Customer Reviews

The Power of Glamour: The Women Who Defined the Magic of Stardom

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you've never read "The Power of Style" then you'll enjoy this peek into the lives of Hollywood Glams. But somehow this book lacked the cache' of the other. Perhaps it was not the writing (or perhaps it was), but the subjects themselves who disappointed. Unlike the subjects of "Style", the women of "Glamour" leave you unimpressed, and vaguely disturbed. Although they're somewhat entertaining, these women do not inspire imitation, but pity. Most of them were about flash, not substance. The lesson here is that it's definitely better to have style than glamor, and better to read about style, too.

Let me begin by saying that, as a huge vintage film fan, any book that features chapters devoted to both Norma Shearer and Kay Francis between its covers is perfect in my opinion. So now that you know that I am not an impartial judge, I have to tell you this book is fabulous. Annette Tapert did not focus on the cliche glamourous women, she focuses on the often times forgotten glamour girls, such as the aforementioned Norma Shearer and Kay Francis, as well as Dolores Del Rio and Constance Bennett. The book has fabulous photographs and a detailed biography of each glamourous woman. And, glamourous they were! All of the women featured here have left their mark on film and fashion through the years and deserve to be recognized as icons of glamour!

This is not only a lovely "coffee table book" but a great history of the world of fashion. The movie actresses profiled are truly what defines glamour and intrigue. The biographies are well written and add much insight into these beauties of yesteryear. A true delight for film buffs who are captivated by actresses who dressed for success. A book to be read over and over. The many breathtaking photos alone are well worth the price. Beautiful and mesmerizing, what today's actresses can only dream of.

What a questionable choice of individuals to represent "the power of glamour"! Strip these actresses of their films and studio photos and what do you have? Very little glamour indeed.

Author Tapert could have gained some much-needed insight by reading John Kobal's classic work "The Art of the Great Hollywood Portrait Photographers". It was Clarence S. Bull who gave us some of our most glamorous images of Garbo, George Hurrell who made Norma Shearer's and Crawford's faces shimmer, and Ernest Bachrach who photographed Dolores del Rio and Carole Lombard so that shadows played upon their lashes. It is such an injustice to pretend that these women created their own glamour (and I won't go into the influence of studio clothing designers and hair and makeup artists!). For example, it was Josef von Sternberg who created the image of Marlene (she was smart enough to realize his skill, shed the pounds he demanded and maintain that image). Tapert's choices are also very subjective -- how else could one consider Katharine Hepburn to be more glamorous than Hedy Lamarr?

Further, many common misconceptions are presented as facts, for example, that Lombard seriously questioned Gable's sexual performance (read Ethan Mordden's well-researched "The Hollywood Studios" for Lombard's iconoclastic tendencies), or the idea that Lombard was "curvaceous" (look at her shower scene in "My Man Godfrey" - she was very flat-chested indeed).

A major flaw with "The Power of Glamour" is that it forgets to discuss its topic - the power of glamour - and offers little more than a series of biographical chapters on some popular stars of the Golden Age of Cinema. It would have been so much more rewarding if Talpert had focused on the individuals behind these famous faces, the ones who worked silently in the shadows, just beyond the glare of the spotlights, who with skill and effort turned sometimes ordinary-looking women into the images of glamour that continue to haunt film fans today.

If you wish to read about glamorous images of film's Golden Age and the people who played a part in creating them, read John Kobal's "The Art of the Great Hollywood Portrait Photographers", a treasure of a book that is well worth owning.

I devoured every word of Ms. Taperts first book "Power of Style". when I read she was writing "Power of Glamour" I could not wait for it to come out. I was not disappointed. what wonderful insights into the lives and closets of some of hollywoods most beautiful women.

Tapert's book sets out a veritable feast of information about some of the most glamorous stars of Hollywood's golden eras. Great photos and entertainingly written text make this my favorite new book for gift-giving.

I thoroughly enjoyed this tome, to glamour !! I never knew the items, from which Ms. Tapert found. Yet , they kept me enthralled in for hours !! I enjoyed and shall recommend this tome, for all fashionados !!

This is a mesmerizing trip into the characters of eleven women who helped create the mythology of the Hollywood "movie star" and paved the way for all who came after. You'll read about some fascinating women - the real woman behind the "star" - and learn just how each one worked her own particular brand of magic. The beautiful photographs are not same old ones you see in every retrospective. Read about one "star" at a time and let her haunt your thoughts (and wardrobe decisions) for a few days before reading on!

I thoroughly enjoyed both of Miss Tapert's books, and hope that she is working on a third-perhaps on female writers who influenced style, such as Elinor Glyn, Jackie Susann and George Sand?

I was particularly pleased to see in this book actresses such as Constance Bennett and Kay Francis, who too often are overlooked. The only subject I might quibble with is Garbo, who was notoriously anti-style and anti-glamour in her private life. But that is a very small objection to a delightful and re-readable book!

The mere shame about this book is it limits the subject of analysis to the stars of the 30s. The book fails to give a full interpretation of glamour defined by Hollywood in the decades after the 30s. Who can bear the exclusion of such elegant ladies as Rita Hayworth, Ingrid Bergman, Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly when it comes to reflecting on the 'power of glamour'? I really think that the book cover should clearly inform readers with the message that only the stars of the 30s are covered so they would not be misled and feel cheated.

Anyway the book takes an intriguing look at those selected actresses ranging from household names (Greta Garbo, Katharine Hepburn) to lesser-known ones like Constance Bennet and Kay Francis in terms of delicious profiles and appealing pictures. A kind of riveting, breathtaking glamour you can't see anymore in today's so-called movie stars. How I wish to live in that time and witness how they impress the world!

This book will leave you for more and so, to the author: why not go further and do a book for each glittering decade of the Hollywood Glamour Era in the same fashion and layout? only the 30s is not enough.