LAURA LAMONT'S LIFE IN PICTURES

Irving snapped his fingers, so loudly that it echoed through the room, over all the chatting and flirting. Elsa was surprised that such a sharp, loud noise could come out of such a small person. "Laura Lamont," he said. "You want it? It's yours. Come see me when you're ready."When the most famous producer in 1930s Hollywood plucks Elsa Emerson from a party and gives her a brand-new name, a star of the silver screen is born.Step by step she succumbs to the consuming power of the studio. But her transformation is more profound than she could ever have foreseen . . .