Fred MacMurray [Paperback]

Charles Tranberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 2007

Fred MacMurray was one of the most durable stars in motion picture history. Fred arrived in Hollywood in 1934 and within a year he was one of the top leading men in the movie industry. He was the leading actor or one of the leads in films through 1973 when Walt Disney Studios released his final starring role in a motion picture, Charley and the Angel. Thirty-nine years - five separate decades. Few stars have equaled that distinction. Of course every star career has its peaks and valleys. The initial peak of Fred';s stardom was from his days as a Paramount leading man, beginning in 1935 and running roughly until the end of the Second World War. Like many aging stars, the post-war years were a mixed bag for Fred. Public tastes were changing and the kind of frothy, romantic comedies which had been his forte were going out of fashion. But he persevered and continued to do leading roles in a variety of pictures and from time to time found a film which registered strongly with film audiences and critics alike, such as The Egg and I (1947), and especially The Caine Mutiny (1954). By the mid 1950s Fred was appearing, increasingly, in that favorite genre of the aging leading man - the western film. Eight of ten films he made between 1955 and 1960 were westerns, not Fred's favorite genre. But they did keep his name before the public. Then in 1959, Fred began the second peak of his career thanks to Walt Disney, who cast Fred in his studios first live action comedy film, The Shaggy Dog. Incredibly this film which was made for under $1 million became the third biggest box office hit of that year, and Fred found a new audience. Over the next several years, Fred starred in a series of hugely popular family films for the Walt Disney Studios. Then in 1960, Fred did something that solidified his new family friendly image. He accepted the lead in a new television series called My Three Sons. For the next twelve years he played Steve Douglas, a widower with three rambunctious sons. Fred became THE quintessential father figure for a new generation of kids. In accepting My Three Sons Fred succeeded at something that few film actors had achieved up to that time. He became a star in both television and motion pictures. Look at it this way. In 1951 when Lucille Ball began I Love Lucy she had already spent nearly two decades as a motion picture actress, but she never had the kind of movie fame that Fred MacMurray had achieved when he became a television star. Loretta Young began a long running anthology series in 1953, and had been a popular, and Academy Award winning, movie actress prior to that, but when she began on television her days as a film actress were over. When Fred began doing My Three Sons in 1960, he was enjoying a rejuvenated film career thanks to the Disney films and his superb performance in Billy Wilder's hugely popular and Academy Award winning The Apartment. Fred was simultaneously enjoying popularity on both the big and small screens. Many film actors attempted this after Fred, including his contemporaries Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda, but both proved failures in their own series.

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

This book is based on over four years of research and dozens of interviews with friends, associates and family. The book also includes over 70 photographs.

About the Author

Charles Tranberg is the author of I LOVE THE ILLUSION: THE LIFE AND CAREER OF AGNES MOOREHEAD and NOT SO DUMB: THE LIFE AND CAREER OF MARIE WILSON. He is currently working on a book regarding THE THIN MAN movies which starred William Powell and Myrna Loy. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

Product Details

• Paperback: 392 pages
• Publisher: BearManor Media (September 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593930992
• ISBN-13: 978-1593930998
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,058,152 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Charles Tranberg is the author of books on Agnes Moorehead, Marie Wilson, Fred MacMurray and the Thin Man Films. He also contributes to Classic Images and Films of the Golden Age. He is currently at work on biographies of Robert Taylor and the Disney Studios. Tranberg has a degree in Marketing and lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Solid Offering from author Tranberg, February 4, 2008

By 

Scott O'Brien (California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fred MacMurray (Paperback)

One of the biggest challenges facing biographers who venture into telling the stories of stars from Hollywood's Golden Age is getting input from former co-stars and co-workers - most of whom are no longer with us. Charles Tranberg has accomplished a difficult task admirably. MacMurray's biography is filled with ample commentary from actors, producers, and directors who worked alongside him in films and television. Although MacMurray may have referred to himself as a "boring" subject, this biography is anything but. Background details on some of MacMurray's classic offerings (Alice Adams, Double Indemnity, The Caine Mutiny, The Apartment) make for a very interesting and informative read. Tranberg acquired interviews with MacMurray's TV sons, who give an honest portrait of a talented if often insular man. MacMurray's children were also involved with the telling of this story and they detail their father's passion for the outdoors and their ranch-life in Sonoma County California. Nicely illustrated, this is a wonderful addition for anyone's film library.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Movie Star Next Door, November 14, 2007

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Bookreader (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fred MacMurray (Paperback)

Film and TV star Fred MacMurray brought an amiable, breezy charm combined with a rock solid Middle American integrity to most of his many roles. When you watched Fred in his earliest roles, his Disney films, or his TV series "My Three Sons", you liked him and you believed in him. The same qualities are found in Charles Tranberg's new biography. Charles brings solid scholarship and an entertaining and fast moving style to the subject. This is to be expected of the author of the award-winning Agnes Moorehead bio. "I Love the Illusion." I'd say if he could read the book, Fred himself would slap Charles on the back paternally and say, "Good goin', Chuck!"

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great resource on a terrific actor, January 2, 2008

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Melanie's Review (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fred MacMurray (Paperback)

This book was a quick and easy read. It's loaded with information about Fred MacMurray's life and is presented in a clear chronological order with a good assortments of photos, much like Tranberg's Agnes Moorehead biography. It's clear a lot of research and interviews took place to amass this collection of data on my favorite Disney dad. I'm always glad to read when an actor is how I imagined them to be in real life. MacMurray's life story will not disappoint fans.