Jimmy Stewart: The Truth Behind the Legend - Softcover

Michael Munn

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1861059612 ISBN 13: 9781861059611

Publisher: Robson Books, 2006

Synopsis

In this definitive biography of one of Hollywood's most beloved stars, Michael Munn reveals the truth behind the diffident, earnest and kindly persona of Jimmy Stewart. Drawn from the author's formal interviews and informal meetings with the star and his friendship with Stewart's wife, Gloria, is this portrait of a man who came from the Presbyterian traditions of Pennsylvania to become one of the silver screen's enduring legends. An openly right-wing Conservative and super-patriot, Stewart worked for the FBI at the behest of J Edgar Hoover, directing his undercover sleuthing to crack organised crime in Hollywood. But he was unscrupulously manipulated by the president into flushing out Communists from the film industry. Among these revelations, there are also tales of heady love affairs, hookers and hoodlums, and of Stewart's run-in with the most dangerous of all gangsters, Benjamin 'Bugsy' Sigal. Accusations of racism are explored, as is Stewart's notoriously volatile temper. There is a comprehensive account of his experiences as a colonel in the US Air Force in World War Two - and, of course, there are the films: 'It's a Wonderful Life', 'The Greatest Show on Earth', 'Rear Window', the westerns and his Academy Awards.

About this title

About the Author

Michael Munn is a film historian and the author of twenty-five books, including Stars at War, The Hollywood Connection, and the bestseller John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth. As a journalist he has written extensively on cinema, crime, ancient history, and the World War Two. He lives in Suffolk, England.  

From Booklist

Ask a younger audience about Gary Cooper or Spencer Tracy, and you might get a blank stare. Jimmy Stewart, thanks to It’s a Wonderful Life, hasn’t suffered the same fate. Stewart’s fans are in for a treat with this anecdote-filled biography, which features a major bombshell: for years, Stewart provided undercover reports to the FBI’s J. Edgar Hoover. Among the nuggets mined here: the rift over politics between conservative Stewart and his liberal best friend, Henry Fonda; Stewart being tempted by Grace Kelly; and how Stewart wanted to help Hoover rout the Mafia from Hollywood but ended up naming Communists. Unfortunately, these revelations and the text as a whole could have been better documented. Appended is a list of sources, but as Munn, a friend of both Stewart and Stewart’s wife, Gloria, testifies, it’s limited to “who I’ve quoted . . . along with the year (as best I can remember it)” and the location. Much of the information comes from phone calls and social chats with Gloria Stewart. Did Munn really write everything down? Still, shaky bona fides aside, this a fun Old Hollywood bio. --Ilene Cooper

Edition details

• Publisher: Robson Books
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 1861059612
• ISBN 13: 9781861059611
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 317