![]() A consummate, highly revealing, expertly assembled study of how HBO indelibly changed TV. Collectively, the chorus of voices creates an informative and compelling indulgence about how a particular culture of entertainment is formed and fostered. Though the text is more than 1,000 pages, its length is justified by the sheer amount of insightful commentary, juicy insider opinions, and celebrity and executive melodrama. Many of Miller’s interviewees viscerally describe the stress, struggle, joys, and pains of being on a consistently successful hit show. The histories of classics.are fascinating to read, all recounted via the memories of those who were there. ![]() Miller spotlights many of HBO’s success stories through first-person commentary and ventures deep into how these history-making shows were developed, produced, and became hits. In a well-rendered, frequently surprising chronicle, the author covers seemingly every inch of ground. an exhaustive account of the network’s pioneering projects. From what I saw in the preview, most GOT-related interviews are old topics. Still, the saga of HBO is an exhilarating example of what driven, innovative, creative people can accomplish with confident, ample funding in the cutthroat world of mass entertainment. Tinderbox: HBO's Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers is a 1000-page book published today, with new interviews of 600+ people, including HBO bosses, GRRM, D&D, EmiliaLena, etc. Toward the end of the book, the HBO juggernaut loses momentum. the text sometimes reads like the raw research the author assembled before sitting down to distill it all into a crisp, colorful narrative. ![]() The C-suite shenanigans provide some of the liveliest sparks. ‘Tinderbox’ Review: Remaking a Medium On its 50th anniversary, an oral history of HBO, from creative brainstorms and fearless innovation to executive tantrums, backstabbing and worse. rarely is heard a discouraging word from the author about how the network did it. Still, there are ample rewards for those who stay the course. The reader can easily drown in the anecdotes of corporate blood lust and the agonies of productions and lose the thread of HBO’s evolution. For all their aura of authenticity, oral histories like this have their limitations. He said, ‘Thanks for sticking by me.’ It’s like buying 16 people a car.”įormer HBO CEO Jeff Bewkes told Tinderbox that he had grown “concerned about Gandolfini staying alive” because “occasionally he would go on a bender or a coke binge,” leading to a stop in production on The Sopranos. Albrecht, however, didn’t share these concerns about Gandolfini’s well-being, but felt that his behavior came across as a “lack of respect for the other actors.Tinderbox is both the origin story of virtually everything HBO has ever shown and an exhaustive chronicle of executive brainstorms, tantrums, courage, backstabbing and worse. In Season 4 he called every one of the regular castmembers and gave us a check. “As good of an actor as he was, he was a better guy,” Sopranos co-star Steve Schirripa said on New York’s WFAN radio station in 2013. Tinderbox tells the exclusive, explosive, uninhibited true story of HBO and how it burst onto the American scene and screen to detonate a revolution and transform our. Gandolfini agreed to a $13 million contract that Albrecht said came out to “a million an episode.” Following the resolution of his deal, Gandolfini wrote out 16 checks for $33,000 each for his co-stars to try and make up for any inconvenience his contract issues with HBO may have caused. Former executive Chris Albrecht said the network decided to halt production on the show altogether in an effort to reach a deal with Gandolfini by jeopardizing the livelihood of his fellow cast. The stand-off between both parties resulted in the Season 5 premiere getting pushed a few months past its initial date. ![]() HBO filed a countersuit against Gandolfini for $100 million, citing the financial hit that would be taken by either potentially ending the series or filming without him. The book alleges HBO agreed to double Gandolfini’s $5 million per season contract in 2001. After receiving a third Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama series for his portrayal of Tony Soprano, Gandolfini may have also wanted to strike while the iron was hot heading into the show’s fifth season. An excerpt from Tinderbox: HBO’s Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers reveals James Gandolfini gave checks for $33,000 to 16 castmates from The Sopranos after he and HBO resolved a contractual dispute that nearly derailed the series, per the New York Post.Īccording to a 2003 Variety article, Gandolfini filed a lawsuit against HBO, accusing the network of a breach of contract for failing to notify him of a $20 million agreement with creator David Chase within 10 days.
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