The Hollywood Book of Extravagance

James Robert Parish

Description

Savor the inside scoop on over-the-top superstars

"I'm not a paranoid, deranged millionaire. . . . I'm a billionaire!"

"Acting is an empty and useless profession."

"Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls go everywhere else."

"I'm interested in being provocative and pushing people's buttons."

Which screen icons gave us the quotes above? How do stars get away with self-indulgent, unrestrained behaviors-or do they? In The Hollywood Book of Extravagance, longtime industry insider and Hollywood historian James Robert Parish gives you a provocative look behind the scenes at the lavish indulgences and larger-than-life egos of Tinseltown's rich and famous. The featured celebrities range from heartthrobs to industry tycoons, and from yesterday's matinee idols to today's hottest celebs. The stars are grouped according to their excesses: ego, neurosis, partying, power, rich living, and romancing. You'll devour little-known details on the excesses and exploits of notables ranging from Mae West to Madonna, Greta Garbo to Marilyn Monroe and Marlon Brando, Bela Lugosi to John Belushi, Zsa Zsa Gabor to Paris Hilton, Errol Flynn to Jude Law, and many more.
Acknowledgments.

Introduction.

1. So Much, So Young.

Drew Barrymore.

Danny Bonaduce.

Gary Coleman.

Jackie Coogan.

Macaulay Culkin.

Patty Duke.

Lindsay Lohan.

Tori Spelling.

2. So Much Ego.

Richard Burton.

Bette Davis.

Rex Harrison.

Al Jolson.

Jerry Lewis.

Madonna.

Jayne Mansfield.

Burt Reynolds.

Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Barbra Streisand.

Mae West.

3. So Much Neurosis.

Woody Allen.

Jean Arthur..

Kim Basinger.

Marlon Brando.

Joan Crawford.

Greta Garbo.

Betty Hutton.

Jennifer Jones.

Oscar Levant.

Marilyn Monroe.

Sean Penn.

Peter Sellers.

4. So Much Partying.

John Barrymore.

John Belushi.

Montgomery Clift.

Sandra Dee.

Robert Downey Jr.

Chris Farley.

W.C. Fields.

Judy Garland.

David Hasselhoff.

Dick Haymes.

Whitney Houston.

Buster Keaton.

Veronica Lake.

Bela Lugosi.

Liza Minnelli.

River Phoenix.

Elvis Presley.

Richard Pryor.

Zachary Scott.

Charlie Sheen.

Gale Storm.

5. So Much Power.

Johnny Carson.

Michael Eisner.

Mel Gibson.

Louis B. Mayer.

Louella Parsons.

Martha Stewart.

Lew Wasserman.

6. So Much Rich Living.

Marion Davies.

Zsa Zsa Gabor.

Sonja Henie.

Paris Hilton.

Howard Hughes.

Demi Moore.

Mary Pickford.

Gloria Swanson.

7. So Much Romancing.

Warren Beatty.

Clara Bow.

Louise Brooks.

Charlie Chaplin.

Joan Collins.

Tony Curtis.

Marlene Dietrich.

Errol Flynn.

Ava Gardner.

Lorenzo Lamas.

Jude Law.

Julia Roberts.

Mickey Rooney.

Frank Sinatra.

Elizabeth Taylor.

Lana Turner.

Shelley Winters.

Bibliography.

Index.

Sujets

• Performing Arts
• Biography
• Entertainment
• Autobiography
• Hollywood

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 06 janvier 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781118039021
• Langue: English

Extrait

Table of Contents
 
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Introduction
 
PART 1 - So Much, So Young
 
Drew Barrymore - (February 22, 1975-)
Danny Bonaduce - (August 13, 1959-)
Gary Coleman - (February 8, 1968-)
Jackie Coogan - (October 26, 1914-March 1, 1984)
Macaulay Culkin - (August 26, 1980-)
Patty Duke - (December 14, 1946-)
Lindsay Lohan - (July 2, 1986-)
Tori Spelling - (May 16, 1973-)
 
PART 2 - So Much Ego
Richard Burton - (November 10, 1925-August 5, 1984)
Bette Davis - (April 5, 1908-October 6, 1989)
Rex Harrison - (March 5, 1908-June 2, 1990)
Al Jolson - (May 26, 1886-October 23, 1950)
Jerry Lewis - (March 16, 1926-)
Madonna - (August 16, 1958-)
Jayne Mansfield - (April 19, 1933-June 29, 1967)
Burt Reynolds - (February 11, 1936-)
Arnold Schwarzenegger - (July 30, 1947-)
Barbra Streisand - (April 24, 1942-)
Mae West - (August 17, 1892-November 22, 1980)
 
PART 3 - So Much Neurosis
Woody Allen - (December 1, 1935-)
Jean Arthur - (October 17, 1900-June 19, 1991)
Kim Basinger - (December 8, 1953-)
Marlon Brando - (April 3, 1924-July 1, 2004)
Joan Crawford - (March 23, 1904-May 10, 1977)
Greta Garbo - (September 18, 1905-April 15, 1990)
Betty Hutton - (February 26, 1921-March 11, 2007)
Jennifer Jones - (March 2, 1919-)
Oscar Levant - (December 27, 1906-August 14, 1972)
Marilyn Monroe - (June 1, 1926-August 4, 1962)
Sean Penn - (August 17, 1960-)
Peter Sellers - (September 8, 1925-July 24, 1980)
 
PART 4 - So Much Partying
John Barrymore - (February 14, 1882-May 29, 1942)
John Belushi - (January 24, 1949-March 5, 1982)
Montgomery Clift - (October 17, 1920-July 23, 1966)
Sandra Dee - (April 23, 1944-February 20, 2005)
Robert Downey Jr. - (April 4, 1965-)
Chris Farley - (February 15, 1964-December 18, 1997)
W. C. Fields - (January 29, 1880-December 25, 1946)
Judy Garland - (June 10, 1922-June 22, 1969)
David Hasselhoff - (July 17, 1952-)
Dick Haymes - (September 13, 1916-March 28, 1980)
Whitney Houston - (August 9, 1963-)
Buster Keaton - (October 4, 1895-February 1, 1966)
Veronica Lake - (November 14, 1922-July 7, 1973)
Bela Lugosi - (October 20, 1882-August 16, 1956)
Liza Minnelli - (March 12, 1946-)
River Phoenix - (August 23, 1970-October 31, 1993)
Elvis Presley - (January 8, 1935-August 16, 1977)
Richard Pryor - (December 1, 1940-December 10, 2005)
Zachary Scott - (February 21, 1914-October 3, 1965)
Charlie Sheen - (September 3, 1965-)
Gale Storm - (April 5, 1922-)
 
PART 5 - So Much Power
Johnny Carson - (October 23, 1925-January 23, 2005)
Michael Eisner - (March 7, 1942-)
Mel Gibson - (January 3, 1956-)
Louis B. Mayer - (July 4, 1884-October 29, 1957)
Louella Parsons - (August 6, 1881-December 9, 1972)
Martha Stewart - (August 3, 1941-)
Lew Wasserman - (March 22, 1913-June 3, 2002)
 
PART 6 - So Much Rich Living
Marion Davies - (January 3, 1897-September 22, 1961)
Zsa Zsa Gabor - (February 6, 1917-)
Sonja Henie - (April 8, 1912-October 12, 1969)
Paris Hilton - (February 17, 1981-)
Howard Hughes - (December 24, 1905-April 5, 1976)
Demi Moore - (November 11, 1962-)
Mary Pickford - (April 8, 1892-May 29, 1979)
Gloria Swanson - (March 27, 1897-April 4, 1983)
 
PART 7 - So Much Romancing
Warren Beatty - (March 30, 1937-)
Clara Bow - (July 29, 1905-September 27, 1965)
Louise Brooks - (November 14, 1906-August 8, 1985)
Charlie Chaplin - (April 16, 1889-December 25, 1977)
Joan Collins - (May 23, 1933-)
Tony Curtis - (June 3, 1925-)
Marlene Dietrich - (December 27, 1901-May 6, 1992)
Errol Flynn - (June 20, 1909-October 14, 1959)
Ava Gardner - (December 24, 1922-January 25, 1990)
Lorenzo Lamas - (January 20, 1958-)
Jude Law - (December 29, 1972-)
Julia Roberts - (October 28, 1967-)
Mickey Rooney - (September 23, 1920-)
Frank Sinatra - (December 12, 1915-May 14, 1998)
Elizabeth Taylor - (February 27, 1932-)
Lana Turner - (February 8, 1920-June 29, 1995)
Shelley Winters - (August 18, 1920-January 14, 2006)
 
Bibliography
Credits
Index
About the Author

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

  Copyright © 2007 by James Robert Parish. All rights reserved
 
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada
 
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Parish, James Robert.
The Hollywood book of extravagance : the totally infamous, mostly disastrous, and always compelling excesses of America’s film and TV idols / James Robert Parish
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN: 978-0-470-05205-1
1. Motion picture actors and actresses—United States—Biography. 2. Television actors and actresses—United States—Biography. I. Title.
PN1998.2.P3658 2007
791.4302’8092273—dc22
 
2006100246
 
In memory of Purrfect (1990-2006), an extraordinary cat
Acknowledgments
I wish to thank the following for their kind cooperation on this project: Academy of Dance on Film (Larry Billman), Patrick Agan, Billy Rose Theater Collection of the New York Public Library at Lincoln Center, Ronald L. Bowers, John Cocchi, Rachel Decoste, Douglas Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study, David Ehrenstein, Allan Ellenberger, Filming Today Press (G. D. Hamann), Dave Finkle, Professor James Fisher, Alex Gildzen, Pierre Guinle, Harry Haun, In Magazine (Jeremy Kinser), JC Archives, Lynn Kear, Shawn Levy, Alvin H. Marill, Mart Martin, Lee Mattson, Eric Monder, Museum of Television & Radio (Jane Klain), Scott O’Brien, Stephen O’Brien, Jay Ogletree, Jerry Oppenheimer, Kimberly O’Quinn, Photofest (Jill Goodwin, Howard Mandelbaum, and Ron Mandelbaum), Michael R. Pitts, Barry Rivadue, David Rode, Jonathan Rosenthal, John Rossman, Brad Schreiber, Margie Schultz, the late Arleen Schwartz, Nat Segaloff, Stephen M. Silver-man, André Soares, Sam Staggs, David Stenn, Allan Taylor (editorial consultant, copy editor, and indexer), Lou Valentino, and Steven Whitney.
With special thanks to my editor, Eric Nelson, and my agent, Stuart Bernstein.
Introduction
During the last century, many entertainers achieved sudden, spectacular success in Hollywood. However, few enjoyed such a swift trajectory to fame as did the iconoclastic James Dean (1931-1955).
In the early 1950s, the Indiana-born actor was just another struggling young performer in New York City, competing with his peers for stage and TV assignments. But by mid-1954, Dean was under contract to Warner Bros. and starring in the big-screen adaptation of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden . Already, there was industry buzz that he was the successor to such recent trendsetting leading men as Montgomery Clift and Marlon Brando. As Jimmy’s star continued to rise, his ego swelled. He became increasingly eccentric, impetuous, self-contained, and distrustful of other people’s motives. Because of Dean’s incredible box-office potential, Warner Bros. coddled him, overlooking his persistent rebellious ways and self-indulgent, odd behavior. The more leeway the studio and the enthralled Hollywood community gave him, the more (deliberately) unorthodox Jimmy became. He appeared to be greatly amused by his growing celebrity power, which allowed him to overtly disregard the conventions of the Tinseltown establishment—and get away with it.
Then, in late September 1955, Dean died in a car crash near Cholame, California, just as his screen popularity was zooming to enormous heights. He was only 24 years old—in the prime of life. Thereafter, he remained frozen in the public’s mind as the maverick icon who had so successfully set old-guard Hollywood on its heels. Dean’s star continues to shine brightly to this day, many decades after his death.
Dean’s extreme flaunting of social and professional conventions made him all the more appealing to