Word: thalberg
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...Goldwyn, with Mayer soon adding his big M to the mix. He raised the contract system to a state of the art, using it to rule over a stable of stars who were legally bound to the company for years. In L.B.'s studio, with frail, dedicated lieutenant Irving Thalberg at his side, L.B. worked hard to project himself as a father figure to his extended family of stars, directors and producers...
...praise and profits soared, a conflict was building between Mayer and his brilliant production chief Thalberg. An intense perfectionist who never lost his schoolboy looks, Thalberg oversaw MGM's record-breaking hits: The Big Parade, Ben Hur, Anna Christie, Grand Hotel, Mutiny on the Bounty and The Wizard of Oz. Thalberg was increasingly resistant to playing Andy to Mayer's Judge Hardy. By 1936, Mayer was the highest-salaried executive in America, breaking the million-dollar barrier. Thalberg felt entitled to an equal share. For his part, L.B. had begun to resent the prevailing opinion that Thalberg was the genius...
...Weinsteins have long been king of the indies. "They're artists, entrepreneurs and passionate maniacs," says DreamWorks exec Jeffrey Katzenberg. "They have extraordinary gut meters for what's good, they're unbelievable salesmen, and they're equally painful to have to deal with. Together they are the Irving Thalberg of our time...
Primogeniture must go. To paraphrase Bob Dole: Wake up, Republicans, and join the rush to meritocracy. To make room for younger, stronger candidates without dissing your elder statesmen, consider something like the Oscars' Irving Thalberg Lifetime Achievement Award. Snag some headline entertainer like Jay Leno sufficient to attract network coverage, and air the same hagiographic film that would otherwise be shown at the convention. Better that the candidate end his career in prime time, droning on about his second-grade teacher, than at sparsely attended airport rallies, shouting epithets into the wind...
...Prawer Jhabvala. With films like Howards End and Remains of the Day, they have, almost alone, kept alive what in Cohn's day was one of Hollywood's more agreeable genres: the handsomely made, well-acted literary-historical drama. These movies reflected the cultural aspirations of producers like Irving Thalberg and David O. Selznick while serving the needs of that portion of the audience not enamored of car chases and tommy-gun fire...