Hollywood in the 1920s sparkled with talent, confidence, and opportunity. Enter Irving Thalberg of Brooklyn, who survived childhood illness to run Universal Pictures at twenty; co-found Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer at twenty-four; and make stars of Lon Chaney, Norma Shearer, Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, and Jean Harlow. Known as Hollywood’s ‘Boy Wonder, ‘ Thalberg created classics such as
Ben-Hur, Tarzan the Ape Man, Grand Hotel, Freaks, Mutiny on the Bounty, and
The Good Earth, but died tragically at thirty-seven. His place in the pantheon should have been assured, yet his films were not reissued for thirty years, spurring critics to question his legend and diminish his achievements. In this definitive biography, illustrated with rare photographs, Mark A. Vieira sets the record straight, using unpublished production files, financial records, and correspondence to confirm the genius of Thalberg’s methods. In addition, this is the first Thalberg biography to utilize both his recorded conversations and the unpublished memoirs of his wife, Norma Shearer.
Irving Thalberg is a compelling narrative of power and idealism, revealing for the first time the human being behind the legend.
Table of Content
Preface
Part One The Merger
1 The Boy Wonder
2 A Funny Little Man
3 Three Shaky Little Stars
Part Two The Perfection of Silence
4 A Studio Style
5 Wicked Stepchildren
6 A Business of Personalities
7 Top of the Heap
8 “More Stars Than There Are
in Heaven”
Part Three The Talkies
9 The Golden Silents
10 All-Talking, All-Singing,
All Profitable
11 The Production Code
Part Four “His Brain Is the Camera”
12 Visiting Royalty
13 New Morals for Old
14 The Right to Be Wrong
15 Hollywood Icarus
Part Five The Thalberg Unit
16 The New Setup
17 Honor with Credit
18 “To Hell with Art!”
Part Six The Crown Prince of Hollywood
19 “Napoleon Thalberg”
20 A Feverish Energy
21 A Labor of Love
22 The Gods Are Jealous
Part Seven The Legacy
23 Unfinished Projects
24 Marie Antoinette
Epilogue
Appendix: The M-G-M Films
of Irving Thalberg
Notes
Select Bibliography
Acknowledgments
Index
Illustrations
About the author
Mark A. Vieira is a photographer, filmmaker, and Hollywood historian. His previous books include Hurrell’s Hollywood Portraits and Greta Garbo: A Cinematic Legacy.
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