Books by critic Kenneth Turan and actor Rupert Everett show two sides of Hollywood

NPR's Book of the Day

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Arts, Books

4.2 • 671 Ratings

🗓️ 14 March 2025

⏱️ 16 minutes

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Summary

Two books set in Hollywood show different sides of the film business, from industry-shaping success to the personal frustration of rejection. First, Louis B. Mayer & Irving Thalberg: The Whole Equation is a history of the duo behind MGM Film. The nonfiction book by Kenneth Turan, a regular critic for the Los Angeles Times and NPR, follows the unlikely trajectory that led both men to the movies. In today's episode, Turan joins NPR's Scott Simon for a conversation that touches on early MGM films like Ben-Hur and Tarzan the Ape Man, antisemitism in Hollywood, and Mayer's complicated relationship with Judy Garland. Then, Simon speaks with British actor Rupert Everett, who's out with a new collection of short stories inspired by Hollywood rejection. The American No draws from film concepts and screenplays the actor pitched but never got the chance to make. In today's episode, he and Simon discuss Everett's autobiographical writing, his upbringing in a military family, and his early exposure to Julie Andrews.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's Empire's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. We are now well past Oscar season.
0:08.6	And so the movie business, with all its weird quirks and gigantic corporate machinations,
0:13.6	moves on. So we've got two books for you today looking at the movie business from completely
0:19.1	different angles.
0:25.2	Up ahead, the actor Rupert Everett, who you might recognize from my best friend's wedding or the Ridley Scott movie Napoleon, has written a hilarious book of short stories
0:30.9	inspired by his time in showbiz.
0:33.8	But first, show business, as we know it, wouldn't exist without super powerful Hollywood moguls in the background running things.
0:42.2	Film critic Kenneth Turan, who has been a regular critic on NPR's air, has a new book out about two of them, who turned MGM into a powerhouse in the 1920s and 30s.
0:53.5	The book is called Louis B. Mayor and Irving Thalberg, The Whole Equation.
0:58.2	And Pierre Scott Simon talks to Tehran about how this unlikely duo climb the ranks in Hollywood
1:02.8	and how they crafted how we see ourselves as Americans.
1:07.6	That's ahead.
1:09.0	In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.
1:13.9	Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.
1:18.4	On our new show, Sources and Methods, NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people,
1:24.2	helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.
1:27.7	Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:33.2	They were the exemplary, Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside.
1:37.1	One was the proud son of a junk man, the other looked like, and in fact was often mistaken for the office boy.
1:43.8	But together, they made Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer,
1:48.7	the great Hollywood Film Factory of the 1920s through the 30s,
1:52.9	turning out musicals that lifted the depression and epics that stirred hopes.
	...

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