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Rita Hayworth: A Photographic Retrospective

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"Rita Hayworth: A Photographic Retrospective" features a zillion photographs, many never before published, of one of Hollywood's most enduring sexual icons.

The book was a labor of love for author, historian and collector Caren Roberts-Frenzel of Minneapolis, who reportedly kept pestering publishers for years to get their attention.

"But you're wrong, Rita has not been forgotten," was her mantra, as skeptical publishers elsewhere wondered aloud if a market remained for a book about one of the great beauties of the 1940s.

Caren's persistence finally paid off, resulting in one of the most luxurious "picture on every page" books ever produced, supplemented by breezy, well-written and information-packed text.

Unlike "been there, done that" books about Hayworth, this one specializes in numerous "candids," that is, unposed photos taken outside of the studio, at work, at play, on the set, whatever.

For once, here's a volume that doesn't feature the same darn publicity photos you've seen a million times for sale on the Internet or at flea markets.

The deal about Rita is man oh man, unlike sexy sirens named Grable or even Monroe, Hayworth's beauty is timeless and undated. Unless someone told you, you'd never know, for example, that her world famous pinup shot -- taken on the bed by Life Magazine photographer Bob Landry -- was shot more than 60 years ago!

The same holds true for the nearly 300 other photos that grace this book, some recaptured in all of their Technicolor glory.

Get "Rita Hayworth: A Photographic Retrospective," before it disappears! I understand only a few thousand were printed and yet the reviews in the papers and in places like People Magazine have been terrific.

Rita Hayworth is one of the most beautiful and glamourous women ever to have lived. Though her life was marked by tragedy, particularly her Alzheimer's affliction and death at a relatively young age. This book, however, is mainly devoted to celebrating Rita's happier times. Her life is viewed chronologically in both popular and rare photographs. There are so many beautiful photos that it is difficult to take in all at once! My favorite pictures (and just a sampling of the pictures you will find in this book) are: Rita (when she was still Margarita) with her dark hair dancing in a beautiful ruffled dress (p.28), glamourous Rita smiling brightly while reclining on a couch (p.87), Rita clowning with Orson Welles (pg. 114), Rita getting her hair touched up (p. 119), Rita tickling her daughter Rebecca (p. 126), Rita walking solitarily on the beach (p. 140), Rita being welcomed home (p. 165), and Rita in 1981, in declining mental health, but still looking every inch a movie star. If you love Rita and her movies, do not hesitate to buy this book!!!

I often wonder what Hollywood would be like if Rita Hayworth were 21 years old and starting again today. Yes, she was remade from a shy dancer into a sophisticated sex symbol, but she really was a wonderful actress behind all the publicity. Her dancing was "best in class" and she was very funny, too. Caren captures all of this in her terrific first book, especially the rare glimpses of Rita at home without makeup and all the glamorous facades required by Columbia. She also did her homework, talking with Rita's daughters and many of the surviving actors who worked with Rita, and conducting clearly exhaustive research into all the forms of media where Rita was captured. As we've come to expect, Caren's words are just as scintillating as her selections of photos, leaving us with the inevitable question: "When's the next book coming out, Caren?" Because after a gem like this, you can't help but wonder what else she has in her files to tell us more about the greatest actress of the mid-20th century.

Thanks for giving us this great book, Caren.

I have collected all the books ever written about Rita Hayworth. I have to say that this is the BEST photobook I have seen to date. Who else but a Rita Hayworth fan can put their heart in such a big project and create such a lovely photo tribute to Hollywood's most glamourous movie star of the classic era. Not only is there a collection of rare photographs, but there is lots of interesting information on Rita's life, trivia and more. If you're a fan of Rita Hayworth, then this is the book you must buy! Simply beautifully done!

"Rita Hayworth A Photographic Retrospective" is such an amazing
book it's hard to put into words.I'm a huge Rita Hayworth fan
and for a photo book of Rita to come out is a dream come true!
Caren put this book together perfectly as only a true Rita fan
could! Rita in technicolor is a real treat to behold!The photos
really speak for themself-The candids photos really show the
real woman behind the "image".

This truly is the most GORGEOUS photo book I've ever seen!!!
Anyone will love this book-If you love the golden age of
hollywood you'll love this book or if you just love photo books
this is a book you would enjoy!

Thanks for the Amazing book Caren!

Caren Roberts-Frenzel is the president of the Rita Hayworth Fan Club and this book is her dream project come to life. Caren's appreciation of every facet of The Love Goddess is evident on every page. It was so good to see someone who knows and cares about Rita create such a labor of love. Caren doesn't whitewash the blemishes in Rita's often tragic life but rather allows them to complete an honest and ultimately loving portrait of this gentle woman.

Like its subject, this book is breathtaking in its beauty. It contains scores of genuinely rare photos and they are a treasure. I own many books on Rita but "A Photographic Retrospective" is easily my favorite.

When I picked up this book, I excpected it to have a good amount of photos, many of which I had already seen. But, I was hoping for a few I hadn't and a decent narrations. However, this book blew me away. I have purchased photograph-focused books on celebritites before and been disappointed by their flimsy commentary. This book does an excellent job of conecting the photos to Ms. Hayworth's life. It's not just a collection of pictures, it's a pictorial biography. Admittedly, a traditional bio would get into greater detail, but this book is a great intro to her life. Not everyone wants a tell-all book filled with intimate details. This book delivers impeccably reproduced photos and a satisfactory bio. At first I was a little put-off by the price, but I feel it was well worth it, after reading it. A great read for anyone interested in this arrestingly beautiful and glamourous woman.

As a lifelong fan of Rita Hayworth I have to say this is the best book on Rita. The pictures are tremendous and many I have never seen before. Caren gives us a fully rounded portrait of Rita--she does not ignore the unhappiness Rita suffered but unlike another book on Rita she does not paint Rita's life as one of unending misery. This book conveys the same sense of joy and thirst for life that Rita exudes in the best of her pictures and performances. So slip Cover Girl or Gilda in your VCR/DVD player, open up this book and enjoy!

I've been a Rita Hayworth and Gilda fan since I was 28 - half my current age. Caren Roberts-Frenzel, a Hollywood historian and head Hayworth cheerleader through her Rita Hayworth Fan Club and bi-monthly newsletter has brought the full measure of Hollywood's 'Love Goddess' to bear in her beautiful, just released book 'Rita Hayworth: A Photographic Retrospective.' Primarily through vintage black and white photographs from her own vast collection (with a few in Technicolor to add richness and contrast to the blend) and stirring, thoughtful narrative you would think that the young author personally knew Rita. Caren tells Rita's story in such detail and with such compassion; from Rita's early life as a member of a professional dancing Cansino family through her spectacular rise to the pinnacle of Hollywood stardom in the 1940's and the epitome of the WW2 pinup queen and yes, of course, the coffee table-sized book includes a full-page picture of the famous 1941 Life magazine photo (taken on Hayworth's own bed) which catapulted Rita on her trip to Hollywood and cinema immortality. Some have called the Life photo arguably the best 'woman shot' ever. Few have challenged it in the sixty years since its creation. After reading Rita's story and basking in the mixture created by the warmth of Rita's femininity, sexuality, grace and glamour through the tragedy of her final ordeal with Alzheimer's Disease the reader will see hundreds of seldom seen photos yet yearn to see the sequel. The beautifully produced book discusses Rita's five marriages, including Orson Welles and Prince Ali Khan and many of Rita's 60 movies through photos and narrative that make Rita's full and complex life story a treat to eaves drop on.
I've purchased 50 Rita-books so far to give to friends, corporate business associates and for listing incentives and closing gifts for my family-owned, franchised real estate agency. Because of my patronage, the author has generously agreed to personally inscribe each book ' I pay the shipping, of course. This gift is just perfect for movie buff and non-fiction reader alike. I've given it to professional people and blue-collar types. In fact, my UPS driver stopped in last night to say that he's up through the Hayworth-Welles marriage and can't wait to get home tonight. Earlier today I left a book in the waiting room when I visited my favorite 'painless dentist.' (For those that follow in my footsteps, it will sure beat reading a 6-week old Time or People magazine.) For some reason that last trip to 'the chair' didn't hurt quite as much as usual.

This book is a beautiful retrospective of the lovely Hayworth in B & W photography as well as a few in color. While books about Marilyn Monroe seem to pop up every other week, a book like this about the "Love Goddess of the 40s" is a rare jewel and greatly appreciated. Rita was an interesting star whose life off screen was as complicated, in most cases, as the roles she played on screen. She was "vogue" before Madonna and her best known film, "Gilda" is a testament to old Hollywood glamor. The book follows Rita from her ascent as a B movie starlet to the woman who was at the top of her game at Columbia Pictures. It also allows us to see her as an older woman, still quite lovely, and follows onward to the shocking pictures of her shown the world over as a confused woman plaqued by Alzheimers disease. If you are a fan of Rita Hayworth or of the great black and white stills of the golden age of Hollywood, this book is worth the money. And Madonna was right, Rita indeed "gave good face"!