Classic Movie Books I've Been Reading (2)

 In my latest YouTube video I discuss the books and reviewing so far this year. Check it out!

Mentioned in the video: 
Charles Boyer: The French Lover by John Baxter
Dervish Dust: The Life and Words of James Coburn by Robyn L. Coburn 
Camera Man: Buster Keaton, the Dawn of Cinema, and the Invention of the Twentieth Century by Dana Stevens
Girls on Film: Lessons from a Life of Watching Women in Movies by Alicia Malone
Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World by Wil Haygood 
Topper by Thorne Smith
Double Indemnity by James M. Cain
Lana: The Lady, The Legend, The Truth by Lana Turner
Nazimova: A Biography by Gavin Lambert
Buzz: The Life and Art of Busby Berkeley by Jeffrey Spivak

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First Roundup: 2022 Classic Film Reading Challenge

 

I'm excited to share the first round-up of reviews for this year's Classic Film Reading Challenge. I'm so impressed with the reviews in this batch. A wide variety of selections and there are some very thorough reviews as well as great YouTube videos from Lee, Andy and Robert! Chris and Andy are the leaders of the challenge with 4 books reviewed by each so far. I'll be doing another round-up next month so stay tuned.

Alejandro on Goodreads

Image courtesy of Alejandro @alamofilmguy on Twitter

"The book is the portrait of a complicated man, and Eyman takes his time in delving into his subject’s multifaceted life with careful research and sharp reactions observation."

Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise by Scott Eyman

"It’s a rare look into the life of a Mexican-American actor building his career and the emotional toll that career had later in his life... But perhaps one day we will have a fuller text to explore all the areas of this extraordinary life. One can hope." 

The Original Sin by Anthony Quinn

Andy of Journeys in Darkness and Light

"This book is filled with great information and several surprises. If you're a fan of classic movies, you're going to love it."

Character People by Ken D. Jones, Arthur F. McClure and Alfred E. Twomey

"Bottom line, you can't go wrong with an Elmore Leonard work. Western or Crime."

Hombre by Elmore Leonard

"You watch Aldrich mature as a director and reflect on the successes and the failures, putting both into perspective."

Robert Aldrich: Interviews edited by Eugene L. Miller, Jr. and Edwin T. Arnold

Ari of The Classic Movie Muse

"[I] appreciated the additional insights into the characters from Inge’s text... We also gain a little more insight Hal’s family history and troubled background."

Picnic by William Inge

Brittaney of The Story Enthusiast

"Allanberger paints a portrait of a cunningly intelligent, often appealing woman whose independence and determination helped her succeed in a difficult business while also occasionally alienating people along the way."

Miriam Hopkins: Life and Films of a Hollywood Rebel by Allan R. Ellenberger

Chris of Digging Star Wars

Image courtesy of Chris of Digging Star Wars

"Frankel knows how to collectively share massive amounts of research in a cohesive, entertaining story that is also history – both real, cinematic, and then some."

The Searchers: The Making of an American Legend by Glenn Frankel

"Physically, the book is thin but printed in small type. In other words: it’s travel-sized but packed with information. It is also incredibly-smile-inducing for any Star Wars fan that is also a classic film fan."

Star Wars: BFI Film Classics by Will Brooker

"I loved this book. It educated me on so many levels of the Kung Fu film scene that started in the late 60s and even before that. It’s ballsy but honest. It also sets out on a mission and succeeds: these films – both good and “bad” – are a rich part of film and real world history that just can not be ignored.  

These Fists Break Bricks: How Kung Fu Movies Swept America and Changed the World by Grady Hendrix and Chris Poggiali

"let me conclude by simply saying “Hurrah!” for the please-take-a-free-book-and-keep-it library in the campground WiFi room where I found this literary treasure."

True Grit by Charles Portis

Chuck on Goodreads

Image courtesy of Chuck @Chuck7703 on Twitter

"Dolce Vita Confidential is an informative and fun read that will transport you back to that exciting time period of Rome in the 1950s."

Dolce Vita Confidential: Fellini, Loren, Pucci, Paparazzi, and the Swinging High Life of 1950s Rome by Shawn Levy

"Hitchcock and the Censors is a unique and interesting look at Hitchcock's work through the prism of censorship that is a worthy addition to your film book library."

Hitchcock and the Censors by John Billheimer

"I would recommend this book to hard core Val Lewton fans or anyone with an interest in the American home during the war. Others may get bogged down in some of the analysis of this study."

Icons of Grief: Val Lewton's Home Front Pictures by Alexander Nemerov

Greg on Goodreads

"Anyone with interest in Film Noir or the Westerner genres, will be pleased to have this book as their gateway into the Sub-Genre of the Noir Western."

The Noir Western: Darkness on the Range, 1943-1962 by David Meuel

"Was expecting a little more from this book, but overall a good journey deep into classic Japanese cinema. Perhaps it's not as much about the filmmaking side of Japanese Cinema, but about the ideology behind and within it." 

Voices from the Japanese Cinema by Joan Mellen

Jess of Box Office Poisons: A Classic Movie Blog

Image courtesy of Jess from Box Office Poisons

 "ultimately this is the story of June's life as she wanted to tell it, and I guess you can't fault her for it." 

June Allyson by June Allyson

"I put this book down with the opinion that Loretta Young is a charming, eloquent, talented woman who was often ahead of her time in seeing trends and reacting to change, despite knowing that she was pretty pious and straight-laced and was never one to (openly) broker scandal."

The Things I Had to Learn by Loretta Young, as told to Helen Ferguson

Kara on Goodreads

"With each new installment, Lillian's Hollywood is fleshed out more fully with delightful cameos, recurring fan favorites like Bing Crosby and Barbara Stanwyck, and a rich (and ever-growing) cast of original characters."

Idle Gossip by Renee Patrick

"Not only are these stories fun and twisty mysteries featuring some of your favorite Golden Age of Hollywood stars, but they are also written in a way that is really enjoyable to read."

The Sharpest Needle by Renee Patrick

Lee on YouTube

"If you are of a philosophical bent... introspective narratives... purply prose... and you don't mind a spot of naval gazing... you can't go wrong with Nathan's novella."

Portrait of Jennie by Robert Nathan

Molly of Classic Mollywood

Image courtesy of Molly from Classic Mollywood

"This book is an easy read and you will get a sense of Granger’s personality and sense of humor."

Include Me Out: My Life from Goldwyn to Broadway by Farley Granger with Robert Calhoun

Ralph on LibraryThing

"Agatha Christie successfully broke the rules with her dark story "And Then There Were None" that has no assured detective like Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple to solve the mystery and foil the crime leaving readers to contemplate the darkness and self-deception present in people in all times and places."

And Then There None by Agatha Christie

"One of the great gifts of this book is how Ray Morton takes us behind the scenes to show the breakthrough innovations required by the special effects team lead by Douglass Trumbull as they needed to invent new ways to create the fantastic and realistic images Spielberg envisioned and demanded."

Close Encounters of the Third Kind: The Making of Steven Spielberg's Classic Film by Ray Morton

Raquel of Out of the Past

 

"Stevens offers a look at Keaton through a cultural history lens and readers with reap the rewards from all the historical context."

Camera Man: Buster Keaton, The Dawn of Cinema, and the Invention of the 20th Century 

By Dana Stevens

"I highly recommend this one for anyone who wants to go a lot further with their knowledge of film history and for anyone interested in black representation in media."

Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World by Wil Haygood

Robert B. of Robert Bellissimo at the Movies

"Highly recommended... it's a wonderful read."

Cimino: The Deer Hunter, Heaven's Gate and The Price of a Vision by Charles Elton

"this is a very important book that I think should be given to every veteran actor or young actor or someone just entering into the field... the details of it are just really mind-blowing"

The Method: How The Twentieth Century Learned To Act by Isaac Butler

Sarah on Goodreads

"You can tell how much time and research the author put into her book, and her love for Keaton was evident."

Camera Man: Buster Keaton, the Dawn of Cinema, and the Invention of the Twentieth Century by Dana Stevens

Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World by Wil Haygood

Colorization

One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World

by Wil Haygood

Knopf

464 pages

October 2021

Hardcover ISBN: 9780525656876

Amazon — Barnes and Noble — Powell's

“If Black Americans were to fight back against what cinema had now done to them, they would need their own filmmaker. They needed someone to tell their stories, stories with nuance and honesty and respect and comedy and joy—all the things that this magical thing called cinema was offering to mainstream society. And if such a person were to emerge, he would have to possess fortitude, and a wide vision that would remain steadfast against the forces sure to rise and be arrayed against him.” — Wil Haygood

From the beginning of film history, black representation has been a struggle. Stereotypes and racist depictions caused harmful ripple effects in our culture that ultimately lead to real life consequences. Deeply rooted racism in Hollywood held back black performers and filmmakers from realizing their true potential. Even with all the obstacles in the business and in society at large, these black visionaries persisted. Oscar Micheaux, Paul Robeson, Lena Horne and Hattie McDaniel paved the way for Dorothy Dandridge, Sidney Poitier, Pam Grier and Melvin van Peebles who made strides for Halle Berry, Denzel Washington, Spike Lee and Martin Jenkins. The industry still struggles with black representation on screen and off. While we still have a long way to go, understanding and appreciating black film history is crucial for making strides in the decades to come.

Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World by Wil Haygood is a rich resource of information on black film history that will both educate and enlighten. Haygood draws parallels between filmmakers and actors and the particular moment in history in which they were working. This book is filled to the brim with stories and related context. The focus is more on individuals however numerous films are discussed at length. Each chapter has a particular theme and some are followed by short "flashback" chapters that hone in on an important moment in film history as it relates to the previous chapter. For example, a chapter examining Sidney Poitier's life and career is followed by a flashback chapter which recounts the night of his historic Oscar win. 

Topics discussed include: 

• D.W. Griffith's Birth of a Nation and its harmful impact on black representation
• Oscar Micheaux's extraordinary career as an independent filmmaker
• The relationship between authors Fannie Hurst and Zora Neale Hurston
• Hattie McDaniel, "mammy" and black maid tropes, and her landmark Oscar win
• The debacle that was Porgy and Bess.
• The different paths Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte took with their careers.
• The amazing story behind Melvin Van Peebles career.
• The impact Pam Grier had on the representation on black female beauty.
• Berry Gordy, Billy Dee Williams, Diana Ross and the films of Motown Records
• and many more

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:

“The wonder of it all is that the moviemaking life didn’t crush Oscar Micheaux. He had come into Black filmmaking when it hardly existed, creating much of its origins and giving it ballast and a heartbeat.” 

On Baby Face “But to Negroes the real star of the movie was Theresa Harris…Chico and Lily were one of the first, more honest Black-white friendships to be showcased on a major motion-picture screen. They were equals, and the reality of this at the time was its own kind of shock.” 

“Sammy Davis Jr had the wherewithal to survive the sexual and interracial-marriage paranoia against the backdrop of Hollywood and America, but Dorothy Dandridge did not.”  

“Poitier and Belafonte have become cultural icons, two handsome Black men, defiant soul brothers who claimed their stake in the air of American celebrity…”

Colorization is quite dense and does take some patience to get through. There is a bit of jumping back and forth between subjects within in a chapter which made me go back to reread some parts to get back on track. However, it was well worth the effort because of the book's abundance of details, insights and context. Haygood does a superb job demonstrating the effect history had on film and vice versa. I took over 11 pages worth of notes because there were so many takeaways that I didn't want to forget.

I highly recommend this one for anyone who wants to go a lot further with their knowledge of film history and for anyone interested in black representation in media.

This is my second review for the 2022 Classic Film Reading Challenge.

Thank you to Knopf for sending me a copy of Colorization for review!