My Vagabond Lover: An Intimate Biography of Rudy Vallee

Traces the life and career of Rudy Vallee, describing his accomplishments in radio, motion pictures, and on Broadway

When Rudy and Eleanor met in 1945, the Yalie "crooner" was already past the apotheosis he had reached during the Depression Era, and the schoolgirl had to ask her mother who Vallee was. They bridged the generation chasm with a steadfast affection that comes across more genuinely than any anecdote in this pallid biography. As a chronicle of Rudy's career, Eleanor's account is perplexing?in part because the author has an aversion to dates?but as a barometer of waning stardom, it is occasionally poignant. From television offers and film scenarios that never materialized to his Broadway "comeback," Eleanor focuses on the twilight of Rudy's career and offers the lasting lesson that fame is fickle. For all the book's good intentions, the result can be cloying, presumably because the author is too close to her subject. Less a biography, more a tribute to a legend past his prime, this is recommended for only the most comprehensive collections.?Jayne Plymale-Jackson, Univ. of Georgia Libs., Athens
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.