recently that companies have begun advertising to the Mexican-American audience, and when Gilb wrote this story, it was unheard of, so of course, the people in the commercial are all young, blonde, and American. The family is not important economically, or even as people, so they are shunted aside, just as they are in every day life.

There is also another contrast, and it is between Luis and Marta. They are always at odds, from the beginning of the story until the end. They are sometimes sarcastic with each other, and they do not always take each other, or their feelings into consideration. Luis calls it a "battle." They are often at odds with each other, but it is clear that they have a common bond, their son. The contrast here is similar to the other themes in the book, and revolves around Hispanics in the U.S. It is clear this couple, while they still have much to learn, has already assimilated to the American notion of saving money, and the stresses of working in the U.S.

The setting is Santa Monica beach on a winter day in California. Most people have "more sense" than to go to the beach on a day like that, and Marta is certain Ramon would catch a cold, (which he does). The beach is deserted, except for a few other people, and the only real company they have are the birds, and the people filming the commercial.