Movies | A Small Press Life: Books. Art. Writing. Life. Tea.

Image via Wikipedia

Title: The Filmgoer’s Companion Third Edition
Author: Leslie Halliwell (with a Foreword by Alfred Hitchcock)
Year Published: 1970 (Hill and Wang New York)
Year Purchased: 1990’s
Source: Antique Building, The Ohio State Fair
About: A dense, 1,072 page listing of nearly every player in movie history (up to the 1960’s), complete with pertinent biographical and career data, this is an info junkie’s dream. There is nothing extraneous, with Halliwell offering up facts and not opinions.
Motivation: I love old movie stars, especially those of the once-famous-now-obscure variety. For this reason, I collect vintage fan magazines and out-of-print, pre-1990’s genre books. Every cinema buff should own one edition of ‘The Filmgoer’s Companion’.
Times Read: 2
Random Excerpt/Page 7: “Speaking personally, I don’t know whether it is more flattering or disturbing to find oneself pinned down like a butterfly in a book which recounts all the macabre details of one’s career. But being a stickler for detail myself, I must, and do, submit; and I wish the enterprise well.”
Happiness Scale: 10+++ (although IMDB is splendid, sometimes only a book will do)
Image via Wikipedia

Title: The Matinee Idols
Author: David Carroll
Year Published: 1972 (Galahad Books New York)
Year Purchased: 1990’s
Source: Book Harbor, Columbus, Ohio
About: This slim volume covers all of the great American and British matinee idols of theatre and film, from John Wilkes Booth (yes, that one) to John Gilbert.
Motivation: I’ve loved all things related to silent cinema and the theatre since I was a child. It paid off because, as an adult, I have dedicated a meaty chunk of my professional output to the former.
Times Read: 3
Random Excerpt/Page 71: “Murmurs of excitement are heard in the audience as he displays a mounting fury over Fedora’s cross-examination. Fedora cajoles him, pleads with him, screams at him, then accuses him directly of the murder, but he denies the crime. Fedora throws herself at his feet and the scene builds to a point of almost unbearable tension. Finally he snaps.”
Happiness Scale: 8