Publisher Comments:

In 1882, when General Harrison Gray Otis began working for the paper that was to become the Los Angeles Times, the city of Los Angeles was still a sleepy little town with fewer than a hundred thousand residents. However, Otis was the first of a dynasty of men to build what would later become a world-renowned and award-winning newspaper.

Created as the companion book to the Peter Jones Productions documentary film premiering on PBS October 5, 2009, this book tells the century-long story of the most famous family and their dominion over the Times, as they worked to create a city of international fame. Author Bill Boyarsky follows the history of the paper as it was passed down from the hands of General Harrison Gray Otis, to his son-in-law, Harry Chandler, to Norman Chandler, and finally to Otis Chandler, then his hand-picked successor Tom Johnson...and its eventual sale and loss of family -- and regional -- control.

Far beyond being a tale of publishers, Inventing L.A.: The Chandlers and Their Times is the story of the Chandlers' reign over Los Angeles with the help of their mighty scepter, the Times, and their entwinement with politics, family feud, and fortune. This is truly a rich history of the building of one of the most famous, populated, and culturally rich cities in the world.

Author Bio:

In his 30 years with the Los Angeles Times, Bill Boyarsky was a political writer, featured columnist, and city editor. He was a member of reporting teams that won three Pulitzer Prizes. He is the author of two biographies of Ronald Reagan. He is author of Big Daddy: Jesse Unruh and the Art of Power Politics and Los Angeles: City of Dreams; with his wife, Nancy, he coauthored Backroom Politics.