Customer Reviews

Rock Hudson: His Story

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Rock Hudson will always be remembered as one of Hollywood's larger-than-life stars. When you think of Tinsletown and its stars in its heydey you think of Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Clark Gable, Mae West, and Rock, people who not only had long careers on the silver screen, but individuals who had a certain mystic to them, a mystery if you will. A lot of this was because most of these stars didn't do a lot of interviews so this added to the public's thirst in trying to oncover what these stars were about, who they slept with, what they ate, how they thought, and what made them tick. Rock Hudson was probably the most private of all Hollywood stars. He rarely if ever gave interviews, both in print and on television, and he even went so far as to never having his home photographed. Perhaps it was the fact that he was homosexual that he insisted in keeping his life private, but the result was he became an even bigger star because the audience didn't know the real him.
When Rock was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in July, 1985, he knew the media would swarm on him and his name like vultures, so he decided to finally write a book about his life to give the public the knowledge of who Rock Hudson was. This book is not a tell-all if that is what your looking for. Instead it is an honest and brave account of an actor who made it in Hollywood as one of the greatest male stars of all-time while living a closeted gay life. With author Sara Davidson, Rock discusses how he was discovered, his move to Hollywood, the films he made, the relationships he had with both male and female friends, and his ultimate discovery that he was sick and his attempt to hide it. Close personal friends like Doris Day and Susan Saint James are interviewed and they add their own personal insights on Rock and their love for him. The most touching part of the book is when Rock writes how he knew it was time to write "the book" to set the record straight as his time on earth was not long. The message in this book is abundantly clear; people who are inflicted with HIV are victims of a dreadful disease, a message Rock managed to get through in these pages months before his death.
All proceeds from "Rock Hudson: His Story" have been donated to AIDS research.

Well, he was certainly a different person on the screen than in real life! I found the book to be very tiring and repetitive characterizing his constant playful antics and drinking. His love life or affairs were his own business. The book allows us a look into the Hollywood scene and the control of the movie business over their "stars" which we already know. One cannot help but feel sorry for Rock at the end of his life, it was a sad ending and I was glad when I finished reading the book.

I don't generally read biographies or memoirs by (or about) celebrities, but after having a Rock Hudson/Doris Day film festival with my mother, I couldn't help but be charmed by Rock Hudson and wanted to know more about him. He died when I was just 1 year old, so I knew nothing about him before this book except that he was secretly gay and that he died of AIDS.

First, let me say that it seems like the author of the book did an incredibly thorough job researching. When she had to get information from someone other than Hudson, she always said who it was from, and if she received conflicting accounts, she described them both along with their reasons for their POVs.

Even wading through all the interviews, second- and third-hand sources, drama, lawsuits, etc, Rock Hudson's charm still shines through. It's obvious that although he was a very private man, even to those he was closest to, he was also someone who loved fun and laughter and never took life too too seriously. The number of people who mentioned laughing with him until they couldn't breathe is astounding. (It's also hard not to fall a little in love with Hudson's oldest Hollywood friends, George Nader and Mark Miller, who seem like two of the most decent, honest, good-hearted people ever to grace L.A. It makes me feel a little bad -- almost -- that 3 of George Nader's movies were on MST3K.)

The drama surrounding his AIDS diagnosis and the revelation of this to the public was also fascinating for someone like me, whose grew up with the idea of HIV as a fatal disease and watched it slowly change to a chronic illness as medication and understanding has improved. It's hard to remember just how little was known or understood in 1985 -- indeed, the initials "HIV" are never used in this book, only AIDS.

Recommended to anyone who enjoyed Rock Hudson's films.

I'VE FOLLOWED HIS CAREER AND READ A FEW WORKS REGARDING HIM. I FOUND THIS PAPERBACK ON HIS LIFE STORY, REPETITIVE AND BORING AND SINCE PHYLLIS HIS WIFE IS RELATED BY MARRIAGE, I ALSO QUESTION IT'S TOTAL HONESTY AND I TOTALLY REJECT THAT SHE WAS OF THE POLITELY REFERRED TO "LAVENDER CROWD." I THINK SHE WAS YOUNG, I THINK SHE DID CARE FOR HIM DEEPLY. SHE WAS THE EPITOME OF DISCRETION AND I ALSO BELIEVE SHE WASN'T TOTALLY HONEST ABOUT WHAT SHE KNEW AND WHEN SHE KNEW IT. MY HUSBAND WAS 10 YEARS OLD WHEN PHYLLIS AND THE ENTOURAGE CAME TO MONTEVIDEO, MINNESOTA AND UNTIL I READ THIS I WAS SO ENVIOUS THAT HE NEVER COULD HAVE CARED LESS AS A YOUNG BOY ABOUT THIS CELEBRITY, BUT APPARENTLY ROCK HIMSELF NEVER DID MAKE IT TO MONTEVIDEO, MINNESOTA. THIS IS ONE OF THOSE BOOKS YOU HAVE TO KEEP ASKING YOURSELF HOW MUCH OF THIS IS REALLY REAL AND HOW MUCH IS POST DEATH PAINTING A NOT COMPLETELY ACCURATE PICTURE AND THE WHOLE TRUTH WILL NEVER BE KNOWN. AGAIN, HE AS BEAUTIFUL AS HE WAS WASN'T A HAPPY MAN AND MOST OF THESE STARS DEEP DOWN INSIDE AREN'T AND THE SIDE WE ARE SHOWN IS OFTEN JUST MADE UP TO SELL PULP.