How did United Artists—“the company built by the stars”—go from being a company near death in 1951, to the most successful company in the history of the motion picture industry? The answers are the subject of this book. They are important not only because they illustrate a story of business success, but because it is the story of the development of the modern American film industry. It was United Artists that changed the industry from one relying on the old studio system of the “golden age” into today’s modern system of independent production and distribution. Tino Balio’s vivid history will be important reading for anyone interested in the American film industry.