The Gross

A look at the new Hollywood by the longtime editor-in-chief of Variety. The ultimate insider follows the winners and losers of Hollywood's 1998 Summer Season.


Welcome to Hollywood, where gambling is a way of life -- and the wagers run into the hundreds of millions of dollars. But in the summer of 1998 all bets are off. The man who knows every mover, shaker, and faker explains why no one can explain the surprising season. Peter Bart goes behind the scenes like no one can to track the summer movies from development through release. He will reveal why "Godzilla" could never live up to its hype; how intense rivals Robert Redford and Warren Beatty saw their worst nightmares come true when they went head-to-head at the box office; how Jim Carrey's "Truman Show" stole the show; and how Steven Spielberg regained his title of king of the summer in a season where sleepers upset would-be blockbusters. While asteroid movies were colliding with each other, a billionaire newcomer was making superhuman attempts to resuscitate a moribund Universal Studios.


With interviews from studio executives, producers, directors, agents, and stars, Peter Bart unveils the winners and losers in the new Hollywood, where creativity and commerce hang in a precarious balance.