Hustons

by Lawrence Grobel

Chronicles the stellar accomplishments of one of America's greatest dramatic families, from Walter Huston's vaudeville roots to John Huston's final film, "The Dead"

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Film, Autobiography, Biography Memoir

836 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Lawrence Grobel (www.lawrencegrobel.com) is a novelist, journalist, biographer, poet and teacher. Five of his 31 books have been singled out as Best Books of the Year by Publisher’s Weekly and many have appeared on Best Seller lists. He is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship for his fiction. PEN gave his Conversations with Capote a Special Achievement Award. The Syndicat Francais de la Critique de Cinema awarded his Al Pacino their Prix Litteraire as the Best International Book of 2008. James A. Michener called his biography, The Hustons, “a masterpiece.” His The Art of the Interview is used as a text in many journalism schools. Writer’s Digest called him “a legend among journalists.” Joyce Carol Oates dubbed him “The Mozart of Interviewers” and Playboy singled him out as “The Interviewer’s Interviewer” after publishing his interviews with Barbra Streisand, Dolly Parton, Henry Fonda and Marlon Brando.
He has written for dozens of magazines and has been a Contributing Editor for Playboy, Movieline, World (New Zealand), and Trendy (Poland). He served in the Peace Corps, teaching at the Ghana Institute of Journalism; created the M.F.A. in Professional Writing for Antioch University; and taught in the English Department at UCLA for ten years. Since 2007 he has served as a jury member at the annual Camerimage Film Festival in Poland. He has appeared on CNN, The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Charlie Rose Show, NPR’s The Treatment, Marc Maron”s WTF and Adam Carolla’s podcasts, and in two documentaries, Salinger and Al Pacino’s Wilde Salome. His book, You, Talking to Me, highlights the lessons he’s learned from interviewing. His memoir, You Show Me Yours, takes him from the streets of Brooklyn to Marlon Brando’s island in Tahiti. Yoga? No, Shmoga! is his satirical take on staying healthy through stretching. His fiction includes 2 novels (Catch a Fallen Star, Begin Again Finnegan), a novella (The Black Eyes of Akbah), and 3 books of short stories (The Narcissist, Stuck, and Schemers, Dreamers, Cheaters, Believers). His most recent book is a memoir of his three years in the Peace Corps (Turquoise). His books are all available on Amazon and on his website. He is married to the artist Hiromi Oda and they have two daughters.

Reviews

[F.R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook.

It’s mainly John Huston, which makes sense as he’s the biggest character on display. A big, grand, entertaining book, much like the man himself.

[Aaron Hollander · Rating 4 out of 5]

The life of the Huston dynasty is fascinating. John Huston is at the center of this tome, with respectable space given to his father (Walter) and the careers of his children (Tony, Anjelica, Danny, and Allegra). We are given an unabashed look at John through his struggles, countless paramours, his verve for storytelling and exploring the human condition, the world over. The style is approachable and weaves the lives of the Hustons seamlessly. There are two points of criticism. Point one: given that John was a significant figure of 20th century American cinema, I would have liked a bit more analysis of his films, and of John's interests as it relates as such. Perhaps the author felt that was better suited to another text, but I was a bit disappointed that he didn't take advantage of the opportunity which would have been apt. Point two: although we are given a great deal of biographical and private details of John's life, there is a point when we receive a bit too much information. Specifics on John's health and sex life are perhaps worth mentioning, but a superficial rendering would have been sufficient to get the gist. Otherwise, all and all, I would enthusiastically recommend this very engaging text.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book chronicles the main characters in the Huston family. This family produced some major names in television and film. I was most interested to learn about Anjelica, who had an iconic role in The Addams Family. Aside from her, the lives, careers, and relationships of others are detailed. If you are into older Hollywood, this may be a good book for you!

[Tommy Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first I questioned whether it was wise for Grobel to start the book with the final months of John Huston's life (shortly before the book was published). The rest of the book is in chronological order from the time of his grandparents and by the time we get to John Huston being essentially homeless in England we have built up a great deal of sympathy for him. Which was the right way to go about it because after he reaches the heights of success as a movie director he's often a real bastard, especially in dealing with his five wives and various mistresses. If we hadn't had those earlier moments we might be wondering why we're reading about this piece of work in the first place. But we do get a really great profile of a complicated man who made some amazing movies. John Huston is the centerpiece of this but we also get to know his various family members in an always entertaining story of a major film family dynasty. This mammoth biography really has everything.

[jean · Rating 2 out of 5]

3 stars for the writing that mostly held my interest by creating an historically interesting glimpse of the vaudeville career and later movie career of Walter Huston and the writing and directing career ( and occasional acting )of John). Angela and her brother Tony are very briefly mentioned.
0 stars for the despicable person John Huston was, a sadistic, cruel, misogynistic, narcissist. The supporting
cast of interesting people in his life was the only reason I kept reading still I think it was a waste of time.

[Jim Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A monumental bio of an acting family

This biography of the Huston family, beginning with Walter and running through his director son John and his children is incredibly well researched and detailed. If you are going to read it, be ready for a long book that takes some time to get through, but will give you all the information you need about this amazing family.

[David Highton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well rehearsed and comprehensive book, particularly covering Walter and John Huston, and John’s various children. John Huston does not engender much sympathy - obviously charismatic and talented in the films he cared about, he also appears to be cruel, slightly sadistic, rude and a largely absent parent.

[P.S.Wing · Rating 4 out of 5]

This incredibly detailed and well-written biography of the Huston family is a must read for fans. Full of details of the lives of Walter, John, Angelica, Tony and Danny, it is somewhat demanding for the casual fan at 800 pages, but once you get into the flow of the writing style it's golden.

[Cyndy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s an entertaining read, but huge. I never thought I’d finish it. What a saga. I especially liked the insight into McCarthyism from Huston’s perspective.

[Carmen Lanzador · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best biographies of Hollywood Powerful People

[Pablo]

La parte final dedicada al rodaje de Dublineses es alucinante, realmente

[Richard Luck · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cracking read that, among other things, leaves you very relieved that you were never married to John Huston.

[P.J. McIlvaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on the Huston family!

[Jay Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book while researching my novel, Machine of War. In the story, my protagonist, a wounded young Marine who's also an aspiring screenwriter finds himself in a Naval hospital towards the end of the second world war. There, he meets a famous director researching a documentary he's making about PTSD. The inspiration for the director was real live filmmaker John Huston, who made the documentary Let There Be Light. This book was an excellent look at a show business family, starting with actor Walter Huston, John, and John's children Angela, Danny, and Tony. Most of the book concentrates on Walter and John, with John standing out as the most colorful of the clan, mainly because of his womanizing and roguish personality. John embodied the classic male fantasy best illustrated in the works of Hemingway. This book shows the dark flipside of living the alpha male lifestyle and breaks the illusion that a life well-lived is a life of mass consumption. While the films of Huston are some of the best ever made, it's heartbreaking to see the wreckage his choices left behind.

[Rex Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Huston’s work as a director reads like the canon of American film: The Maltese Falcon, The Treasure of Sierra Madre, Key Largo, The Asphalt Jungle, The Red Badge of Courage, The African Queen, Moulin Rouge, Beat the Devil, Moby Dick, Heaven Knows Mr. Allison, The Unforgiven, The Misfits, Night of the Iguana, The Bible, Reflections in a Golden Eye, The Kremlin Letter, Fat City, The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean, The Man Who Would Be King, Annie, Under the Volcano, The Dead, Wise Blood, The Mackintosh Man, Victory, and Prizzi’s Honor.

As an actor, who can forget his evil Noah Cross in Chinatown?

He directed both his father, Walter Huston (The Treasure of Sierra Madre), and his daughter, Angelica Huston (Prizzi’s Honor), in their Academy Award winning performances.

Such accomplishments naturally draw the eye. You find that he was built of contradictions, charming and cruel, worldly and petty, uneducated and learned, caring and irresponsible. Perhaps most telling: he was extremely close to his father but chose to be buried next to his mother.

Often credited with genius, he was certainly witty. Asked by his doctor how many cigars he smoked in a day he said, “All I can get.” And how much he inhaled. “As much as I can.”

Just as certainly, he knew precisely what he was doing behind a camera. He did only two or a few takes, using the camera “like a sniper would, not as a machine gun,” as the rest do. He spoke to his actors as little as possible. And did not watch them perform, instead he turned his back and listened to their words. Probably no one else could have done, or could do, the same.

Many passions drove him: boxing, horses, painting, hunting, gambling, writing, acting, women, drinking, practical jokes, collecting/smuggling art, and directing. It’s hardly certain that directing was paramount among them.

He had five wives, Dorothy Harvey, Leslie Black, Evelyn Keyes, Enrica “Ricki” Soma (mother of Anjelica and Tony Huston, and Allegra Huston by John Julius Norwich), and Celeste “Cici” Shane. He conducted hundreds of affairs, including with Mary Astor, Olivia de Havilland, Marietta Tree, Doris Lilly, Cherokee MacNamara, Eloise Hardt, Anne Selepegno, Lorrie Sherwood, Suzanne Flon, Maka Czernichew, Valeria Alberti, Zoe Sallis (mother of Danny Huston), and Maricela Hernandez, his last. He also slept with all of his secretaries and household helpers.

His best friend was his father, and he had many others including Ernest Hemingway, Errol Flynn, Billy Pearson, Orson Welles, Humphrey Bogart, Bill Mauldin, Lauren Bacall, Audie Murphy, Richard Burton, Katherine Hepburn, and Ava Gardner. He could not stand to be alone, or without thrill.

Huston gave Lawrence Grobel complete cooperation for this the definitive biography. The first third of it is almost evenly divided between John and his father, Walter, who was thought by many to be the greatest actor alive at the time. The last half covers John and his children. But make no mistake, the focus is on John and we see both his professional and personal lives in astounding detail.

By the time you finish, you may like John Huston less, but you may be more impressed with his achievements.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

EXHAUSTIVE

This book covers the entire history of film from the thirties through the nineties through the prism of the Huston family and John Huston in particular. no matter what you think of John Huston's films or whether he was a cad or not there is no denying that he was a larger than life character. One of a kind. As such it is fascinating to read about a person utterly unlike anyone you've ever met. Plus if you are at all interested in film this book gives a great perspective on moviemaking from an actor and director's point of view. Read it.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I finally finished this book - reading almost 800 pages about the Hustons can be a bit much sometimes, but it was an interesting take on a man of huge appetite who cast such an impressive wake that no one really challenged the notion that he could destroy everything in that wake. He sounds like a unique, masterful, selfish, brilliant man who cast a very large shadow over a very old Hollywood family.

[Kathy Kennedy]

An interesting portrait of a famous family. And an intimidating one, at 1000 or so pages!

[Malinda Lawdahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

An in depth look into the Huston Dynasty. Complicated, interesting, and a great read.