Cari Beauchamp (1949–2023)

This book reminds me of why I adore book research and nonfiction reading. Without Lying Down is fabulous and fascinating as it follows the life of Frances Marion, the most highly paid screenplay writers of early Hollywood. Back when she started in silent movies, women were everywhere in Hollywood, and for a big reason: movies were not regarded as a legitimate business enterprise. Women told the stories they wanted to tell, and to great success--for a while. As movies were increasingly show more censored, as the industry became bigger, women were shuttled off to one side.

Frances is an inspiration, truly. I first came to know her as one of the main characters in a novel called Girls in the Picture which focused on her close friendship with Mary Pickford. I loved getting to know her more in this book (one of the source books for the fiction piece). The title alone says so much about Frances as a person. The full quote is, "I spent my life searching for a man to look up to without lying down."

If you have any interest in early Hollywood, do yourself a favor and get this book. show less

The ‘richest Irish-American in the world’ Joseph P. Kennedy was also the most despicable: a third generation Boston Catholic American, old Joe was not the self-made man he liked to paint himself, but the Harvard-educated scion of an affluent banking family who was already a millionaire when he became involved in the film industry in the late 1920s.

Ruthless, greedy and amoral, Kennedy made a lot of money – often by unethical if not illegal means – in his Hollywood years and left a show more trail of ruined careers in his wake, including Cecil B de Mille, Erich von Stroheim and last but not least, his mistress Gloria Swanson. The writing is often dull but the fascinating story makes the book a page-turner. show less

In general, a biography of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. (father of the president), but one that takes a particular look at his career in Hollywood. Doing that necessitates a look at how Kennedy managed to accumulate the capital required to be acclaimed a financial wizard, and the story is not particularly edifying. It's fairly clear that Kennedy liked to cut corners, use people, and engage in tactics that were shady even when he did them, and blatantly illegal later. His manipulation of the press show more also comes to the fore. Interestingly, the book does a fairly good job of tamping down the legends regarding Kennedy's alleged role as a bootlegger. There are a few side-trips regarding Kennedy's affairs which slightly detract from the overall story, and the last chapter or two of the book strays far afield from Hollywood. In general, though, pretty interesting. show less

It's hard for me to rate this book, because reading it was such a journey, and so different an experience from all the fiction I've been reading recently. Frances Marion lived a full, impressive, and inspiring life. She was linked with so many interesting people, many of whom I already knew a little about before reading this book, and some of whom were completely new to me. Her cohorts included Marie Dressler, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Irving Thalberg, Louis B. Mayer, Hedda Hopper, show more Greta Garbo, Joan Blondell, W.R. Hearst, Marion Davies, Clark Gable, Lillian Gish, Samuel Goldwyn, Jean Harlow, Joe Kennedy, Anita Loos, ZaSu Pitts, Adela Rogers St. Johns, Norma Shearer, Gloria Swanson, Norma Talmadge, and Lois Weber--and those are just the major players in the story! Needless to say, its riveting stuff, but it can also be tricky at times to keep track of everyone.

If you have any interest at all in early Hollywood and/or strong creative women, and you're in the mood for an expansive biography, this book, a breathtaking work of biographical scholarship, is a good choice. show less