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Gloria Swanson: The Ultimate Star Hardcover – August 27, 2013

by Stephen Michael Shearer (Author), Jeanine Basinger (Foreword)

4.1 139 ratings

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Gloria Swanson defined what it meant to be a movie star, but her unforgettable role in Sunset Boulevard overshadowed the true story of her life. Now Stephen Michael Shearer sets the record straight in the first in-depth biography of the film legend.

Swanson was Hollywood's first successful glamour queen. Her stardom as an actress in the mid-1920s earned her millions of fans and millions of dollars. Realizing her box office value early in her career, she took control of her life. Soon she was not only producing her own films, she was choosing her scripts, selecting her leading men, casting her projects, creating her own fashions, guiding her publicity, and living an extravagant and sometimes extraordinary celebrity lifestyle.

She also collected a long line of lovers (including Joseph P. Kennedy) and married men of her choosing (including a French marquis, thus becoming America's first member of "nobility"). As a devoted and loving mother, she managed a quiet success of raising three children. Perhaps most important, as a keen businesswoman she also was able to extend her career more than sixty years.

Her astounding comeback as Norma Desmond in Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard catapulted her back into the limelight. But it also created her long-misunderstood persona, one that this meticulous biography shows was only part of this independent and unparalleled woman.

From Booklist

Shearer, author of Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr (2010), sets out to prove that the sum of the real Gloria Swanson’s parts added up to a whole lot more than those of her most famous screen persona. Although many mistakenly equate Swanson’s life with that of tragic caricature Norma Desmond, her 1950 comeback turn in Sunset Boulevard, nothing could be further from the truth. Film icon, fashionista, and femme fatale extraordinaire, Swanson, the ultimate Hollywood success story and silent-film survivor, was also a shrewd businesswoman who excelled at her craft and independently exerted control over her own career before more women in the industry dared to do so. Living a life as large as her films, she never remained mired in the past, effectively marketing and reinventing herself decade after decade. From her childhood in Chicago to her death at age 84, Swanson was always ready for her close-up. --Margaret Flanagan

Review

“Shearer succeeds brilliantly in not missing a moment of 1920s Hollywood starlet Gloria Swanson's gilded, imperfect life. … Shearer's riveting, weighty biography is a powerful paean to the silent movie era, its renowned stars and directors, and to Gloria, who was as famous for her acting as for her liveried butlers, generous gifts, and extravagant Parisian shopping sprees.” ―Publishers Weekly

“In this excellently detailed account of actress Gloria Swanson's life, we see a young starlet grow into the unforgettable ‘Norma Desmond' from Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard. … With a glimpse into the lives of the full range of film stars, an examination of the tribulations in Hollywood through World War II, and a complete look at Swanson's robust life, this well-written title is sure to please any reader with a passion for classic Hollywood movies.” ―Library Journal

“Reveals the passion, the ego and the insecurities that propelled the movie queen through a seven-decade Hollywood career in which she was a remarkably modern woman years ahead of her time: producing her own movies, choosing her scripts and leading men on-screen and off, becoming a flamboyant Hollywood magnate and blowing a fortune indulging her libido. … Stephen Michael Shearer exposes the demons that drove the egocentric screen siren.” ―The Daily Express (UK)

“Stephen Shearer… is to be lauded for his scholarship and the depth of his research.” ―New York Journal of Books

“A comprehensive biography of Swanson, who was not only one of film's biggest stars in her day but an astute and successful businesswoman.” ―Tampa Bay Times

“A fascinating biography that recreates Hollywood's Golden Age of Glamour.” ―Publishers Weekly on Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr

“Much more than a standard Hollywood biography.” ―Edge Magazine on Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr

“In Beautiful, Mr. Shearer writes with humor and has fun with some of the glorious nonsense of Lamarr's movies.” ―The Wall Street Journal on Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr

“Shearer is to be congratulated for this account of Neal's life....Anyone interested in movies as well as U.S. social history will treasure this volume about an extraordinary actress and lady.” ―New York Daily News on Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life

“This impressively researched biography of film actress Patricia Neal covers an immensity of material.” ―Deseret Morning News on Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life

“Shearer delivers an inspiring look at the professional triumphs and personal tragedies that define one of Hollywood's legendary stars.” ―Des Moines Sunday Register on Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life

About the Author

STEPHEN MICHAEL SHEARER is the author of Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life and Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr. He has written for the Las Vegas Review-Journal and is also a former model and actor, having appeared on stage, television, and in film. Shearer currently resides in Minnesota and New York City.

Print length

528 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Thomas Dunne Books
Publication date

August 27, 2013
Dimensions

6.44 x 1.77 x 9.43 inches
ISBN-10

1250001552
ISBN-13

978-1250001559
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas Dunne Books; First Edition (August 27, 2013)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 528 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1250001552
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1250001559
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.76 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.44 x 1.77 x 9.43 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,321,815 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2,811 in Movie History & Criticism
- #3,811 in Rich & Famous Biographies
- #10,725 in Actor & Entertainer Biographies

Customer Reviews:
4.1 139 ratings

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Stephen Michael Shearer

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STEPHEN MICHAEL SHEARER (born Stephen R. Sypult on January 21) grew up in Illinois, Michigan and Arkansas. At age 11 he wrote his first play, Hellen and Ellen in the Wilderness. For several years he has contributed film research to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. He directed his first film, Sylvia and Sally of the Sand Dunes, while in college where he earned a B.S.E. in music and a minor in psychology. He hosted the CBS-affiliate afternoon TV show, "The Movies", while also in school, and wrote film and book reviews for such national publications as Film Collector's Registry. Mr. Shearer is also a former model and actor. He has appeared on television (Dallas, Central Park West, etc.) and has starred off-Broadway (in the Samuel French Award-winning play The Appointment, etc.). He also directed the New York stage success The Last of September. He has acted in films, beginning with Split Image (1982) with Elizabeth Ashley and Peter Fonda, and the more recent Flying By (2009) with Patricia Neal and Billy Ray Cyrus and the documentary The Green Girl (2013). His first book is the critically acclaimed best-seller Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life (University Press of Kentucky, 2006), considered the definitive biography of the beloved actress, his long-time friend and muse. His second book is the stunning biography Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr (Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press, 2010). Gloria Swanson: The Ultimate Star (Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press, 2013) is his third biography. Mr. Shearer has also penned a series of distinctive biographical profiles for The Las Vegas Review-Journal, "The Legendary Las Vegas Headliners" (2008-2009), and has written a personal novel, September. Mr. Shearer lives in the Twin Cities in Minnesota and New York, and is now writing two new comprehensive film histories.

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4.1 out of 5

139 global ratings

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The Hunt family of NYC

A wonderful biography of a fabulous era and fabulous star

Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2013

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If I never truly understood what it was to be a movie star. This detailed biography has well explained that. Very few biography's read like fiction but this one does. Easy to read and quite vivid. I found myself swept up in the story of Gloria Swanson life, loves and faults. Smiling at her triumphs and given pause at her thoughts. Such a wonderful companion to Swanson auto biographical tome "Swanson on Swanson" the writer is especially gentle in his exposing of some of Swanson half truths and comes across as a writer reporting his findings instead of trying to poke holes in a story we have come to love. A must read if you enjoy biography's of stars of a by gone era.

5 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Thorough and Amazingly Researched

Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2022

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This must be the definitive Gloria Swanson biography with an exhaustive compendium of her films and theater work. What a force of nature she was, what self promotional skill, intelligence, stamina, and confidence she had. She worked hard, traveled and vacationed a lot, had romances by the scores, a number of marriages and was a famed icon for most of her life. And she was more than a silent film star, designing clothes, developing scripts and shows, producing, and owning many businesses, including one for inventors. This is a long book and would be most appreciated by film and cinema history fans of which I am one. Gloria was an amazing one of a kind film star who may have reached her zenith in Sunset Boulevard. She is certainly best known for that classic but cannot be underestimated in her influence and popularity in the silent film era. The last fifth of the book is footnotes, bibliography, extensive photographs and index. By modern terms it is difficult to see her as a beauty but she certainly knew how to wear costumes with elan. I would have liked more emphasis and detail on the making of Sunset Boulevard and less on Queen Kelly. And since she was considered a fashion expert with flawless skin, I would have liked to know about her fitness and beauty regimen.

2 people found this helpful

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Mickey Fernandez

Detailed, unflinching look at a Hollywood star

Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2021

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I really enjoyed this book. I learned a lot about Gloria Swanson’s career and personal life, but mostly about herself and her personality. She was very complicated, seemed kind of detached and someways, and yet live life fully and made a real impression on people. Really interesting.

2 people found this helpful

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sfnative

It's All in the Details

Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2020

Verified Purchase

Highly recommended by a dear friend who's an old Hollywood film addict, as am I, this book was purchased to soon grace my book shelves along with other bios of the ultimate Hollywood stars of a bygone era. Alas, and at east for me, every freaking detail of every freaking studio and persons is minutely described, which only deserved to water down "GLORIA." I will admit that I became so bogged down in this that I've put the book down at the 60% point and don't know that I'll ever pick it up again. Disappointed? So very vastly disappointed, indeed.

2 people found this helpful

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Kindle CustomerRussell Turner

Greatest star of them all

Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2017

Verified Purchase

A truly wonderful book about the real queen of Hollywood. It was hard for me to put down this book because it was so interesting, but at the same time I hated for it to end. All of us people in the dark will always worship you Ms. Sawnson!

One person found this helpful

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Jeanajoan

Good bio of a not stellar star

Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2016

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This is the kind of bio I like--an almost daily fact-based portrait of a life. Unfortunately, Gloria Swanson's best attribute was survival, and I hope the author's next subject has a bit more charm.

2 people found this helpful

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kevin

Bore, too many names of things she did, not about her.

Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2022

Verified Purchase

Love biographies, but this was about the movies she was in, producers, directors,etc. not about her life.

Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2013

Verified Purchase

I enjoyed reading this bio on actress Gloria Swanson and felt the author tracked down numerous sources. He certainly pointed out discrepancies between the facts and what Gloria reported in her own autobiography Swanson on Swanson. Additionally, he interviewed many who knew or worked with Swanson to get their take. Unlike the other reviewers, I felt you did get a picture of someone who worked her way up but then once she became a star, she really went overboard – not just with spending, but having herself carried to a film set in a sedan chair. As the films changed, she continued to ask for her high salary and had a hard time adjusting to less fame and less income. However, she always seemed to be doing her best to make money. At times she was working as a travel agent or with a line of clothes she had her name on. The success of Sunset Boulevard stereotyped her and after that she always seemed to be offered roles as a demented silent movie queen although she had a nice turn on Burke’s Law and the Carol Burnett show. Her interest in eating healthy and staying away from white sugar came years before the current trend. I think the end of the book said it best in that during her later years, the remaining silent stars (Chaplin, Pickford, etc.) looked up to her as being a true screen legend. I had no problems with the writing style and the footnotes and bibliography were well documented. The author let us know what happened to her children but I would have liked to have known if any of her grandchildren took up acting. I would have liked more photographs as well. Overall, I thought this gave you a good look at the early history of film and one of its most glamorous (Swanson herself hated being called that) stars.

6 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

andy peacock

Very Satisfied

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 23, 2018

Verified Purchase

Item as described, good seller.

Virginia

Great book!!

Reviewed in Italy on August 28, 2016

Verified Purchase

I really enjoyed this book. Great insight's in cinema history. A true caracter to learn from. There are a lot of interesting facts. I missed more quotes taking from Gloria's interviews.

Martin kappinga

disapppointment

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 13, 2013

Verified Purchase

Finally, thirty years after her death, a biography on Gloria Swanson was going to be published. I pre ordered it on Amazon and couldn't wait to read it. Well, I have, and it turned out to be a big disappointment. Basically, what the book is, is a very dry chronological list of all the events in Swanson's life. Someone who doesn't know Swanson won't be drawn in to the appeal that she had and won't understand why she became the biggest movie star of the twenties. The author names his book "The Ultimate Star". That's quite a statement and echoes Erich von Stroheim's line in "Sunset Boulevard", "she was the greatest star of them all". Cecil B Demille said "it's not I but the public who made Gloria Swanson a star". In other words, it was not what Demille directed her to do but the appeal it had to the public that made her a star. The author never really explains that appeal in his book and this left me wondering why he choose Swanson as the subject of his book and do so much research. What this book misses is the appeal of Gloria Swanson; he fails to capture it and so it simply doesn't have a heart. So who is this book written for? By reading it, someone who doesn't know Gloria Swanson won't be able to comprehend how big a star she was. For those who do know and admire her the book offers a lot of things you never heard before but it never draws you in like Swanson's own autobiography, "Swanson on Swanson". "Swanson on Swanson" is one of the best, if not THE best autobiography of a major movie star ever published. This book doesn't come near it.

Martin Kappinga

8 people found this helpful

KC.

Excellent purchase.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 26, 2017

Verified Purchase

Excellent copy. Very pleased. Thank you.

Adrian

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 14, 2014

Verified Purchase

great

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