 Altman had a believer in the head of production at 20th Century Fox,  Alan Ladd Jr. He felt that he could indulge Altmans offbeat  projects while his more commercial films like "Star Wars" would make  up for the financial loss. Peter Biskind, author of "Easy Riders",  reports in his book that Altman and Tommy Thompson were driving to  the airport, when Altman said "Lets stop at 20th. I had a dream  last night, I want to sell it to Laddie. Keep the engine running,  itll only take a minute". Altman darted into Ladds office, made a  deal for "3 Women" and was back in the car in time to make his  flight.