Kenneth Turan: The Hollywood Duo Who Built an Empire

Photo by Patricia Williams

Back in Hollywood's Golden Age, two men with vastly different backgrounds came together to shape the future of film. Louis B. Mayer, a shrewd businessman and Irving Thalberg, a visionary producer, formed a partnership that defined MGM and set the standard for the modern studio system. In this episode, famed film critic Kenneth Turan talks about his new book, Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg: The Whole Equation, which explores their unlikely partnership, their imperial rise, and their eventual fall.