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The chapter is a comprehensive overview of Casablanca (1942), with a specific focus on Curtiz’s contributions to the most enduringly popular American film. It provides a historical perspective on who does and doesn’t deserve credit from a long line of supplicants over the years.From Hal Wallis’s acquisition of the play Everyone Comes to Rick’s to the development of the screenplay by seven different writers, the movie evolved into Hollywood’s symbol of the Allied cause during World War II.The production became nerve-racking,as the screenplay was a work in progress up to the last day of shooting.This unsettled atmosphere is juxtaposed against Curtiz’s mentoring relationship with Bergman and a much tenser one with Bogart.In the end, Casablanca is a testament to the studio system at its apex; the film spawned a cottage industry of remakes, spin-offs, and tie-ins that would influence future generations.

The final chapter follows the decline of the studio system. Toward the late 1940s, political and economic factors such as the rise of television and changes in the tax code, pushed film production away from the studio system and towards a system based more and more on “spot production” or separate deals. Furthermore, the Paramount decision handed down by the Supreme Court ended vertical integration and eroded the power of the major film companies. Changes in labor practices followed, as demonstrated by the career of actors like Gino Corrado and producers like Hal Wallis. As the “stock-company” model ended, and the number of long-term contracts declined, new forces, particularly talent agents such as Lew Wasserman became the power brokers of the new Hollywood.

As the Depression deepened, all the studios laid off workers and closed theaters. The Warners reduced all their employees’ salaries. Zanuck was fed up and quit after a confrontation with Harry Warner. Hal Wallis was appointed head of production. Wallis’s life and deportment are outlined, as is the beginnings of his tumultuous relationship with Curtiz. The Mystery of the Wax Museum was an artistic tour de force, a horror film directed by Curtiz. He explained the camera technique that he used,as his ruthless work ethic alienated Fay Wray and others in the cast. He ceased paying child support toMathildeFoerster for his son Michael, so she traveled to the United States and sued him in court.He finally settled the case just before it went to trial.Excerpts from Michael’s diary underscore the director’s indifference to his namesake son.Curtiz sent for his daughter Kitty. She was a troubled and rebellious, and he proved to be an ineffectual parent. His career continued with The Kennel Murder Case, Female,and Goodbye Again. Curtiz believed that he needed much better material to emerge as a director of consequence.

This chapter explores the creation of the film Sergeant York, which was originally entrusted to Hawks by Hal Wallis, Warner Brothers’ head of production. Jesse Lasky was the producer, Johnny Huston was one of the writers, and Gary Cooper acted.

Hawks talks about the production of Air Force, a Warner Brothers film. He describes how Major General Henry H. Arnold requested that he make the film, the efforts to make the film look authentic, and his conflicts with producer Hal Wallis.

Curtiz was assigned a horror programmer, The Walking Dead, that he turned into a highly credible film.This picture beganhis association with Irving Rapper as a dialogue director. Rapper became a respected director who considered Curtiz his professional mentor. Wallis and Curtiz finally had it out during the production of The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936).Curtiz continued to defy Wallis by eschewing close-ups while using an excess amount of camera movement and foreground composition in his setups. Wallis eventually threatened to fire Curtiz, who acquiesced to filming more to the producer’s desired style. The chapter includes a detailed account of the alleged mistreatment of horses during the charge sequences,whichErrol Flynn and David Niven blamed on Curtiz.Author’s research revealed that these stories were grossly exaggerated; Curtiz was not even present when some horses were injured and put down. Despite a wave of bad publicity, the picture was another hit. Curtiz endured a separation from Bess and divorce proceedings that ended abruptly when the couple reconciled. He also achieved his long-sought-after American citizenship, even though he lied about the existence of his European children.

During the war years, Curtiz interspersedhis long hours at the studio with relaxation at the Canoga Ranch.Hal Wallis and Jack Warner had their final falling-out, and Wallis left the studio in April 1944.He set up a production company at Paramount and wooed Curtiz to join him. Curtiz remained loyal to the Warners, but he began making plans for his own independent company. Feeling liberated from Wallis’s oversight, Curtiz directedRoughly Speaking.Mildred Pierce became one of Curtiz’s classic films as he teamed up with the producer Jerry Wald to resurrect Joan Crawford’s career with an Oscar-winning performance.Night and Day was a musical biopic of Cole Porter that pitted Curtiz against itsstar,Cary Grant, who attempted to manage every detail of the production. Despite Grant’s interference, the picture became a huge box-office hit and set the stage for Curtiz to establish his own production company on the Warner lot as World War II came to a triumphant end.

This chapter begins with a concise history of Warner Bros.—its inception, its combative founders, and the key role that music played in the studio’s releases. Steiner’s first work at Warners, The Charge of the Light Brigade, would be another milestone—a grand action-adventure score foreshadowing contemporary film music. Despite a tight deadline, and high expectations from producer Hal Wallis, Steiner triumphed, which made his return to Selznick all the more crushing. David’s increasing micromanagement extended to music; and Max was devastated when the producer who had called himself Steiner’s “biggest fan” eviscerated his score for A Star Is Born, Selznick’s latest film. A proud (if often insecure) individual, Steiner resigned his post at Selznick but stressed to the producer his desire to remain friends. His motives were not solely personal. Max knew that Selznick was about to film the most successful novel of the decade: Gone with the Wind.

Elvis Presley was the greatest of rock ’n’ roll performers, combining both black and white cultural traditions and the secular and religious components in the music of his own family. His early performances on Milton Berle’s and other television shows made him a national figure, and also caught the attention of producer Hal Wallis, who brought him to Hollywood. Before he was drafted, he made Jailhouse Rock, King Creole, and two other films that unapologetically mobilized the truculent delinquency innovated by Marlon Brando and James Dean. Magisterially directed by Michael Curtiz, King Creole is the best of them, a fully realized noir thriller that presents Elvis at his most exciting, dramatizing the complexity of his music and his debts to African American culture.

Curtiz separated from Bess before leaving for Italy to direct Francis of Assisi (1961). The Encino ranch was sold, and Curtiz continued keeping company with Ann Stuart, aka Anitra Stevens. Francis of Assisi was highlighted by a memorable Curtiz meltdown that indicated he might be becoming senile.He was assigned to direct The Commancheros (1962), starring John Wayne, at Fox.While they were on location in Utah, Curtiz’s behavior became erratic and he was physically debilitated. He eventually fell, injuring his leg, and Wayne directedmore than half of the picture. It was discovered that Curtiz was riddled with cancer and had only months to live. Bess and his doctor had known he’d had cancer since his 1958 appendectomy but had kept it from him so he could continue working.Curtiz died on April 10, 1962, at seventy-five. His will left half his estate to Ann Stuart, including land and his movie residuals. He also reneged on a previously executed support agreement for his daughter by Jill Gerrard (who sued Curtiz’s estate and won) and left nothing to any of his children other than Kitty. The chapter concludes by summarizing his life and those of his key intimates, noting that Curtiz’s films remain a rich legacy.