Description
Before the streaming giants, one man ruled Hollywood. Lew Wasserman built MCA — a talent agency — into the most powerful force in entertainment, and journalist Connie Bruck tells the sweeping story of the king, his kingdom, and the machine he built. Wasserman invented the "package deal," bundling stars, directors, and scripts to command unprecedented fees. Under him, MCA bought Universal Studios and redefined how movies were made and sold — while Wasserman himself became one of America's most feared and connected figures, a kingmaker whose influence reached from studio backlots to the White House — power broker to presidents and stars alike.
What Bruck's meticulously reported account reveals is how modern Hollywood was actually constructed. Before Wasserman, studios held the power and stars were salaried employees; after him, talent — packaged, represented, and taking a percentage — held the power, and the agency became the center of the business. You will follow MCA's rise from a small Chicago music agency to the dominant force in film and television, watch Wasserman outmaneuver studios, politicians, and rivals, and understand the deals and relationships that built the entertainment economy we still live with. It is a story about power as a craft: patient, secretive, and absolute.
Meticulously reported and richly detailed, Bruck's account is both a gripping biography of a titan and the essential history of how modern Hollywood — and the business of talent itself — was born. A must-read for film lovers, business readers, and students of power everywhere — and for anyone who has ever wondered why Hollywood works the way it does. Get the ebook edition here at a discount from Tellebook.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet