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Hollywood Warts 'N' All, Volume 1
The ultimate collection of scandals, on-set feuds and affairs, humorous anecdotes, behind the scenes tragedies, studio cover-ups and casting couch activity in the first hundred years of Hollywood.
- GenresNonfiction
672 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 5, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
September 21, 2020
Pathetic. Royle is a complete hack passing off opinions as facts and rumors as truths. Royle actually passed off the made up fable that George Burns couldn't be buried next to Gracie Allen because he was Jewish. If he had done 30 seconds of research he would have learned that after George passed he was indeed buried next to Gracie and their grave marker on their mutual vault in the Forest Lawn Freedom Mausoleum reads "Together again" Several times Royal calls the HUAC hearings the McCarthy hearings blissfully unaware that these were two separate investigations covering two different things. Being a senator, there is no way McCarthy could have sat in on the HUAC hearings. (By the way Mr. Royle, in 1995 declassified KGB papers (the Venona Papers) showed that everything that Senator Joseph McCarthy brought up in the Army-McCarthy hearings was true, the USSR did indeed infiltrate the United States military)
It's simple, easily researchable errors like this that cast a shadow of doubt on every single word in this book. How much is just plain wrong? half truths passed off as fact? or as what appears to be personal opinion passed off as fact which taints the entire book like rotting meat.
It's simple, easily researchable errors like this that cast a shadow of doubt on every single word in this book. How much is just plain wrong? half truths passed off as fact? or as what appears to be personal opinion passed off as fact which taints the entire book like rotting meat.
July 19, 2019
Tabloid-Like Collection of Hollywood Gossip
I chose the three star rating for this collection of gossip tidbits. The author has pulled gossip ( who slept with who's wife, who's gay or not, who died under what circumstances and who paid respects at who's funeral) from the early days of film to the mid 20 teens. In scope, the book covers a lot of material, most which has been in the tabloids and common knowledge to folks like my grandma since I was a little girl. When my grandma and her friends would get together to play cards, their chitchat would always come around to discussions on this topic, so I spent two evenings reading this and was transported back to summer nights eavesdropping on the ladies while they drank soda,smoked cigarettes, talking trash about some actor they saw on the late,late show. Honestly, unless a reader has similar memories of is just super interested in mostly pre-Entertainment Tonight gossip, there is no need to spend your money.
I chose the three star rating for this collection of gossip tidbits. The author has pulled gossip ( who slept with who's wife, who's gay or not, who died under what circumstances and who paid respects at who's funeral) from the early days of film to the mid 20 teens. In scope, the book covers a lot of material, most which has been in the tabloids and common knowledge to folks like my grandma since I was a little girl. When my grandma and her friends would get together to play cards, their chitchat would always come around to discussions on this topic, so I spent two evenings reading this and was transported back to summer nights eavesdropping on the ladies while they drank soda,smoked cigarettes, talking trash about some actor they saw on the late,late show. Honestly, unless a reader has similar memories of is just super interested in mostly pre-Entertainment Tonight gossip, there is no need to spend your money.
August 17, 2024
Strongly written
Very strangely written
The author is judgmental of every subject and fiercely puts that across in their writing.
Also alot of mistakes with dates of birth of subjects which makes it hard to believe the other *facts" he writes about.
Alor of phrases are wrong too not sure who proof reader is but not a great one.
Very strangely written
The author is judgmental of every subject and fiercely puts that across in their writing.
Also alot of mistakes with dates of birth of subjects which makes it hard to believe the other *facts" he writes about.
Alor of phrases are wrong too not sure who proof reader is but not a great one.
May 9, 2023
Bumper Goodread
Expected very little from this, but was delighted. Author has done their homework- check out the appendix. He LOVES films, and not just post 1950s, from the very early days of silent films. It the most unbiased book I’ve read on the lives of “stars”. Good job most of them are passed on to the big set in the sky. I don’t think their behaviour will surprise anyone, but it may surprise you how early it started. If you think how powerful the studios were, the heads of studios were, the colossal amounts of money involved, it’s no wonder the whole place was a seething nest of vipers, casting couches, covered up murders and shamed homosexuality. Double standards reigned supreme, stars were commodities and lives were expendable. Literally. So much tragedy. No wonder they lived like they did!
I would have liked some photos of the people involved. I kept stopping and googling pics. This gave me someone to hang the story on - especially when I wasn’t sure who was who. Some of the early actresses were naturally beautiful. So beautiful. Plastic surgery was performed early too. Surprising.
Great book for bedtime reading.
Expected very little from this, but was delighted. Author has done their homework- check out the appendix. He LOVES films, and not just post 1950s, from the very early days of silent films. It the most unbiased book I’ve read on the lives of “stars”. Good job most of them are passed on to the big set in the sky. I don’t think their behaviour will surprise anyone, but it may surprise you how early it started. If you think how powerful the studios were, the heads of studios were, the colossal amounts of money involved, it’s no wonder the whole place was a seething nest of vipers, casting couches, covered up murders and shamed homosexuality. Double standards reigned supreme, stars were commodities and lives were expendable. Literally. So much tragedy. No wonder they lived like they did!
I would have liked some photos of the people involved. I kept stopping and googling pics. This gave me someone to hang the story on - especially when I wasn’t sure who was who. Some of the early actresses were naturally beautiful. So beautiful. Plastic surgery was performed early too. Surprising.
Great book for bedtime reading.
September 6, 2021
Warts and all for sure! Some things I already knew. Others were a surprise. But this is Hollywood. The sleazy underbelly. The place of dreams and nightmares. Sex, drugs, booze, murder, gangsters, studio executives, "the casting couch". Some slept their way to the top (both men and women) while others peddled their young children into movies and later T.V. and commercials while spending all their paychecks leaving nothing for the child who earned it.
While I knew some things as I have read other books on the matter. I have learned some new things. While I won't tell you what( I'll let you read for yourself). I can tell you about who!
Debbie Reynolds, Shirley Temple, Grace Kelly, Marjorie Main, Joan Crawford, Judy Garland, and the former first lady Nancy Davis (Reagan). Among others.
While I knew some things as I have read other books on the matter. I have learned some new things. While I won't tell you what( I'll let you read for yourself). I can tell you about who!
Debbie Reynolds, Shirley Temple, Grace Kelly, Marjorie Main, Joan Crawford, Judy Garland, and the former first lady Nancy Davis (Reagan). Among others.
May 29, 2017
Enjoyable Read!
This was an enlightening read. I never realized how horny all these stars were in real life. A lot of the info was new to me. Some typos, but I attribute that from the transcriber to Kindle format which is common. Next, I'd like to see stories of television history and the stars. How about it Mr. Royle? That would be great reading.
This was an enlightening read. I never realized how horny all these stars were in real life. A lot of the info was new to me. Some typos, but I attribute that from the transcriber to Kindle format which is common. Next, I'd like to see stories of television history and the stars. How about it Mr. Royle? That would be great reading.
September 28, 2017
Andy's Review
Got this as part of my Kindle Unlimited subscription & I'm glad I did - full of stories i'd never read before - I can't wait to read Volume 2!
Got this as part of my Kindle Unlimited subscription & I'm glad I did - full of stories i'd never read before - I can't wait to read Volume 2!
December 23, 2017
Trashier than Tragic Hollywood but just as much, maybe even more fun.
January 25, 2018
A voyeur's dream
Not really one for gossip, I actually enjoyed this book while recovering in hospital - I learned quite a few surprising 'facts'!!
Not really one for gossip, I actually enjoyed this book while recovering in hospital - I learned quite a few surprising 'facts'!!
May 27, 2018
Gossip
I should be thoroughly ashamed of myself for reading this collection of Hollywood gossip but it was fun and passed the time so here comes volume two
I should be thoroughly ashamed of myself for reading this collection of Hollywood gossip but it was fun and passed the time so here comes volume two
June 1, 2018
Waist of time reading
November 2, 2018
It held my interest and I learned a lot of things I was unaware of previously. All in all a good read.
March 16, 2020
Excerpts from the past
Hollywood stories from yesteryear. Fluff for bedtime reading....don't expect gorgeous prose. Still a fun read. Not meant for the intellectual!
Hollywood stories from yesteryear. Fluff for bedtime reading....don't expect gorgeous prose. Still a fun read. Not meant for the intellectual!
July 18, 2020
Additive. I wanted to stop but couldn't. These are the people who provided a lot of our entertainment for many years? I shudder.
June 5, 2021
Interesting
Good read if you can overlook the inaccuracies and the way he overlooks the blatant sexual abuse of young girls
Good read if you can overlook the inaccuracies and the way he overlooks the blatant sexual abuse of young girls
January 27, 2016
Hollywood Warts n’ All
By: Alan Royle
This is a collection of tell-all stories about Hollywood and its most famous stars, scandals, fights, love affairs and sexy (not so secret) secrets.
I am a HUGE fan of Hollywood. The intrigue, the mystery, the scandals…especially those that occurred in the first 100 years or so. Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford, Errol Flynn, these people fascinate me! I knew I’d enjoy this book and I did!
However, as much as I did enjoy the information…I did not enjoy the formatting, the errors and the (honestly) sloppy writing.
Just for examples:
1. Actor Richard Long is famous for playing Jarrod Barkley in the TV series Big Valley. The author called him, “…Richard Long of Bonanza fame.”
2. In the following two paragraphs, the author assumes that I, the reader, already know all the same things he does. This is a common theme throughout the whole book.
“Ernie Kovacs was hilarious as the cigar-chomping conman in this western comedy. Two years after its completion he was filled in a car accident. Police attending the scene surmised he had been reaching for a lighter to ignite his cigar, and took his eyes off the road momentarily.
“‘Capucine’ is the French word for nasturtium, her favorite flower. Rumors have abounded for decades that the French beauty was a transsexual, but they have never been confirmed….”
I know that Capucine was a French actress who made 36 films between 1948 and 1990…now. I did not know it before reading these paragraphs. As far as I could tell, the author was giving a lesson in French, right in the middle of the story about Kovacs. I was left thinking, “who’s favorite flower was the nasturtium.” I looked at this page for several minutes before I realized that ‘Capucine’ might be the name of an actress.
This kind of thing was repeated over and over in this book. I spent as much time googling names (just so I knew who I was reading about) as I did actually reading the book. THAT made my reading time double or even triple.
3. The author chose to format his book in the following way. He listed movies (from those made in the 1920’s to those made just before 2000) in alphabetical order. Under the name of the movie he selected one, two or more stars who appeared in that particular movie to talk about. There were sometimes pages dedicated to one such star and then bam, he moved on to the next story with no warning, no prelude, no indication that a change was coming. One paragraph would be about one person and the very next paragraph would be about another. It was confusing and distracting.
And, I personally did not enjoy jumping back and forth between the decades. On one page I was in 1920, on the next 1992. This, too, was distracting.
My suggestion to the author would be to add something simple—like bullet points or asterisks—to separate the different anecdotes. Just that small addition would make reading the information much more enjoyable.
And perhaps, instead of listing the movies in alphabetical order list them instead by release date.
Also, a touch more information when introducing a new subject (as in the Capucine example above) would help throughout the book.
Despite all the things I’ve mentioned above. I did enjoy learning so much about the stars I did know and love.
If you love old Hollywood and juicy gossip like I do, you MIGHT enjoy this book.
By: Alan Royle
This is a collection of tell-all stories about Hollywood and its most famous stars, scandals, fights, love affairs and sexy (not so secret) secrets.
I am a HUGE fan of Hollywood. The intrigue, the mystery, the scandals…especially those that occurred in the first 100 years or so. Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford, Errol Flynn, these people fascinate me! I knew I’d enjoy this book and I did!
However, as much as I did enjoy the information…I did not enjoy the formatting, the errors and the (honestly) sloppy writing.
Just for examples:
1. Actor Richard Long is famous for playing Jarrod Barkley in the TV series Big Valley. The author called him, “…Richard Long of Bonanza fame.”
2. In the following two paragraphs, the author assumes that I, the reader, already know all the same things he does. This is a common theme throughout the whole book.
“Ernie Kovacs was hilarious as the cigar-chomping conman in this western comedy. Two years after its completion he was filled in a car accident. Police attending the scene surmised he had been reaching for a lighter to ignite his cigar, and took his eyes off the road momentarily.
“‘Capucine’ is the French word for nasturtium, her favorite flower. Rumors have abounded for decades that the French beauty was a transsexual, but they have never been confirmed….”
I know that Capucine was a French actress who made 36 films between 1948 and 1990…now. I did not know it before reading these paragraphs. As far as I could tell, the author was giving a lesson in French, right in the middle of the story about Kovacs. I was left thinking, “who’s favorite flower was the nasturtium.” I looked at this page for several minutes before I realized that ‘Capucine’ might be the name of an actress.
This kind of thing was repeated over and over in this book. I spent as much time googling names (just so I knew who I was reading about) as I did actually reading the book. THAT made my reading time double or even triple.
3. The author chose to format his book in the following way. He listed movies (from those made in the 1920’s to those made just before 2000) in alphabetical order. Under the name of the movie he selected one, two or more stars who appeared in that particular movie to talk about. There were sometimes pages dedicated to one such star and then bam, he moved on to the next story with no warning, no prelude, no indication that a change was coming. One paragraph would be about one person and the very next paragraph would be about another. It was confusing and distracting.
And, I personally did not enjoy jumping back and forth between the decades. On one page I was in 1920, on the next 1992. This, too, was distracting.
My suggestion to the author would be to add something simple—like bullet points or asterisks—to separate the different anecdotes. Just that small addition would make reading the information much more enjoyable.
And perhaps, instead of listing the movies in alphabetical order list them instead by release date.
Also, a touch more information when introducing a new subject (as in the Capucine example above) would help throughout the book.
Despite all the things I’ve mentioned above. I did enjoy learning so much about the stars I did know and love.
If you love old Hollywood and juicy gossip like I do, you MIGHT enjoy this book.
July 1, 2016
I read "Hollywood Warts "N" All, Volume 1 and Volume 2 together so this review will apply to both. I grew up hearing about a lot of the stars of Hollywood. As with many other women of the time, my mother was a huge fan and in her youth followed and kept scrapbooks on the Hollywood celebrities. My sister was even named after a Hollywood starlet. So I looked for a book to give me some incite into these people. Alan Royle, in writing "Warts 'N' All" chose a unique style. He lists movies alphabetically and then gives information and reviews of the movie and dirt on its actors and actresses. So a title will be given then he pitches into the movie. Sometimes he expects you to already know the cast of the movie and gives only last names so you have to go to a search engine to find out who the person was. The whole thing comes off as someone's notes which they wrote in a pocket notebook and then published them without edit. The first volume is very confusing in this regard with the second volume being somewhat less so. That being said, the information provided is startling and thoroughly smashed any respect I had for any of these people. The studio heads, directors, casting managers and male actors preyed on nearly every young woman who came looking for a career in the movies. They would actually swarm over these innocent ladies and argue over who would get them first, like so much chattel. I was absolutely disgusted. "You'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy" than the movie industry. Actresses were expected to "put out" and they did, all the time and every time. Rampant illicit sex, rape, drug use, suicide, alcoholism and even murder were a daily occurrence in the industry and the modern abortion industry was born there. Actresses made many trips to Mexico to obtain abortions, (Liz Taylor had at least half a dozen), and I've no doubt that celebrities wanted abortions to be more convenient and local. Hence, the start of "Liberal" Hollywood, a phenomenon which continues to this day. The books, though sometimes confusing to read, opened my eyes and I wonder just how much of this sort of thing continues, particularly in light of the racism exhibited at the Oscars. These books are eye-openers, the information shocking and the author even provides score sheets of the dozens of lovers each male or female star had. Amazing!
July 16, 2016
This is one of those 'everything you ever wanted to know about.... but were afraid to ask...' books.
The author has tracked down rumors and innuendo, confirmed it and collated it.
Here's the take away back in the heyday of the studios everyone was screwing everyone else... men and young girls, women and young girls, women & men,men and men, women and women.. there was a lot of undiagnosed mental illness, lots of alcoholics and lots of insane behavior. Crimes were covered up, women were 'revirginized' and pissing off a studio head could get you kept out of movies.
This is a collection of short tales... which means yo can pick the book up and put it back down..
The author has tracked down rumors and innuendo, confirmed it and collated it.
Here's the take away back in the heyday of the studios everyone was screwing everyone else... men and young girls, women and young girls, women & men,men and men, women and women.. there was a lot of undiagnosed mental illness, lots of alcoholics and lots of insane behavior. Crimes were covered up, women were 'revirginized' and pissing off a studio head could get you kept out of movies.
This is a collection of short tales... which means yo can pick the book up and put it back down..
May 5, 2016
This book has a lot of information. I enjoyed reading details about movies and actors that I like. However, most of the detailed research in the book is about movies before 1970, way before my time in the movies. In fact the author only talks about a handful of movies after 2000. I, personally, I am more interested in read about production details and little known facts about the actors and the movies, rather than about who slept with who in the 40s, 50s, and 60s.
June 15, 2016
Fun read of Hollywood trivia and backstories
This book has some amazing details about old and Hollywood films, stars, and places. The relationship between some stars is outlandish and racy! Looking back at this information is really enjoyable and, since the stories are short, makes for an easy read in snippets. I plan to read the other volume of tales ASAP!
This book has some amazing details about old and Hollywood films, stars, and places. The relationship between some stars is outlandish and racy! Looking back at this information is really enjoyable and, since the stories are short, makes for an easy read in snippets. I plan to read the other volume of tales ASAP!
July 9, 2016
This has been a truly guilty pleasure. I started reading it as a lark and couldn't put it down. There are some factual errors but overall, he seems reliable. His bibliography is extensive and he taught college courses in this material. I am embarrassed but must admit to being fascinated by the darker side of the Golden Age of Hollywood. I am also ashamed to admit to looking forward to Volume 2.
June 5, 2016
More than you ever wanted to know about Hollywood stars, especially those from the "golden age." If even half of these stories are true, it's a wonder movies got made at all. Highly entertaining look behind the scenes, not for the faint of heart.
June 25, 2016
Go. Behind the scenes for everything
Very informative on so many levels. Giving name of actors, political figures, mob figures with details. Good book to read if you want to see behind the scenes of movies too.
Very informative on so many levels. Giving name of actors, political figures, mob figures with details. Good book to read if you want to see behind the scenes of movies too.
August 2, 2016
Interesting stories, assuming they're true. Not sure if I regret reading some of them, being a fan of classic Hollywood movies. Sad to find that your idols have feet of clay and, in some cases, morals of manure.
September 3, 2016
Hooley Dooley
If the research conducted by the author, Alan Doyle, is true, it's amazing that any films get made. Hollywood is truley a place of illusions. ThT being Saudi couldn't out the book down. A fascinating read of Hollywood and the people I vol ed with films.
If the research conducted by the author, Alan Doyle, is true, it's amazing that any films get made. Hollywood is truley a place of illusions. ThT being Saudi couldn't out the book down. A fascinating read of Hollywood and the people I vol ed with films.
January 17, 2016
Great read!
If you're interested in learning about both the good and not so good side of Hollywood this is the book to read!
If you're interested in learning about both the good and not so good side of Hollywood this is the book to read!
February 10, 2016
I like gossip books, but this one was just okay. Nothing too racy or entertaining to read about, and really not that strange.
January 24, 2016
Don't bother
Don't waste your time or money on this book ... it is redundant and even author states some info is here-say
Don't waste your time or money on this book ... it is redundant and even author states some info is here-say
July 8, 2016
Not bad. A look back at movie stars that opens your eyes a bit on the extent of off-screen goings on.
August 9, 2016
Interesting, entertaining and even amusing .............. but perhaps too much salacious tittle-tattle!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews