Gloria Swanson
The Ultimate Star

Stephen Michael Shearer

Unless you are a silent film buff, or grew up with an appreciation of older movies, many of us may have first been exposed to Gloria Swanson (or the idea of her), by the skit on The Carol Burnett Show parodying Swanson's role in Sunset Boulevard. And sadly, even if you become interested in classic film, many of Swanson's silent films are lost to the ages. This engaging biography still manages, through research, stills, and memorabilia, to provide colorful descriptions of these works.

Beginning with her humble upbringing in Chicago, you are taken both through the development of her career, and the development of Hollywood and the motion picture industry. Gloria Swanson's career spanned all of it, from the days of silent film darlings such as herself, Mary Pickford, and other notables, all the way through her final appearances on stage and interviews (a fate that often befalls "out of fashion" and older actors and personalities). There are two sections of photos which may be surprisingly familiar to those who may not know the name or origin of many iconic photos and looks.

In addition, the book does not shy away from the sometimes shocking details of her private life, from her disengagement with her children's upbringing, to her many husbands, paramours and affairs. These are all treated with thoroughness and detail, without devolving into tabloid type smut. Producers, marriages of convenience, and even the founder of a powerful American political dynasty are all there. It also covers the feuds between her and co-stars, producers, and movie companies, giving both personal and professional glimpses of the evolution of a then-new business.

I would definitely recommend this one, although you may want to not have others in your "to be read" stack for a bit, as you may just find yourself online hunting down snippets, and the occasional entirety of classic films.