Customer Reviews

The Leading Men of MGM

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

Look no further than the introduction for exactly the kind of accurate, skillful research, editing and depth of this so-called film industry "history:" According to Ms Wayne, Clark Gable found true happiness married to Loretta Young who bore him a son. Such inaccuracy boggles the mind. Skip this, for nothing but further distortion can surely follow.

The first part of this book takes about Loretta Young marrying Clark Gable. Please. Never happened. It goes down hill. The audacity of her quoting conversations that celebrities in the privacy of their bedrooms. Was she the fly on the wall? I am so disappointed, I can't stand the money that I wasted on this junk. To the novice, it reads well. To anyone who knows anything about Hollywood, skip this !

I have to admit up front that I have not read Wayne's latest. In fact, I will never bother to open the book, nor have I done so for good reason: unfortunately, I spent good money on her 'biography' of Barbara Stanwyck. And enough said! I have no illusions about Stanwyck as a person; she was human and as such flawed - and necessarily many things to many people. The jury is still out on more than one issue. Nonetheless, Wayne's largely undocumented Stanwyck 'biography' would seem to be little more than an anti-Stanwyck diatribe. Even objective readers will quickly note her overwhelmingly pro-Taylor bias, as well as her 'obsession' with painting Stanwyck in a completely unrealistic, negative light. I cannot help but feel obligated to suggest that those who seek new and reliable information take care when treading Wayne waters. An avid Stanwyck/Taylor follower for over 4 decades, I would hesitate to place my trust in a great deal that she has to say.

This is another one of Jane Ellen Wayne's ridiculous collections of lurid gossip which when it is sourced it's usually not a credible source (ie: other book authors of her kind). Practically the only person spared is her pet Robert Taylor who she gushes over like a schoolgirl (she really goes after his wife of over a decade, Barbara Stanwyck, with some lewd episodes that are just ridiculous.) Avoid this book like the plague and look for better books on the various actors profiled here.

Anybody who buys any book by Jane Ellen Wayne is in for a shock and a surprise. Primarily, Ms. Wayne cannot get her own facts straight. In the introduction to "The Leading Men of MGM," she writes on page XVI that Clark Gable got drunk and struck a pedestrian in 1942, then later in the chapter on Gable, she writes on page 149 that the accident occurred in 1933. As juicy and appealing as her gossip is, this book reads like a bad alibi. She provides no documentation and she is so inept as a historian that she cannot maintain any kind of factual consistency. Don't buy this book if you really want to learn the truth about M-G-M, because the author spends too much time flip-flopping the facts. It is rather disturbing that the editors of Carroll & Graf didn't catch this HUGE error. I don't believe a word that this gossip-monger writes. Jane Ellen Wayne has zero credibility!

I am very disappointed in Ms. Wayne's lack of research and/or the lack of research by her editor. On page xvi, in the Introduction to THE LEADING MEN OF MGM, Ms. Wayne writes that Clark Gable's fifth wife was Loretta Young, who gave birth to Gable's son after Clark Gable had died. Mr. Gable was never married to Loretta Young, although they had an affair during the filming of "Call of the Wild". Miss Young gave birth to Gable's daughter, Judy Lewis, in 1935. Gable's last wife was Kay Williams Spreckels and she did, indeed, give birth to John Clark Gable after Mr. Gable's untimely death. In my opinion, this error at the beginning of the book does not bode well for the rest of it. Ms. Wayne's topic is fascinating to anyone who loves "old" Hollywood, her writing style is good, but the mistaken statement about Gable and Young leads me to dislike the book for its lack of integrity.

Just like some of the other reviewers, I DID NOT buy this book. Instead, I made use of my public library. And although it is an easy read, the book is a major hodge-podge of innuendo, rehashed rumors, and facts that may or MAY NOT be true! The latter is due to the simple reason that Ms. Wayne can't get her facts straight. She seems to be hung up on certain personalities (i.e, Robert Taylor), and certain themes (is he/she straight or gay?). Also, why the need to REPEAT anecdotes in overlapping fashion?!

During its golden years Hollywood had mega studio MGM. A wag might comment that it would be more accurate to say that MGM had Hollywood as this studio boasted the biggest, brightest stars. MGM men were top box office draws - Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart, Spencer Tracy, Robert Taylor, Frank Sinatra, and more. These handsome hunks had female hearts aflutter and cash registers ringing. On screen they were larger than life, stars As we learn from Jane Ellen Wayne's tell-all-in-graphic-detail expose, off screen they were often falling stars.

Keeping them in line was such a challenge that Metro-Goldyn-Mayer mogul Louis B. Mayer had a cadre of over 80 police officers on duty 24 hours a day. To protect the golden images of his male idols, Mayer shelled out. "City officials were paid well for their cooperation, discretion and silence in cases of disorderly conduct, adultery, drunken misbehavior, suicide, and even murder."

Mayer disliked homosexuals and wanted his matinee idols to be known as he-men. He went to any lengths to achieve this, even to convincing Evie Wynn to divorce her husband, Keenan, in order to marry Van Johnson. Johnson's career was saved and the pair remained married for two decades until a chorus boy won Van's heart.

However, Mayer also knew that he couldn't keep his men away from houses of prostitution, so he provided one for them "to prevent them from contracting a social disease or getting a one-night stand pregnant." Ladies of this "cat house" were starlets who didn't make the grade. They were checked frequently by studio doctors to ensure their health and cleanliness.

For these tactics and more Mayer was detested by some and admired by others. Whatever one thought of him, his was the largest and most successful movie studio in the entire world.

Devoting some 40 pages to each male star, Ms. Wayne details their career, offers a filmography, and dishes, dishes, dishes. Some of it is recycled gossip, much of it is new (at least to this reader). Most know that Elvis Presley popped pills by the palmful. How many know that he had a foot fetish and "loved to fondle and suck women's toes"?

We learn that Jimmy Stewart was shy and stuttered. At one time he was completely captivated by Norma Shearer but was too embarrassed to be seen riding around in her yellow Rolls-Royce so he always slumped down in the back. She gifted him with a gold and diamond cigarette case but, ever the picture of humility, when she asked him for a cigarette, he pulled out a crumpled pack of Lucky Strikes.

What else is there to say about `Ol Blue Eyes? Plenty, according to this author. He once attempted suicide, and although worth millions when he died left his first wife, Nancy, only $250.000. And, there was the night in Indio, California, when he and Ava Gardner "shot up" the town with his 38s. And, they said theirs was true love. Sinatra once described himself as having "an overactive capacity for sadness and elation." An understatement?

Author Wayne has left no stone, story or starlet unturned in telling the intimate stories of "The Leading Men of MGM."

- Gail Cooke

I found this book at my local library, and before I started reading it, I checked out the reviews here. After reading the several reviews stating the author made outrageous claims and had her facts wrong, I decided to go ahead and read the book, but to beware of what I was reading.

I've come across a few mistakes and have picked up on the author's bias toward and against certain people and themes. And like other reviewers, I find it interesting that she's offering quoted conversations between people...how on earth did she know what was said?

Despite the mistakes and attitudes, I enjoyed the book. It gave a quick glimpse of several stars I haven't yet read up on. Now that I've read a little bit, I plan to read their biographies, if I can find them at my library. I also plan to look for her leading ladies book as well...however I'll read it with the same grain of salt.

I count myself as lucky that I did not purchase this book- I took it out at my local library and am I ever glad I didn't invest any money in this junk. Not only are there several typos, but the author did no research in writing this book. So many of her statements are inaccurate that it is laughable! . One notable error is on page 406, it states `Elvis fans are still faithful to him. Every year on his birthday, 9 January and on 16 August, the anniversary of his death they hold a candlelight vigil at Graceland....'

Well, as a lifelong Elvis fan, I can tell you that his birthday is January 8, 1935, not January 9! This mistake which is pretty major made the rest of the information in the book suspect. As others have noted there are many other mistakes, and there should not be such blantant errors from an author who professes this is 'a must for film buffs'. Don't bother wasting your money, there are many better books on similar subjects.