Wlds Greatest Hollywood Scandals

by John Marriott

Genres: Nonfiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1989

Reviews

[Carmen Tudor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Every bit as trashy as it sounds, but really quite entertaining and short enough to get through in an afternoon's reading. I particularly enjoyed the sections on early gossip rag queens Louella Parsons and Hedda Hopper, and would have liked more information on those two and the nefarious means by which they acquired (or blackmailed or simply fabricated) their tales.

All of the info here has cropped up in, or continues to be expanded upon in, other titles. This one's more for fun, I'd say, and not geared toward serious insight into Hollywood's golden years or the stars we all continue to worship.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I'm going into a book knowing it's going to be inaccurate and sensationalised, I want it to be entertaining- this was a dry read despite the stories being in bite sized paragraphs. Really difficult to achieve this with a book about old Hollywood, I was hoping for a 'Hollywood Babylon' esque book but was clearly disappointed.

[Pamela Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mostly enjoyable book, the stories were, from way before my time, and I found some of them to be fascinating. However, the book had a tendency to jump from one subject matter to the next with little to no structure, which at times made it very hard to follow. It's also written in a way that probably wouldn't be allowed in this day and age so brace yourself for that aspect to it.

[Melissa Stretton]

DNF PG 50. Some stories were good but just felt a bit boring.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This melodramatic and sometimes utterly jaw-dropping exposé on the most scandalous affairs in Tinseltown's ironically movie-like, colourful, and undoubtedly grotesque history conjures up controversial tales (from portentous young luminaries doomed from the start, kinky sex scandals right from the pages of a erotic Sylvia Day novel, sad, sad wash-ups desperate for their fame once more, and often hilarious rivalries such as Joan Crawford and Mercedes McCambridge's, born out of "Mommie Dearest"'s creepy paranoia.) Some particular highlights are the stupendous wow moments that Lupe Vélez gives us (her uncanny ability to scrap with the boys, her unforgettable death) and the ousted pervert Lionel Atwill.

[Shahrun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure when I actually read this. It is a collection of short surprising chapeters about scandals going on in Hollywood.