Customer Reviews

Sal Mineo: His Life, Murder, and Mystery

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Finally! Finally! Someone has written a biography of Sal Mineo's career and his personal life. This is a long over-due book. I think Paul Jeffers has done a wonderful job in giving us Sal Mineo's career every step of the way, and also in writing about his personal life. Yes, this book may be one-sided by only talking about Sal's gay relationships, and not mentioning his heterosexual affairs with women. However, the last years of his life he admitted he was gay, and that's all I expected from this author.

I will always remember my introduction to Sal Mineo. I happened to catch a movie on late night TV called "Who Killed Teddy Bear" and couldn't believe how erotic this young actor was who was stalking this woman name Norah Dain. There Sal was lying on the bed, very muscular, in white briefs (a first for TV in 1965) making a sexy phone call to an unsuspecting Norah. I couldn't believe my eyes, who is this actor? Well, ever since then I followed his career like a true devoted fan. I don't think anyone could ever forget "Rebel Without a Cause"after seeing it. Sal & James Dean & Natalie Wood's acting performance made history with this movie & will always be remembered. Finally, young people and their trouble lives were being recognized.

It's just so sad that Sal's life had to end at such an early age, when his career was looking up again. Hollywood was not kind at all to Sal. However, he will always be with us through his movies that we certainly will never forget. I enjoyed this biography of Sal's career and life, and thank Paul Jeffers for this well-researched book. Sal was a talented & very original type of actor who will never be forgotten by his fans, and especially by me. Highly Recommended!!!

H.Paul Jeffers biography of the talented, uncompromisingtheatre and film professional that was Sal Mineo, is a fascinatinglook at the "forgotten star" (who just happened to benominated for Academy Awards twice by the age of 21!) that is longoverdue. My "review" must be qualified by the fact that Iknew Sal and, indeed, am an interview-ee in the book. I worked on theN.Y.& L.A. productions of the play FORTUNE AND MEN'S EYES, asasst stage manager, director of understudies (in L.A.), and in othercapacities, including actually performing in the show. Acting andrehearsing with Sal and with the understudies, was a great learningexperience, as the man had, in the productive twenty of his thenthirty years, become a polished professional who communicatedbeautifully as a director with his cast, and electrifyingly in his ownon-stage performance, with both actors AND audience. Working with himwas sometimes frustrating, always productive. Socializing with himwas sometimes puzzling, but always fun. The most fascinating aspectof Mr. Jeffers' bio is that in it Sal simply rings true!! The voice ofMineo, both as directly quoted, and as heard through the musings ofothers like myself who knew and worked with him over the years, ringsTOTALLY true!! This IS Sal Mineo!! I enjoyed reading about the career,learning a great deal that helped me to fill in holes in myunderstanding of this complex man. Whereas I always thought that Salhad been mismanaged careerwise by others, Jeffers' book makes merealize at long last, that the mismanagement was always with Salhimself. Career choices, including AND ESPECIALLY personal choices(revelations?) that affected his career, were Sal's alone. There isno question that Sal Mineo decided that, as long as he wasn't going tobe the big star that he had once been, that he would just be himself.Paul Jeffers' book lets both the casual, interested reader and theperson like me, a good acquaintance--not a close friend-- put Sal inperspective. Slight controversy seems to be stirring up over certainrevelations in the Jeffers bio about the sexuality of Sal, the authorand others, yet these things are simply the truth. Hardly a one-nightstand, H.Paul Jeffers was a close friend of Sal Mineo's from Fortune'sNew York run until his death. And though Sal had certain closerelationships with members of the opposite sex (most notably hisExodus co-star Jill Haworth, a truly lovely person and his close andcaring friend for the rest of his life) he was, as far as I couldascertain, basically and unashamedly homosexual. Sal urged H.PaulJeffers to write his life story. And Jeffers has done just that,unsparingly and with fascinating results for those intersted in Salboth as the fine, though wasted and sadly unfulfilled talent he wasand as the proud gay man he also was. If you want to know Sal Mineo(as closely as you probably will ever have the chance) as bothprofessional and person, then buy this book and read it now. It willbe talked about, and you might as well be prepared to join in. As forSal, I have no doubt he is sitting in some celestial space, smoking afilter-tipped Kool, toasting Jimmy with his tenth cup of coffee--blackwith sugar, giving Natalie a wink, and smiling that quiet, enigmaticsmile that only tells that, once again, he is thoroughly enjoyingbeing the center of controversial attention.

As a big movie buff, especially of classic films from Hollywood's Golden Age, I have always had an interest in Sal Mineo's life career and untimely death. And I found it sad that he seemed to be slipping into oblivion in the past decade or so. He had a very complex and fascinating screen presence--particularly in his earlier films--and he carved out his place in immortality with his excellent work in Rebel Without a Cause. So I was delighted to come across this book by Paul Jeffers. I commend him for writing about someone who is not a current A-List celebrity...and exploring the many mysteries about Mineo's life and death. However, I must admit I found this book somewhat disappointing. It's not at all scholarly, exhaustively researched or even very detailed and you do get the feeling that it's a "cut and paste" job with a lot of the material coming from previously published sources and the internet. It would have certainly benefited from more leg work--interviews with Mineo's surviving contemporaries and colleagues. I found the chapters concerning his death especially weak. Still, I feel that this book is worth reading for any Hollywood film buff. And if you have no knowledge of Mineo's life at all--you will certainly walk away from it with a somewhat better understanding. In that regard I recommend it and I salute Mr. Jeffers for a very noble and well intentioned effort.

I became a Sal Mineo fan after seeing his wonderful performance as Plato in Rebel Without a Cause, and I was interested in finding out more about this brooding, intense actor. However, there was absolutely nothing written about him. That is, until now. This comprehensive biography provides a lot of detail about Sal's life and career and tragic death. There are also a number of great photos included. Plus it's written by an acclaimed biographer who was a personal friend of Sal's. Anyway, I feel as if words are superfluous for this review. If you are a Sal Mineo fan, you'll want to own this book. Period. However, I would like to voice one complaint I have. Why do biographers feel the need to focus so readily on a person's sex life? While this book avoids the soft-core excesses of say Paul Alexander's James Dean biography, it still spends too much time (in my opinion) centering on Sal's homosexuality. I'm not at all homophobic and truly admire Sal's refreshing honesty in this regard, but while homosexuality was a facet of his life (even a major one) it doesn't define who he is. I feel the book loses focus at times on Sal's humanity when it can't see past his sexuality. Anyway, this is only a minor complaint. This biography ultimately reveals a clearer portrait of the wonderful actor and (most importantly) person that was Sal Mineo.

Unfortunately not much has been written about Sal Mineo. This book is an attempt to be a comprehensive look at Mineo's life. While informative in parts of the book, the author seems self serving when he states that he had sex with Mineo. The book is very focused on Mineo's homosexuality and does not focus very much on his film/play work. The book is poorly written for the most part and Mineo may have been better served by a neutral author. I don't know if another book will be written about Sal Mineo but I would venture a guess and say that he deserves better than this one.

If you're a fan of Mineo's and you're looking to add another piece of material to a media collection, buy this book and keep it on a shelf somewhere. If you would prefer to gain some insight into a complicated life, move on. This is the kind of biography I abhor: its content is almost entirely derived from fan magazines, press releases and newspaper clippings. To make matters even worse, it attempts to pass itself off as a serious work when it should be mass paperback sized and sold alongside the Jonbenet Ramsey and Scott Peterson quickie books at the supermarket. Peppered throughout the book is superfluous information that appears to have no value aside from increasing the page count(for instance, an entire page is devoted to listing the contents of the theatre owners press book for "Crime in the Streets.") So many people who were a part of Mineo's personal and professional life are alive and the author appears not to have contacted any of them, conducted one interview or gathered any new material whatsoever. What makes that even more frustrating is that the author was acquainted with Mineo during the last several years of his life and alludes that writing this book was a mission he needed to undertake. Unfortunately the inclusion of a few of his personal conversations with Mineo (some having to do with Mineo's rather convenient wish that the author write his Bio) are no substitute for a well researched biography and the insights of an expert. If you'd like to read a fascinating book on a somewhat similar person, find a copy of Charles Winecoff's "Split Image: The Life of Anthony Perkins."

My interest in Sal Mineo is merely tangent to my interest in Elia Kazan, Giant and James Dean. However, Mineo has always interested me because he has always remained "Plato" for me.

First of all, is the biography well written? Yes and no. It is well written, but I believe that had the author not had something of a "thing" for Mineo he might have been able to provide us with a bit more insight into the life of Sal Mineo than he really does. Apparently he and Mineo had an ongoing tryst, one that was sporadic at best, but lasted for many years.

I got the distinct impression that Jeffries knew more than he was telling us. I suspect that he spoke less of Mineo's dark side than he might have because he had promised Mineo's family he would do so - or merely out of respect for Mineo's memory. Yet, it seems a bit misplaced as Mineo seems to have come to terms with his life - at least so the biographer states.

For me, Mineo will forever be an innocent young boy: Plato. I'm not the only one who feels this way. So what of it? Jeffries refers only in passing to this and doesn't delve deeper into Mineo's psyche. This affected Mineo, but there's no real meat in what about it affected him. Why didn't Jeffries ask Mineo's friends about how Mineo dealt with his inability to shake his youthful image - what about the studio personnel? Were they all deceased or unwilling to speak?

Jeffries repeatedly references the way in which Mineo banked on James Dean's name and his short association with James Dean, but he doesn't really dig deep enough in that area. Had I been this close to Mineo and had the ability to speak to him about J.D. I sure would have spent a great deal of time learning all I could about their time together and what it meant to Mineo, how he felt about Dean's death, and how Mineo felt when he learned that Dean's sex life might have offered them a chance to be more than friendly. Mineo claims not to have known about Dean when they shot Rebel Without A Cause, but he knew later - and surely put two and two together. He even says, "I could have had him," but it seems flippant and more akin to someone who knows otherwise, yet wishes it could have been. Where is the interview with psychologists or psychiatrists who could shed some light on who Mineo was and why he did the things he did?

Jeffries missed a great opportunity to let us all know what Sal Mineo was really like - deep down, rather than as superficially as he has done. We don't really know what drove Mineo, though I can read between the lines and see that Mineo was driven by the need for acceptance and love, which manifested itself in his need for fame. But we don't get enough information in the book to really learn about all that. I'm certain that Mr. Jeffries knew Sal Mineo and that he spoke with him and interviewed him in order to write this book, but its publication was years after Mineo's death. Jeffries would have done well to interview friends and acquaintances with an ear for more detail about who Mineo was.

I don't want "dirt" on Mineo or Dean. Rather, what I'm hoping for when I read a biography is information not only about the person's walk a day life, but what drove him/her. I'm afraid that just isn't sufficiently there in this biography.

A caveat: Since there are no other Sal Mineo biographies out there, I might as well be raging against the wind, because Mr. Jeffries has given us the one and only complete Sal Mineo biography to date.

I must admit that this book was not the one I was looking for. It is so chock-full of videographical notes, while I had hoped for something a bit more dicey. Shame on me! In all reality, considering that this is Mineo's first bio, it is really quite good. It fills in a lot of facts, figures, etc. surround Mineo's films; and it has the fairly comprehensive feel that the author probably figured Mineo's (as yet) only bio should have.

The facts on his home life and relationship with family is a bit underwhelming, however, in this rush to get as much information filled in about all films as possible. Mineo's relationships, while certainly mentioned, seemed to have been given the once-over without really considering how they fit into a bigger picture (pardon the pun). Also, for an author who purportedly knew (and... uh...) enjoyed the company of Mineo, it is very light on personal insight and creative dash. Too much would have killed the book, but too little kept this reader staring at the last pages and praying that more info would appear between the lines. Maybe a few cocktails would have helped.

I did finish this book enjoying it for what it was and what it set out to be, though. Wishing it were more is useless; and I do feel I know a little more about the man who made my mouth drop when I first saw the doe-eyes at Jimmy Dean in "Rebel without a Cause." I enjoyed the book on its own terms (though on a cautionary note, I wouldn't purchase this title based on the "mystery" element suggested by the title); and I was mostly glad, in the end, that it wasn't the lurid little tale I had at first anticipated. The book may not be a collar-gripper, but, in its praise, at least it can lay claim to being fair and reasonably objective.

As a great of fan since I first saw him on the screen in "Rebel Without A Cause," I can say I am so elated that there is finally a biography on this great, yet underrated actor. Sal Mineo was not just the usual movie star. He was a person who could relate to the common moviegoer due to his upbringing in the Bronx by hardworking and caring Italian immigrants. From 217th Street to Hollywood, Sal never forgot who he was, and truly was known to be a nice guy.

In his book "Sal Mineo: His Life, Murder, and Mystery," author H. Paul Jeffers explores Sal's early days as the son of a coffin maker to his tragic end in the garage of the West Hollywood apartment complex he lived. As a close friend of Mineo's, Jeffers gives us an intimate portrait of this great actor. The only previous biographical information available on Mineo was in biographies of James Dean and magazine articles, and therefore I really can't compare this book to another Mineo biography on the market. While there is rumor that Jason Gould (Barbra Streisand's son) is writing a biography on Mineo (one of his favorite actors), we will have to wait to see if the book will paint a more complete portrait of Sal.

While Jeffers book succeeds in telling Mineo's rise and then fall, he focuses too much on Mineo's sexual orientation, and at times it can get boring. Just hearing that Sal's apartment was full of gay pornography and leather S&M gear made me feel a bit disturbed that someone's sexual life still can hurt him after death. While Sal was one of Hollywood's first actors to come out of the closet virtually by choosing roles that reflected his sexuality, too much detail can often sour a book.

I was also disappointed that the author did not take more time to discuss more about Sal's family, such as his mother Josephine, brothers Victor and Michael, and sister Carina. I would have liked to see more of the family discussing Sal's importance to them and the film world, but instead we hear about their financial problems. To even make this point more evident, Carina's name is not even listed in the index, even though she is mentioned several times in the biography.

The book's photographs were great, and it was interesting to see an actual police photograph of the Sal's body covered in a blanket after an unknown assailant stabbed him to death. While the book claims that the suspect in Mineo's murder was never found responsible in his death, he is serving a sentence for it in a California prison.

Sal's roles as Plato in "Rebel Without A Cause," Dov in "Exodus", and Dino in "Dino" made him a star, but I would like to have know more about his roles in films that explored his sexuality to the fullest extent such as "Who Killed Teddy Bear?". While his final film role was that playing an ape in "Escape from the Planet of the Apes," Sal's career was hurt by his decision to choose film and stage roles that explored homosexuality. It was taboo then and Sal was a pioneer and rebel in the entertainment world. Sal also helped a budding new actor by the name of Don Johnson break into the big time when he starred with Mineo in the men's' prison drama "Fortune and Men's Eyes" in Los Angeles. This should be known, although the onstage rape scene featuring a naked Mineo and Johnson was very controversial.

In conclusion, this is a must have for any Mineo fan, or anyone who is fascinated by the so-called curse that afflicted the cast of "Rebel Without a Cause." I could not put this book down, and you won't either. A good biography for a true Hollywood legend.

The author claims to have slept with Sal Mineo and yet offers nothing about what made him tick. This is probably the emptiest biography I've ever read, lacking in any research or interviews with Mineo's family, friends and professional associates. The most atrocious aspect of the book, however, is Jeffer's spoilers of the Mineo film endings. One by one, he sets about revealing the ending of each of Mineo's films and then - at the end of the book - has the audacity to suggest that his readers seek out Sal Mineo's film work. Fortunately, I was wise to Jeffer's game and just skimmed over the film descriptions for those I haven't seen yet. It's sad that this is the only biography available for such a great actor, 'cos it's a terrible book.