From the late 1920s until his death in 1936, Irving G. Thalberg was the stuff of legend, regarded in the American film industry with a mixture of respect, awe, envy and fear. Unknown to the general public, Thalberg, through his obsessive concern with quality film production and his unwavering faith in public opinion, became the paragon of the studio factory system and an exemplar of public taste. As production head at MGM, Thalberg trod the delicate line between commerce and art and in the process transformed the studio into the pinnacle of the Hollywood system.Thalberg began his career in
