What do you think?
Rate this book
Barbara La Marr: The Girl Who Was Too Beautiful for Hollywood
Barbara La Marr's (1896--1926) publicist once confessed: "There was no reason to lie about Barbara La Marr. Everything she said, everything she did was colored with news-value." When La Marr was sixteen, her older half-sister and a male companion reportedly kidnapped her, causing a sensation in the media. One year later, her behavior in Los Angeles nightclubs caused law enforcement to declare her "too beautiful" to be on her own in the city, and she was ordered to leave. When La Marr returned to Hollywood years later, her loveliness and raw talent caught the attention of producers and catapulted her to movie stardom.
In the first full-length biography of the woman known as the "girl who was too beautiful," Sherri Snyder presents a complete portrait of one of the silent era's most infamous screen sirens. In five short years, La Marr appeared in twenty-six films, including The Prisoner of Zenda (1922), Trifling Women (1922), The Eternal City (1923), The Shooting of Dan McGrew (1924), and Thy Name Is Woman (1924). Yet by 1925 -- finding herself beset by numerous scandals, several failed marriages, a hidden pregnancy, and personal prejudice based on her onscreen persona -- she fell out of public favor. When she was diagnosed with a fatal lung condition, she continued to work, undeterred, until she collapsed on set. She died at the age of twenty-nine.
Few stars have burned as brightly and as briefly as Barbara La Marr, and her extraordinary life story is one of tempestuous passions as well as perseverance in the face of adversity. Drawing on never-before-released diary entries, correspondence, and creative works, Snyder's biography offers a valuable perspective on her contributions to silent-era Hollywood and the cinematic arts.
In the first full-length biography of the woman known as the "girl who was too beautiful," Sherri Snyder presents a complete portrait of one of the silent era's most infamous screen sirens. In five short years, La Marr appeared in twenty-six films, including The Prisoner of Zenda (1922), Trifling Women (1922), The Eternal City (1923), The Shooting of Dan McGrew (1924), and Thy Name Is Woman (1924). Yet by 1925 -- finding herself beset by numerous scandals, several failed marriages, a hidden pregnancy, and personal prejudice based on her onscreen persona -- she fell out of public favor. When she was diagnosed with a fatal lung condition, she continued to work, undeterred, until she collapsed on set. She died at the age of twenty-nine.
Few stars have burned as brightly and as briefly as Barbara La Marr, and her extraordinary life story is one of tempestuous passions as well as perseverance in the face of adversity. Drawing on never-before-released diary entries, correspondence, and creative works, Snyder's biography offers a valuable perspective on her contributions to silent-era Hollywood and the cinematic arts.
- GenresBiographyNonfictionFilm
464 pages, Hardcover
Published December 15, 2017
5 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 26, 2018
As someone who discovered "Hollywood Babylon" at a formative age, I grew up with a very definite idea of who I thought Barbara La Marr was. Drug addict, alcoholic, slept around...you know. The usual Kenneth Anger treatment. The woman who was "too beautiful," the one who took lovers like roses- by the dozen.
Barbara has been due for an in-depth biography for far too long, and we Hollywood fans owe Sherri Snyder a huge debt of gratitude for writing this penultimate piece.
She covers every bit of Reatha Dale Watson's life, finally pulling back the curtain on her youth in Washington (not Virginia, as she sometimes claimed), and with the help of letters in the possession of family and friends, has even lifted the mysteries of her early years with her dancing partner, Robert Carville, her early scenario writing for Hollywood, and above all, how she managed to dupe reporters, her fans, and everyone else by giving birth out of wedlock (and possibly violating her contract's morals clause), then adopting her own son and somehow keeping it a secret.
Best of all, for those of us who read this as a scholarly document, every fact is sourced. Reatha was a wild child (as a fellow Leo, with a birthdate only days from hers), I could definitely see those traits. She fell in love as often as she changed her shoes, it seems, and as a teenager, she was what we would have called a bad girl in high school. She loved being in love and she had a flair for drama in relationships (possibly bi-polar, I wonder?), but her heart was huge. She was generous to a fault, and she absolutely LOVED her son. Snyder's vivid descriptions of Barbara and the people in her life really made them leap off the page. With the perspective of those who knew her (and knew the people who knew her best), she is able to write intelligently about her career and her personality.
The chronicle of her last days broke my heart. When it comes to Hollywood bios, this is one of the best I have read. It's objective, and treats its subject with respect. In addition to all the posed portraits of her with the overdone bee-stung lips we often see, we are privy to casual snaps of her that really capture her natural beauty, sans duck face. There are several absolutely stunning pictures that changed my opinion of her from overdone, over-stylized, fashion maven to woman who made some unfortunate choices, but sure knew how to dress, and how to live life to the fullest. For all her faults, La Marr was a true marvel.
Barbara has been due for an in-depth biography for far too long, and we Hollywood fans owe Sherri Snyder a huge debt of gratitude for writing this penultimate piece.
She covers every bit of Reatha Dale Watson's life, finally pulling back the curtain on her youth in Washington (not Virginia, as she sometimes claimed), and with the help of letters in the possession of family and friends, has even lifted the mysteries of her early years with her dancing partner, Robert Carville, her early scenario writing for Hollywood, and above all, how she managed to dupe reporters, her fans, and everyone else by giving birth out of wedlock (and possibly violating her contract's morals clause), then adopting her own son and somehow keeping it a secret.
Best of all, for those of us who read this as a scholarly document, every fact is sourced. Reatha was a wild child (as a fellow Leo, with a birthdate only days from hers), I could definitely see those traits. She fell in love as often as she changed her shoes, it seems, and as a teenager, she was what we would have called a bad girl in high school. She loved being in love and she had a flair for drama in relationships (possibly bi-polar, I wonder?), but her heart was huge. She was generous to a fault, and she absolutely LOVED her son. Snyder's vivid descriptions of Barbara and the people in her life really made them leap off the page. With the perspective of those who knew her (and knew the people who knew her best), she is able to write intelligently about her career and her personality.
The chronicle of her last days broke my heart. When it comes to Hollywood bios, this is one of the best I have read. It's objective, and treats its subject with respect. In addition to all the posed portraits of her with the overdone bee-stung lips we often see, we are privy to casual snaps of her that really capture her natural beauty, sans duck face. There are several absolutely stunning pictures that changed my opinion of her from overdone, over-stylized, fashion maven to woman who made some unfortunate choices, but sure knew how to dress, and how to live life to the fullest. For all her faults, La Marr was a true marvel.
May 4, 2018
Loved this book which is a biography of a beautiful film star who died in 1926 at age 29. The author, Sherri Snyder, brought this vibrant woman to life during a presentation at the library. Her struggles with fame, men, alcohol and her health were all very interesting. I was fascinated by the stories of old Hollywood. Well documented and featuring many photos, it was a pleasure to read.
March 29, 2022
A very beautiful , considerate well researched biography
I enjoyed this read . I expected a “confidential” style expose. But this was written with so much dignity and consideration and a strong ring of truth. You get a good idea of the world in that time period and it’s displayed so beautifully that you escape easily into a world gone by. That is what a well written book does it’s no work to read you just disappear into the characters. This book introduced me to actresses I have never heard of from the teens and twenties most books give you the same names Bara, Pickford and Swanson . I found myself going to you tube after every chapter to hopefully see what remained filmed of their life. Sadly, very little but cross referencing Wikipedia confirmed Who they were and that was encouraging and gave me faith in this writer.
This is a great read it’s easy to read and a wonderful gateway into a world that is gone forever.
The author presented Ms. La Marr in such a way that you literally go the gamut of emotions for her life and her predicaments .
Personally, I hope to re read it again in a year or two as I do with all my book purchases
I enjoyed this read . I expected a “confidential” style expose. But this was written with so much dignity and consideration and a strong ring of truth. You get a good idea of the world in that time period and it’s displayed so beautifully that you escape easily into a world gone by. That is what a well written book does it’s no work to read you just disappear into the characters. This book introduced me to actresses I have never heard of from the teens and twenties most books give you the same names Bara, Pickford and Swanson . I found myself going to you tube after every chapter to hopefully see what remained filmed of their life. Sadly, very little but cross referencing Wikipedia confirmed Who they were and that was encouraging and gave me faith in this writer.
This is a great read it’s easy to read and a wonderful gateway into a world that is gone forever.
The author presented Ms. La Marr in such a way that you literally go the gamut of emotions for her life and her predicaments .
Personally, I hope to re read it again in a year or two as I do with all my book purchases
September 26, 2018
I thought this book was a great read and anybody that is interested in the 1920s and early Hollywood should enjoy it. Barbara La Marr lived an amazing life in her short time. Author, Sherri Snyder has presented a detailed account of her ups and downs in theater, dance and film. It not just the story of the the talented but mercurial La Marr but the wild times that she lived in. There were so many connections with both well known figures of the times and interesting characters who were not famous but influenced her life. This book is a well researched biography of an amazing woman that seems relevant today.
October 19, 2025
Sherri Snyder’s 'Barbara La Marr: The Girl Who Was Too Beautiful for Hollywood' is a beautifully written and meticulously researched biography that brings one of silent Hollywood’s most intoxicating stars vividly back to life. Snyder combines riveting storytelling with extraordinary archival detail — including never-before-seen diary entries — to illuminate both the myth and the woman behind the “girl who was too beautiful.” The book is also rich with stunning photographs that make it a visual feast. Any fan of early Hollywood or silent film history will be absolutely enthralled by this elegant, definitive portrait of Barbara La Marr. Highly recommended.
March 27, 2018
Competent and complete story of a star who was gone too soon. Only issue was that it was rather too long (when I saw she only had 2 years left to live, but there were 100 pages left in the book, I was a bit frustrated - and no, there weren't enough events/details to warrant all that length for how much time La Marr had left).
March 28, 2021
Beautifully written, this bio provides the complete and tragic life of misunderstood silent screen star Barbara La Marr. Years ago I read about Miss La Marr in Hollywood Babylon, a gossipy and mostly fictionalized account of many silent film legends. Here, the author provides information without judgement. Barbara La Marr was one talented lady. I'm happy that she has finally received her due.
February 25, 2025
1926
This is the most factual and entertaining book about a silent film artist I've ever read. If you have any interest in that era read this book. It wasn't all glamour. Barbara lived as real a life as you can imagine. She struggled against an industry that still mostly judges a woman by their waistline and box office.
This is the most factual and entertaining book about a silent film artist I've ever read. If you have any interest in that era read this book. It wasn't all glamour. Barbara lived as real a life as you can imagine. She struggled against an industry that still mostly judges a woman by their waistline and box office.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews