The Inheritors

by Harold Robbins

In 1969, Harold Robbins began his "trilogy of greed" with The Inheritors, a tell-all novel about the entertainment industry. Spanning the years 1955 to 1965, and based on the lives of actual network executives and movie moguls, the novel exposes the sex, power, and politics of mass media.

Steve Gaunt is working hard to build his television empire. He's a visionary and a bit of a rebel, making him a hit, both in the ratings and with beautiful women. Sam Benjamin, meanwhile, is building his career through the movies. When they join forces, the partnership has the potential to make them very wealthy and powerful. But it's a dirty business and a rogue industry, and friendships can fall in a heartbeat when money is on the line.

In its initial publication, The Inheritors was a timely indictment of an industry on fire. Today, it is a fascinating look back at a time when television was just coming into its own, and how the movie industry dealt with this new threat.

Genres: Fiction, Novels

373 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Born as Harold Rubin in New York City, he later claimed to be a Jewish orphan who had been raised in a Catholic boys home. In reality he was the son of well-educated Russian and Polish immigrants. He was reared by his pharmacist father and stepmother in Brooklyn.

His first book, Never Love a Stranger (1948), caused controversy with its graphic sexuality. Publisher Pat Knopf reportedly bought Never Love a Stranger because "it was the first time he had ever read a book where on one page you'd have tears and on the next page you'd have a hard-on".

His 1952 novel, A Stone for Danny Fisher, was adapted into a 1958 motion picture King Creole, which starred Elvis Presley.

He would become arguably the world's bestselling author, publishing over 20 books which were translated into 32 languages and sold over 750 million copies. Among his best-known books is The Carpetbaggers, loosely based on the life of Howard Hughes, taking the reader from New York to California, from the prosperity of the aeronautical industry to the glamour of Hollywood.

Reviews

[Philip · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's really not necessary to read anything Harold Robbins wrote after WHERE LOVE HAS GONE (1962), and that includes the over-inflated sex saga THE ADVENTURERS, published in 1966. By 1969, when THE INHERITORS was published, Harold Robbins had become the world's bestselling novelist. Unfortunately, this milestone was achieved at almost exactly the point when he began writing almost exclusively for money to fund his lavishly hedonistic jet-set lifestyle, with the result that his novels began a downward spiral in quality that was increasingly (and sometimes embarrassingly) evident in almost every one of the thirteen subsequent novels he would publish before his death in 1997 (the exception being MEMORIES OF ANOTHER DAY, which for some reason had more plot and better characterizations than the other twelve from this period). By the 1990s his novels were no longer shocking in their sexual forays, and due to physical problems his output had become sporadic - his giant-sized ego could not comprehend that his once-vast audience had pretty much deserted him, for which he blamed everyone but himself and the bad books he did produce.

I first read THE INHERITORS in 1971 - either this or WHERE LOVE HAS GONE was the Harold Robbins novel I ever purchased (my older sister was a big Robbins fan), when it appeared in paperback in 1971 (when it cost all of $1.50). I read it again somewhere around 1980, I think.

THE INHERITORS was the final novel of a trilogy that began with THE DREAM MERCHANTS (1949), which chronicled the early days of the film industry in Hollywood, and continued with THE CARPETBAGGERS (1961). THE INHERITORS is set in the decade from 1955-1965 and deals with Hollywood's transition from movie capital to entertainment capital, as television becomes the most important medium for entertainment and ultimately for communication. And was Robbins psychic, or did he just interview some television insider who talked too much? A character in the novel says "CATV is already here, next there will be Pay TV, soon there will be TV tape cassettes, someone will have to work day and night just to fill the demand."

The characters, are, of course, thinly-disguised versions of some high-profile people of the time (much easier than coming up with your own): TV executive Stephen Gaunt was reportedly modeled on James Aubrey, independent movie producer Sam Benjamin seems a dead-ringer for Joseph E. Levine (who produced film versions of several Robbins novels in the 1960s), and there's even an Italian actress named Marilu Barzini who wins an Oscar for a film, THE SISTERS, produced by Benjamin - kind of like Sophia Loren winning an Oscar for TWO WOMEN, for which Levine was an uncredited producer. A washed-up star of movie musicals named Jana Reynolds makes a comeback with a hit TV variety show, a fate which did not quite befall the character's model, Judy Garland, who died a few months before this book was published.

Robbins said at the time THE INHERITORS was published: "My new book is very modern in its telling...This is the third time in my writing career that I've changed style. It's McLuhanesque ... descriptions and backgrounds are kept to a minimum ... My ambition is to remove from the reader the feeling that he is holding a book in front of him."
Robbins never held back on tooting his own horn, but basically he was making excuses for his increasing laziness as a writer who had essentially begun phoning in his novels.

So, there’s very little period detail other than Sixties dialog that was already becoming dated in 1969 (Robbins's attempt at portraying the 'generation gap' is cringe-inducing). There are lots of boardroom (and bedroom) meetings, and dealing and double-dealing, as well as lots and lots of drinks poured (martinis at first, then Scotch) and lots and lots of cigarettes lit (including the marijuana variety); the endless drinks and cigarettes are just filler.

I know - I started out this review by saying that "It's really not necessary to read anything Harold Robbins wrote after WHERE LOVE HAS GONE (1962)" and yet I've read THE INHERITORS not once, not twice, but three times. Go figure.

[Kurt Reichenbaugh · Rating 2 out of 5]

For Harold Robbins this was a surprisingly disciplined novel. It had the requisite sex, with only one scene I would call kinky. Most of it detailed the relationship between Sam and Steve, two mavericks in the television and movie industry between the years 1955 and 1965.

On a side note I would recommend a fascinating bio of Harold Robbins; .

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Third book in the trilogy that includes The Dream Merchants and The Carpetbaggers giving a take on the motion picture industry in America amd the development of TV.
Characters larger than life and even for the film world this is probably a touch over the top, but then Robbins could always sell books. Subtlety is not his strong point but I'll forgive him a great deal for producing 'A Stone for Danny Fisher' which is a great deal more mature than this.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all time favorites. I've retread this many times. It's not Shakespeare, just fast fun reading. Great story.

[Raisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been a long time since I read The Inheritors. I cannot really point what is it about this book, but the story, the environment, the charm still sits somewhere at the back of my mind. It might not be a classic, by the sheer definition of it, it is, however, a book worth reading to get a glimpse into the American film industry. True, a lot has been said since then. But this is totally unabashed and uninhibited - Harold Robbins Style!

[Thomas Stroemquist · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one stood out among my grandfathers many serious and inaccessible (for me in the mid-80's) books. I'm sure what made me finish it was the generous and detailed sex content. I didn't, however, even then consider it a very good story.

[Juniar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The struggles of the pioneers in the motion picture industry.

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in Italian, very easy to read.

[A.joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite author !

[Jouni Korte · Rating 3 out of 5]

1950- ja 60-luvuille sijoittuva, osittain oikeisiin henkilöihin pohjautuva romaani tv- ja elokuvateollisuudesta. Harold Robbins on yksi kaikkien aikojen eniten myyneitä kirjailijoita, ja wikipedian luonnehdinta, että hänen aihepiirinsä oli rikkaiden ja kuuluisien ihmisten päihteiden ja seksisuhteiden täyttämä elämä, pitää paikkansa hyvin tämänkin kirjan kohdalla. Nykysilmin katsottuna kirjan asenne on jokseenkin ummehtuneen sovinistis-seksistinen, mutta toisaalta kuva ei liene ihan väärä, jos ajattelee millaista meno USA:n viihdeteollisuuden huipulla on noihin aikoihin varmaankin ollut. Toki kirjassa mennään näin jälkikäteen ajatellen lähes huvittavuuteen asti siinä, millainen alfojen alfa toinen päähenkilöistä on. Bisnes luistaa, drinkkejä kumotaan jatkuvalla tahdilla, lautasella on punaista lihaa, ja naiset toisensa perään lakoavat jalkoihin.

[Serge]

The third part of Harold Robbins' trilogy on the movie industry (no common characters) is not as engaging as "The Carpetbaggers". The action consists mostly of the business deals, which are hardly understandable to the lay person. But there is intense personal drama near the beginning and end of the book, and the friendship and rivalry between the main characters is well drawn. There is insight into the early competition between Hollywood and TV, as well as into the 60s drugs scene. And, as usual with this writer, it is all very readable.

[Diane Rembert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives the readers a behind the scenes look into the development of shows and movies, budgets, casting calls and business deals. We also see how chasing a career can affect the personal life of execs. There is backstabbing, drugs and a while lot of drama.

I haven't read a book by Harold Robbins in years, but I'm so glad I decided to pick this one up. I may not have understood all of the verbiage, but I walked away learning more than I knew walking in.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good read.

[Victor Ahumada · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leí a Robbins a escondidas hace mucho tiempo y me quedé con la idea del sexo desatado de sus páginas, este no me pareció tan subido de tono, cosas que cambian con los años. Me dió por revisitarlo para salir de la dinámica de libros tan "pesados" que estoy leyendo. Y como buen Best Seller cumple, es comida rápida, se consume rapido, es sabrosa pero no deja huella.
Posiblemente lea otro mas en algun tiempo, no es un mal escritor en terminos de entretención.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Presumably this novel is based on real people in the entertainment industry of the mid-late 60s. It does have the feel of such with all the drinking and sex. Nice peek into the lives of tv and movie moguls. Lots of beautiful women and sex and secretaries who know when to serve coffee or alcoholic drinks. Nice nostalgic story told well by an unseen narrator.

[Frank · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this one back in the 70s

[Curlyhair · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember I really liked this when I read it and I had a good few of Harold Robbins books by this time. Good story.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spectacular!

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readable but not his best