DORIS DAY: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE GIRL NEXT DOOR

DORIS DAY: The Untold Story of the Girl Next Door. David Kaufman. Virgin; 2008.

Doris Day was a celebrated actress, singer and movie star, becoming a top box office attraction in the sixties, but she was also thought of by non-fans as a precious, virginal, saccharine-coated antique, a mere aberration, whose films were sickening. She was funny, but not as funny as Lucille Ball. She could sing well, but she was no Judy Garland. Her very real dramatic talent, however, as evidenced by performances in such films as Love Me or Leave Me and The Man Who Knew Too Much, was ignored or forgotten by her critics and even the general public. Some of this was Day's fault, as she turned down roles in The Graduate and The Children's Hour to make more of her formula sit-com movies such as The Glass Bottom Boat. Her husband, Marty Melcher, was responsible for running her career, and he nearly ran it into the ground. Turning over fiscal responsibilities to a crooked lawyer who was later disbarred due to Melcher's bad advice, Day lost millions. Day was more complicated than her image would suggest, apparently having an affair with an African-American baseball player, as well as at least two affairs with married men (Patrick O'Neal was one), possibly leading one jilted wife to commit suicide. Day did smoke and drink when she wanted to, and didn't believe in organized religion. Day was an absentee mother to her son, Terry, and when she got annoyed with someone for some alleged minor malfeasance, she would cut them off forever without a word. Day claimed that all she ever wanted out of life was a husband and family and a secure home life, and got no real pleasure out of her fame, success and riches. (Poor Doris!) When I first began David Kaufman's very thorough (perhaps too thorough) biography of Day, I was afraid it would be a mere fan boys ruminations, but this is a well-researched, incisive -- and unsparing -- look at Day's life, career, personality, and character, good or bad. As Day got older, disappointed with her married life, career, and her unstated realization that fans who didn't really know her intimately were no substitute for real friends, she turned to numerous pets for comfort. Her three other marriages all failed, and she came to rely more on animals than people. (She gave a homeless man some money only because he had a dog with him!) After reading this excellent bio you can decide for yourself if Day is nice or a nut or somewhere in between. David Kaufman also wrote a notable biography of Mary Martin, Some Enchanted Evenings.

Verdict: More about Doris Day than you may want to know. ***1/2.

JEAN HARLOW

Jean Harlow smokes a stogie in Saratoga

JEAN HARLOW(1911 - 1937).

In her short, ultimately tragic life, Jean Harlow achieved more than most people do in a full lifetime. Initially dismissed as a glamour girl whose success was due entirely to sex appeal, she later emerged as an accomplished actress and comedienne, getting better with each picture and encouraged by her more skillful directors. Jean was the subject of two mediocre film biographies, neither of which fully captured her special quality, and the actresses who played her had little of the Harlow mystique. Harlow was featured to full advantage in such films as Reckless and Dinner at Eight, and while she could be as soft and feminine as any actress, she was always especially delightful when she was telling people off with amusing and righteous indignation. In other words there was no one quite like Harlow.

This week we look at a round up of good and bad Harlow movies, as well as a couple of books that focus on the star.

MARY WICKES: I KNOW I'VE SEEN THAT FACE BEFORE

MARY WICKES: I KNOW I'VE SEEN THAT FACE BEFORE. Steve Taravella. University Press of Mississippi; 2013.

 "Your posture is atrocious!" -- Wickes as the ballet instructor on I Love Lucy.

Now that most of the major figures in Hollywood have had their lives exhaustively catalogued,  it's time for authors to turn their sights to less stellar but often beloved character actors, such as Mary Wickes. You might think there might not be a whole book in Wickes' life and career, but guess again -- this is a scrupulously researched tome bolstered by many interviews with those who knew Mary best -- such as Lucie Arnaz, whose mother was Mary's best friend  [but who paid her much less for her appearances on Here's Lucy than she did other guest stars] -- and with penetrating analysis of Wickes' approach to comedy and her roles, as well as her not always charming personality quirks. Basically this is an admiring, respectful bio but it presents Wickes in all of her aspects, a full-realized human being with admirable traits as well as flaws. Wickes, of course, will always be famous for The Man Who Came to Dinner, where she brilliantly traded barbs with Monty Woolley, but she also did a lot of theater and television work, appearing on Father Dowling Mysteries and in Oklahoma in the last years of her life, when she could hardly see and had numerous ailments. She lived for her work, which sustained her nearly until the very end. While there may be a bit too much of the sad, lonely spinster  -- with so many friends and such a busy schedule you have to wonder how lonely she really was -- and for some people this might be Way Too Much of Mary, but if you're a Wickes fan, this is an absorbing read, extremely well done and highly recommended.

Verdict: Exhaustive look at the life and work of Wickes. ***1/2.