The Last Tycoon by Fitzgerald, F. Scott (Collins)

When F. Scott Fitzgerald died in 1940, he left behind an unfinished draft of this poignant novel, inspired by his own experience working in Hollywood as a screenwriter. Literary critic Edmund Wilson edited Fitzgerald’s notes and material to publish this text of The Last Tycoon in 1941. Now, this edition restores Wilson’s editorial work and includes an introduction from celebrated author Haruki Murakami.

Set in Hollywood in the 1930s, The Last Tycoon tells the tragic story of a young film producer named Monroe Stahr. Exploring themes of ambition, power, and corruption, The Last Tycoon depicts Stahr’s struggle to balance his personal life and professional goals with the challenges of running a successful movie studio. Based on the career of real-life producer Irving Thalberg, the head of MGM who was known as Hollywood’s “boy wonder”, The Last Tycoon is a sharply observed and bittersweet exposé of the glittering excess of the Hollywood film industry in its prime.