Hachette India

American Dream Machine

Matthew Specktor

Beau Rosenwald - overweight far from handsome and improbably charismatic - arrives in Los Angles in 1962 with nothing but an ill-fitting suit and a pair of expensive brogues. By the late 1970s he has helped found the most successful agency in Hollywood.

Through the eyes of his son we watch Beau and his partner go to war waging a battle that will reshape an entire industry. We watch Beau rise and fall and rise again forging and damaging remarkable relationships. We watch Beau's partner the enigmatic Williams Farquarsen struggle to control himself and this oh-so-fickle world of movies. We watch two generations of men fumble and thrive across the LA landscape revelling in their successes and learning the costs of their mistakes.

Matthew Specktor

Matthew Specktor was born and raised in Los Angeles. His father was a talent agent and his mother was a screenwriter. Specktor worked in film development for many years and has written several screenplays. His writing has appeared or is forthcoming in The Paris Review The Believer Tin House Black Clock and Salon.com among other publications. He is a senior editor and founding member of the Los Angeles Review of Books.