When "Easy Rider" was released in 1969, it marked a turning point in the history of the American cinema. It took the independent film movement--practiced for so long by Roger Corman and others--and thrust it forward into the spotlight and, eventually, the mainstream. Made for under a million dollars, "Easy Rider" eventually grossed close to fifty, and opened Hollywood's eyes to a whole new area of potential profits. The American film was never to be the same again.