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Barbara Payton
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye: The Barbara Payton Story
This is an updated, expanded edition. Dear Barbara never had an itch she didn't scratch. - AC Lyles, Producer Barbara was like a Catholic church with a blazing neon sign out front. - Tony Provas, Barbara's fourth husband Men were fascinated by Barbara, and she knew she had them under her spell. - Bill Ramage, actor She was a worthwhile person and I only wish she had believed that. - Yvette Vickers, actress I will always love her as she, I believe, has always loved me. - John Lee Payton, Barbara's son Barbara has carved a niche in my heart, something I never expected to happy. - Lisa Burks, Franchot Tone's biographer
624 pages, Paperback
Published April 10, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
March 6, 2009
The story of the quick rise and equally quick fall of actress Barbara Payton is a fascinating story, and writer John O'Dowd has done some excellent research into the actress' tragic life.
This book does have some careless errors of fact. Errol Flynn, for example, was not a Brit. He was born in Tasmania, Australia. Also, Franchot Tone was Oscar-nominated in the Best Actor category for MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1935), not Best Supporting Actor.
Those kinds of errors are annoying, but don't necessarily detract from the drama of Payton's story. What DOES detract is the fact that O'Dowd (apparently) did not have an editor for his book, which is so often repetitive that I found myself skimming many pages, rather than reading them. Indeed, it appears that he used every word of every interview he conducted...even though people were saying the same thing over and over again.
Cut 50 pages out of this book, and it would be a first-rate, albeit depressing, page-turner. As it is, it is a good story that could have been told better.
Incidentally, during the Spring of 1964, I lived briefly in an apartment building on Los Angeles' Normandie Avenue, and one of the other tenants was Barbara Payton. I never actually met her, but I often saw her when I was down by the swimming pool.
This book does have some careless errors of fact. Errol Flynn, for example, was not a Brit. He was born in Tasmania, Australia. Also, Franchot Tone was Oscar-nominated in the Best Actor category for MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1935), not Best Supporting Actor.
Those kinds of errors are annoying, but don't necessarily detract from the drama of Payton's story. What DOES detract is the fact that O'Dowd (apparently) did not have an editor for his book, which is so often repetitive that I found myself skimming many pages, rather than reading them. Indeed, it appears that he used every word of every interview he conducted...even though people were saying the same thing over and over again.
Cut 50 pages out of this book, and it would be a first-rate, albeit depressing, page-turner. As it is, it is a good story that could have been told better.
Incidentally, during the Spring of 1964, I lived briefly in an apartment building on Los Angeles' Normandie Avenue, and one of the other tenants was Barbara Payton. I never actually met her, but I often saw her when I was down by the swimming pool.
June 11, 2018
Since listening to a podcast about Barbara Payton on "You Must Remember This", I have become entranced, if not obsessed, with this actress whose short life spanned only a dozen films. Noted particularly for her co-starring role opposite James Cagney in "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye", Barbara Payton's life went from riches to rags in an astonishingly brief time. John O'Dowd's sympathetic biography on the stunning actress is the creme de la creme of Barbara's rise and fall from stardom. I found the latter third of this book difficult to get through which had nothing to do on the author's part. It was due to the sadness and degradation and sheer hopelessness of how Barbara's last days were lived out. Literally penniless, homeless, prostituting herself for $5, living in conditions that weren't fit for any kind of vermin to exist. Mr O'Dowd reasons that because of Barbara's childhood (alcoholic parents, a possible sexual assault as a child, a neglectful father) all culminated in her self-sabotage, not to mention that there was just cause for a bipolar diagnosis. I can't say what attracts me to Barbara's story. The sadness of it, possibly. Or the unbelievably quick way her life derailed. I suppose as I read her story, I kept trying to imagine how the life of such a beautiful and talented woman could have gone. No doubt, if her life had taken the opposite direction there's little doubt that her acting abilities would've escalated her into the canon of great movie stars.
July 3, 2022
A real life tale of Noir, bridging Hollywood studios and some of the most disreputable quarters of LA. A version of Icarus with a beautiful blonde in the lead.
I first heard of Barbara Payton in the YOU MUST REMEMBER THIS Dead Blondes series. The film noir goddess who starred opposite Cagney (in KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE) and only a decade later was a sex worker in truly desperate circumstances. It was a story seemingly beyond belief, and I wanted to know more.
Well, this book really does give me that more.
After a childhood which included both sexual abuse and a difficult relationship with her father, Barbara came to Hollywood and her looks and attitude soon got her noticed. (She also did her time on the casting couch.) She got her big break and became a rising star, and then proceeded to lose it all. Part of it was her throwing it away, part of it was her picking the wrong relationships, part of it was mental health issues and part of it was just bad luck and being unwilling to play the game. Soon everything was spiralling downwards.
In both the Ed Wood and Russ Meyer biographies I read recently, there are dark final chapters. I thought when reading them I'd have liked to learn more about what was happening in those last days, because this is their life story after all and it shouldn't be glossed over. There are no such complaints here. In fact, I'd go the other way. I listened to the audio version, and with seven hours left, knew she was already existing in utter squalor and couldn't quite believe it was going to go on and on. But it did. Just when you think it couldn't get any darker, somehow her story does.
As such you might need a strong stomach to get through the whole book, but at the end it's hard not to feel sorry for this woman, for whom Hollywood success was a true curse.
I first heard of Barbara Payton in the YOU MUST REMEMBER THIS Dead Blondes series. The film noir goddess who starred opposite Cagney (in KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE) and only a decade later was a sex worker in truly desperate circumstances. It was a story seemingly beyond belief, and I wanted to know more.
Well, this book really does give me that more.
After a childhood which included both sexual abuse and a difficult relationship with her father, Barbara came to Hollywood and her looks and attitude soon got her noticed. (She also did her time on the casting couch.) She got her big break and became a rising star, and then proceeded to lose it all. Part of it was her throwing it away, part of it was her picking the wrong relationships, part of it was mental health issues and part of it was just bad luck and being unwilling to play the game. Soon everything was spiralling downwards.
In both the Ed Wood and Russ Meyer biographies I read recently, there are dark final chapters. I thought when reading them I'd have liked to learn more about what was happening in those last days, because this is their life story after all and it shouldn't be glossed over. There are no such complaints here. In fact, I'd go the other way. I listened to the audio version, and with seven hours left, knew she was already existing in utter squalor and couldn't quite believe it was going to go on and on. But it did. Just when you think it couldn't get any darker, somehow her story does.
As such you might need a strong stomach to get through the whole book, but at the end it's hard not to feel sorry for this woman, for whom Hollywood success was a true curse.
December 20, 2016
O'dowd's biography is a model of what a bio should be. It is especially laudable because his subject was a very complex human being and he brings her to life in all that complexity. Although he does not ever whitewash her "bad" side, he gives equal time to that which was admirable. For example, her eventually poverty was not only a result of her vices (mainly drinking) but her virtue of being very generous. He shows us a woman who could be perversely unfeeling but also wonderfully kind. He brings to life her talent as an actress but also her previously little-known domestic skills: her ability as a gourmet cook, her natural talent for interior decorating, her skills in needlepoint, furniture refinishing, and reupholstery. Although she had problems and failings as a mother, it is remarkable that her son, John Lee Payton, only praises her for encouraging and supporting him. The story O'Dowd tells is consistently fascinating and this is a book that I read and re-read more than once.
January 23, 2016
One of the best, loving, honest and brutal biographies I have ever read.
I give great credit to the author, who obviously loved & pitied Barbara Payton, for not glossing over her character but presenting it openly and honestly, the good with the bad. This book is a true character study of an enigmatic woman who fell very hard from grace. A great deal of attention was paid to every aspect of her life, with wonderful interviews from family, coworkers and friends. But even with all of that you still come away from the book wondering "How did this happen? Why?" No one but Barbara Payton will ever know how or why she went from a beautiful actress with a promising career to a homeless prostitute, but John O'Dowd gives us all of the information to try to put it together ourselves.
I give great credit to the author, who obviously loved & pitied Barbara Payton, for not glossing over her character but presenting it openly and honestly, the good with the bad. This book is a true character study of an enigmatic woman who fell very hard from grace. A great deal of attention was paid to every aspect of her life, with wonderful interviews from family, coworkers and friends. But even with all of that you still come away from the book wondering "How did this happen? Why?" No one but Barbara Payton will ever know how or why she went from a beautiful actress with a promising career to a homeless prostitute, but John O'Dowd gives us all of the information to try to put it together ourselves.
August 19, 2011
Just ugh. The author tries to paint Barbara Payton in a sympathetic light, but she was so obviously intent upon selfishly self-destructing that no amount of gloss could cover her terrible choices. Lots of people have bad childhoods or awful sexual experiences, unfortunately, but most of them don't let boyfriends try to stab their kids and not even call the police. I was done with her after that. Briskly-written and interesting, if a little too earnest. Hollywood Babylon's charitable kid sister.
"Once Barbara lost her respect for someone, it was gone, and no amount of self-mutilation, or anything else, could bring it back."
"Once Barbara lost her respect for someone, it was gone, and no amount of self-mutilation, or anything else, could bring it back."
March 28, 2009
This was an amazingly well done biography. Well researched and written John O'Dowd exposed all sides of Barbara Payton. It's a shame Barbara couldn't save herself from herself and live out her full potentinal. I was amazed to learn that she many wonderful talents but her hunger for fame and for men led to her tragic end.
January 15, 2008
True story of a 50's Hollywood Actor who wnet from making thousands of $ per week as a contract player to turing $5 tricks on Hollywood Blvd. less than 5 years later. Heartbreaking & Tragic!
August 15, 2018
This book draws the reader in from the start and keeps the reader fascinated long after the last page has been turned. John O'Dowd is a good writer and, clearly, a person of sympathy and insight. He brings to life one of the most complex and tragic human beings to have ever gotten involved with cinema and makes the reader care deeply about her. The book is thoroughly researched and needed to be for the story of Barbara Payton would probably not be believable if it were fiction. Barbara Payton was an extraordinarily beautiful woman who made A-list films like "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye" with the legendary Jimmy Cagney as well as the B-movie cult classic "Bride of the Gorilla." O'Dowd gives us the actress in all her talent and glory as well as her troubled personal life -- a personal life that eventually derailed her career and left her an alcoholic cheap prostitute bouncing between flophouses and homelessness. O'Dowd examines each of her motion pictures in detail and tells us everything we should know about her talents and skills. It is a wonderful biography and should be read by anyone with an interest in the entertainment industry.
September 18, 2011
this woman was a train wreck. while i was greatly absorbed in most of the book there came a point where it was the same crap over and over. talking about her insane actions slutting around, drinking, not caring for her kid, getting in trouble and on and on. in addition this is when it spent more time quoting people about how sad barbara was, her wasted beauty, her trama/drama and etc, how sad they were at seeing her destroy her life and etc. the end of each chapter kept saying the same thing over and over again but in different words. once she married her 4th husband and lost her kid, my eyes glazed over. but before that point in the book, it kept me reading and i wanted to read more about what happened. i didnt have too much sympathy for her, which it did seem the book's author was shooting for. but someone who takes their kid to mexico and brings him back covered head to toe with ringworm, i am sorry but you deserve to have your kid taken away. and the fact is, she did NOTHING to even try to get him back by straightening her life up. lifes about choices and she made the choice to do nothing to better her situation and once people stopped just giving her everything cos they got tired of her antics that is when she started to really go down hill. dont get me wrong i did enjoy the book to a point but then my views changed a bit.
February 9, 2018
It's really amazing that almost 500 pages were written about this woman's short, obscure life...This may be one of the most depressing books I've ever read. Barbara is beautiful, charismatic, and full of quirks that make her seem like she was born too soon (for example, the passing reference to how she'd dye her hair pink and go out with intricate tattoos on her face for a night out, and this was at the height of her success!).
She appears to be a 21st century party girl trapped in the conservative 1950s, where her kindred spirits turn out to be, due to the times, addicts of all types who abandon social mores, but for slightly different reasons. She has a talent for acting, cooking, interior decorating, and as we learn much later, writing-- But she spends all her energies losing herself in failed relationships, endless sex romps and alcohol binges. The personal tales told by her sister-in-law, former lovers and husbands, and various acquaintances throughout her Hollywood life paint a vivid picture of this woman and her horrifying downfall.
After 300 pages, however, I just wanted the misery to end, as it became clear she must have been living with mental illness that had never been diagnosed or treated, and the last 200 pages just spell out the repeated failures that can never have any explanation or resolution.
She appears to be a 21st century party girl trapped in the conservative 1950s, where her kindred spirits turn out to be, due to the times, addicts of all types who abandon social mores, but for slightly different reasons. She has a talent for acting, cooking, interior decorating, and as we learn much later, writing-- But she spends all her energies losing herself in failed relationships, endless sex romps and alcohol binges. The personal tales told by her sister-in-law, former lovers and husbands, and various acquaintances throughout her Hollywood life paint a vivid picture of this woman and her horrifying downfall.
After 300 pages, however, I just wanted the misery to end, as it became clear she must have been living with mental illness that had never been diagnosed or treated, and the last 200 pages just spell out the repeated failures that can never have any explanation or resolution.
November 11, 2025
Carina Longsworth's podcast "You Must Remember This" brougth me to this one. Barbara Payton was not very well-known, but she was once a beautiful starlet, and her personal life was tragic. They say life imitates art, but I don't think any writer or director could make up the long grueling fall that Payton endured from 1960-1967. She started out with a contract with Warner Brothers and the promise of stardom, but after a few good years during the 50s the once beautiful Payton wound up walking the streets of Hollywood drinking out of a bottle and giving blow jobs for $5. I'll shelve this right next to "Edie, An American Biography" and "Christiane F".
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 19, 2014
A remarkable story which reveals an uncomfortable truth about the Hollywood machine: while a few may succeed, many more will fail. Barbara Payton began her career at the very top, only to fall further than anyone could imagine. While some will judge her harshly, John O'Dowd creates a sympathetic portrait of a woman whose urge to self-destruct was only matched by the callous hypocrisy of an industry based on illusion.
December 20, 2014
If Frances Farmer crashed into Lindsay Lohan, the result would be the short, sad life of Barbara Payton. Best quote: "Her former friend at the Valencia Apartments, Norma 'Knockers' Dodson, remembers seeing Barbara for the last time in a bar at 5th and Main, which has long been considered the heart of downtown L.A.’ s Skid Row."
The author gives her more care and respect than she would have given herself. If only all biographers were so kind.
The author gives her more care and respect than she would have given herself. If only all biographers were so kind.
November 16, 2015
Another Star Lost In Obscurity
Barbara Payton was a star who found the dark side of Hollywood .Similar to Frances Farmer .She died in 1967 at the age of 39 a broken women. Good read if you like older Hollywood stories. Very well balanced between her struggles her heart and her failing.
Barbara Payton was a star who found the dark side of Hollywood .Similar to Frances Farmer .She died in 1967 at the age of 39 a broken women. Good read if you like older Hollywood stories. Very well balanced between her struggles her heart and her failing.
August 23, 2020
This is what happens to sluts. Payton tried to sleep her way to the top and, not surprisingly, she didn't even get close before she was tossed aside. It's interesting that so much ink was spilled on a loser like Payton. Yet here O'Dowd did it, and did it well; as a biography it's thorough. But why he did it is a mystery to me. She's just another junkie who lived too fast.
September 17, 2013
Not as sordid as I'd hoped but the author treats Babs with respect who was a 50s Lyndsy Lohan. Very thorough with some great pics, at times padded out with bios of secondary characters I still enjoyed and whilst a sad tale it's a story that's happening to non stars every day.
April 5, 2018
The extreme amount of detail about her life, escapades, and acquaintances made it rather a slog to read (I definitely skimmed a lot). Interesting in light of the current push for gender equality in Hollywood, though.
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April 1, 2012Research.
April 8, 2015
Desperate story of Hollywood moviestar
She had it all and threw her life away. I think the more gave herself away the more she died to herself
She had it all and threw her life away. I think the more gave herself away the more she died to herself
March 19, 2016
Good biography, however, the author had a tendency to romanticize Peyton's life and psyche to put her in the best light possible, could have been a bit more objective.
April 3, 2020
Barbara Peyton's life is probably one of the saddest stories you'll ever read and you can learn so much along the way. When I first heard about her life story I was just shocked, and I often asked myself what drove her to this self-destructive behavior. Her so-called autobiography, with the most grotesque title ever - "I'm Not Ashamed", has been on my bucket list for so many years, but I had difficulties finding it on the market. Fortunately enough I find out "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye" first, but before reading it I was wondering how she can't feel shame and remorse after all this mess that has happened to her. Now I understand and appreciate her, because in the end, what matters are the deeply moving words of her only child. Person cannot go so wrong if he or she leaves behind such loving people in his/her life, because the public opinion is of no importance at the end.
I think that John O'Dowd makes an extremely good example of how a biography should be written and I deeply recommend it.
I think that John O'Dowd makes an extremely good example of how a biography should be written and I deeply recommend it.
November 19, 2022
Barbara Payton was an actress who had a brief career but is more famous for her descent to an alcoholic he'll and early death.However she really isn't deserving of a 600 page biography. By the time I got to page 400 I just wanted to finish it.
There is too much padding in the book.For example the author will report the unsubstantiated allegation that Payton blackmailed Marlon Brandon and in the next paragraph have a rebuttal by a relative saying she couldn't have done this,despite her lack of knowledge.
Payton comes across as a selfish self centered woman, who badly neglected her son.
There are so many more worthwhile actors waiting for a book to be written about them.
There is too much padding in the book.For example the author will report the unsubstantiated allegation that Payton blackmailed Marlon Brandon and in the next paragraph have a rebuttal by a relative saying she couldn't have done this,despite her lack of knowledge.
Payton comes across as a selfish self centered woman, who badly neglected her son.
There are so many more worthwhile actors waiting for a book to be written about them.
November 2, 2023
WOW!!!
I recently read Barabara Payton autobiography I Am Not Ashamed. Good book but that's a different story. I wanted to read/know more about her. From this book, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye. I never heard of her til a few months ago while I was looking up someone else. She lived one helluva life. She wanted to be a star and that she was. Very beautiful and well built. Barbara was living a good life as an actress. She had a short career that went downhill. She would become obscure. As time went by she lost her beauty and later lived her life as a prostitute and alcoholic. She passed away May 8, 1967, at age 39 from heart and liver failure.
I recently read Barabara Payton autobiography I Am Not Ashamed. Good book but that's a different story. I wanted to read/know more about her. From this book, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye. I never heard of her til a few months ago while I was looking up someone else. She lived one helluva life. She wanted to be a star and that she was. Very beautiful and well built. Barbara was living a good life as an actress. She had a short career that went downhill. She would become obscure. As time went by she lost her beauty and later lived her life as a prostitute and alcoholic. She passed away May 8, 1967, at age 39 from heart and liver failure.
August 3, 2021
A compelling story.
It's difficult to know who the real Barbara is, she was so multi faceted and complex. The people closest to her speak highly of her, whereas those in show business speak the worst of her. It's well known that most of those fifties stars were living exactly the same way as Barbara but they had money and the studios to cover up for their lifestyles. Marilyn might have ended up the same way had she not died young.
It's difficult to know who the real Barbara is, she was so multi faceted and complex. The people closest to her speak highly of her, whereas those in show business speak the worst of her. It's well known that most of those fifties stars were living exactly the same way as Barbara but they had money and the studios to cover up for their lifestyles. Marilyn might have ended up the same way had she not died young.
May 14, 2020
Fabulous biography. Did not want it to end. Also ordered the photographic study of Barbara’s life. What a movie this would make. Hollywood in the 50’s and 60’s, the leeches, the studios, the debauchery. Barbara’s many needs overshadowed her kind nature. Highly recommended, very well researched and written.
July 6, 2020
This was a solid book describing the rise and fall and fall again story of Barbara Payton. It felt too long. The first chapters around her parents seemed less important and the last chapter was unnecessary.
October 25, 2018
Compassionate biography
I knew very little about Barbara Payton. Her end was tragic and her story will stay with me for a long time. Hard to put down.
I knew very little about Barbara Payton. Her end was tragic and her story will stay with me for a long time. Hard to put down.
March 22, 2020
Couldn't finish. Did not hold my interest at all.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews