Customer Reviews

The secret life of Tyrone Power

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

This book is a rambling mess, delving into the private life of one of our most loved stars. The book creates a debate as to whether he was or was not gay. On the one hand, the author cites anonymous sources as testimony to his sexual preference for men. On the other hand, he does acknowledge that many of the people who knew the actor best denied vehemently that there was any indication that he was gay. He quoted several people by name, who were closest to him, who said "no way". Many of his pages retell stories written in movie magazines at the time. Oddly enough, none of those stories hinted anything of Tyrone Power being gay. These pages seemed to just be tossed in to fill up pages, without the author even citing the source. Personally, I feel that an old movie magazine is a poor source, and a reliable biographer would not use them, any more than a reliable biographer would print stories by people not even willing to stand behind their statements by giving their names. Oddly enough, there were times that the author described situations where Power was alone, yet he reported what he was doing/thinking. Strange. From the great amount of reading that I have done about the actor, I have read account after account from personal friends and co-workers who found him generous, kind, and giving, and, by all accounts, one of the most loved stars in Hollywood. The book is a shabby piece of writing, and I would assume that any reasonably intelligent person could see that, given the number of people who knew him who discounted these stories, there is a huge shadow cast on their accuracy. Truly, the book isn't worth reading once, as it is impossible to tell what is fact and what is a figment of the author's imagination.

Lawrence Guiles' well-researched book on Tyrone Power is far and away superior to this very poorly put together hokum by Hector Arce. Guiles puts Power's life in an excellent perspective.

One of the reviews mentions the acknowledgments, but there are no source notes, which all reputable biographies have. So as far as what anyone told Mr. Arce, we have no way of knowing, as he does not attribute the quotes. Unless you can call an anonymous source an attribution. I love the section where he talks about what Tyrone Power was thinking while he was alone. Wonder what his source was for that one. In the Audrey Hepburn book by Diana Maychik, she acknowledges people who in court said they never met her and never spoke to her. So forget the acknowledgments.

If you enjoy fiction, this is the book for you.

We'll never know what happened inside Tyrone Power's bedroom. I am sure the author wasn't there either. After someone passes on, anyone who had any reason to smear the deceased comes out of the woodwork - especially in Hollywood where jealousy reigns supreme. Jealousy, in this case, for one of the 1940's and 50's greatest movies stars. And what better way to take him down than try to prove he wasn't what everyone loved, a charming, gorgeous heterosexual male.
Tyrone may have had his share of divorces, but we're talking Hollywood here. End of story.
He may have been bisexual - I'll buy that, but again, we're not in Kansas. Hollywood and its live-for-the-moment, anything-goes lifestyle probably had - and still has - it's share of sexual adventurers.
Sure, it's a book about his secret life, but I've read another bio that didn't portray him at all as miserable. Was his life perfect? No. But I believe he primarily loved women, and I believe he loved his children.
So I believe that after anyone sees him in Captain from Castile, or Jesse James, or The Mark of Zorro, and enjoys what they see, this book becomes irrelevant. Because in the end, we want and need heroes to smile, win the girl, right the wrongs, save the day. And Tyrone Power did it in spades.

it is hard to describe one's disappointment on reading an awful book about a favourite star.Ty Power was one of the great stars of hollywood's golden age, just watch him in films with loretta young or gene tierney and you'll be wiped out by their combined beauty. His films are fun and great and you can see his talent shine through. he died at a tragically young age and seems to be overlooked by film historians. he excelled in all genres, comedy, romance, adventure, war, westerns, historical dramas and musicals. his films made over $1billion. watch him to see what real star power was and is. he does not deserve this book of innuendo. how can the author write about what he was thinking??? This is a feeble poorly written attempt at a biography and I for one am ashamed that i bought it. Power deserves a re-evaluation as a classic star. in TCM's book of leading men he doesn't even get a mention, whereas mickey rooney and paul muni do!!!! P.S. I met his daughter Romina in Rome and she is a lovely dignified lady, and so in some way i feel for her at having to put up with trash written about her father. by the way I am a gay man so i am not being prejudiced. i just don't believe in outing people when they are dead and can't defend themselves, and with no evidence. Isn't there a law against such things. Tyrone power was and is one of my favourite stars of a bygone age. if you want a good biography get 'the last idol' by fred lawrence guiles. don't waste your money on this. thank god i bought mine second hand!

This book leaves me searching for words to describe it. It rambles, expects the reader to accept what the author is saying without him naming his sources(to protect their privacy..whatever). With that aside it is badly written to add insult to injury. Some of it sounds absolutely juvenile.

No wonder Tyrone Power's friends come out blasting this book. I only paid one dollar for my copy...and I still feel ripped off.

If you are thinking about buying this book, go to the grocery store instead and get you a National Enquirer....it's on the same level.

Since there was no "zero" to rate it.......I had to give it one star.

Unlike Fred Lawrence Guiles' excellent biography "Tyrone Power: The Last Idol", which used interviews with people who actually knew Tyrone, this book instead relys mostly on hearsay evidence to prove that Tyrone Power was bisexual. Hector Arce did not take the time to interview Annabella and Linda Christian (Power's two wives), consult the 20th Century-Fox studio records at the AMPAS library and spend six years writing it like Guiles did. Arce himself admits that most of his sources are anonymous in the forward.

Was Tyrone Power bisexual or heterosexual? For those looking for a straight-forward book, try Fred Laurence Guiles' book. For those that want to read a supermarket-tabloid style book, read this.

The title says everything. It must have been a secret life if no one intimate with Tyrone Power knew of his bisexuality. So if his friends and family didn't know this, then how can you expect a biographer like Hector Arce (how is that pronounced?) to know what Power was thinking when he was alone?

Was Power bisexual? I don't know, never have claimed that I did. I think he may have had some homosexual encounters in his lifetime, but his main preoccupation seems to have been women. Along with his three marriages, he had affairs with Judy Garland, Lana Turner, Loretta Young, Janet Gaynor as well as other non famous women.

this book is pure trash. I don't even know how this "author"(the name says it all) got it published unless the publishers have equally low standards and morals. There is no truth to this book .

While Arce lays out the details of Power's life in short, concise order, his allegations of the star's indiscretions leave much to be desired in the way of proof. Lots of subjectivity and conjecture with little to back it up. Leaves you shaking your head about where he got all of this stuff.

Read it for the bio--which I did find interesting--but the rest of it is anybody's best guess.

[...] First, this book was published in 1979. This is a very long time ago and many of the people who knew Tyrone were still alive. At the beginning of the book there is the Acknowledgments that Hector Arce lists of all the people he spoke with and who helped him with the collaboration of the project. Most of these people are now dead, but I certainly recognize a lot of the names listed who would know about Tyrone Power. Secondly, he does not say that Tyrone was a homosexual - cut and dried - he says he had his foot in both worlds. Tyrone was obviously bisexual which half of Hollywood is. I thought it was a very good biography of a complex man who most likely was not as happy as he could be. He was a beautiful man who I am sure all of Hollywood wanted a piece of. Many bisexual and homosexual men are tortured souls. Read the biography of Montgomery Clift.

This book about Tyrone is not a bad read and I recommend it as this is all that is out there in the way of a biography of Tyrone Power.