Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg

The Whole Equation

By: Kenneth Turan

Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby

One was a tough junkman's son, the other a cosseted mama's boy, but they dreamed the same mighty dream: that the right movies could make a profit and change both the culture and individual lives. Sharing a religion and an evangelical zeal for film, Louis B. Mayer (1884-1957) and Irving Thalberg (1899-1936) were unlikely partners in one of the most significant collaborations in movie history. Over the course of their decade-long relationship, as key players at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and major players in Hollywood, they joined forces in redefining and mastering the template for the film industry.

Mayer, older by more than a dozen years, was the business-minded face of the studio, while Thalberg worked closely with the creative corps, especially writers; together they rarely set a foot wrong. And while Mayer initially viewed Thalberg as the son he never had, the two would go from passionate friends to near enemies before Thalberg's shocking death at the age of thirty-seven.

In the first joint biography of the two men in fifty years, film critic Kenneth Turan traces their fraught relationship while examining the complicated history of Jewish identity in Hollywood.

©2025 Kenneth Turan (P)2025 Tantor Media

Lives of two Hollywood Giants

I so enjoyed learning about each man and their importance in forming the movie industry. Fascinating about their interactions—so close and finally, Not.

reliable pop history, though lacks specificity

This is a good biography of Thalberg that attempts, and mostly succeeds, at catering to both casual listeners and serious students of film history. Calling it a Mayer biography however would be misleading because the focus is heavily on Thalberg (whose career is more interesting anyway).

My only complaint is that Turan, like a lot of pop historians, seemingly hates giving dates and other data. This is particularly annoying because the book's timeline is nonlinear. For instance, Turan narrates Thalberg's sabbatical in Germany but doesn't say when it happened (I think it was 1933?). In the next section, he goes back several years and talks about Buster Keaton's tenure at MGM - while neglecting to specify when it started or ended. I mean for ****'s sake, it is it really that hard to start a sentence with "In May of 1928" or whatever?

an intimate look

this is a very intimate and emotional look at two Titans found it a new industry. it gives insight into the humanity of both of them, their flaws and their virtues, and I think it's a very good read