The Carpetbaggers

Jonas Cord takes over the company when his father dies. He is young, driven, and will not be in anyone's debt. He builds up the aviation side, then moves into Hollywood, then manufactures his own star. He does not stop to look at who he damages along the way: his father's widow Rina, his father's old friend the cowboy actor Nevada Smith, his own wife, and everyone working at the studio. Every time Cord wins he loses a person, and for a long time that means nothing to him. Edward Dmytryk directs the American film; two and a half hours, with George Peppard as Cord, Carroll Baker as Rina and Alan Ladd as Nevada Smith. It is adapted from Harold Robbins's bestseller, and the resemblance between Cord and Howard Hughes was much discussed at the time. It was Alan Ladd's last film; he died before it was released.