Hollywood by Starlight

(no dust jacket) [general wear, spine cloth very faded, some dampstaining to covers (no effect on internals), soiling/foxing to edges of text block, small dent in top edge of each cover; basically a reading/research copy only, but a decent one]. (B&W photographs) The immensely entertaining account of an English writer's foray to Hollywood, which resulted from his meeting in London with Fox studio chief Darryl Zanuck. Minney was the co-author of the successful play "Clive of India," and he and his collaborator, W.P. Lipscomb, were induced to come to the U.S. to write the script for the screen adaptation. (The resulting film, starring Ronald Colman and Loretta Young, was released in January 1935.) The through-line of the book deals with the writing and production of the film (including quite a bit about working with Zanuck), but the author also partook fully of the cinema capital's social life. He seems to have been invited to dozens of parties, and therefore met and hobnobbed with a whole bunch of interesting people, if only in passing. He's a name-dropper par excellance, with numerous actors, directors and local celebrties making appearances in the book, but his more substantive encounters -- with Charlie Chaplin, Dorothy Parker, Ronald Colman, Walt Disney, and director W.S. Van Dyke II, among others -- are discussed in somewhat more depth. Basically, he does the town: he goes to the Friday night fights, attends an Aimee Semple MacPherson sermon, takes in a "rassling" match featuring Man Mountain Dean, etc.

Product Info

Publisher: Chapman & Hall Ltd.

Year: 1935

Type: Used

Binding: Hardcover

Seller Info

ReadInk

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Country: United States