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Hermes Pan moves to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to choreograph The Barkleys of Broadway with Fred Astaire and Judy Garland but is released at Garland’s request after the completion of the “Shoes With Wings On” routine. He contracts with Mike Todd to choreograph As the Girls Go on Broadway and joins composer Jimmy McHugh, lyricist Harold Adamson, and director Howard Bay at Todd’s Irvington Estate to begin work. After five weeks of rehearsal the show opens in Boston with costumes by Oleg Cassini on 13 October 1948 to devastating reviews. After three weeks of reworking, the musical opened in New Haven to excellent notices anticipating a triumphant premiere in New York City on 13 November.

Born into a lower-class Jewish Orthodox family in Imperial Russia, Louis B. Mayer rose to become the most powerful man in Hollywood.At the same time, he built one of the most successful racing stables in the nation, breeding horses whose influence is still evident today. As chief of production at MGM, he oversaw the most glittering stable of movie stars the world has ever seen: Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Mickey Rooney, JudyGarland, William Powell, and Gene Kelly, to name a few. With Mayer at the helm, MGM won five best picture Oscars and dominated Hollywood through the 1930s and early 1940s. Mayer then devoted most of his energies to developing his racing stable, efforts that led to his horse Busher being named 1945 Horse of the Year. Financial pressure, a failed marriage, and pressure from the studio forced him to sell most of his horses, but Mayer never abandoned his love affair with horse racing.

In this chapter, Walters does his initial work in the movies, staging dances for RKO’s Seven Days Leave. John Darrow finds success in Hollywood, negotiating movie contracts for his clients, including Gene Kelly. At Kelly’s suggestion, Walters accepts a four-week offer of work at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (M-G-M) for the film adaptation of Du Barry Was a Lady. This chapter takes a succinct look at the history of M-G-M (pre-1942) and the studio’s dedication to the “star system.” It also explores M-G-M’s role in the development of the “integrated” movie musical and producer Arthur Freed’s “Unit” of film musical production. Walters’ professional relationships with Lucille Ball and Roger Edens are discussed. The chapter concludes with Walters’ accepting a seven-year contract with M-G-M.

Mrs. Miniver (1942) is Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's portrait of the war's disruptive effects on English family's life. Its political context earned it wide acclaim and the film resonated strongly among American viewers because of its compelling narrative. This chapter discusses how films romanticized the Anglo-American alliance to foster an impression of an international harmony. It discusses wartime cinematic discourse highlighting the idea that Americans and Britons shared a “special relationship”, which was a direct result of their wartime experiences.

Chapter 4 focuses on the societal and cultural impetus for the creation of Radio City Music Hall, which would resurrect vaudeville by hosting two eight-act shows daily; it was part of Rockefeller Center, a fifteen-building campus enshrining media, big business, and modern architecture in the heart of Manhattan. Bolger served as the master of ceremonies for Radio City Music Hall’s opening performances. The chapter also examines Bolger’s brief stint in Earl Carroll’s Vanities as well as his career development thanks to his agent, Abe Lastfogel, of the William Morris Agency. Included is information on Bolger’s Broadway show Life Begins at 8:40 and the importance of his signing his first film contract for a major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).