by B.D. Hyman (1985)
According to the author, the Mother Goddam of movies for four decades was something else offscreen. The paranoid figure saw herself as a feminine version of Gulliver. "Never relax," she warned B.D., "or the Lilliputians will climb up your legs and devour your soul." No defect goes uncharted, from the star's alcoholism to violent maledictions from her fourth husband, Actor Gary Merrill: "The only people who can be around you for long without wanting to kill you are faggots." Physical catastrophes of old age, among them strokes and a mastectomy, follow like biblical punishments. If pity is contained in these pages, it is intended for the author, not her subject. B.D. now lives in the Bahamas, 3,000 miles from Hollywood, but My Mother's Keeper has distanced her even further from her mother, and from reticence and common decency.
Estel Eforgan
Leslie Howard's acting career as a Hollywood star was well known but behind the charm was a perceptive and determined man. This book follows his life by using original material in archives and libraries, personal narratives, newspaper and magazine accounts, and much more.
Debra Tate
Considered by many to be the most beautiful woman of her generation, Sharon Tate remains a fascinating pop icon and a poster child for the 1960s. The few films she made during her brief career have secured her position as a Hollywood legend. Over forty years since her last film, Sharon's spirit and charisma lives strong in the memories of those who knew her best. Her sister Debra celebrates Sharon's life and career, her influence as a fashion icon throughout the world, and in effect presents a sociological portrait of the 1960s-- its youth culture, the sexual revolution, the rise of independent cinema, and Hollywood's changing studio system.
Howard Kazanjian and Chris Enss
Presents a comprehensive biography of the early life and career of actor John Wayne that focuses on his childhood in Iowa, college football days, and his early Hollywood roles.
David Sandison
A biography of the actress who had driven herself through ten years of bit parts and often demeaning roles before arriving at the pinnacle of Hollywood superstardom.