Cary Grant : A Biography

By Marc Eliot

Book Overview

Rigorously researched and elegantly written, Cary Grant: A Biography is a complete, nuanced portrait of the greatest star in cinema history. Exploring Grant's troubled childhood, ambiguous sexuality,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 140005026X
• ISBN13: 9781400050260
• Release Date: September 2004
• Publisher: Harmony
• Length: 435 Pages
• Weight: 1.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 1.4" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

Cary Grant: A Biography By Marc Eliot

Once I started reading this book, I could hardly put it down. After watching some of Cary Grant's movies I was so surprised about his private life. This book gave me the impression that inside his facade was a lonely, confused little boy who never realized the "happiness from within" side of life. Marc Eliot's writing was very descriptive and matter of fact and I plan on reading more of his books.

Behind the Screen

It's amazing how people refuse to acknowledge unpleasant truths, insisting instead on believing lies and fairytales, spun oftentimes by the artists themselves seeking to protect a private life, one oftentimes filled with shame and fear of exposure. The great thing about Marc Eliot's book is that it's not sensational by any stretch of the imagination. And contrary to what some reviewers have written, is in fact well-researched as evidenced by the extensive list of sources at the book's conclusion. Admittedly, some sources are anonymous, but that should hardly come as surprising considering the subject matter. What is surprising are the fans who won't let go of the image they've been fed of who Cary Grant was, an image he himself sought to further. Cary Grant was the first one to perpetrate the myth of "Cary Grant" and was also the first to admit he couldn't live up the image. Who could? Eliot goes behind the Hollywood propoganda of the day (which sadly is still slavishly accepted) to show the dark and light, a very complex man in a complex industry struggling to survive the emotional wounds of childhood. What's gotten so many older fans feathers ruffled is the reality of Grant's relationship to Randolph Scott -- something that was common knowledge to Hollywood insiders (as was his earlier affair with Orry-Kelly), but which adoring female fans (I suppose understandably) would rather die than accept. Contrary to the rumors of the day, however, the author clearly notes that Grant was not gay, but bisexual (which if anything is actually a rarer trait). To the author's credit, he neither glorifies nor glosses over that fact. It simply is. Fans who quote Dyan Cannon (his second to last wife) as stating he was never homosexual are missing the point. Grant's first wife's unpublished diaries tell the true story as did Randolph Scott (as verified by the late George Cukor): Grant loved both men and women. If you can accept that (and there's plenty of evidence to back up the claim), you'll enjoy this fascinating book and allow yourself to move on to the various other facets of Grant's fascinating life, one that made the fictional roles he played pale by comparison. Indeed, this book would be the perfect basis for a screenplay based on Grant's life. The only real dilemma would be: Who would play him?