TINSELTOWN: MURDER, MORPHINE AND MADNESS AT THE DAWN OF HOLLYWOOD

TINSELTOWN: MURDER, MORPHINE AND MADNESS AT THE DAWN OF HOLLYWOOD. William J. Mann. HarperCollins; 2014.

Biographer Mann resuscitates the William Desmond Taylor murder case in this recycled but entertaining look at scandals in old Hollywood. Besides actor-director Taylor, who was homely but attracted more people than you would imagine, the players include the "three desperate dames" Mabel Normand, who was Desmond's friend; Mary Miles Minter, who was sure she was in love with the older gay man; and Margaret Gibson, who tried to reinvent herself as "Patricia Palmer" after a prostitution incident. Another major figure in the cast is Darryl Zanuck, who is terrified of scandals during an era when self-appointed moralists and church ladies were coming out of the woodwork to denounce the motion picture industry. Then there's Will Hays, who was appointed to monitor said industry to prevent dreaded government censorship, and Gibson's circle of sleazy friends. not to mention Minter's possibly maniacal mother. Without fictionalizing, Mann tells the story in the style of a novel, which is occasionally awkward, but does build some suspense. While many might dismiss the book as a rehash of old material -- albeit a clever rehash -- Mann does uncover some interesting new information about some of these individuals, and has come up with a new theory as to the identity of Desmond's murderer which makes sense while at the same time involving some slightly far-fetched speculation. Tinseltown does do a good job of recreating the feel of the period, the desperation of many of the people there, and the tireless efforts to prevent an art-destroying censorship due to the interference of self-styled moralists. At least six previous books have been published about this unsolved mystery. Mann is the author of excellent biographies of Katharine Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and John Schlesinger, as well as of Behind the Screen: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood. NOTE: This review is of an advance reading copy of the book.

Verdict: At the very least a good read with some compelling material. ***.

HOW TO BE A MOVIE STAR: ELIZABETH TAYLOR IN HOLLYWOOD

HOW TO BE A MOVIE STAR: ELIZABETH TAYLOR IN HOLLYWOOD. William J. Mann. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; 2009.

Mann has decided not to write a straight-forward bio of Taylor but focus on certain highlights of her life, the result being that the book actually has as much depth and knowledge of the woman as bios that cover every facet of her life and career. [To all intents and purposes this is  a full biography.] You can read about Taylor's early career and aggressive mother, who'd been an actress herself; her affairs with, and marriages to, Eddie Fisher and Richard Burton; the making of the mammoth Cleopatra; the death of husband Mike Todd in a plane crash; her feud with Hedda Hopper, who was sued for claiming another Liz-husband, Michael Wilding, was gay; the filming of career highlights such as Giant and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, in which Liz was supposed to look slatternly; and so on. Of course, some things get lost -- Rhapsody, in which Taylor is terrific, is again glossed over [as it was in Taraborrelli's book] and there's no mention of Toscanini [I would have loved to have gone behind-the-scenes with Taylor and co-star C. Thomas Howell!], but you can't have everything. Naturally, when a star has been written about as often as Taylor, lots of stuff gets rehashed, but Mann is a good enough writer to make it all very interesting and readable nevertheless. Taylor's trials and tribulations may no longer be terribly important in the great scheme of things, if they ever were, but they do make good reading and Mann adroitly explores how Liz's romantic carryings-on and choice in movies helped open liberal sexual doors in Hollywood for better or worse. Mann is also the author of Behind the Screen, Kate, and Edge of Midnight on director John Schlesinger; all are recommended.

Verdict: Very readable and entertaining book that is as much about Hollywood as it is about Taylor. ***1/2.

EDGE OF MIDNIGHT: THE LIFE OF JOHN SCHLESINGER

EDGE OF MIDNIGHT: The Life of John Schlesinger. An Authorized Biography by William J. Mann.

This excellent biography traces the life and career of director John Schlesinger from his childhood to his early days as an actor to his first directorial efforts and on to the big splash he made with Darling starring Julie Christie. Schlesinger really came into his own with the huge critical and financial success of Midnight Cowboy, a film which helped usher in a new era of frankness in Hollywood. Most of the director's later films were not quite as successful nor as feted. The book reveals that his superb film Sunday, Bloody Sunday was inspired by people and events from Schlesinger's own life, and documents his attempts to get back on top again while accepting screen assignments that may have been beneath him [some of which he championed nevertheless]. Written with the full cooperation of Schlesinger and his lover, the book is bolstered with many interviews from the people who knew the subject best. While looking into Schlesinger's attitude toward his homosexuality, Mann also analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Schlesinger's films, explaining why some were better received and better made than others. A compelling and worthwhile biography of a director who may have been more influential than people realize. The book will make you want to go out and look at DVDs of the director's many features.

Verdict: Top-notch bio. ****.

KATE: The Woman Who Was Hepburn

KATE: The Woman Who Was Hepburn by William J. Mann. Henry Holt; 2006.

A monumental, scrupulously researched look into the life of Katharine Hepburn. If you're looking for an analysis of her films or acting technique or a great many behind-the-scenes-on-the-film-set anecdotes, look elsewhere, because Mann says upfront that that's not the kind of book he's written. This is a frank, detailed look at Hepburn's single-minded drive to reach stardom, as well as a no-holds-barred examination of her sexuality and romantic life. Always an unconventional person in many ways, like many movie stars with secrets Hepburn became more conservative in her attitudes as she got older. Her contradictory nature is what makes the book so fascinating. Mann shows how Hepburn herself helped to turn a close platonic friendship with the equally ambiguous Spencer Tracy into one of the great "love stories" of the century -- but it was more about image than anything else. Mann seems to think Hepburn's relationships with men (many of whom were closeted homosexuals) indicate a bisexual nature, but it could just as easily have been internalized homophobia that had her desiring a "normal" relationship with a man, but Mann, surprisingly, never delves into this. Mann's book is not at all disrespectful to Hepburn, but he does tear away all the Hollywood publicist bulls--t and get at the truth behind the myths. (The passages about Hepburn's work on the Broadway musical Coco are alone worth the price of admission.)

Verdict: Fascinating! ***1/2.

BEHIND THE SCREEN

BEHIND THE SCREEN: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood 1910 - 1969. William J. Mann. Viking; 2001.

A very interesting look at the gay influence on films -- especially the look of films -- during the first half of the 20th century. It's difficult even today to know who's gay or who isn't due to the closet, sham marriages, and the fact that most gays are non-stereotypical, so undoubtedly many influential individuals were left out of the book. Since open, more flamboyant gays tended to go in for costuming and interior design over say, camera work or directing (although there were certainly gays in those fields, as Mann notes and uncovers) the book has what seems like a disproportionate number of pages devoted to the more "feminine" fields and at times gets a little tiresome because of it. Mann also examines how fan magazines dealt with various actors' gay persuasion. Some of the names whose lives and work Mann examines include Mitchell Leisen, Charles Brackett, Charles Waters, Kay Francis, Dorothy Arzner, Cary Grant, J. Warren Kerrigan (one of the first big stars), Ross Hunter, Irving Rapper, etc. He also looks into marriages between gay men and lesbians (Edmund Lowe and Lilyan Tashman) who formed a kind of loving bond while getting their thrills outside the marital bed (although Mann takes these faux relationships perhaps more seriously than he should). There are odd omissions in the book, however. Still, some readers may find it an eye-opener. Well-researched.

Verdict: A worthwhile read, if hardly the last word on the subject. ***.