Silver Screen Book Club discussion

Graceann wrote: "I loved the Biograph Girl so much that I bought myself a second copy after giving the first one to a friend. I read it after reading (and loving) his biography of William Haines.

I am glad I am not the only one who enjoyed Wisecracker by William Mann. I found it an interesting look at how an openly gay actor was treated in the early days of Hollywood. whilst there are a lot of 'hatchet job bios' available I think the majority of readers are smart enough to realise the difference and take some books with a grain of salt.
As Kuriztee stated earlier - At the end of the day, everyone is a liar, but a good book is a good book! :)

I'm Connie from Iowa City. I love all movies starring Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Kathrine Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, and Tom Ewell. I love to watch Hitchcock movies. I like Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplain but it's getting harder to find their films to watch around here. Two of my favorite recent movies that artistically remind me of some of the best of the Hollywood classics are The Diving Bell and the Butterfly and Whiplash.

Hello, I am Amy from Hollywood, CA. I am currently reading- Ann Dvorak, Hollywood's Forgotten Rebel by Christina Rice,(Its really good). My Favorites are Jean Harlow and Lana Turner. Looking forward to this group!

I'm Rodney from Cincinnati. Big fan of comics, radio, movies and classic TV. Movie tastes tend to skew toward the B level but will be staring the Dietrich book here shortly. Always glad to meet new folks with common interests.

Hi I am Bill from Cumberland Rhode Island. I am interested in B movies and the must see moives. I recently read What ever happened to Baby Peggy, the first child star by Diana Serra Carey. Well worth a read. I am very glad to hear from you people.

Hi, all, new member Bob Birchard here. Robert S. Birchard in print, and I write about film history with books like CECIL B. DeMILLE'S HOLLYWOOD, KING COWBOY: TOM MIX AND THE MOVIES, SILENT-ERA FILMMAKING IN SANTA BARBARA and EARLY UNIVERSAL CITY, as well as parts of others, and over 100 articles for various magazines. Looking forward to participating with this group.

Cyndi wrote: "I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Cyndi and I live in Los Angeles. I can't remember when my fascination with old Hollywood began. Perhaps it was a book about Shirley Temple or Marilyn Monroe? I rec..."

Cyndi, I don't have the details at hand, but there are going to be some guided tours of the rest home where Marilyn's mother resided later this month (April 2015).

That's somewhat surprising. Are people really interested in the rest home that Marilyn Monroe's mother lived in? That seems several steps removed from anything that would be interesting. It would be like taking a tour of the grocery store where Spencer Tracy's sister shopped.

Rockhaven is an historic site, slated to become a park, but currently inaccssible except for ocasional guided tours. Since Cyndi went to the trouble to visit the site without being able to get inside, I thought she might be interested in knowing that some tours are upcoming. So, the information doesn't float your boat? No need to criticize those who might want to tour the historic sanitarium.

Well, to be fair, you didn't say it was a "historic sanitarium". You just said it was the place where Marilyn Monroe's mother lived.

To be equally fair, I was addressing the comment specifically to Cyndi, who would know what I was writing about as she mentioned the place in the post I was responding to.

Hello everyone, and thank you, Samantha, for inviting me to join. My name is John, and I live in Ohio. My favorite TV channel is TCM. I love to read biographies of classic actors and actresses. Some of my screen favorites are Barbara Stanwyck, Ruth Hussey, Chester Morris, John Garfield, Henry Fonda, Cary Grant, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, Edward G. Robinson, Dana Andrews, Jimmy Stewart, Gene Tierney, Hedy Lamarr, Greta Garbo,and Jean Arthur, among others, as well as my all-time favorite actress, Audrey Hepburn. Some favorite films are Laura, Stella Dallas, Dust Be My Destiny, The Wizard of Oz, Brief Encounter, You Can't Take It With You, any film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, The Magnificent Yankee, Detective Story, all of the Little Rascals and Three Stooges shorts and The Bad and the Beautiful, among many others. I am a professional librarian, and I work in a public library. I am very excited about joining the group and look forward to all the discussions. I hope someday to be able to attend one of the TCM conventions.

Hello members of SSBC. Charlie here, from CT, NYC, London/UK but now based in Los Angeles as a film-TV-book publicist.My PR credits include working at 20th Century Fox Film Corp, NBC Television (The Tonight Show) and book PR projects with publishers from Scribners to Random House to Simon & Schuster as well as new self-published/POD authors too.

My dad owned an 1800-seat movie palace near Hartford/CT where I grew up watching movies from THE THING to DOUBLE IDEMNITY to SOME LIKE IT HOT, etc.etc.etc. I often go the American Cinemateque in Hollywood and Santa Monica to attend retro film fests like their annual Film Noir series. Yesterday at the market I spotted Carol Lynley Of BLUE DENIN (1958)...no,I am not 'star struck'...I am so used to working in Hollywood that stuff no longer itches me. Rather, I am more drawn to appreciate film and the actors that create and contribute to good & lasting cinema. I also luv the 60s European "New Wave" films like L''ADVENTURA, REPULSION by Roman Polanski, among so many other titles.

I wanted to refresh this thread and say welcome to our newest members who haven't yet introduced themselves. Take a look around, vote in the poll, and I hope you will join us in our group reads. I am happy to have you!

Hi, I am Natalie. I just found this group. I also enjoy watching TCM . I have found that Movie Plex, WCTV2, (which is a local channel where I live), and the Retro network are also show a lot of good, old movies.
@Samantha: How are the books chosen?

Well I used to do a themed poll every two months and we would read the most popular choice together. However for several months I was the only person reading so I instituted a read-with-me-if-you-want system. That can change if there is enough interest.

Hi! I'm Erin. I love all things old Hollywood and I am obsessed with TCM. I look forward to getting to know you all and discussing The Golden Age of Hollywood.

@Samantha: Thanks for the clarification.

@Erin: Welcome!

Does anyone want to read Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn, or Natalie Wood by Gavin Lambert with me sometime in the next year?

Natalie, I read Enchantment, but wouldn't mind reading it again if you will read it. And I would like to read the Natalie Wood bio.

@John: Thanks. I don't know when I will get to those, though.
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Does any want to read with me?

I'll read about Kate. I've had that book for years but only read part of it.

@Samantha: Thanks. How about we try for reading sometime in this mid-to-late spring?

FYI: For some reason, I cannot seem to find a biography of Jean Simmons in the GoodReads database. Does anyone know if there was ever one written?

@Samantha: I am planning to request from the library tomorrow.

We can postpone it if you want! Sorry I was a bit hasty adding it.

@Samantha: Thanks for understanding.

Hi, I'm David. After many years working as a freelance journalist/copy editor in London, England, I recently bought a house somewhere much more affordable: my hometown of Hartlepool, on the north-east coast. Here, I edit British and Australian magazine articles from my home office (isn't technology wonderful?) and plot a parallel career as a writer of non-fiction books.

My parents, who were born in the 1930s, passed their love of films on to me when I was growing up in the 70s, so I was raised on 30s, 40s and 50s Hollywood. I've always had a soft spot for sci-fi and horror - classics like The Day the Earth Stood Still, and the Hammer movies produced in the UK - and in my youth, I'd read magazines that catered for geeks like me (Starlog and the like).

Of all the behind-the-scenes books I've read, my favourite has to be Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman, with its axiom that "nobody knows anything". I find that it works in politics, economics and many other areas of life, too!

I don't watch much TV, but we have Amazon Prime Video in the UK and a DVD/Blu-ray rental service, LoveFilm. In fact, I've set up a rudimentary home cinema, made up of a projector and an 80" screen on a tripod. When I first moved to London, it thrilled me that I could watch old movies on the big screen at the National Film Theatre. Now I do it most nights of the week in the living room of my new house.

Welcome David! Feel free to suggest some group reads and/or must-see movies for us.

Hi. My name is Crystal and I love, love, love classic hollywood! Looking forward to talking to others who love this era!

Hi Crystal, and welcome to the group. I'm always interested in what others are reading and watching, so please let us know what some of your favorite movies are, and what Hollywood related books you have read.

Hey Crystal! Welcome to the group.

Hello Crystal and welcome to the group!

Hi, I'm Angela and I wish I had found this group sooner! I love old movies, tv shows, radio shows, and if you saw the way I dress you'd probably think I'd time-traveled. Looking forward to giving and taking movie/book recommendations and just overall fun discussions :)

Welcome to the group, Angela. I enjoyed your first comment about what you have watched lately. I would definitely recommend watching Feud. (It just ended, but I hope you can find it On Demand or another way. It's outstanding, with two marvelous, poignant performances by Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange. I'm looking forward to reading more of your contributions!

Hello Angela, and welcome to the group!

Hi! Angela welcome to the group.

Oh, was it like a mini series? Hopefully I can find it somewhere like you suggested and watch it soon.

Yes, Angela, it was a miniseries; it started earlier in the year and ended on Sunday. I'm assuming it should be on DVD sometime in the future. I'm not certain if it will be on streaming or On Demand. I highly recommend it. After seeing it I want to read a biography of Joan Crawford, then one about Bette Davis. And if you get the Turner Classic Movies (TCM) channel, you should be able to find a fair number of their films. Of course, most of their movies are on DVD.

Angela, I checked and Feud is available On Demand, at least through my cable provider, Spectrum (formerly Time Warner). Six of the 8 episodes are available when I checked. I also looked into the DVD release, and there is no official date for its release, although Amazon is taking pre-orders for it. My local library system buys many TV series when they are available, so perhaps your nearest library system will do the same. In any case, try to watch it when you can; it's really well done and fascinating.

Will do. Thank you :)

Hi everyone! I'm Ann-Marie and I love movies, books, and TCM. Audrey Hepburn and Sophia Loren are among my favorite classic leading ladies. For leading men they are Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum. Looking forward to getting into fun reads and discussions here!

Hello and Welcome Ann-Marie!

Hello Ann-Marie and welcome to the group! I also love books, movies and TCM. Audrey Hepburn is my favorite actress. Looking forward to your comments and contributions.

Thanks, Erin and John! :)

Hi everyone! I love old films, mostly from the 1940's and 1960's. I was named after the movie Laura. My favorite actors are Vincent Price, Christopher Lee, and Peter Cushing. For actresses, I really like Joan Crawfords work and adore Bette Davis. Others I enjoy are Dana Andrews and Montgomery Cliff. They just don't make movies like that anymore!

Welcome, Laura! I think the film Laura is truly a classic. I'm a big fan of Dana Andrews as well, and Vincent Price was such a Renaissance man. He was excellent in Laura, too. It's so nice to have you join the group. I'm looking forward to your comments and contributions.

Welcome Laura! You've joined a great group.

Welcome to all our new members! I am happy you've found us and hope you share your interests and opinions with the group.

Hi from Italy. I am an avid classic noir movies fan but I generally like movies from the golden age of Hollywood.

Welcome, Rosenkavalier. Hi from Ohio, in the United States. This is a wonderful group that I am proud to be a part of. You will enjoy yourself here. I'm looking forward to reading your comments.