Irving Thalberg: The Boy Genius

(May 30, 1899 - September 14, 1936)

A salute to a true genius!

Irving Thalberg was a genius. Throughout the 1920s and 30s he was the most brilliant producer at Hollywood’s most powerful studio. Unfortunately, he gets little mainstream respect for his brilliant masterpieces. This was the man who produced classics such as The Good Earth, Camille, China Seas, Grand Hotel, Queen Christina, and the cult classic, Freaks. Yet no one remembers him for his phenomenal films. From his early years at Universal Studios, Irving never insisted on crediting his name on screen. In fact, The Good Earth was the only time in which his name appeared onscreen, and only because it was placed posthumously. Seventy years and counting since his death, it’s time the man received some appreciation for his work.

While he was widely known as one of the nicest men in show business, he was no pushover. He held his own against the tyrannical Louis B. Mayer, in which their intense arguments often turned physical. When Mayer ousted Thalberg as chief of production at MGM, to many it symbolized the beginning of Irving’s downfall, but he saved his own reputation with The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934) –one of the top moneymakers of that year.

To this date, Irving Thalberg has been the subject of three excellent books, most notably being Bob Thomas’ Thalberg: Life and Legend. But a man of such imaginative quality needs to be remembered along the lines of Samuel Goldwyn, David O. Selznick, Francis Ford Coppola, and Billy Wilder. He took risks and made classics out of almost every genre. He took the already famous Norma Shearer and turned her into Hollywood’s most powerful star. He was the man who made Greta Garbo’s career –without Irving, she most likely would have been deported back to Sweden. He guided Clark Gable to legendary status. Such a man as Irving Thalberg deserves the up most respect of film buffs of all kind.

The Thalberg Gallery:

           

       

Thalberg in Action:

(Actual contracts from Thalberg!)

Negotiations from Warner Brothers and MGM: Click here for the first page, click here for the second.