A biographical look at the life and contemporary impact of Gertrude Stein (1874-1946). At Radcliffe a student of William James, to Paris with her brother Leo: they take up residence at 27 rue de Fleurus and buy their first paintings by Cezanne, Renoir, Matisse, and, later, Picasso. Saturday evenings become salon night. She begins writing, influenced by Cezanne's idea to let each part be as important as the whole. She meets Alice B. Toklas. Hemingway comes under her spell. She contrives to purchase Bilignin. After World War II, she has a triumphal tour of the USA. Friends and acquaintances speak; her words and those of Toklas make up the rest of the narration.