Customer Reviews

Vamp: The Rise and Fall of Theda Bara

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My exposure to Theda Bara and her career in silent films was very minimal when I decided to pick up this book. Basically, I knew she was the original "Vamp", that Theda Bara was not her birth name and that her name was an anagram for Arab Death. My knowledge, for lack of a better word, was encyclopedic. All I knew was that she had dark haunting eyes, reeked of glamour and was so, so Silent Film-ish. I had to know more. Thankfully, the first book I picked up on this underappreciated film legend was "VAMP: The Rise and Fall of Theda Bara" by Eve Golden. Ms. Golden's well-researched material is nicely presented through a gauzy veil of wit, aptly aimed sarcasm and insight. She presents the new film industry as it was at that time-assembly line production of films mixed with bizarre PR schemes, a now far outdated style of acting, tedium and excitement. Theda Bara may have been one of the first actresses to be treated like a true movie star but off-screen she was no "vampire"; on the contrary, she was college-educated bookworm Theodosia Goodman from Cincinnati, OH. Off screen, Theda Bara much preferred a good book or a small dinner gathering to "vamping" it up. (In contemporary Colleen Moore's autobiography "Silent Star", Ms. Moore praised Ms. Bara for her delectable wit and lack of pretentiousness. With her interest in entertaining, Ms. Bara ended up being one of the most sought after hostesses in Hollywood, as mentioned in Anita Loos' "The Talmadge Girls".)

Eve Golden does a praiseworthy job of combining the "otherness" of the film industry with the surprising pragmatism of its first star-Theda Bara. The inspired, sometimes sarcastic writing of Ms. Golden seems only appropriate when one thinks of how Ms. Bara was known by her contemporaries for her snappy witticisms. So many books written on the Silent Era take on the tone of a college lecture and I commend Ms. Golden for giving the subject matter a life and vibrancy due the often under-appreciated Theda Bara. And lest I forget, a comment about the included photos: they are simply stunning. A myriad of Hollywood movie stills and personal photos, the included pictures bring a realness to the era and to Theodosia Goodman/Theda Bara that is often overlooked. These shots become even more of a treasure when one learns that only 4 of Theda's many films are still in existence-and none still exists from her most lavish and sensational performances, like Cleopatra, Salome, and Kathleen Mavoureen.

I thoroghly enjoyed this book. I also enjoyed Ms. Goldens' biographies of Anna Held and Jean Harlow. In the case of Anna Held and Theda Bara, Ms Golden has rescued from obscurity two fascinating women who deserve to be remembered. IO agree that the reader from Tenn. seems a bit severe in their criticism. Personally, I like Eve Golden's method of writing. I enjoy the asides and her dry sense of humor (which actually, in some way, seems to reflect the women she is writing about). Who said biography must be dry and boring? I think Eve Golden does a great service in writing these fascinating biographies. By all means, read about Anna Held. Very highly recommended. I look forward to the next book.

This is a fascinating quick read on one of the earliest real moviestars, the screen's first sex symbol, and a truly legendary star. Ms. Golden writes with a balanced style, neither an unapologetic sycophant nor a hard-to-please critic. She's an admirer of Theda's life, interested in both her acting career and in her life off of the screen, although she isn't afraid to call a spade a spade and discuss a critical turkey that Theda was cast in. However, as lively and informative a read as this may be, it can only go into so much depth about Theda's life and acting career, given what a private person she was and how a lot of details about her early life and her life after retiring from the screen may never be fully known. And, of course, since only a handful of her films survive, none of them representative of her true talents, the discussion about her films can also only go so far and deep. We get plenty of information about the storylines, critical response to them, the filming experiences, Theda's feelings at acting in them (she was quite unhappy at how most of her roles were Vamping roles instead of getting more chances to play sympathetic characters), but without having a chance to actually see these films, we can't really have a full valid analysis of them. Reviewers of the time either loved or hated her, and it really does seem like she were a fine screen actor (her stage acting is another matter), but minus the visual evidence, even a good biography such as this one can only go by what people of the time said and what is evident about her talents even in her handful of surviving mediocre vehicles. Unless more of her films are found, like 'Salome,' 'Cleopatra,' or 'Under Two Flags,' there's no way one can convincingly prove her full worth as an actor, how many of her films would have held up over time, if time might have given some of them their revenge. But what we do know for certain are the facts reported in this book, that Theodosia Goodman was a pampered child from Ohio, an intellectual snob and insatiable bookworm her entire life, interested in mysticism and things many people today would term Goth (although the stories cooked up about her by the press are another story; she was never that much of a mystic!), devoted to her husband, a very talented actor who was trapped in a role she didn't entirely feel comfortable in, a stunningly beautiful woman when photographed correctly or seen in motion (all of the photos in the book are wonderful!). I also liked the information on why most of her films were lost; it's well-known that at least 75% of all silents have been lost, but I didn't know the specifics as to why so many of Theda's in particular were lost apart from the fire at Fox Studios in 1937. Many silents were lost within their own lifetimes, not just by the Thirties and Forties. It's also explained why she went out of vogue; besides the fact that there were new Vamps on the scene, and that the public preferred flapper movies now, Theda's style of acting had majorly gone out of vogue by the mid-Twenties, when the method of acting that was taught and praised in the Teens had long since been replaced by a more natural acting style.

I loved this book. Ms.Golden's style is witty and accessible, but never glib. What distinguishes it from most movie star biographies is the wonderful sense of time and place she evokes. There is a wealth of small detail about the movie industry of the time, which enables the reader to understand not just Theda Bara, but the society which in a way created her. The only frustrating aspect of the book is that you immediately want to run out and see all Theda's films, most of which, alas, have disappeared. This is easily one of the best film biographies I have ever read. It is beautifully researched and written with charm and style. Thoroughly recommended!

Theda Bara is a mystery to most. From over 40 films made throughout her career, only 4 survive, and those 4 are some of her worst films. Her popularity between 1915 & 1920 was rivaled only by Charlie Chaplin & Mary Pickford, however today, there is little about her to appreciate. This book is a fitting tribute to Theda Bara; direct, tounge-in-cheek, and never boring!

Theda was a tool of the Fox publicity dept who would circulate bogus, laughable stories about her just to entice the public, however she wasn't a "Bad Girl" at all. You will find no tales of drinking binges, no outrageous behaviors, and no dirt dishing. What you will find are stories and information bringing us closer to understanding how early filmmakers lived and worked.

It's an easy, but interesting read, and comes with an excellent filmography. I was also pleased to see that it comes with a great deal of photographs spread throughout (opposed to some books that cram all pictures into a dozen or so pages midway through the book). To have a high-quality book like this made me appreciate it even more.

If you are interested in Silent films or old Hollywood (or Fort Lee, NJ), you'll enjoy the book.

I have always had an interest in the Silent Era this was one of the first books I read on this era.Theda Bara was the movies first bad girl in reality the book will show that she was happiest with a book in her lap. What I mostly enjoy about Eve Golden and her work is her ability to write a biography without showing bias.This is a great intersting account into the life of Hollywoods "Vamp".

This book is a nominal read describing the acting career of Theda Bara, but it doesn't explain Theda herself. I take off two stars for a couple of reasons:

First, this book reads more like a filmography of her career than a biography. The middle of the book goes into a outline of "Theda did this film...the critics said this...then she did this activity...then she did this film...then she did this activity...and so on." So, while discussions of her filming career and some of her life understandably deserve much detail, there's insufficient description of Theda herself. You know what she did, but you're not placed into her life.

Second, the biography is short around the beginning and end of Theda's life. Understandably, her film career is so much more well documented and interesting, so this is where the bulk of the material will go. But, her 30 year retirement is cut way short, giving little information on what Theda did with the second half of her life.

Third, the book lacks second-hand accounts that would inject zest into the story. What did Theda's friends say about her? What did they do together? There are no personal anecdotes that would give us glimpses into her life and personality.

After reading this, I get the perspective of "Theda was a working girl who did many films, and then lived a quite life afterwards." While she looked glamorous on the screen, she didn't consider herself so.

This book is certainly good in many respects. The writing is interesting, so it's no labor to read. Also, the description of the historical times and place is rich in detail. The reader will fully understand the context of the silent film era, its growth, and its cultural influence.

How does one even begin to tell the tale of the great, the irreplacable, Theda Bara, the first femme fatale of the silver screen? Although only four of her films survive, and although even the most dedicated movie buff has probably never seen her on screen, her image and her screen character (a heartless, sex-mad destroyer of weak men) linger in the popular imagination. Unbelievably, this is the first complete biography of the star, and what a tale it is that Eve Golden has chosen to tackle! Exactly how ordinary Theodosia Goodwin, daughter of a tailor from Cincinnati, Ohio, was transformed into the exotic, foreign screen siren Theda Bara is a story that could only happen in America, and in the movies. This book is an enjoyable, well-researched account of Theda's life and films, illustrated with lots of photos of Theda on screen and in private life. Eve Golden is to be commended for her efforts to revive the memory of the screen's first "created" personality. Joyful as the rediscovery of Theda is, it is inextricably mixed with the trajedy of how much of our firm heritage has been lost (an estimated 75% of all films produced before 1930 have vanished). Golden makes an eloquent plea for increased efforts in the struggling area of film preservation. The sad story of how Theda Bara's film legacy all but got away throws a brilliant spotlight on the fragiity of pop culture. An excellent book for the film scholar and movie fan alike.

This is a great book considering how little info is available on Theda Bara. The author put a lot of research and care into this book. It's a terrific book for both silent film buffs and femminists. Theda deserves her title as "The Woman Who Defined VAMP"!

Theda Bara was once one of the big stars but has slipped into obscurity, making my appreciation of Ms Golden's biography of her even greater. She did a fine job (contrary to what that jerkoff from Tennessee writes in the crayon-written review further down... ooops, can you call someone a jerkoff here? Hey, maybe next time they'll sign their name.) Anyway, it's an overdue Hollywood bio and thanks to Eve Golden for writing it. Her other book on Jean Harlow is even better.