"Tinderbox," an oral history of HBO, opens with a jarring account of how key members of "The Sopranos" tried to stage an intervention for the show's troubled star, James Gandolfini. It didn't go well. Author James Andrew Miller, who has also chronicled the rise of "Saturday Night Live" and ESPN, grants readers quite a few such anecdotes about the cable giant's biggest hits, from "Sex and the City" to "Succession." Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Billy Crystal and Evander Holyfield are among the marquee names dishing the dirt.
But Miller, who also gave us a riveting account on the rise of Hollywood agents, is primarily interested in the behind-the-scenes drama among corporate bigwigs who make Tony Soprano seem like Mister Rogers. If there is a hero in this executive suite's version of "Game of Thrones," it's Carolyn Strauss, the insightful producer who makes churning out memorable TV a higher priority than landing a corner office.
Learning how suits jockey for power can be fascinating, but Miller may have overestimated how much time we want to spend in the boardroom, especially when we know there are celebrities cooling their heels in the waiting room. Don't worry; you get plenty from them. You just have to slog through a few business lectures along the way.
Neal Justin is the Star Tribune TV critic.
Tinderbox: HBO's Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers
By: James Andrew Miller.
Publisher: Henry Holt, 1,024 pages, $50.
