Gold Digger: The Outrageous Life and Times of Peggy Hopkins Joyce

by Constance Rosenblum

A sparkling biography of the original blonde whom gentlemen preferred, a woman who made a career of marrying millionaires and became the first tabloid celebrity.One of America's most talked about personalities during the Jazz Age, Peggy Hopkins Joyce was the quintessential gold digger, the real-life Lorelei Lee. Married six times, to several millionaires and even a count, Joyce had no discernible talent except self-promotion. A barber's daughter from Norfolk, Virginia, who rose to become a Ziegfeld Girl and, briefly, a movie star, Joyce was the precursor of the modern celebrity-a person famous for being famous. Her scandalous exploits-spending a million dollars in a week, conducting torrid love affairs with the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Walter Chrysler-were irresistible to the new breed of tabloid journalists in search of sensation and to audiences hungry for the possibilities her life seemed to promise.Joyce's march across Broadway, Hollywood, and the nation's front pages was only slowed by the true nemesis of the glamour old age. She died in 1957, alone and forgotten-until now. In prose as vibrant as its subject, Constance Rosenblum's Gold Digger brings to life the woman who singularly epitomized this confident and hedonistic era.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History

339 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Constance Rosenblum, most recently the author of the Habitats column published in the Real Estate section of The New York Times, is the longtime editor of the paper’s City section and a former editor of the Times’s Arts and Leisure section. She is the author of Boulevard of Dreams: Heady Times, Heartbreak, and Hope Along the Grand Concourse in the Bronx.

Reviews

[Carla Remy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written, interesting, biography of a not very interesting person. Fascinating that Peggy Hopkins Joyce was extremely famous a hundred years ago, yet fairly unkown in my lifetime. The writer does a great job of describing and explaining life in the 1920s. Peggy was the inspiration for Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (I have actually read that before - written by Anita Loos - and intend to again). I've also read, and have, The Body Merchant, about Earl Carrol - he was kind of a sub Zeigfield. And Peggy was In his production, so I know I've read about her. But like 20 years ago..

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ran across Peggy Hopkins Joyce in the film INTERNATIONAL HOUSE. She was playing herself, had top billing (over WC Fields) and everyone seemed to know who she was. Having never heard of her, I was intrigued. This book not only explain who she was but also why she was -- in glittering and giddy detail. It's refreshing to note that this current phenomena of reality tv "stars" is not a new thing--that PHJ was perhaps the first media created celebrity. The author gives depth and scope to her subject (no mean feat given PHJ's admitted shallowness) and returns her place in pop culture and social history. PHJ may not have had much more going on than her beauty and her need for attention but since her exploits seem more blatantly fortune hunting than merely headline grabbing, she comes across as a bit more savvy than our current crop of vapid Paris Hiltons and brainless Kardashians.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book about the rise of the tabloid press's first star. Peggy was famous for being famous - for wearing designer clothes and dating rich guys and going to swanky nightclubs. She would have loved the twenty first century! Peggy should be considered Kim Kardashian's patron saint. The author of the book does a good job explaining how various developments in the early twentieth century paved the way for Peggy's fame to happen. The author was less successful writing a typical biography where the reader learns about the subject. Peggy remains an enigma to me; perhaps she remained an enigma to herself as well. She didn't seem like the most introspective type of person. This was a quick, entertaining read. Anyone interested in the culture of the twenties and thirties should read this book.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

With no one left alive to tell Joyce's story, Rosenblum relies on her personal papers and old news accounts to do the talking. She does a good job of fleshing out Joyce's story -- and what a story she had! -- though sometimes she gets bogged down extrapolating. While I appreciate the historical perspective she provides, I often find myself wishing she would get back to Joyce's story, because that's what's really interesting about the book. That's a minor quibble though, as the book is very readable and oh so relatable considering the current state of tabloid journalism and our cult of celebrities who are famous for being famous.

[Nancy Loe · Rating 2 out of 5]

The original Paris Hilton, I suppose – famous for being famous. I'm wanting to like this, but so far it's tough sledding. Or maybe I"m just grumpy lately.

[Yavor · Rating 2 out of 5]

The text is easy to read. Peggy's life is also interesting to know about. Constance Rosenblum as a writer is doing a really good job mixing drama and comedy telling us about Peggy's shiny life.

But... There is one very big BUT.

The story of Peggy itself can be told in like 100 pages max and that's enough. A shallow personality managed to take advantage of her beauty and having 5 marriages to millionaires, a few films, and numerous model activities. She wrote some memoirs /50%+ of which were complete lies/, and she was bad at almost everything except being beautiful /for back in the day's standards/ and yet she managed to live a kind of good life because of that. That's it. Not even 100 pages :)

With each chapter, I felt like I was reading the same story all over again but with a different husband, producer, etc.

Yes, the satire is good and it is easy to read, but becomes too repetitive and boring after the 3rd chapter.

As for Peggy as a person - I do not have anything against her. She did what she did, and she succeeded. Good job, girl.

[Michele Cacano]

Famous for Being Famous

Rags to rich husbands; diamond, furs, affairs, headlines, divorce, repeat. Well-researched and some interesting stories and facts, but it all becomes repetitive.

[Anne Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating!

Very interesting book about a little known character ( in our day.) She sounds great fun, but also a great pain at times, especially when older.

[Martha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somewhat entertaining, but longer than it really had to be. Just should have been way more fun to read. After about the 15th time you read "Peggy managed to be famous having no discernible skills" or "She was famous for being famous," you kind of get the point.

But even though it was too long, it felt like the author could have done more research. I guess what I'm saying is the book would have been better if it had had more real information and less padding. I didn't feel like I got to know Peggy Hopkins Joyce. Maybe that's just because Joyce was so shallow there was really nothing to know. But it was kind of puzzling that Rosenblum keeps quoting from newspaper reports and Joyce's published memoir (Men, Marriage and Me) even after admitting that both were mostly either completely made up or exaggerated.

[Kristin Myrtle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great! Super fun fast easy read. Peggy Hopkins Joyce was controversial in her time. She talked frankly about sex and money... married multiple times, slept around, made movies... see her in Internatonal House with W.C. Fields... she's really funny! She made a name for herself in her time. This is the woman who went up to Charlie Chaplin and said: "My friends tell me you're hung like a horse." A great read!

[Tiffany Garcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a very interesting story about life in the 1920s and what was acceptable in those times. I had never heard of her before this book, but she was a household name in her time.

[Stephanie Dargusch Borders · Rating 3 out of 5]

The biography of a once well-known jazz age icon, infamous for her numerous marriages.

[Tammy]

791.43208 Ros

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gold Digger: The Outrageous Life and Times of Peggy Hopkins Joyce (Hardcover)
by Constance Rosenblum

Author was the arts and leisure editor of the New York Times.