Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star (Hardcover)

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With very little hedging, great good humor, and no pretentiousness, Tab Hunter Confidential delivers the straight story on how a young, gorgeous kid named Art Gelien, child of an absent father and a repressed, platitude-spouting mother, suddenly became a teen hearthrob, known as "The Sigh Guy." Tab Hunter was, in the 1950s, one of the reigning hunks, every teenage girl's dreamboat. He dated Debbie Reynolds and other starlets, did countless interviews about the kind of girl he would marry and, through it all, kept his private life very private. Tab Hunter was gay before gay meant anything other than joyful exuberance.

Henry Willson, famous and infamous agent and creator of stars, named Tab Hunter. He also tagged Rock Hudson, Rory Calhoun, and other young sex symbols. Not all of them were gay, but they came to be known as Harry Willson's boys. (Another book about this time and subject is The Man Who Invented Rock Hudson: The Pretty Boys and Dirty Deals of Henry Willson by Robert Hofler.) Tab Hunter was completely manufactured. He even speaks of himself in the third person in the book.

Before he was 26, Hunter had hit the trifecta: he was a movie star, had a hit single in "Young Love," and was on the first live production of Playhouse 90 on television. His future success looked assured, but such was not the case. It was either feast of famine for the next few years. He was never a solid A-list leading man, but had his share of famous co-stars and leading ladies nevertheless.

While he was struggling with his true identity and trying to stay afloat financially, his mother had a complete breakdown and he was forced to hospitalize her in less than ideal conditions. This also had to be a secret from the fans. His friendships, both intimate and platonic, kept him going, as well as his deep faith in Catholicism. Yes, Catholicism. Tab Hunter has his own unique pact with God.

The book is filled with many pictures of Tab and his friends and with anecdotes about the stars: Tallulah Bankhead on her last legs, fuzzy and outrageous; Linda Darnell's kindness; John Wayne's macho strutting; Fred Astaire's humility; Van Heflin's professionalism, and on and on. This is sheer heaven for any movie fan. His relationship with Tony Perkins is noted, as is his liaison with Olympic figure skater Ronnie Robertson. (Tab, in addition to being an actor, singer and horseman was also an accomplished figure skater.) When the good parts disappeared after he left Warner Brothers, he went on tour with the Everly Brothers. Much later, now fully "out" he joined Divine in two John Waters movies: Polyester and Lust in the Dust, both cult classics. After suffering a stroke and a heart attack, he is now enjoying life in Santa Barbara with his longtime companion, Allan Glaser. As Tab succinctly puts it regarding his story: "Better to get it from the horse's mouth, I decided, and not from some horse's ass." --Valerie Ryan

From Publishers Weekly

The 1950s heartthrob has penned a brave, surprising and sad memoir about depression (his mother's), repression (his homosexuality) and redemption (a career revival and meeting his partner of 20-plus years). Hunter (b. 1931) was a good-looking 19-year-old with no acting experience when he was molded into a movie star, later stumbling into a hit record (1957's Young Love) and a two-year affair with Anthony Perkins. Although his acting improved over a decade of mediocre films, by the early 1960s he was scrambling for parts in movies starring Soupy Sales and going overseas to film spaghetti westerns. His career was reborn when he co-starred with Divine in John Water's Polyester (1981) and again in Lust in the Dust (1985), which introduced Hunter to a new generation and turned him into a gay icon. Hunter, who is virtually alone among actors of his era and stature to write about living a closeted gay life in Hollywood's spotlight, is honest about his shortcomings and missteps. He's made an admirable choice to chart his life through friendships and hardships (emotional and financial), rather than just his career trajectory. This is an illuminating, emotionally charged and important piece of Hollywood's hidden history. Photos.
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 408 pages
• Publisher: Algonquin Books; First Edition edition (October 14, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565124669
• ISBN-13: 978-1565124660
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #630,808 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 107 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Frank and forthright Autobiography, October 5, 2005

By	Nelson Aspen "Author/Journalist" (Los Angeles & NYC, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Pop star, matinee idol and alternate darling/demon of the 50's & 60's tabloids, Tab Hunter has had an amazing life in the public eye. Now he recollects memorable moments and reveals his behind-the-scenes experiences in this thoughtfully written autobiography.

Less of a "tell all" and more of a "tell ABOUT," Tab recounts encounters with an amazing array of friends, lovers and co-stars. Film buffs will especially enjoy reading anecdotes about Tallulah Bankhead, Natalie Wood, Sophia Loren, Debbie Reynolds, Gwen Verdon and Anthony Perkins--with whom Tab had a secret, intimate relationship.

Tab never sells out. Though now open about his sexuality, he remains a staunch Catholic with some pretty conservatives views about marriage, sexuality, politics and fame. It makes for exceptionally compelling reading in this day and age of celebrity-driven headlines.

Great collection of photos, too, that show Tab was (and is) more than mere beefcake!

108 of 129 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tab Hunter - An actor to remember, October 15, 2005

By	D. O'Neill "Brunt, FCC" (La Verne, CA: Planet Earth) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was picking up my drink order at Starbucks the other night, my book in hand, when the Barista asked my what I was reading. I showed her the book and told her it was about Tab Hunter. Her face fell a bit, unsure what to say. I then asked her if she had even heard of him, and she admitted she had not. I quickly explained to her that he was the one of the first pretty-boy screen idols of the 1950's, a sort of Ashton Kutchner (a sad comparison, I know) of his day. I showed her the pictures in the book of the handsome "Sigh Guy" and she suddenly understood what the book was all about.

While I've seen very little of Hunter's work, I've always been fascinated by him. But he was also part of the old Hollywood that I love so much. And he was just so damn good looking.

The genetic perfect, you love them and hate them. Art Gelien won the genetic lottery and like so many "movie stars" of today, became a hit -even if they had no talent (hello, Ashton). Still, Tab Hunter turned out not be just another pretty face. Even he knew that his rise to fame came because he had perfect cheekbones and looked very, very, very good shirtless. But unlike today's pretty-boys, Hunter knew he could be better and was determined to show the world that there was something below the surface. Even if the studios didn't fully understand who they had in their pocketbooks.

Tab Hunter Confidential is perhaps the best autobiography of Hollywood superstar I've read. With honesty and a great sense of humor, Hunter takes us on a glorious ride through old Hollywood, when the studio ways were ending. Where movies began to be pitched towards teenagers instead of adults, where character pieces and epic story telling were pushed aside for empty, marshmallow war dramas and beach films.

And where being gay was almost as bad as being a communist.

I don't remember where I first saw a picture of Hunter, but I had heard of him from my mother, who, while 4 years younger than him, was the demographic the his films vied for. And, when I first saw Polyester back in the 80's, I knew deep down in me that Hunter was gay. After all, it took one to know one. Still handsome, I would look through old Hollywood books and see his picture and sort of think that had I been around during his popularity, I would've been one of his biggest fans.

Years later, when I saw his striking image on the cover of Shirtless! The Hollywood Male Physique in 2001, I drooled all over it. The sad thing is I never bought the book for myself, but did give it as a birthday present to a good friend who loved these guys as much as I did.

But I love old Hollywood, as I've read many books by the men and women who starred in those great films, to the biography's of the men who made Hollywood. The sad, one striking thing that remains, is Hollywood's treatment of gay actors and singers who cannot live openly due to the parochial, conservative attitudes that has run rampant over the last 20 years since AIDS.

For every Rupert Everetts, there are 10 or more who still need to live in the closet because coming out could STILL destroy their careers. Because while this December's Brokeback Mountain will be one of the first Hollywood films to portray a gay romance, its still played by two heterosexuals (as the studios think that while gay men will see the film, the straight women who take their husbands and boyfriends need the leads of a gay love story to be straight; lest otherwise their fantasies of Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger be taken away. Like every straight man's dream of being with two women at the same time, I think every straight women's dream is make a gay man like women).

While Hunter is satisfied with being "forgotten", I will always remember him, if only because of Polyester, Lust in the Dust and the horrible-its-so-good campfest that is Grease 2. Still, he does deserve to commended for surviving the 1950's tabloid years with all his gears in tact, something I don't think Tony Perkins ever did. He took his God-given good looks and tried to mold himself into a better person and actor in a time when the word "actor" being replaced in world by movie stars.

Even at 74, he remains as handsome and charismatic as he was during his golden years. If I ever get a chance to meet him, I would love to tell him that he will always be remembered by me. That sounds a bit creepy, but I say it only because he is someone to be admired and respected. And he deserves much more than a footnote in history as just the Sigh Guy.

David

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wish it had more insight & depth, March 16, 2006

By	Daydream Believer (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

To me, the most telling line in the book is on page 351 when Hunter describes actress Evelyn Keye's support of psychoanalysis. He writes, "by contrast, I've never spent one minute of my life in any kind of analysis." And that, in my opinion, is what makes this otherwise well-written book disappointing. I respect Hunter's decision not to "out" people, or provide detailed descriptions of sexual encounters, but I found myself wanting to know how he really felt, not the bland descriptions of his feelings. Hunter presents a fascinating glimpse into the gay Hollywood atmosphere of the 50s & 60s, but I found his endless recounting of various B movies and stage productions boring. Part of the problem is that the book is surprisingly myopic-- but for a few references to the times (JFK's assassination, for example) you would have no idea that the decade of the 60s occurred or the vast changes in the film industry- other than the decline of the studio system which is well documented. I would have liked to know what he thought about "Easy Rider" for example and the groundbreaking films of the 70s-- instead that's when he focuses on mediocre TV shows.
I would also have welcomed his insights into how the gay culture evolved over those years and how Hollywood responded-- again, we're left with one or two lines about AIDS-- and nothing about how times were changing for gay people from the 50s to the present.
All-in-all, a well-written, but too carefully crafted book which documents the events of a life, but not the heart & soul of it.