This fascinating study explores the Hollywood novel as a culmination of the American Dream and a symbol of its betrayal. Born of promise and hope yet focused on immediate gratification and profit, Hollywood mirrors the contradictions inherent in the myth of the American Dream. The history of the development of the Hollywood novel reflects the deterioration of the American Dream during the 20th century as it has passed from utopian promise through decadence to nightmare and apocalypse. Along these lines, the genre provides a metaphor for the growing sense of futility, loss of hope, and increasing sense of chaos that characterizes a spiritually deprived America.