Customer Reviews

Crowned Heads

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I read this when it first came out, having read Tryon's THE OTHER and HARVEST HOME. I'd also been a fan of Tryon's throughout his career with as the lead in "I Married a Monster From Outer Space," with Disney ("Texas John Slaughter" TV series, "Moon Pilot," etc.) and his subsequent films, especially "The Cardinal". He was a great actor. I was bowled over when he quit Hollywood to become a writer, but I'm so happy he did! After the failure of his only marriage, Tryon had a number of homosexual affairs, including one with gay porno star Casey Donovan from 1973 to 1977. Tryon reportedly broke off the relationship as he was uncomfortable being associated with Donovan's fame as a gay porno star.

This is an interesting collection of somewhat related tales that is definitely worth reading. I'd bill it as Tryon's best work after THE OTHER and HARVEST HOME. One story explores the mystery of a seemingly ageless actress. Another is apparently based on gay movie and stage actor Clifton Webb's life-long, love-hate relationship with his mother. But it is the final tale of the four that is the most moving and horrific. It's even more horrific as it is based on a true story, the violent death of silent film star Ramon Novarro. Novarro had several sexual encounters with, most famously, Rudolph Valentino, a Hollywood friend and contemporary "sex idol" of the silent screen. Valentino gave Novarro a jewel-studded dildo, which plays a role in the sad and gruesome tale of Novarro's murder in the 1960s in the hills of Los Angeles. Call this tale horror, but it's based on a very real horror and tragedy.

I highly recommend the book, in particular the final tale.

These stories are realistic about the dark underside of Old Hollywood glamour. There are four stories altogether, and the most interesting one is the last one, about an old actor's intense relationship with his mother. However, I had to skip parts of it as the murder details are quite grusome.

Tryon had an excellent sense of what makes people tick and I had trouble putting this book down.