For more than eighty years, the unsolved murder of William Desmond Taylor, one of the leading silent film directors, has generated debate and controversy. Now, best-selling author Charles Higham has solved the crime. Higham uncovers the corruption and intrigue of Los Angeles in the Roaring Twenties - and the film industry moguls' complete domination of the city's authorities. Through remarkable research, exclusive interviews with the killer, and unique access to police records, Higham scrutinizes every angle of the massive cover-up that protected the famous star responsible for Taylor's death. The result is a compelling answer to a long-standing mystery and a fascinating study of a place, and an industry, that let people reinvent themselves.