Customer Reviews

Alice Faye: A Life Beyond the Silver Screen (Hollywood Legends)

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I was absolutely delighted to see that someone finally took the time to write a book about this lovely lady. Alice Faye was one of the best performers to come out of 20th Century Fox and this book is a long overdue profile of her career as well as a revealing study of her life.
Written with the full cooperation of her daughters Alice and Phyllis, it is surprisingly objective and isn't one of those saccharine biographies often authorized by family members after a person's death. It presents an interesting portrait of Faye. There is the public Alice who was seemingly very accessible to her fans. The private Alice is a woman with a bitingly sarcastic sense of humor who could be a warm and caring friend, but always sort of held back and had few intimate friends.
What I found most interesting was some of the things discussed in the book such as her relationship with Rudy Vallee (where they ever romatically involved?), her interesting yet enduring marriage to Phil Harris (a strange dynamic here, but it worked), her reticence to discuss family history with her kids.....all these elements made her seem a lot more interesting than what appeared on the surface.
While I can't say that this book answers all the questions surrounding Alice Faye, it certainly has made a solid attempt to try to present the facts that are known and letting the reader draw his/her own conclusions.

Good things do happen to good people! In Ms. Elder's comprehensive biography of Alice Faye's we experience a young girl who emerges from a broken and impoverished home unscarred and loving. Her dreams of becoming a dancer place her in an atmosphere of traveling bands and their leaders, one night stands, and the New York night club scene, and in this atmosphere where so many others lost their ideals, she enjoys the friendship and respect of all her co-workers, male and female, as well as success.. She enters the Hollywood movie arena of the 40's and 50's, where Mr. Zanuck and moguls of the movie studios try to dictate movie roles to her, yet she holds fast to what she inherently knows is correct and triumphs. And when she knows the time is right for her to quit show business and begin a private life, she does so and has many happy years with her family in a good marriage.

Ms. Elder's excellent writing maintains a balance between the career of Ms. Faye and the social and business environment in which she found herself. Indeed, this book gives splendid insight into the world of show business, from the early night club scene in New York to the developing Hollywood movie business with its contract players, radio broadcasts, and the early days of television. Of particular interest is the role of the newspaper reporters and the film magazines, as well as the role of the movie studios' publicity departments.

This is an all-round interesting book, well researched and documented. I felt I really knew Alice by the end of the book, and admired her strength and values.

Alice Faye was an ordinary woman who led an extraordinary life. In this well researched, lucidly written biography, Jane Lenz Elder explores the many contradictions of Alice Faye: her struggles with stage fright and poor self image despite her enormous stage presence and success, her commitment to marriage and family despite a busy professional life, and her courageous willingness to act in her own best interests in a day when performers were expected to conform to the rigid codes of the Hollywood contract system.

But this book is more than just another biography of a silver screen legend. Ms Elder's background as a historian is evident in the detailed background provided. The reader will learn about the difficulties of life in Hell's Kitchen in the early years of the 20th century, how Prohibition created the night club milieu in which Faye developed her skills, and how business was conducted during the heyday of the great Hollywood studio chiefs.

The result is a rich story about a simple woman during one of the most interesting times in Hollywood history.

Alice Faye deserved the best and with this biography she got it. The author has captured her reserve, talent, wit and determination beautifully. The fact that Faye's daughters and friends participated so willingly is testament to the star herself and the tact with which her story has been put together. Most impressively, the author has captured the milieu in which Alice Faye developed and this makes for a fascinating insight into New York during the depression.

All of her films are described in detail with a real feel for the pressures with which the actress dealt as she emerged as a superstar and from which she eventually walked away. Her relationship with husband Phil Harris is also analysed and it is a case book study in how 2 people make a life together - commitment, independence, humour etc. Faye's unexpected and extraordinary re-emergence into the limelight in her seventies as a spokeswoman for Phizer Pharmeceuticals is also included. As the author states, her elderly years were truly golden as she worked in a meaningful job and enjoyed her family and grandchildren. The text is sprinkled with quotes from Faye herself, cribbed from her semi-autobigraphy and there are plenty of direct quotes from her daughters.

The author's prose is low key, like its subject. There are a few examples of minor editorial errors but the story is easy reading. By the way, don't expect anything salacious or gossipy because Faye was neither herself. The only disappointment is that there are only a few photos.

Sadly, Alice Faye seems to be forgotten these days. She made some major pictures in the 30's and early 40's but, as she never had a comeback role, today she has been replaced in historians minds with Betty Grable (ironically, Ms. Faye led the way for Betty).

This book is a fast, easy read which starts off by explaining that Alice Faye was never a very reliable source for historical data about her own life. Once you know that, a few omissions here and there do nothing to take the reader away from the fascinating person that Alice Faye must have been.

Details about her, her movies and her personal life are told to the readers in an informative, respectful, manner. From her start in films through her abrupt self-dismissal from Hollywood, you feel you really know (and like) the woman. Her marriage to Phil Harris, their radio show and the final years of her life are also carefully told.

This is what a book should be and I highly recommend it.

Though a pretty good deal of factul biographical information is missing regarding Ms. Faye's youth, especially concerning her father who clearly played a significant early role, this meticulous bio answers pretty much all the questions a Faye fan would have. One really feels as if they know Alice Faye by the end and having her complete film and discography is always useful (she only ever did one stage show!). Funniest bit: Upon meeting Alice Faye for the first time, a starstruck Betty Grable said, "You have eyes just like a cows."!! Awesome.

This is the only complete biography of Alice Faye written since her death in 1998. To those who admire Alice Faye it is a very well researched and interesting book covering her entire life. But the pictures in the book do not do her full justice. The best book there is The Alice Faye movie book,

Book is about one of Hollywood's sweetest gals. What a voice!

Too bad this book is so hard to read and the author inputs too much of their own opinion. I couldn't finish it, sold it.

Frankly, I was disappointed in this book about the late Alice Faye. I was so thrilled to finally see a biography on her and it really let me down. Check it out of the library but don't buy it!

Frankly, I was disappointed in this book about the late Alice Faye. I was so thrilled to finally see a biography on her and it really let me down. Check it out of the library but don't buy it!