Hollywood Kryptonite: The Bulldog, the Lady, and the Death of Superman [Hardcover]

Sam Kashner (Author), Nancy Schoenberger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 5, 1996

Two writers examine the evidence left by the late Hollywood writer and MGM executive Sam Myer concerning the death of George Reeves, and they conclude that the first Superman was murdered by a man named Eddie Mannix.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When George Reeves, who had achieved international fame by playing Superman for five years on TV, was found dead by gunshot in 1959, the death was officially recorded as a suicide. According to Kashner and Schoenberger (A Talent for Genius), however, unanswered details about Reeves's demise shroud what in truth was foul play. In this page-turning hybrid of bio and murder mystery, the authors entertainingly pick at the loose ends and point their pens at a killer. Reeves, they show, was hardly as wholesome as his TV image implied. His life was filled with hard-drinking men, manipulative women, mafiosos and a career that plummeted like a comet after The Adventures of Superman went off the air. The authors set down this B movie-style tale with hard-boiled relish. They introduce archetypal sleazebag characters with an entertaining terseness?"Eddie was a tough guy with a heart of tungsten"; "Leonore Lemmon wore the reddest lipstick in New York"?that occasionally veers into cheap Hammett imitations. The well-articulated backdrop of low-budget TV production only enhances the cheesy milieu, however. By laying out Reeves's life before solving the mystery of his death, the authors present the equivalent of a crisp black-and-white TV docudrama, and manage to evoke all the irresistibly creepy nostalgia of a bygone era. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

George Reeves, a failed movie actor, found a measure of fame playing Superman in the 1950s television series. He also achieved notoriety when he was found shot dead in his home in June 1959. Public officials ruled it a suicide, but the authors think otherwise. In researching a biography of Oscar Levant (A Talent for Genius, LJ 5/15/94), they came across material that led them to delve into Reeves's tangled life. At the time of his death, Reeves had just ended a long-running affair with the wife of a powerful executive, who knew and tacitly approved. The authors posit that Reeves was murdered on the orders of the executive, incensed by Reeves's treatment of his wife. Even at 200 pages, this book seems clearly padded, and the writers' attempts at colorful prose are embarrassing. Still, the story is oddly compelling. For larger collections.?Thomas J. Wiener, "Satellite DIRECT," Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 207 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1st edition (October 5, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312146167
• ISBN-13: 978-0312146160
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #538,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hollywood Kryptonite keeps you prisoner until the end, November 6, 1997

By 

Gypsychick "gypsychick" (miami, fl USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hollywood Kryptonite: The Bulldog, the Lady, and the Death of Superman (Hardcover)

Born the year Superman died, I still grew up watching George Reeves save the world. I picked up the book not because I was especially interested in the story but because of the slick cover (raised on "Sesame Street", colors are an intricate part of my literary existance). It's a helluva book. The reconstructed story of everyone's favorite hero is gripping and heartbreaking. From his bright beginnings in "Gone With The Wind" to the grim realization he would never play anyone but Superman, not even himself, you will be possessed by this sad story. His childhood, controlling mother, absent father, domineering mistresses, and twisting life paths were told in a fascinating and novel-style manner. I kept hoping for more concrete documentation regarding Reeves' death, but the compelling details which do exist insure you will never again think of The Man Of Steel as a suicide victim, but perhaps instead a true victim. Read this book!

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than Hollywoodland, September 22, 2006

By 

Marvella (United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Hollywood Kryptonite: The Bulldog, the Lady, and the Death of Superman (Hardcover)

The movie Hollywoodland is great and brings out interesting theories of George Reeves death and now that I've read this book I realize where they come from. However, the movie left out a lot of the circumstances concerning his strange death because they wasted too much time on the fictional private eye. Actually Reeves' mother and her lawyer did hire a private eye, but this story dwells on all the participants in George's life, and their histories and lives, not on the story of one person investigating his death. It's all here and more. Of course no one has the final answer, but this goes through all the background information and theories. It's a great behind the scenes mystery of Hollywood in the 50s. A very interesting read, indeed.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Hollywood-Noir, January 5, 2007

By 

M. Wesley (Phoenix, AZ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hollywood Kryptonite: The Bulldog, the Lady, and the Death of Superman (Hardcover)

If you liked LA Confidential, you'll find this book quite an enjoyable ride! Some reviews elsewhere bagged on the Noir-ish, hyped up language, but this subsides after the first few chapters. As a child, I had been told by my grandmother that George Reeves had shot himself and this placed a bit of a stigma on this hero of my youth. This book does a great job of showing George's behind-the-scenes life and provides a great back story to the big mystery . . . did he or didn't he? I had a pretty strong opinion prior to reading this but I found myself flip-flopping a few times during the course of the book. I have passed this one around to my wife and relatives and all have enjoyed it. Its an intersting look at Hollywood and the birth of TV and the subject matter is interesting enough to make this a great "beach book". Even Hollywood history is great escapism. The only disappointment is not being able to hold out hope for a different ending for my hero.