Peter Bart Editor-At-LargeWith yet another major round of layoffs about to hit Hollywood, I am reminded of Ben Hecht’s explanation of how he made his peace with the town. “The key is to understand how to balance the misery with the money,” he wrote.Arriving in Hollywood at the zenith of the studio system, Hecht wrote that everyone he met was working, but also complaining.
Good-paying jobs were abundant — for grips, extras, even writers. Studio contracts kept the stars bejeweled but not wealthy.
The dreaded studio chiefs were autocratic but also not rich by today’s billionaire standards. The Hollywood ecosystem worked in its own self-protective way with everyone doing well but wanting more.
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