Infamous Players

March 21, 2011
Former Paramount v-p and Variety editor-in-chief Bart (Shoot Out) takes readers on a wild ride through the years he spent at the struggling film studio from 1967 to 1975. He came aboard at the behest of Paramount's new chief of production, Robert "the kid stays in the picture" Evans, leaving behind a promising journalism career and moving to Los Angeles. Paramount had recently been acquired by an eccentric man named Charles Bluhdorn, whose taste in films was questionable and whose temper was legendary. But Bluhdorn had the finances necessary to save Paramount from ruin, so Bart and Evans were forced to push through projects that had no hope of commercial successâsuch as Darling Lili, a musical that romantically paired Julie Andrews and the not-so-secretly gay Rock Hudsonâand pass on others if they weren't to Bluhdorn's liking, such as Funny Girl. But Bart also recounts some of the studio's triumphs, particularly Love Story (1970), the original True Grit (1969)âwhich Bart found for John Wayneâand the cult classic Harold and Maude (1971), another personal project. With anecdotes about well-known stars mixed with the ins and outs of trying to keep a film studio afloat, this memoir is perfect for cinephiles yearning for a behind-the-scenes view.