Henry Hathaway

This collection of interviews traces the career of filmmaker Henry Hathaway from his beginnings as a child actor for the American Film Company in 1911 through his directorial triumphs How the West Was Won (1962) and True Grit (1969). Begun as a special project for the American Film Institute, this oral history has now been edited and is being released for the first time in book form. Polly Platt, production designer, screenwriter, and producer of such films as Broadcast News, Pretty Baby, and The War of the Roses conducted the interviews and intended to edit them herself, but her busy career prevented her from completing the project. Now edited for release, this collection contains Hathaway's fascinating reflections about the studio system and working with such Hollywood luminaries as John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, Jimmy Stewart, and Shirley Temple. A must for any Hollywood history buff.

Writer-producer-director Rudy Behlmer has been involved with film and television for many years. He is the author of Memo from Darryl F. Zanuck, Inside Warner Bros., W.S.Van Dyke's Journal (Scarecrow Press, 1996), Behind the Scenes, Memo from David O. Selznick, and five other books. For many years he was a vice president at Leo Burnett Company, Inc., one of the world's largest advertising agencies. Behlmer taught film-related courses at California State University, Northridge, and Art Center College of Design in Pasadena.