|
|
Carla Laemmle Biography
I have been hearing about this bio being in the works for many years. Finally published, it represents a lot of labor on the part of Rick Atkins and Carla Laemmle herself.
Promotional material about the book:
CARLA LAEMMLE: AMONG THE RUGGED PEAKS
By Rick Atkins
"Among the Rugged Peaks" is a biography of Carla Laemmle. Most of Carla's fans will recognize the title as a direct quote from the 1931 Bela Lugosi movie version of "Dracula" in which she was the first voice heard on film: "Among the rugged peaks that frown down upon the Borgo Pass are found crumbling castles of a bygone age." This book also tells about some of Carla's experiences through life and what the reader may interpret as "rugged peaks." Her intriguing life story was told, and written by her biographer and friend, Rick Atkins. It is an interpretation of one life during our changing times with a real-life cast of characters.
Carla writes narratives throughout the book laced with fervor, humor, candor and love as she tells about her impassioned life and the people in it. This includes her 42-year relationship with Raymond Cannon, the late actor, screenwriter, director and author of a best selling book, The Sea of Cortez.
For those of you who may not be familiar with Carla Laemmle, first and foremost, she is an enchanting human being. She is the niece of Carl Laemmle, movie mogul and founder of Universal Pictures at Universal City, California where she lived with her family for 16 years. However, her life began far from California, in Chicago, Illinois. She was born Rebekah Isabelle Laemmle to Joseph and Belle Laemmle, October 20, 1909.
A life-changing event occurred in the winter of 1920 when Joseph Laemmle, received a letter from his brother Carl Laemmle. "Uncle Carl" (as he became known) invited his ailing 66-year-old brother Joseph, and his family to relocate to the Southern California climate. In fact, Carl suggested that the family might be comfortable living at Universal City. Thus, the Joseph Laemmle family that included 11-year-old Carla, her mother, Carrie "Belle" Laemmle and Carla's maternal grandmother, Emogene Isabelle Norton, arrived in California by train in January 1921 when the fledgling Universal Studios was celebrating their sixth year in the business of motion picture making. The family maintained residence at Universal City until 1937.
During her "fairy tale" life at the studio, Carla witnessed the actual making of several of her "Uncle Carl's" classic movie productions, many of which took place on the studio's "back-lot."
Carla's talent as a dancer won her notoriety during the 1920s, including a part in the 1925 classic Universal Pictures production, "Phantom of the Opera." Carla was eventually placed under contract with Universal Pictures in 1928-1935. In addition, Carla's small part in "Dracula," starring Bela Lugosi, won her celebrity cult status. She is ultimately credited with ushering in the first "talkie" macabre movie.
After six years of work, Among the Rugged Peaks- An Intimate Biography of Carla Laemmle, is available from Midnight Marquee Press.
Original page 2009. Updated June 2011.
New Jean Harlow book
I've not seen a copy of the book yet, but simply put, the Vieira Hollywood picture-books are the best albums on Hollywood, bar none, for well over a decade now. No one puts as much attention to the production aspects, design, picture choices, and then ladles the whole affair with affection and admiration in the text. Classic Hollywood has not had a modern explainer and admirer like Vieira for decades now, and the taste and skill brought to bear on his books make them both readable-fun and collectible (some of his past books are out of print and instead of dropping down to the remainder pricing so many used Hollywood books seem to end up at, his instead get harder to find and buy).
Book is by Darrell Rooney and Mark Vieira, 240 pages, Angel City Press. Available from amazon.com
New Book: Broken Silence: Conversations with 23 Silent Film Stars
This is a collection of 23 original interviews with stars of the silent screen, with biographical information and a filmography included for each.
Interviewed are Lew Ayres, William Bakewell, Lina Basquette, Madge Bellamy, Eleanor Boardman, Ethlyne Clair, Junior Coghlan, Joyce Compton, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Dorothy Gulliver, Maxine Elliott Hicks, Dorothy Janis, George Lewis, Marion Mack, Patsy Ruth Miller, Lois Moran, Baby Marie Osborne, Muriel Ostriche, Eddie Quillan, Esther Ralston, Dorothy Revier, David Rollins and Gladys Walton.
About the Author Michael G. Ankerich is a writer whose work focuses on the silent film era of Hollywood. A former newspaper reporter, he has written extensively for Classic Images, Films of the Golden Age, and Hollywood Studio Magazine, which featured his interview with Butterfly McQueen (Prissy) on the 50th anniversary of the release of Gone With The Wind.
Book is 319 pages, McFarland. Available from amazon.com
New Busby Berkeley book
Maybe the most revered of musical directors was the extreme-stylist of the golden era of Hollywood movies, Busby Berkeley, a man who changed what a stage-production meant on film by taking the camera and making it move like a winged-eye that could see the motion of actors from every angle. Whether they were underwater, behind glass, or below a skyward lense, Berkeley made synchronized motion more than a filmed reproduction of a Broadway play.
Book is by Jeffrey Spivak, 408 pages, University Press of Kentucky. Available from amazon.com