Customer Reviews

American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood

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Eliot does a good overall job giving us Clint Eastwood the young actor with the struggles and conflicts that future legends must endure to make it. I learned a lot more about Rawhide especially in how the network used his contract to keep him from taking movie work even during hiatus. That struggle led to Clint doing Spaghetti Westerns, something the network figured wouldn't compete with his Rowdy Yates persona. Although Eliot doesn't address it, the reader can surmise that the network conflict gave him an opportunity of a lifetime. Maybe Clint never would have clicked in a conventional Hollywood career.

I had always considered Don Siegel a mentor to Eastwood, and although that is mostly true in Eliot's account, Clint was always itching to direct himself and other than their first pairing it was Clint that chose Siegel rather than the other way around. By their last teaming, they were no longer on the same page and their friendship was hurt as a result.

Eliot also has another contention that I had never heard. Eastwood was resistant to working with other big name actors, especially actresses, because he didn't like to be overshadowed. His pairing with Burt Reynolds was a power struggle between them both and Blake Edwards. Eliot suggests that his all-star cast in UNFORGIVEN was an all-out attempt at Oscar nominations. To me it didn't seem like Clint cared about such things back then making weak efforts like THE ROOKIE, and PINK CADILLAC. But in the last ten years it does seem like nearly every movie is directed squarely at the Academy so maybe Eliot is on to something.

I always heard that Eastwood shoots are lean, but I was surprised at how many movies, even long ones, that he shot in 30 days. It's one of the reasons he can make so many films at an advanced age.

I think Eliot has written the most thorough biography of Clint Eastwood yet, better than Clint Eastwood: A Biography by Richard Schickel and Clint: The Life and Legend by Patrick McGilligan when it comes to his overall life although Schickel does a better job on the actual films. The downside is that he spends too much time on his private life especially the Sandra Locke saga.

The story of Eastwood's personal life is well done, but I would have appreciated more on Eastwood's creative life as an actor and auteur. Most of his groundbreaking 1960s-1970s films receive a few pages of surface details but almost no analysis (Eastwood's or the author's) of his work or the creative process behind it. Surely a whiole book could be written about Eastwood's participation in those early Sergio Leone films. Presumably Eastwood had some thoughts about the characters, the scripts, the cinematic style? How about Eastwood participation in the box-office dud, "Paint Your Wagon"? The film is mentioned almost in passing, but the book's list of Eastwood-related musical recordings omits any reference to Clint's three songs on the soundtrack to the film, and the film is not even included in the book's index. The book is worth reading but it's not the definitive biography I had hoped for.

There is probably not a more iconic Hollywood figure today than Clint Eastwood, nor for that matter is there a more private one. Now, New York Times bestselling author Marc Eliot ( Reagan" The Hollywood Years, Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart) to a large degree demystifies Eastwood by putting carefully examining the movies he has had made and his life to date.

As Sondra Locke with whom Eastwood had a 14 year relationship said, "People can know him for years and never be sure of what he's thinking. He's one of the warmest people in the world, but there's a certain distance, a certain mystery to him." Readers will not discover Eastwood's thoughts but much light will be shed on his journey from college dropout/playboy to become one of the most successful and respected men in the film industry. It was a twisted path marked by 2 marriages and 7 children. His romantic liaisons were often with co-stars, and he once said, "There is only one way to have a happy marriage, and as soon as I learn what it is I'll get married again.

He's played many a tough loner and, according to Eliot, Eastwood was tough, hanging out in "seedy bars" and playing jazz piano in his younger days. Little would one think that the tall, lanky fellow who for over 7 years co-starred in TV's Rawhide and churned out spaghetti Westerns would one day be a multiple Academy Award Winner. But, he was and to paraphrase a song he did it his way.

Enjoy!

- Gail Cooke

Clint Eastwood has long been a favorite actor of mine, so when I heard about the new biography, I was anxious to read more about this amazing man. Boy did I learn a lot too! Despite the fact that Clint Eastwood was a womanizer, probably a lousy husband and a not very involved father, no one could say that the man did not have talent and that he worked hard to accomplish what he did in his 50 years on screen. Probably one of the most iconic stars in Hollywood, he starred in westerns, thrillers, drama, romance and comedies. Some other interesting facts for me were:

* He was married to just two women: Maggie Johnson (former swimsuit model) from 1953 - 1984) and his present wife Dina Ruiz (a former anchor woman and 35 years younger than him) from 1996 - present.
* He has (7) children from (5) different women: (2) from his first wife, (1) from his present wife, (2) from airline stewardess, Jacelyn Reeves, (2) with Frances Fisher, a British born American actress, and (1) by former exotic dancer Roxanne Tunis.
* He also had a (14 year) relationship with Sondra Locke who starred in several movies with him.
* Nominated for 5 Academy Awards and acted in more than 40 films.

Not wanting to give out too much information about Eastwood and his life, let me just say that, in my opinion, if you are an Eastwood fan and want to find out more details about him and his acting career, this book might be a good biography to start with. My understanding is that Clint Eastwood was not interviewed for this book, so the information contained within came from multiple sources and interviews. I cannot say whether the information is accurate or not since I knew very little about Eastwood prior to reading this book. I liked the book and would RECOMMEND it.

He definitely did do it his way, whether it is marriage, affairs, or career choices, according to prolific entertainment historian Marc Eliot, Clint Eastwood has always called his own shots. This is a gossipy biography, not critical nor intellectual nor even in too much depth about each picture. Instead, this book covers all the behind the scenes dirt, arguments, affairs, as well as an overview of each era of his storied career. Eliot recounts Eastwood's rise to the critical acclaim and award-winning status he enjoys now. Eastwood's career and image have shifted over the years, and Eliot documents each phase and attempts to explain it all. Don't look for a lot of depth, although I found this volume to be well researched.

Clint Eastwood emerges from this bio tattered yet victorious. Eliot reveals enough of the affairs and behind the scenes drama to make this a complete biography, but he doesn't languish too long. The lengthy relationship with Sondra Locke and resultant lawsuits are covered, and I believe, fairly. Eastwood projects extreme (at times) self confidence and self assurance, and against the advice of many and in spite of critics such as Pauline Kael, he has not only endured but triumphed. He has progressed from B-movies to TV to America's #1 box office draw yet critically panned to multiple Oscar nominee and winner, one of the industry's most respected figures.

Much like John Wayne before him, Clint Eastwood has become the personification of America to many, a different kind of post-Vietnam hero. Although this is a lightweight effort, Eliot does capture the essence of the man. I recommend this book as an Eastwood introduction and a valuable addition to the libraries of his most devoted fans.

There was a book published by Ominbus Press in 1977 called Clint Eastwood: All American Anti-HeroClint Eastwood, All-American Anti-Hero: A Critical Appraisal of the World's Top Box Office Star and His Films. This fan book traces Eastwood's career up to the Gauntlet in 1977. Although Marc Eliot's book American Rebel takes Eastwood up to present date, we as fans and readers, don't really glean any more insight into Clint Eastwood `the man.'
In fact, Clint Eastwood: All American Anti-Hero offers more social commentary on his work and the cultural impact of his films.
Marc Eliot paints a philandering, narcissistic portrait that Evelyn Draper (Jessica Walter's Borderline character in Play Misty For MePlay Misty for Me) would love to carve up. Do I personally want to know all the sordid, acrimonious details of Clint's split with Sandra Locke? No... leave that grist for TMZ gossip mill. Many times throughout the book Eliot glosses over an Eastwood film and then returns back to Clint's philandering, and after all the tumultuous affairs, the book ends with a "and they all lived happily ever after ending." If this were a screenplay, there would be many major plot holes. It's like the opening scene in High Plains DrifterHigh Plains Drifterwhere Eastwood dissolves into the scene on horseback, only American Rebel never fully pulls focus and leaves so much of Eastwood's life a blur.
Is Clint Eastwood an American Rebel? Sure, he lives his life on his own terms and his life personifies the all American dream, the Horatio Alger, rags to riches story... He has worked hard and once said that his father told him that "you don't get anything for nothing," and although Clint said he rebelled, he never rebelled against that.
He has an amazing story to tell... I only hope Clint Eastwood tells it in his own words one day...

As a fan of Clint Eastwood since `Rawhide' days, but still knowing very little about him, this book made for interesting reading. With that said, I cannot vouch for accuracy, but readability and style. The structure of the book is good and pleasingly laid out, making it easy and interesting to read. Each chapter starts with a black and white picture and Eastwood quote. Eliot deals with Clint's 3 personas: 1. The man with no name, 2. Dirty Harry, 3. The good natured red neck...all loners.
There is much written about Clint's myriad affairs and dalliances. There is some biographical information, and his time in the army is touched upon where he spent his hitch as a swimming instructor. There are some mentions of his love of jazz and piano playing.

Much of the book is written about his films and the surrounding events and happening with each of them. The book ends with his successful `Grand Torino' at age 78, after 50 years in the television and motion picture business.
Many pages have footnotes to further explain incidents or information about a person mentioned. The author uses many quotes from other articles and sources both of Eastwood's and his contemporaries.
The index is a bit difficult to deal with. For example you go to look up a movie title and they for the most part are not there, but you have to know to look under Eastwood, Clint (motion pictures) or else the name of the co star and the information will be listed there just not under a title itself.
Marc Eliot has written an interesting examination about one of the more private men in Hollywood .

American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood tells of a Hollywood icon and comes from a film historian whose biography provides a vivid account of actor Eastwood's life and career. This covers both his highs and lows, artistic successes and failures, and relationships between his life and career and pulls no punches in examining his ups and downs, offering insights into his life and work. A 'must' for any serious film biography collection and many a general interest lending library.

As a big Eastwood fan I was looking forward to reading this book.

The book is divided into three parts:
Part 1 - From Aimless to Actor - which follows Eastwood from birth until 1979
Part 2 - From Actor to Auteur - which takes place from 1979 to 1990
Part 3 - From Auteur to Oscar - which takes place from 1990 to 2009

The Good:
This book was a fascinating read and reminded me of Mr. Eastwood's body of work in-front and behind the camera. I knew that Eastwood is a cinematic genius and the book cemented that opinion. The book emphasizes the struggle which Clint Eastwood fights everyday during his life to maintain his independence and individuality from the Hollywood studios as well as society in general.

The Bad:
There is nothing new in this uninspiring book. Nothing which is not available on public record. Reading "American Rebel" was like reading a 330 page magazine article. There are no, or very little, anecdotes which make a biography worth reading and gain new insight into the Eastwood persona. The author doesn't make any new revelations, gives us any new insights and some of his commentary (the ones not quoted from other magazines) I found misguided.

The Ugly:
I don't really care how Eastwood acts in his personal life and the Entertainment Tonight (TMZ for you younger folks) style of "news" doesn't appeal to me, yet the author seems to thrive on this sort of gossip, sordid rumors and "he said - she said" court room dramas.
I know this type of information is part of any biography but does the reader really wants to spend reading pages of soap opera type public-record nuances which doesn't give us any insight into the subject's personality?

If you are an Eastwood fan you'd enjoy this book - if nothing else to remind you of the vast body of work he has done over the years.
Clint Eastwood's rags to riches lifelong adventure is an amazing American success story and he deserves a better book - maybe in his own words (I hope).

I would be lying if I said Marc Eliot's detailed biography "American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood" was boring. I was comfortably immersed for a couple of days and rarely put it down. There's some great information and, I must admit, I was not aware of Eastwood's numerous affairs and children out of wedlock. No matter. It's the man's career that fascinates.

As Eliot recounts Eastwood's first marriage to Maggie Johnson and his rocky affair with Sondra Locke, I toiled along waiting for the return to his films. I essentially grew up on Eastwood, with vivid memories of Two Mules for Sister Sara (1970) at the drive-in, The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) at the neighborhood theater, even Bronco Billy (1980) the day it opened at the beginning of a very long teenage summer. Having recently seen Gran Torino (Widescreen Edition) (2008) at the theater, I realized Clint had grown old before my eyes. Here was an actor (and director and producer and composer) who had continued to work during my entire lifetime, and it was deeply comforting to know some things still existed from childhood.

All of these warm memories come into play when reading Eliot's recent biography published in 2009. In some ways, I know each of Eastwood's films by heart, just as I know the works of other icons of the era including Paul Newman, Robert Redford and Jane Fonda. There are interesting perspectives to be discovered in Eliot's well-written book. His take on Eastwood's controlling nature when making films and his reluctance to work with other major stars is enlightening. His critical stance on the sexist nature of many of Eastwood's films goes against the grain of general critical opinion (Clint Eastwood and Issues of American Masculinity), but it's an interesting argument.

Eliot's long passages devoted to Sondra Locke (The Good, the Bad, and the Very Ugly: A Hollywood Journey) are interesting in that, the affair was an epic mess nearly destroying both careers. I never understood the teaming, as Locke was a limited actress and usually a glaring weakness in Eastwood's films. But she was a major part of his life, and Eliot's book does make sense of this murky drama.

What "American Rebel" substantially lacks is proper critical insight and analysis of his films. A glaring example (and this fault is repeated multiple times) is his coverage of A Perfect World (1993), one of Eastwood's finest films. He devotes two paragraphs of brief plot synopsis, but otherwise ignores the work entirely as if rushing towards a difficult deadline. In addition to the stunning lack of analysis, there's a peculiar, though modern, fascination with how well the movies performed at the box office combined with unnecessary detail of Academy Award presentations where Clint was in the running for the top prize. While I'm glad Eastwood was eventually acknowledged by the Academy (and it was a long time coming), I'm more interested in his individual films combined with his unparalleled progression from TV actor to action star to one of Hollywood's most gifted and unique directors.

Honkytonk Man (1982), granted one of Eastwood's lesser known efforts, was one of the earliest signs of the actor/director stretching his vision and attempting films away from the action genre. It is noteworthy for several reasons, but like White Hunter, Black Heart (1990), is brusquely brushed off by Eliot as being a box office failure and practically forgotten. Who cares how well it performed at the multiplexes? Artistically, it revealed early clues to Eastwood's maturation and dramatic expansion. Sadly, "American Rebel" is a by-the-numbers account of much of Eastwood's work, lacking an understanding of the progression of an overall career. I wanted more depth and less emphasis on the glitz of Oscar broadcasts.

Eastwood's career is so gargantuan, comparable in many ways to John Wayne's (The Quotable John Wayne: The Grit and Wisdom of an American Icon), it has consumed gossip, affairs and petty ego struggles. From decade to decade, Eliot should have devoted as much toil to the substantial evolution rather than catering to modern audiences obsessed with receipts and bed-hopping. An adequate work best suited for the unfamiliar.