Robert Matzen is a fantastic writer and researcher. He has proven his dedication to classic cinema with his books on Carole Lombard, Jimmy Stewart and Audrey Hepburn. This is his first turn at fiction. I predict a bright future in this genre.

Here he presents the story of the making of Casablanca, and his choice to tell it via fiction was a smart one. He is able to describe the big personalities who made it happen in a way that he wouldn't have been able to in non-fiction without seeming to dwell on unimportant facts. Though they might be unimportant to the big picture, the myriad personalities who came together to make this historic film happen are fascinating and vivid and make this novel shine. His descriptive word choices are brief but efficient. Though 500+ pages sounds a lot, it flows easily and never feels long.fiction i-own-a-copy4 s Nancy Lewis1,368 50

The ultimate fan fiction. I think you have to have seen the movie for this to work.4 s Laura Potts484 18

An interesting historical fiction all about the Golden Age of Hollywood but sadly this wasn't the book for me. This felt maybe it was for an older audience than me and it read more of a memoir/factual than a story. I didn't fall in love with the characters or feel a connection to the characters; I do think this is really well written and there's definitely an audience that will love this, it's just not for me.2 s Jan5,478 78

If you are into the inner workings of the film industry in the early 1940s you will definitely love this very well written fictional backstory on the creation and production of the film "Casablanca". The players in this are real people who made a difference in their time, and defining just what that was is job one for this book. I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected to.
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from GoodKnight Books via NetGalley. Thank you!historical-figures historical-novel historical-places-events ...more2 s Eugenea Pollock736 5

A tale of resistance? Yes. A bittersweet romance? Yes. A story of desperation? Yes. One of Hollywood’s best war movies ever? Yes. I enjoyed Bogie and Bergman, Sam, Victor, and all the technicians, actors, and writers who brought them to life in “Casablanca”. Read this for the ultimate inside story of the creative process, the infighting, the lows and the highs. I highly recommend it.bookbub-buys2 s Debra PawlakAuthor 7 books22

I was given an advance reading copy of this book by NetGalley.com in return for a fair review. First off, I wish to thank author Robert Matzen for making one of my dreams come true--I have always wished to be a fly on the wall as a Hollywood classic was in development. Matzen, who normally writes non-fiction books, (excellent ones I might add) brought to life the many characters who were instrumental in bringing us 'Casablanca' (1943). It all started with Warner Bros. story editor Irene Lee when she came across an unproduced play called 'Everybody Comes to Rick's'. She saw great potential and encouraged producer Hal Wallis to buy it. Then she engaged twin script writers, Phil and Julius Epstein to work a little magic--well, ok, a whole lot of magic. It seemed the project was doomed from the beginning, but they all stuck with it despite the problems it presented as well as the personal drama each of them were going through at the time. From screenplay to casting to filming, there were many struggles--especially the script that had no definitive ending. Matzen did a wonderful job recreating Hollywood during the war years and giving us a glimpse of what it must have been to work in the midst of so much chaos. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and being that proverbial 'fly on the wall' as I listened in on the many meetings and watched how all the players came together and even when they didn't. I always say that Hollywood, during those classic years, was full of colorful characters--and not all of them onscreen. Mr. Matzen proved me right! I highly recommend this book to anyone who once wished to be a fly on the wall during the making of a classic film!1 Bstephens204 1 follower

This is a fascinating and absorbing account of the making of Casablanca, one of the greatest films of all time. The author, Robert Matzen, has published a number of Hollywood histories and his knowledge of the time, the business and the personalities gives the narrative a powerful sense of authenticity - the best historical fiction, it leaves you feeling you were there to witness the events. A thoroughly enjoyable read from start to finish. My thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.1 Walter Scott368 4

A thriller, played out in real time, about how the movie Casablanca came to be.

My genres are space opera and special forces thrillers by authors who actually know what happens in special forces. Season of the Gods is neither.
I ended up with a copy of Season of the Gods. Author name of Robert Matzen. Hollywood historian. Not ly a good fit for me, but for some reason I opened it. Did over 100 pages in the first sitting. Three days later, finished it, and thought “Wow”!
In this one, Matzen gets what appears to be all of the pieces of the process by which the movie Casablanca came to life on film, and lovingly assembles them into as tight a story as a reader could hope for. Then he populates the story with wonderfully realized characters (based on the real people), most of whom were familiar to me by name from reading books and watching movies during the course of the previous 60 years of my life.
Apparently this process was not a simple or straight-forward one. To start with, it was during WWII, and that alone put many constrictions on what could or could not be done by film studios; that included war-time rationing. In any case, the prospect of German bombers overhead, combined with the attack on Pearl Harbour, the presence of Japanese submarines already making themselves known on the West Coast of the US (with German subs wreaking havoc on the East Coast) also contributed to the atmosphere of the story.
In addition, Irene Lee, (central figure in this ensemble, whose job was to find potential scripts for Warner Brothers to film, and had to ride herd over the writers who were expected to bring something filmable from the better scripts) comes across an unproduced play in her slush pile - called Everybody Comes to Rick’s - which nobody wants anything to do with, but Irene (“Renie”) “feels a burst of chills at the base of her spine and a ringing in her ears” and her sixth sense is now “sending up skyrockets”.
The pacing of the story is perfect, and loaded with tension. Bound to be, with Jack Warner, studio boss Hal B. Wallis, a host of “B”-level actors, a dozen or so writers, a filming schedule due to start, and nobody has any idea to make Act 3 work well enough to salvage a movie that looks to be leading Warner Brothers into disaster.
If you are familiar with the movie Casablanca, then you know how it turns out, but Matzen is totally convincing with a story where you forget how the movie ended, and only care about the people who made it possible.
Thomas833 192

4 stars for an entertaining historical fiction book about the Hollywood motion picture industry in the WWII period. This book is an excellent reconstruction of the making of Casablanca. It starts with the story editor, Irene Lee, who is responsible for finding stories that can be made into movies, and then working with scriptwriters to turn it into a workable movie script.
Many of the people in this book are actual people:
Jack Warner, head of Warner Brothers studio
Joy Page, stepdaughter to Jack Warner
Hal B. Wallis, top boss at Warner Brothers
Philip and Julius Epstein, scriptwriters
Humphrey Bogart Casablanca actor
Ingrid Bergman, Casablanca actor
Claude Rains, Casablanca actor
Alice Danziger, secretary
Dooley Wilson Casablanca Actor
One quote on Jack Warner: " My God was he official now. Gen. Hap Arnold had commissioned Jack and now he was in uniform. Here he stood in his washroom on the happiest morning of his life wishing Errol Flynn could see him now, or Bette Davis, or Hal Wallis, or any of the sons of b*tches who had ever mocked him behind his back."
I strongly recommend this book to movie buffs.
Thanks to GoodKnight Books for sending me this eARC through NetGalleyhistorical-fiction netgalley40 s Mia9

Overall I found this book very interesting and engaging. I really enjoyed the deep dive into the movie making process and the history behind Casablanca. The insight into many different perspectives helped demonstrate just how many people it takes to make a work of art. However, there was rampant misogyny throughout that was frustrating and distracting. Even if it was an attempt to fit into the mindset of the time period, these thought processes don’t need to be perpetuated and every single male character was guilty of this. I enjoyed the read for the most part, but it was clearly written from a man’s point of view. In today’s age there could have been much more avoidance of sexist tropes that rendered most of the characters interchangeable. Elisa41 1 follower

I rarely give a book five stars, but this one earned it. A fictionalized account of the making of Casablanca, this book brings to life all the characters who went into getting the slush pile play "Everyone Goes to Rick's" into the beloved movie Casablanca. I have always enjoyed Casablanca, but this gave me a new appreciation of the movie and it's cultural significance. Rewatching the movie is now on my list of things to do, so I can appreciate the numerous nuances I missed. Even when I wasn't reading this book, it lived in my brain. Read this book. *I won a copy of this book from Goodreads, but the opinions are mine. Mary Iannotti14

Again a 3 1/2 rating is needed for this read. It definitely dragged in parts of the middle, but the last five or six chapters built up to an ending with all of the chills, thrills and tears deserving of a great Hollywood production. Spent a lot of time on the phone looking up all these true characters and loved every one of them. Still sticking with the 3+ rating despite raving about the ending…the book certainly followed that show biz formula to leave ‘em laughing, crying, wanting more (just vs a little less in the middle
Autor del comentario:
=================================