A review by steveatwaywords
American Lightning: Terror, Mystery, the Birth of Hollywood & the Crime of the Century by Howard Blum

4.0

I love histories of smaller events which have broader impacts--this, then, is a marvelous examination of a major labor-management fight and domestic terrorism, the emergence of Hollywood film production and the politics of early news media. And in the foreground are three men who, I must admit, I almost did not want to know so well. D.W. Griffith is now best known for Birth of a Nation, but the larger impacts he made on the industry are fascinating, while the womanizing and psychological manipulation of his actresses is distressing to read. Worse, seeing one of my idols, Clarence Darrow, reduced to humanity at the near-pathetic end of his career was frustrating and enlightening. And while I knew little of William Burns, the detective who uncovers it all, I was impressed with Blum's even-handed praise and criticism of all three men. On top of it all, Blum paints a compelling story at the same time, and I found myself anxious to discover how the "Crime of the Century" would play out.