Includes filmography (pages 187-201), bibliography (pages 203-205), and index.

This slight biography is little more than a film-by-film resume--starting after a few words about early years as poor N.Y. kid, traveling acrobat, and soldier. Lancaster arrived in Hollywood in 1946, after his very first stage role on Broadway at age 32 won him a screen-test with producer Hal Wallis. His career began promisingly with "The Killers," but from then on, the surprisingly bookish Lancaster pursued his 'obsession with the quality of stories.' The first major movie star since the 1920s to found his own production company, he co-produced both potboilers and landmarks--while seeking out unlikely roles as well as super-star leads in "From Here to Eternity," "Elmer Gantry," and "The Rainmaker." Age is no respecter of persons, however, and as he was over 60 his roles got smaller, in smaller films such as the offbeat successes "Atlantic City" and "Local Hero."

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