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Laurence Olivier: A Biography
 
 

Laurence Olivier: A Biography (Paperback)

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Customers buy this book with Vivien: The Life of Vivien Leigh by Alexander Walker

Laurence Olivier: A Biography + Vivien: The Life of Vivien Leigh
  • This item: Laurence Olivier: A Biography by Donald Spoto

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  • Vivien: The Life of Vivien Leigh by Alexander Walker

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Knight of the realm, embodiment of England, great Shakespearean actor and movie star, Laurence Olivier (1907-1989) was saddled with self-loathing, chronic guilt over failed relationships and sexual ambivalence. His 10-year affair with Danny Kaye drove Olivier to suicidal thoughts, reports Spoto, biographer of Hitchcock and Tennessee Williams. A magnificent, moving biography worthy of its protean subject, this resonant portrait defines an actor whose personal upheavals fueled his intense realism on stage and screen. Never close to his cold father, an Anglican priest, Olivier lost his mother at 12. This childhood, suggests Spoto, created an emotionally inaccessible man who channeled his passion into his art. Olivier envied the success of his first wife, actress Jill Esmond, a lesbian. The tragedy of his failed marriage to Vivien Leigh, victim of mental instability and electroshock, was totally avoidable, insists Spoto. In third wife Joan Plowright, a young, lively actress, Olivier found maternal endorsement and encouragement. Critical acumen matches psychological insight in this biography. Photos. BOMC alternate; author tour.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


From Library Journal

Spoto, author of The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock ( LJ 2/15/83), Madcap: The Life of Preston Sturges ( LJ 3/15/90), and The Kindness of Strangers: The Life of Tennessee Williams ( LJ 3/1/85), here adds to the crowded field of Olivier biographies. His study is well researched and readable, and he gives approximately equal space to Olivier's personal and professional lives. Nevertheless, other better-than-adequate books on Olivier already exist, most notably Anthony Holden's Olivier ( LJ 10/15/88). Interest in Spoto's book will probably be piqued by his undocumented assertion that Olivier and Danny Kaye carried on a ten-year affair which ended only when Olivier's wife Joan Plowright objected.
- John Smothers, Monmouth Cty. Lib., Manalapan, N.J.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Donald Spoto
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Laurence Olivier: A Biography
50% buy the item featured on this page:
Laurence Olivier: A Biography
$16.46
Olivier
20% buy
Olivier 4.0 out of 5 stars (7)
Confessions of an Actor: Laurence Olivier an Autobiography
12% buy
Confessions of an Actor: Laurence Olivier an Autobiography 5.0 out of 5 stars (3)
Vivien: The Life of Vivien Leigh
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Vivien: The Life of Vivien Leigh 4.7 out of 5 stars (14)
$10.08

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