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Little Me: The Intimate Memoirs of that Great Star of Stage, Screen and Television, Belle Poitrine
Back in print at last! From the author of Auntie Mame : the bawdy, bestselling, bountifully illustrated autobiography of an imaginary diva whose life is one hilarious mishap after another.
For Belle Poitrine, née Mayble Schlumpfert, all the world's a stage and she's the most important player on it. At once coy and coercive, with a name that means "beautiful bosom" in French, she claws her way from Striver's Row to the silver screen. Recalling Belle's career, which ranged from portraying Anne Boleyn in Oh, Henry to roles in both Sodom and its sequel Gomorrah (not to mention the classic Papaya Paradise ), Little Me serves up copious quanitites of husbands, couture, and Pink Lady cocktails, with international adventures and a murder trial to boot.
A runaway bestseller that made its way to Broadway, starring Sid Caesar in 1962 and Martin Short in 1998, Little Me is now reprinted--with all of the 150 historic, hysterical photographs depicting the funniest scenes from Belle's sordid life, including cameo appearances by the author and Rosalind Russell. Considered a collector's item, the first edition of Little Me was like a performance in book form. Now this glittering spoof of celebrity is gloriously reincarnated for connoisseurs of all things chick and cheeky.
For Belle Poitrine, née Mayble Schlumpfert, all the world's a stage and she's the most important player on it. At once coy and coercive, with a name that means "beautiful bosom" in French, she claws her way from Striver's Row to the silver screen. Recalling Belle's career, which ranged from portraying Anne Boleyn in Oh, Henry to roles in both Sodom and its sequel Gomorrah (not to mention the classic Papaya Paradise ), Little Me serves up copious quanitites of husbands, couture, and Pink Lady cocktails, with international adventures and a murder trial to boot.
A runaway bestseller that made its way to Broadway, starring Sid Caesar in 1962 and Martin Short in 1998, Little Me is now reprinted--with all of the 150 historic, hysterical photographs depicting the funniest scenes from Belle's sordid life, including cameo appearances by the author and Rosalind Russell. Considered a collector's item, the first edition of Little Me was like a performance in book form. Now this glittering spoof of celebrity is gloriously reincarnated for connoisseurs of all things chick and cheeky.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1961
38 people are currently reading
472 people want to read
About the author
Patrick Dennis
37 books150 followersEdward Everett Tanner III spent the last years of his life as a butler, in spite of having been one of the most popular novelists of the 1950s and 1960s. A bisexual, he had a wife and family, but also pursued relationships with men on the side.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
August 16, 2025
"The film was a great success - both commercially and critically - and one reviewer even coined the word 'soporific' to describe it. This, I suppose, was meant to combine 'superb' and 'terrific' but the term certainly caught on as I have heard it used many times - once or twice even applied to my own performances..."Wanting to get away from... well, everything... I threw my eyes into the arms of Patrick Dennis. I read this when I was a teenager... having found a hardbound copy in an old barn converted into a second-hand bookstore with what seemed miles of floor to ceiling bookcases.
But that was long ago. I remembered it as a pick-me-up so I let myself be picked up again.
It's really Dennis' anti-'Auntie Mame'. It's just as madcap - but it's a darker (if still wildly funny) tale of the life of Belle Poitrine. In fact, it is her autobiography. She's actually a rather terrible person - a no-talent beauty who, with failure upon failure in her trail, wends her way through stage and screen, perpetually firmly believing she is a major star.
To say the least, she's deluded and has no sense of her not-particularly-bright self. Or any real sense of most of the people around her. In her eyes, Belle is noble and a good human being. But throughout her life she remains horribly naive as she vaguely alludes to having quite a bit of sex... and somehow manages to marry 5 or 6 men, all of whom (I think) die... leaving her free to marry again.
Belle does go through some tough spells and low points in her... um, career. (At one point, she really does hit rock bottom - and is in the tight grip of a jealous lesbian agent who is 'overseeing' her brief stint as a chanteuse.) But she somehow always lands back on 'top' (-ish), finds the strength to go on believing in herself. At last... she even finds God! And, once again, money!
So, ultimately, things turn out well for Belle, whether we know if we feel happy for her or not. But, what the heck, she's a survivor!
Dennis' book comes with about 150 photographs of Belle's insane life in the entertainment world - and they hilariously offset his wonderful way with words. This is certainly among the most charming books ever... albeit about the life of a vain, rank amateur. It sure had me smiling throughout.
April 30, 2015
A nutcake parody of star bios, the book's whipped cream comes from the spankingly whacked (and staged) photographs of Milady's ribald life. ~ Have a laugh reading some GR reviews that take it "seriously" as an Anything. One Poopy said felt he needed to be disinfected after reading. Here's a better idea : Kill yourself. ~~ Belle Poitrine's life rivals that of Libby Holman's, only the Libby story isnt nutcake. It's a banquet of creamy desserts. And it's true. Warble away, Libby !
June 27, 2016
Where has this book been all my life?! I laughed so hard and continually reading this gem, as sparkling as the Baughhdie diamonds, that my boss had to come over and see. And seeing is really half the fun with a 150 photographs supporting the text. Without the photographs, this would be a 5 star book, lampooning the glut of movie star biographies that came out in the 50s, the rise and fall and rise again of Belle Poitrine. The photographs elevate it to a piece of purest camp and if there were more stars to give this, I would.
Jeri Archer, nee Herman Beulahfield, aka Gladys Tinfow, is Belle Poitrine and the introduction to this edition talks about Patrick Dennis instructing his models to be more vapid or show "what the fuck" better, and does she ever succeed. I laughed through all of Belle's rise, from Drifter's Row in Venezuela, Indiana, whose mother worked at Madame Louise's "gentlemen's hotel and social club near the depot" to pornographic film actress, to burlesque, to silent film extra, to getting her claws into a rich Englishman, to disgrace, and then married to owner of Hollywood studio, couched in the happy narcissism of the autobiography.
It was her spats with fellow star Magdalena Montezuma that were my favorite parts of this book and the romance of the century with Letch Feeley. The filming of her great classic The Scarlet Letter, which is a "college musical set in a big coeducational university," where Hester "wearing proudly the big red 'A' of Allstate, leads the team and student body in a big victory snake dance culminating in their wedding under the visitor's goal post. I felt that it brought home a real message to the youth of America."
I can't love this book enough!
Jeri Archer, nee Herman Beulahfield, aka Gladys Tinfow, is Belle Poitrine and the introduction to this edition talks about Patrick Dennis instructing his models to be more vapid or show "what the fuck" better, and does she ever succeed. I laughed through all of Belle's rise, from Drifter's Row in Venezuela, Indiana, whose mother worked at Madame Louise's "gentlemen's hotel and social club near the depot" to pornographic film actress, to burlesque, to silent film extra, to getting her claws into a rich Englishman, to disgrace, and then married to owner of Hollywood studio, couched in the happy narcissism of the autobiography.
It was her spats with fellow star Magdalena Montezuma that were my favorite parts of this book and the romance of the century with Letch Feeley. The filming of her great classic The Scarlet Letter, which is a "college musical set in a big coeducational university," where Hester "wearing proudly the big red 'A' of Allstate, leads the team and student body in a big victory snake dance culminating in their wedding under the visitor's goal post. I felt that it brought home a real message to the youth of America."
I can't love this book enough!
April 17, 2021
2.5, rounded up.
This faux autobiography of legendary (in her own mind) star Belle Poitrine (French for 'Pretty Bosom') is never quite as funny or clever as it wants to be - many have proclaimed it the funniest book ever, but it is at best only whimsically amusing, and never LOL hilarious. Worse, it strikes the exact same note over and over and over - it's like a symphony composed of only D flat minor chords - at first it's oddly interesting, then slightly irritating, then downright annoying and boring. Belle assumes a pose of fake naiveté, and says something that the audience intuits actually means something quite different - and usually the exact opposite of what she intends. Rinse and repeat.
What saves the book are the approximately 200 staged photos (by Cris Alexander) purporting to illustrate Belle's life, with the incomparable Jeri Archer portraying not only Belle, but her mother, daughter and granddaughter - these are genuinely astonishing, and often borderline pornographic - apparently several were deleted by the publisher on such grounds.
The book is probably best known now as the OTHER book by the pseudonymous Dennis Patrick of Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade fame, and the basis of the charming 1962 musical by Neil Simon and Cy Coleman - the latter's plot is much changed, however, which retains only the broad outline of the book itself.
This faux autobiography of legendary (in her own mind) star Belle Poitrine (French for 'Pretty Bosom') is never quite as funny or clever as it wants to be - many have proclaimed it the funniest book ever, but it is at best only whimsically amusing, and never LOL hilarious. Worse, it strikes the exact same note over and over and over - it's like a symphony composed of only D flat minor chords - at first it's oddly interesting, then slightly irritating, then downright annoying and boring. Belle assumes a pose of fake naiveté, and says something that the audience intuits actually means something quite different - and usually the exact opposite of what she intends. Rinse and repeat.
What saves the book are the approximately 200 staged photos (by Cris Alexander) purporting to illustrate Belle's life, with the incomparable Jeri Archer portraying not only Belle, but her mother, daughter and granddaughter - these are genuinely astonishing, and often borderline pornographic - apparently several were deleted by the publisher on such grounds.
The book is probably best known now as the OTHER book by the pseudonymous Dennis Patrick of Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade fame, and the basis of the charming 1962 musical by Neil Simon and Cy Coleman - the latter's plot is much changed, however, which retains only the broad outline of the book itself.
November 5, 2013
This spoof autobiography of the ‘great star of stage, screen and television’ Belle Poitrine is another of my ‘funniest books ever written’, and I read a chapter or two whenever I’m in need of cheering up. Dennis (real name Edward Everett Tanner III) was the writer who gave the world Auntie Mame, which is very charming and sweet – but this is much better. He captures perfectly the delusional egocentricity that’s endemic in show business and the arts (and Facebook): when I was a journalist, interviewing TV stars for a living, I had many a Belle Poitrine moment. The basic joke is pretty slim: Belle has no talent but a great pair of tits, which she uses to make (and lose) several fortunes. She lies about her age, screws anything in trousers (including a butch lesbian) and regards every disaster as a triumph. Dennis elevates this into great fiction by his pitch-perfect rendering of Belle’s voice, and the icing on the cake is the wonderful photos by Cris Alexander which illustrate the text. Little Me is the book that made me into a novelist; my first book, I Must Confess, was a homage/rip-off, as you wish.
June 23, 2017
This was a classic of its time, yet it's largely forgotten today. It's the purported autobiography of stage and screen star Belle Poitrine, "as told to Patrick Dennis": a tongue-in-cheek sendup of star autobiographies, with hilarious photographs by Cris Alexander, featuring model and actress Jeri Archer as Belle, Dennis himself as her second husband Cedric, and even cameos by actresses Rosalind Russell and Peggy Cass. The tone is spot-on perfect, as Belle narrates her rise to fame, with five husbands and uncounted lovers along the way, and the brilliantly staged photographs complete the picture. Happily, it's back in print now, after being very hard to find for many years.
October 18, 2007
This is a weird great book. Patrick Dennis (Auntie Mame) wrote the text, pretending it's a memoir by a faded actress. Also illustrated by photos that are totally faked. It's basically Patrick Dennis and buddies posing as characters, etc. It's hysterical!
November 22, 2013
One of the funniest books I've ever read! Campy, gay, and delusional; could easily be called the many misadventures of Lady Derp!
February 1, 2016
If Jane Krakowski were a book, it would be this one. Hopelessly naïve and self-deluded, fictional fading movie starlet Belle Poitrine narrates her exploits in what she assumes is a highbrow literary biography, completely missing the fact that her tale is tawdry, racy and contains an impressive level of self-incrimination. Wherever Poitrine goes, she sows chaos and destruction willy-nilly, and even in the final moments of the book, which imply a grisly ending is in store, she remains no wiser to her past or future. It's arch, it's campy, it's very strange, but if the comedy stylings of "30 Rock" and "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmitt" appeal to you, this will too.
November 12, 2012
I didn't so much finish this novel as give up on it.
"Little Me" is the fictional autobiography of Belle Poitrine--a self-titled movie star of the early to mid-20th Century who regards herelf as one of the great actresses of all time. In fact, she's a talentless liar, thief, call girl, and murderer who cheats her way to the top through blackmail and other similarly savory means means.
This novel is commonly regarded as Patrick Dennis's best non-Auntie Mame piece of fiction--so much so that they even made a Broadway musical out of it. I just don't get it. Belle Poitrine is so charmless and so smarmy that when I finally decided I'd had enough, I felt like taking a long shower with lots of disinfectant.
"Little Me" is the fictional autobiography of Belle Poitrine--a self-titled movie star of the early to mid-20th Century who regards herelf as one of the great actresses of all time. In fact, she's a talentless liar, thief, call girl, and murderer who cheats her way to the top through blackmail and other similarly savory means means.
This novel is commonly regarded as Patrick Dennis's best non-Auntie Mame piece of fiction--so much so that they even made a Broadway musical out of it. I just don't get it. Belle Poitrine is so charmless and so smarmy that when I finally decided I'd had enough, I felt like taking a long shower with lots of disinfectant.
May 6, 2025
Reines Camp, ein Buch so schwul wie kaum ein anderes, das ich im Leben gelesen habe. Der "Roman" würde sicherlich davon profitieren, von einer alten Tunte laut vorgelesen zu werden, während die Photographien projiziert würden, er ist in einem Tonfall geschrieben, den das nicht an die Sprache einer gewissen Generation schwuler Amerikaner gewöhntes nicht-englischsprachiges Publikum, und wahrscheinlich auch jüngere Amerikaner, kaum herauslesen werden. Die Photomontagen von Cris Alexander sind großartig und machten mich oft laut lachen, und die umwerfenden Beefcake-Männermodels, die Belles Liebhaber darstellen, hätten besser nicht gewählt sein können.
Die Form unzuverlässigen Erzählens, die das Buch verwendet, fordert immer wieder die willing suspension of disbelief des Lesers heraus - ich zumindest musste mich bei jedem neuen Einstieg, wenn ich das Buch einmal zur Seite gelegt hatte, kurz bewusst dazu zwingen, mich in den Modus des Campung zu versetzen. Belle Poitrine - zu Deutsch, schöner Busen - verfährt hier eindeutig in der Manier des narzisstischen Stars, der die Details seines Lebens, wie sie dem Leser vielleicht aus der Skandalpresse bekannt sind, in beschönigender Manier verzerrt, andererseits werden diese Details zum Teil eindeutig "erstmals" berichtet, was die Erzählerin weniger als eine kalkulierende Narzisstin denn als eine Irre, die jeden Bezug zur Realität und jede Fähigkeit zur Einschätzung ihrer Außenwirkung verloren hat. So stellt sich beispielsweise auch die Frage, wie in einer "Autobiographie", deren erstes Kapitel mit der Jahreszahl des Geburtsjahrs 1900 untertitelt ist, das letzte mit 1960, die Behauptung getätigt werden kann, man sei eben 40 geworden. Aber gerade darin liegt gewissermaßen der Reiz der Figur, und des Buches im allgemeinen; nicht eine kohärente Geschichte wird hier zu erzählen versucht, vielmehr befindet man sich im Reich der Zeichen, wo das eine gegen das andere ausgespielt oder darauf gehäuft wird. Dem schwulen Liebhaber der amerikanischen Popkultur und ihres Figurenrepertoires kommt hier voll auf seine Kosten, und dies allein ist die Intention.
Oft fragte ich mich jedoch, was ich von dem Frauenbild, das sich darin transportiert, halten sollte. Schwules Camp besteht allzu oft darin, eine Frau für gefallen zu erklären und sie dafür zu zelebrieren. Freilich ist darin ein transgressives Moment enthalten, aber zugleich wird doch die Existenz solcher Kategorien und der mit ihnen verbunden Annahmen beständig und vehement affirmiert. Huren, Nymphomaninnen, Ehebrecherinnen, alte Schabracken, Kindsmörderinnen, sie alle gehören zum festem Personal der schwulen Imagination, die als männlich sozialisierte an ihrer Überwindung überhaupt kein Interesse hat.
Die Form unzuverlässigen Erzählens, die das Buch verwendet, fordert immer wieder die willing suspension of disbelief des Lesers heraus - ich zumindest musste mich bei jedem neuen Einstieg, wenn ich das Buch einmal zur Seite gelegt hatte, kurz bewusst dazu zwingen, mich in den Modus des Campung zu versetzen. Belle Poitrine - zu Deutsch, schöner Busen - verfährt hier eindeutig in der Manier des narzisstischen Stars, der die Details seines Lebens, wie sie dem Leser vielleicht aus der Skandalpresse bekannt sind, in beschönigender Manier verzerrt, andererseits werden diese Details zum Teil eindeutig "erstmals" berichtet, was die Erzählerin weniger als eine kalkulierende Narzisstin denn als eine Irre, die jeden Bezug zur Realität und jede Fähigkeit zur Einschätzung ihrer Außenwirkung verloren hat. So stellt sich beispielsweise auch die Frage, wie in einer "Autobiographie", deren erstes Kapitel mit der Jahreszahl des Geburtsjahrs 1900 untertitelt ist, das letzte mit 1960, die Behauptung getätigt werden kann, man sei eben 40 geworden. Aber gerade darin liegt gewissermaßen der Reiz der Figur, und des Buches im allgemeinen; nicht eine kohärente Geschichte wird hier zu erzählen versucht, vielmehr befindet man sich im Reich der Zeichen, wo das eine gegen das andere ausgespielt oder darauf gehäuft wird. Dem schwulen Liebhaber der amerikanischen Popkultur und ihres Figurenrepertoires kommt hier voll auf seine Kosten, und dies allein ist die Intention.
Oft fragte ich mich jedoch, was ich von dem Frauenbild, das sich darin transportiert, halten sollte. Schwules Camp besteht allzu oft darin, eine Frau für gefallen zu erklären und sie dafür zu zelebrieren. Freilich ist darin ein transgressives Moment enthalten, aber zugleich wird doch die Existenz solcher Kategorien und der mit ihnen verbunden Annahmen beständig und vehement affirmiert. Huren, Nymphomaninnen, Ehebrecherinnen, alte Schabracken, Kindsmörderinnen, sie alle gehören zum festem Personal der schwulen Imagination, die als männlich sozialisierte an ihrer Überwindung überhaupt kein Interesse hat.
May 10, 2020
Flat out hilarious, and each time I reread it I discover yet another perfect sentence. This is the perfect antidote to Entertainment Tonight and Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Dennis, who also created Auntie Mame, here turned his sights on the typical smarmy celeb autobiography style of the mid-century. Belle Poitrine's link to the Kardashians is a bullseye of foreshadowing. She is ruthlessly self-centered, and while it is obvious to everyone save Belle that she hasn't got a lick of talent, her single-minded lust to be a celebrity carries her to increasingly higher plateaus of vulgar fame. Sound familiar? Dennis is a lot rougher on his characters than the cast of Auntie Mame, skewering every form of entertainment from 1915 until 1960, with Belle reaching nadirs of achievement in each one. Belle herself (and her mother, daughter and granddaughter) are all played by the visually stunning Jeri Taylor, who clearly had the time of her life and the visual wit to bring life to Dennis' outlandish descriptions. The photographs were by Cris Alexander, who also shows up as a character or two, along with Alice Pearce, Kaye Ballard and several other actors from the 1950s who are clearly having the times of their lives playing dress-up. The book is riddled with outrageous double-entendres and bawdy photographs (PG now, but eyebrows must have been raised at the time).
A really guilty and wonderful pleasure. Highly recommend.
A really guilty and wonderful pleasure. Highly recommend.
July 1, 2025
Libro delizioso dell'autore del ben più noto "Zia mame".
La atmosfere sono quelle del suo fratello famoso, ma le libertà sono molte di più.
É una sorta di finta auto-biografia corredata da fotografie (!!!) scritta ovviamente in prima persona dalla "povera piccina" ovvero Belle. la protagonista racconta tutta la sua vita, dall'infanzia alla selinità (anche se l'argomento "età" è volutamente confuso).
L'espediente del "povera piccina" è semplicemente geniale e sussume il carattere della protagonista. Sfacciata, criminale, calcolatrice? O solo una povera piccina travolta dalla vita e dagli eventi? Tra matrimoni d'amore con miliardari, brillanti carriere nel teatro e nella televisione e parti prematuri di bebè di 5 kg la sua vita è semplicemente uno spettacolo da godere. Bellissima la storia connessa alla scrittura e alla promozione di questo folle romanzo. Consigliatissimo.
La atmosfere sono quelle del suo fratello famoso, ma le libertà sono molte di più.
É una sorta di finta auto-biografia corredata da fotografie (!!!) scritta ovviamente in prima persona dalla "povera piccina" ovvero Belle. la protagonista racconta tutta la sua vita, dall'infanzia alla selinità (anche se l'argomento "età" è volutamente confuso).
L'espediente del "povera piccina" è semplicemente geniale e sussume il carattere della protagonista. Sfacciata, criminale, calcolatrice? O solo una povera piccina travolta dalla vita e dagli eventi? Tra matrimoni d'amore con miliardari, brillanti carriere nel teatro e nella televisione e parti prematuri di bebè di 5 kg la sua vita è semplicemente uno spettacolo da godere. Bellissima la storia connessa alla scrittura e alla promozione di questo folle romanzo. Consigliatissimo.
December 1, 2020
Divertente, bizzarro. Mai visto niente di simile. Non è tanto la storia, quanto il corredo di bellissime e strampalate fotografie. Da quanto tempo non leggevate una storia illustrata..? Dai lontani tempi di Pinocchio e Oliver Twist? Ecco, riproverete l’emozione -tanto cara ai bambini- di vedere i personaggi con i vostri occhi..!
Mi chiedo: ma come mai questo Patrick Dennis, tanto famoso in America, da noi è stato completamente dimenticato fino a quando non è stato ristampato nel 2009? Del resto la stessa domanda si potrebbe porre, a maggior ragione, a proposito di Richard Yates, di Irene Nemirovsky, di Elizabeth von Arnim. E chissà quanti altri. Ma chi li capisce, gli editori?
Mi chiedo: ma come mai questo Patrick Dennis, tanto famoso in America, da noi è stato completamente dimenticato fino a quando non è stato ristampato nel 2009? Del resto la stessa domanda si potrebbe porre, a maggior ragione, a proposito di Richard Yates, di Irene Nemirovsky, di Elizabeth von Arnim. E chissà quanti altri. Ma chi li capisce, gli editori?
October 21, 2021
Probably way more fun to have been involved in making this than it was to read it
March 19, 2014
Caro Patrick Dennis,
In genere, quando scrivo le recensioni in questo formato, stanno per arrivare valanghe di critiche e di lamentele ai poveri destinatari. In genere, perché Lei è il milionesimo clien... volevo dire perché questa, per una volta tanto, sarà una lettera positiva.
Onestamente, io un po' La compatisco. Il suo personaggio più amato - l'unico - è Zia Mame, che è noto Lei odiasse per il suo fastidioso vizietto di inglobare tutta la Sua carriera letteraria con la sua stravaganza. A dire il vero anch'io la trovo insopportabile, ma andiamolo a dire alle generazioni di lettori che non la pensano così.
Da persona che si diletta con la scrittura - niente di serio, per carità - La capisco, ma non è solo per quello che la compatisco. Dopo un inutile libro dedicato ancora alle avventure della zia più fastidiosa d'America Lei ha deciso di cambiare pagina: creare una fittizia autobiografia di un'attricetta correlata pure di finte (ed esilaranti) fotografie. Una idea originale e divertente, eppure... nessuno la riconosce come tale. Tutti, sia i critici che i lettori, sono rimasti fermi a "Zia Mame", ignorando bellamente questo romanzo, chiaramente più maturo del precedente, inscenando addirittura stupidi confronti tra le protagoniste.
Penso sia un vero peccato, ed è per questo che Le scrivo. "Povera piccina" è più ambizioso, ha una storia unitaria e soprattutto dei personaggi memorabili. Belle Poitraine è talmente stupida da essere adorabile, nonché costruita alla perfezione nel suo egocentrismo e nel suo credere di essere quello che non è, vale a dire intelligente. La parte finale con la sua filosofia di vita, in particolare, vale tutto il prezzo del biglietto. Non parliamo poi del cinismo sotto la maschera dell'ironia, una combinazione che personalmente adoro. Infine le fotografie, un vero e proprio valore aggiunto...
Eppure tutto questo non importa a molti, accecati dall'eccentricità di Zia Mame. Che sfortuna, Dennis. Beh, sappia che almeno per me ha vinto la sfida, e colto nel segno. Sa che c'è? Quasi quasi, gli do anche tutte le stelline...
Con affetto, Surymae Rossweisse
In genere, quando scrivo le recensioni in questo formato, stanno per arrivare valanghe di critiche e di lamentele ai poveri destinatari. In genere, perché Lei è il milionesimo clien... volevo dire perché questa, per una volta tanto, sarà una lettera positiva.
Onestamente, io un po' La compatisco. Il suo personaggio più amato - l'unico - è Zia Mame, che è noto Lei odiasse per il suo fastidioso vizietto di inglobare tutta la Sua carriera letteraria con la sua stravaganza. A dire il vero anch'io la trovo insopportabile, ma andiamolo a dire alle generazioni di lettori che non la pensano così.
Da persona che si diletta con la scrittura - niente di serio, per carità - La capisco, ma non è solo per quello che la compatisco. Dopo un inutile libro dedicato ancora alle avventure della zia più fastidiosa d'America Lei ha deciso di cambiare pagina: creare una fittizia autobiografia di un'attricetta correlata pure di finte (ed esilaranti) fotografie. Una idea originale e divertente, eppure... nessuno la riconosce come tale. Tutti, sia i critici che i lettori, sono rimasti fermi a "Zia Mame", ignorando bellamente questo romanzo, chiaramente più maturo del precedente, inscenando addirittura stupidi confronti tra le protagoniste.
Penso sia un vero peccato, ed è per questo che Le scrivo. "Povera piccina" è più ambizioso, ha una storia unitaria e soprattutto dei personaggi memorabili. Belle Poitraine è talmente stupida da essere adorabile, nonché costruita alla perfezione nel suo egocentrismo e nel suo credere di essere quello che non è, vale a dire intelligente. La parte finale con la sua filosofia di vita, in particolare, vale tutto il prezzo del biglietto. Non parliamo poi del cinismo sotto la maschera dell'ironia, una combinazione che personalmente adoro. Infine le fotografie, un vero e proprio valore aggiunto...
Eppure tutto questo non importa a molti, accecati dall'eccentricità di Zia Mame. Che sfortuna, Dennis. Beh, sappia che almeno per me ha vinto la sfida, e colto nel segno. Sa che c'è? Quasi quasi, gli do anche tutte le stelline...
Con affetto, Surymae Rossweisse
January 28, 2011
I romanzi di Patrick Dennis hanno un solo incredibile macroscopico difetto: sono RIPETITIVI!!! Cioè partono: beeeeelliiii, ahahahah, divertenti, fantastici!!! Proseguono: ihihihi, carina questa, eheheh forte dai. Verso la fine: ma 'sta cosa non l'aveva già raccontata? Ma è ancora viva sta vecchiaccia? Così era "Zia Mame", così è "Povera piccina", che se vogliamo ha anche un altro difetto: l'abuso dei doppi sensi e la finta innocenza della protagonista, che ricorda in alcune sue sparate la Sally Mara di Queneau.
Mi si chiederà (e se nessuno me lo chiederà me lo chiedo da me): ma allora perché 4 stelle, una stella in più di "Zia Mame"?
Ottima domanda, sono brava a farmi le domande da sola.
Comunque, già, perché? Per la fottutissima genialata dell'autobiografia farlocca, con un comparto fotografico meraviglioso. Potrebbe pure essere scritto in aramaico con influenze di esperanto, chissenefrega. E' un bel libro da avere perchè è bello da guardare.
E so che Patrick Dennis avrebbe apprezzato questo mio vezzo da esteta. Con le donne che descrive, ci mancherebbe altro.
Resta sempre da capire il perché questo ritorno in auge di Patrick Dennis, saranno contenti alla Adelphi.
Mi si chiederà (e se nessuno me lo chiederà me lo chiedo da me): ma allora perché 4 stelle, una stella in più di "Zia Mame"?
Ottima domanda, sono brava a farmi le domande da sola.
Comunque, già, perché? Per la fottutissima genialata dell'autobiografia farlocca, con un comparto fotografico meraviglioso. Potrebbe pure essere scritto in aramaico con influenze di esperanto, chissenefrega. E' un bel libro da avere perchè è bello da guardare.
E so che Patrick Dennis avrebbe apprezzato questo mio vezzo da esteta. Con le donne che descrive, ci mancherebbe altro.
Resta sempre da capire il perché questo ritorno in auge di Patrick Dennis, saranno contenti alla Adelphi.
May 29, 2016
Non è assolutamente al pari di "Zia Mame" ma fa sicuramente fare un sacco di risate.
Belle Poitrine è sicuramente un personaggio ben definito, una donna "con gli attributi", che sa quello che vuole e come prenderselo. Essendo la voce narrante del libro si riesce ad entrare nei più profondi meandri della psiche di questa donna che vede tutti i suoi gesti e le sue azioni con un velo di ingenuità verginale, che fa letteralmente a cazzotti con l'immagine della donna che via via si costruisce dalla narrazione.
Tra gli innumerevoli mariti e le speciali pellicole che vedono come protagonista Belle, il tempo passa e la bellezza e l'avvenenza dell'instancabile attrice svaniscono. Ma nonostante tutto la protagonista non si lascia andare e si porterà avanti fino ad un finale degno di Belle Poitrine.
Belle Poitrine è sicuramente un personaggio ben definito, una donna "con gli attributi", che sa quello che vuole e come prenderselo. Essendo la voce narrante del libro si riesce ad entrare nei più profondi meandri della psiche di questa donna che vede tutti i suoi gesti e le sue azioni con un velo di ingenuità verginale, che fa letteralmente a cazzotti con l'immagine della donna che via via si costruisce dalla narrazione.
Tra gli innumerevoli mariti e le speciali pellicole che vedono come protagonista Belle, il tempo passa e la bellezza e l'avvenenza dell'instancabile attrice svaniscono. Ma nonostante tutto la protagonista non si lascia andare e si porterà avanti fino ad un finale degno di Belle Poitrine.
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January 12, 2020fun! what keeps this out of the tippy-top tier of p-denz novels for me is that it never quite makes up its mind whether belle is confabulating in service of her image or just astonishingly naive. i mean, either's a great joke; but superimposed like this i think it takes the book in 2 conflicting directions. a hoot nonetheless
July 18, 2023
Frizzante, come la protagonista, ma a tratti ripetitivo
August 3, 2024
Before I read Patrick Dennis’s enormously successful book Little Me, I read the follow-up, First Lady. With Little Me, Belle Poitrine—a fictional movie star—relates her life story to Patrick Dennis. Told in first person by Poitrine, Dennis gives us a parody of celebrity biographies, complete with photos from the actress’s life, staged by Dennis’s friend Cris Alexander. When Little Me became such a huge phenomenon, Dennis then wrote the story of a US First Lady, whose husband was president for thirty days. Critics somewhat panned First Lady, saying it was a pale imitation of Little Me. I, however, maybe because I read the second book before I read Little Me, both over fifty years ago and again recently—like First Lady better. I understand that Little Me has more nuance, but the title character in First Lady seems to be a wide-eyed innocent, never realizing her mistakes in relationships, decisions, and decorating. Belle Poitrine, however, seems to be fully aware of her shortcomings and machinations while cloaking them in innocence. Perhaps that’s what makes Little Me a better novel, but I did not particularly like Poitrine and was glad the book was over when I turned the final page. A big affectation in the book that irritated me was Dennis’s use of quotation marks. I think he wanted Poitrine to show she knew the nicknames and expressions were not true ones—every name that is abbreviated, i.e. Billy for William, and every movie industry term, i.e. lot (the physical land on which movie studios sit) and “blew up” (forgetting one’s lines,) and select ordinary terms as kid and toney, are all encased in quotation marks. If this was a joke, it got old quickly. Patrick Dennis created Auntie Mame, and for that, we will always be grateful. In his time, he was wildly successful and lauded as a satirist and parodist. I hate to think some of his work has become dated and out of mode. Perhaps that’s the case. Or perhaps I am a different person since I first read these works half a century ago.
September 4, 2018
Little Me is a book I read many, many years ago. It's a "fake" memoir told from the point of view of a woman who made many compromises in her effort of getting attention, all supposedly leading to her becoming a "star." The woman, Belle Poitrine, is a total hoot, a larger-than-life facsimile of many of the celebrities who went on to immortalize themselves in memoirs, some of which pretended to be "tell-alls." Well Belle Poitrine's story, true or not, is a tell-all tell-all. As an editor who got to work with some of the great movie divas--Esther Williams, Faye Dunaway, Cher--I can tell you that Patrick Dennis (best known for Auntie Mame) nailed this one: it's a brilliantly exaggerated story of the rise to (kind of, sorta) fame, and the complications that come with that rise. The photos are priceless, and the fun you'll have if you just let go of your resistance to parody will be immense. Love this book.
September 24, 2022
I hadn't read it for some years, so had forgotten just how hilarious it is. Laugh out loud humour on every page of the disingenuous Belle's memoirs (Poitrine is French for breasts) and at the marvellous photos. Do not read it with a drink in your hand. Her use of pointless quote marks would be 'maddening' in a real book, but 'add' to the amusement. The perfect antidote for the current gloom.
Is she really as obtuse as she seems or just disingenuous? Or both? The description of her films as she has the classics adapted is painful and hilarious to read as there are real ones that are almost as bad. Keep tissues handy; you'll laugh so much that you'll need them
Is she really as obtuse as she seems or just disingenuous? Or both? The description of her films as she has the classics adapted is painful and hilarious to read as there are real ones that are almost as bad. Keep tissues handy; you'll laugh so much that you'll need them
April 18, 2020
Dal poliedrico autore di zia Mame, la finta autobiografia di una star costruita addirittura con tanto di immagini e fotografie a corredo della storia. Nata da madre nubile dedita a antica professione, la povera piccina Belle si rende ben presto conto di essere destinata ad una folgorante carriera di artista.
Attraversando quattro o cinque matrimoni, Belle si dedica a teatro, burlesque, cinema e televisione e tutto quello che fa si tramuta in catastrofe.
Il libro risente un po’ dell’età comunque è geniale, in alcuni punti veramente divertente.
November 21, 2019
The would-be legendary Belle Poitrine makes the most of her obvious assets, whilst not letting limited talent and self-awareness get in the way, in a Candide-like story, where successes are short-lived and disasters many. Lavishly illustrated with photographs, which defied the censors in their time, it is quite possibly the template for every celebrity memoir of the 20th century. But accept no facsimile, there was only one Belle Poitrine.
November 11, 2024
An enjoyable droll tale of a made up star gone by. There are some definite laughs to be had, but the pages do feel a bit dense. The stage musical of the same name that spawned from this book does a much better job of streamlining the finer points, but the pictures and the moments the humor land are wonderful.
November 21, 2018
All'inizio ero un po' incerto dopo ne sono stato travolto, un libro divertente che ti fa stare sempre col sorriso sulle labbra visto le stravaganze e le incongruenze (volute) che descrive.
Ideale per una lettura spensierata.
Ideale per una lettura spensierata.
February 25, 2019
A hilarious tome done by "Patrick Dennis" who was actually Edward Everett Tanner III , a bon vivant that spent all his earnings from his best book "Auntie Mame," and ended up as butler to McDonalds founder Ray Kroc
June 2, 2020
This is a surprising little gem I just recently discovered (yes, I am very late to this party). I can't believe this book is almost 60 years old! It could have been written yesterday and would be just as on point.
July 31, 2023
Absolutely disgusting and perfect. So much darker and filthier than the musical it spawned (also with surprisingly few plot points in common). Those pictures have to be seen to be believed, and its brand of false modesty celebrity satire has aged unsettingly well.
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