The Father of Hollywood: The True Story [Paperback]

Gaelyn Whitley Keith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 6, 2006

>From the earliest silent films made by pioneering American filmmakers to the multimillion-dollar blockbusters of today, the movie industry of America has always had a home: Hollywood. But how did Hollywood itself get started? Who were the driving forces behind its creation and development - the visionaries and kingmakers who built the infrastructure of a worldwide industry but only received a fraction of the credit that was heaped upon the stars of the silver screen? Movie buffs nowadays have no idea that so much of what we take for granted about Hollywood was largely planned, designed, and built by Hobart Johnstone Whitley, an extraordinary individual who is not nearly as well known as he should be. 'HJ' was the primary developer of Hollywood, a central figure in attracting and keeping the talent needed to make such an ambitious project successful and, in turn, transform a formerly sleepy part of California into a hugely profitable and exciting industry. Gaelyn Whitley Keith's remarkable book, The Father of Hollywood: The True Story, goes a long way toward erasing the misconceptions concerning HJ's life and career, and paints a truly charming portrait of the man who lived a life that itself is worthy of a fine movie.

Editorial Reviews

Review

LOVED the book! It's a missing, ENDLESSLY fascinating link to the history of Hollywood. Thank you for researching and writing it!! I hope it's been widely well recieved, as it deserves to be. -- Ralph Eggleston, Director/Production Designer, Pixar Animation Studios

About the Author

Gaelyn Whitley Keith was raised in Manhattan Beach, California, a stone's throw from Hollywood. Gaelyn went to college at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in the early 1970's and spent the years after college traveling around the country and the world, writing short stories and working for South Bay Magazine. She has been awarded top honors in national writing competitions. Gaelyn discovered her longing to be a writer when she was a child listening to her mother's imaginative true stories about Hollywood. In adolescence, encouraged by English teachers who described her as a "born writer," she began writing her own stories, as well as keeping prolific journals that chronicled her experiences, both internal and external, a practice she has continued throughout her life. Today Gaelyn lives beside a lake in El Dorado Hills, with her husband Randy. She writes in a book-lined upstairs study where she can look out at the lake and wildlife. She is working on her new book, "The Father Of Hollywood: The Final Event." !

Product Details

• Paperback: 330 pages
• Publisher: BookSurge Publishing (November 6, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1419641948
• ISBN-13: 978-1419641947
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,285,681 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars H. J. Whitley was the Donald Trump of his day!, January 21, 2008

By 

Betty L. Dravis "BETTY DRAVIS, author/reviewer" (Silicon Valley, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Father of Hollywood: The True Story (Paperback)

Hobart J. Whitley was undoubtedly a visionary; a man ahead of the times. He not only developed 140 cities during his lifetime, he is the man who foresaw a lovely city near Los Angeles and used his considerable resources to develop and nurture it. He named his city Hollywood because ... Well, it's a humorous anecdote, so I'll let the author tell it in her own words; one of the most humorous lines in this book.

The author is the great-granddaughter of H.J. and she wrote this book from journals of her great-grandmother, Gigi Whitley, and personal letters from them both.

Mr. Whitley's story is fascinating, and we learn a lot about him since the author narrates the story through the eyes of Gigi. The couple married when Gigi was eighteen and he was around forty. One of the strong points of this story is their great, undying love for one another. It was obvious that Gigi knew her husband was destined for great things, so did her best to accommodate him at the risk of her own happiness.

Gigi was an independent spirit and unhappy with women's roles in those days, and H.J. felt that "women belonged in the home." Gigi finally won him over to a small degree. He "allowed" her to join women's clubs, so she at last had some freedom for which she had always yearned. Gigi loved H.J. so much that she worked with him on their differences; it seemed to work for them.

But another big problem in their marriage was that as soon as one town was developed to his satisfaction, H.J. would be off to another. Gigi wanted him to spend more time at home with her and the two children, but she tried to understand that building was his destiny, with Hollywood being his crowning jewel. H.J. was obsessed by his work and in today's terminology was a "workaholic." (He also developed the San Fernando Valley.)

Another strong point is that we learn about Hollywood's growing pains and how H.J. almost single-handedly fought for schools and other amenities that enabled the town to grow. And the old black-and-white photos are rare, greatly enhancing the mood of this fascinating, epic story. (One photo is of homes in Whitley Heights with a huge sign in the background, depicting that name in tall letters. (Could that be the model for the current HOLLYWOOD sign that's so famous around the world?)

Having mentioned the strong points, I must say that in the first edition of this book Gigi seemed shallow in many ways; she rambled on too often with long, glowing passages about flowers, parties, and her clothing. This slowed the story down for me and I found myself skipping many of those pages. The author mentions many stars of those days--including Rudolph Valentino and others who purchased homes in Whitley Heights--and the glamorous parties they had. Since the lovely cover was a glamorous photo of Actress Jean Harlow, I expected more "spice" to be woven into the plot...but actually, it's not that kind of book. The new cover is of H.J., Gigi and their children, an old tintype that fits the theme of this true story.

Since that edition, the author rewrote The Father of Hollywood: The True Story and now her Great-Grandmother Gigi is a much more likable person, as she undoubtedly was. This new version is much better paced too.

Author Gaelyn Whitley used the personal information in her possession to paint a true portrait of her amazing great-grandfather, the man who MADE Hollywood...and his extraordinary wife. This is an important piece of Hollywood history and would make a fine movie. H. J. Whitley was a true visionary and deserves to be better known...as is the town he built! I would also like to see his "star" on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This new edition definitely earns five stars!

Reviewed by: Betty Dravis, May 27, 2010
Author of "Dream Reachers" (with Chase Von) and other books

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book chronicles the birth of Hollywood and the west, October 31, 2007

By 

Beth Cholette "doctor_beth" (Upstate NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Father of Hollywood: The True Story (Paperback)

The title of this book refers to Hobart Johnstone "HJ" Whitley, the primary developer of Hollywood and many other towns in the American west in the late 1900s. HJ Whitley was author Gaelyn Whitley Keith's great-grandfather, but Keith chooses to write the book from the perspective of her great-grandmother, Gigi. With the help of Gigi's journals, Keith uses the first-person voice to take on her great-grandmother's persona and to offer an account that is part memoir, part history, and part love story.

The opening chapter of the book chronicles HJ's younger years, including his tragic childhood and his early business dealings. In Chapter 2, however, Gigi is introduced, starting with her first meeting with HJ. The story then serves to expand on their life together, from the early courtships days to their first homes in Dakota and Oklahoma to their eventual move to California. As their lives progress, so does HJ's role in western development, as he was an instrumental founder of many towns along the railroad line in the Dakota and Oklahoma territories. However, HJ and Gigi both shared the dream of living in California; once they realize this dream, HJ not only founds Hollywood but also ensures that it will be a thriving, growing community, eventually setting the stage for the movie industry.

I found this book to be an interesting glimpse into a part of American history with which I was previously unfamiliar. However, Keith's overly flowery, somewhat juvenile writing style tended to be a bit of a distraction at times: she is quite over-the-top in her descriptions of Gigi's beauty and charm, the extent to which Gigi and HJ are head-over-heels in love, and the scope of seemingly endless HJ's achievements. But given that the author is, after all, writing about her own great-grandparents, her rather biased presentation can be mostly forgiven here. For those willing to overlook the book's lack of sophistication, this is an engaging story about a little-known historical figure.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW!!!, September 7, 2007

By 

T Thomas (San Francisco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Father of Hollywood: The True Story (Paperback)

I finished the book a while back and WOW! So interesting to read how Hollywood/LA started out as 'nothing' and built up to what it is today. Very well done, interesting, entertaining and I still think would make a wonderful mini-series or 2 part documentary for the Biography channel!