[Narratives of Empire 05] • Hollywood

Hollywood marks the 5th episode in Gore Vidal's "Narratives of Empire," his celebrated series of six historical novels that form his extended biography of the USA.

It's 1917. President Woodrow Wilson is about to lead the country into the Great War in Europe. In California, a new industry is born that will irreversibly transform America. Caroline Sanford, the alluring heroine of Empire, discovers the power of moving pictures to manipulate reality as she vaults to screen stardom under the name of Emma Traxler. Just as Caroline must balance her two lives -- West Coast movie star East Coast newspaper publisher senator's mistress -- so too must America balance its two power centers: Hollywood Washington.

Here's history as only Gore Vidal can recreate it: brimming with intrigue scandal, peopled by the greats of the silver screen American politics.

With a new Introduction by the author.