|
A
detailed and thorough gleaning and presentation of most all the facts
(some sketchy, but who knows?) about Louis B. Mayer, the studio head we
love to hate! Page after page presents the reader with stories of
Hollywood skullduggery, vanity, meanness, feuds... and the realization
that a lot of classic movies were made by a group of men who usually
couldn't stand to be in one another's company! Thanks to this begrudging
sense of respect, we are lucky to be able to delve into a treasure trove
of quality celluloid. Yes, Mayer was probably not the nicest guy on
earth... nor were Thalberg, Selznick, and most of the rest. And here it
is, all laid out for you in detail!
NORMA WATCH:
You can't write a book about Mayer without mentioning Norma
Shearer... and she's mentioned a LOT. Numerous references attest to
Norma's leading role as not just another leading MGM actress; her
difficulties with Mayer after Thalberg's death; and her status as a bona
fide industry icon.
FROM THE BOOK:
"As soon as Thalberg was buried, his partners in Title
Guarantee and Trust and in the under-the-table partnership deal that
included Mayer and Harry Rapf, and [MGM attorney] J. Robert Rubin, sought
to prevent his widow from inheriting. The real estate share was willed to
her; nothing could be done about that. But the little over seven percent
of studio profits which she would normally be due was denied her by
Nicholas Schenck, whose word on the matter was law. She engaged Mayer's
own former lawyer, Edwin Loeb, to fight Schenck." |
