Donald Spoto
Author
Series
Pub. Date
2016
Language
English
Formats
Description
The actress Teresa Wright (1918–2005) lived a rich, complex, magnificent life against the backdrop of Golden Age Hollywood, Broadway and television. There was no indication, from her astonishingly difficult—indeed, horrifying—childhood, of the success that would follow, nor of the universal acclaim and admiration that accompanied her everywhere. Her two marriages—to the writers Niven Busch (The Postman Always Rings Twice;...
Author
Language
English
Description
Born in England to socially ambitious parents, Elizabeth Taylor was catapulted into child stardom and molded by MGM into the great violet-eyed beauty of postwar America. Along the way, without training or counsel, she became an award-winning actress, dazzling audiences everywhere with spectacular performances.
Spoto explores the gripping story of her brutalizing six-month marriage to compulsive gambler and hotel heir Nicky Hilton, her romances
...Author
Language
English
Description
During the Golden Age of films, Joan Crawford was among the greats. She was also one of the most misunderstood. Spoto goes beyond the image that was portrayed of Crawford as an abusive, unstable mother by her adopted daughter to provide a portrait of the woman who was courageous, ambitious, strong, driven and had good business sense.
Author
Language
English
Formats
Description
According to biographer and theologian Spoto, Joan of Arc is a girl for the 21st century. She asserted and fought for the ideal that nations shouldn't invade and occupy others for the sake of empire building, a message to contemplate in today's political landscape. But it's unfair to read our contemporary concerns back into her 15th-century story, says Spoto. In this engaging and at times gripping biography, he examines Joan's life and particularly...
Author
Pub. Date
[1997]
Language
English
Description
Traces the final year in the life of Diana, former Princess of Wales, discussing her break with her husband, Prince Charles, her relationship with Dodi al-Fayed, her work on behalf of charity, and her attempts to make up for the restrictive years of her marriage.
Author
Language
English
Formats
Description
Laurence Olivier was the most famous actor of his century and one of the greatest of all time. His looks made him a matinee idol; his talent made him world renowned as an actor, director, and producer. From his stage roles as Hamlet and Archie Rice to his screen roles as Heathcliff and Henry V, his range was unparalleled. But beneath the glamorous image, Olivier was often lonely, confused, and plagued by self-doubts. In this revealing account, Spoto...
Author
Pub. Date
[2008]
Language
English
Description
The third volume in a trilogy exploring the life and work of the legendary director examines Hitchcock's life in terms of his relationships with the actresses in his films, including Ingrid Bergman, Grace Kelly, Kim Novak, and Tippi Hedren, in a study of his films, rise to fame and power, artistic legacy, unconventional marriage, and obsessions.
Author
Series
Language
English
Formats
Description
In Reluctant saint, Donald Spoto shows us a Saint Francis who transcends the image of Francis familiar to even the least religious among us. Spoto's unprecedented access to unexplored archives and the saint's own unpublished letters help reveal how Francis pioneered an entirely new historical movement, one that eventually slipped from his grasp. Spoto highlights Francis's position within the ecclesiastical, political, and social forces of medieval...
18) The girl
Pub. Date
[2013]
Language
English
Description
The story of iconic director Alfred Hitchcock's obsessive relationship with Tippi Hedren, his leading lady in The Birds and Marnie.