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Ross Alexander: The Life and Death of a Contract Player Paperback – June 17, 2020

by John Franceschina (Author)
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 16 ratings
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Of all the screen juveniles groomed for stardom by Warner Brothers in the 1930s, few were touted as highly by Hal Wallis and Jack Warner as Ross Alexander. Strikingly handsome, with a sensuality that appealed to women (and men) of all ages, and possessed of a Puck-like good humor that endeared him to columnists, co-stars, and virtually everyone else in the Hollywood film community, Ross quickly became the golden boy of scene-stealers at Warners, after appearing in Flirtation Walk, with Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, and Pat O’Brien, and Gentlemen Are Born, with Franchot Tone, Jean Muir, and Ann Dvorak. Like many of the actors in Hollywood at that time, Ross was recruited from Broadway where he played high-spirited juveniles in Let Us Be Gay, starring Charlotte Granville, Francine Larrimore and Warren William; That’s Gratitude, with Frank Craven, Thelma Marsh, and George Barbier; and After Tomorrow, with Donald Meek and Barbara Robbins—all produced by song-writer, producer-director, John Golden, who “discovered” Ross performing with Antoinette Perry (the “Tony” of Broadway theatre awards), in the long-run flop, The Ladder.While Alexander’s career at Warner’s was in the ascendant in films like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Captain Blood, and Shipmates Forever, his marriage to actress (and New Jersey socialite) Aleta Freel had disintegrated, leading to Aleta’s suicide in December 1935. Ross’s best friend, Henry Fonda, believed that Alexander never recovered from his wife’s death, even though he continued to appear onscreen in well-regarded roles until his own suicide in January 1937. According to contemporary reports, after Alexander’s death, Warner Brothers purged his home of any and everything he might have written—poems, letters, script-notes, the works—in order to protect the studio from scandals related to Alexander’s closeted homosexuality and other idiosyncrasies, including his alleged obsessive infatuation with Bette Davis. Surprisingly, in the 80 years that have passed since Alexander’s death, no full-length study of the actor so beloved, but so quickly forgotten by Warner Brothers had existed until Ross Alexander: The life and death of a contract player, an investigation of Broadway and Hollywood during the 1920s and 1930s, from Prohibition through the Great Depression and the Production Code, with previously unpublished documents, and nearly 100 illustrations.
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  1. Print length
    446 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    June 17, 2020
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 1.01 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1629335843
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1629335841
  7. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ BearManor Media (June 17, 2020)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 446 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1629335843
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1629335841
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.01 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 16 ratings

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Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
16 global ratings
Interesting to learn about Ross Alexander, a forgotten rising star of his time
4 Stars
Interesting to learn about Ross Alexander, a forgotten rising star of his time
Like several other reviewers, I enjoyed reading this 2020 biography of Ross Alexander, a forgotten rising star of the 1930s. I had only briefly heard of Ross Alexander after watching a YouTube video about his life and career.The author must have had a tough time finding material on him since his film career was relatively short lived and most, if not everyone, who knew him is dead. The author had to rely upon movie magazines, newspapers, photographs, and some quotes presented by others at the time.I enjoyed learning about Ross' early stage appearances, his Broadway shows, and his Hollywood films. I enjoyed reading the reviews of his work. I thought these critics' reviews were very important to see how Ross grew as an actor. The author presented both positive and negative reviews of the critics, which I felt really added to his text. What I didn't like were the long, long, long, long summaries and sections of dialogue that often went on for several pages of each play and movie Ross appeared in. I only needed a one or two paragraph summary of the plot and how his character was portrayed in each work. A section or two of examples of dialogue would have been sufficient for a reader to see what kind of character Ross was playing. Like several others, I skipped over those summaries. The author even states in his preface " I crave your indulgence if my choice of illustrations is not exactly to your taste, or IF I SEEM TO SPEND TOO MUCH TIME DESCRIBING A PLAY, OR FILM DIRECTOR." I do think an editor should have cut down on these passages. As a retired high school English teacher, I always told my students: Sometimes, less is more!I learned a great deal about this troubled but interesting man, and I plan to seek out his movies to see what those people who had great faith in his talent were seeing in him back then. I know I have seen Ross in Captain Blood and A Midsummer's Night's Dream, but it was decades ago, so I have to seek out these two most famous films he appeared in back then and watch them again.I definitely recommend this biography to be read. I only gave it four out of five stars due to the presentation of those long summaries and dialogue sections presented. I did notice three or four minor typographical errors in the spelling of a name or a word, but they were rare. I commend John Franceschina for taking the time and putting in great effort to create this biography, so we can learn about Ross Alexander and his life and career.
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Top reviews from the United States

David
5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining portrait of a film star that was forgotten...
Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2020
5 people found this helpful
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M. Jackson
4.0 out of 5 stars A Loving Tribute to Ross Alexander
Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2020
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4 people found this helpful
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ranrfanny
3.0 out of 5 stars Good as a refrerence book
Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2020
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7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Rickard Stenberg
5.0 out of 5 stars :)
Reviewed in Sweden on April 6, 2023
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Rose-Marie Rivard
4.0 out of 5 stars Well researched in his work
Reviewed in Canada on January 24, 2021
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Wingate
3.0 out of 5 stars The Great Mystery
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 2, 2021
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One person found this helpful
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