Cole Porter: A Biography

by William McBrien

The most richly told biography we have had of one of the most important and beguiling composer/lyricists of the century--the incomparable Cole Porter, whose songs were the essence of wit and sophistication and whose life was marked by tragedy, courage, sorrow, and secrecy.
        McBrien reveals the private his privileged Indiana youth (he composed his first song at ten). He went East to boarding school and to Yale, where he wrote the football anthems "Hail to Yale" and "Bull Dog," and show after show in which many of his classmates appeared--among them, Archibald MacLeish, Gerald Murphy, Dean Acheson, and Averell Harriman. Then a brief, unhappy stint at Harvard Law School. Off to Paris at twenty-six, and in crisis joining the French Foreign Legion during the First World War. Two years later, Cole Porter had his first Broadway hit.
        William McBrien's biography, the result of ten years of work and bursting with stories and scenes of Porter's life, takes us beyond the patina of Porter's very public career, beyond the high and low aristocratic worlds of Venice (Porter with Elsa Maxwell in 1923 together put Venice back on the map as the place to be), beyond the opulent parties and costume balls on two continents he not only attended but threw himself--and made into an art form. McBrien takes us into Porter's seemingly conventional marriage to reveal his complicated emotional life--the lost, privileged man who had a wild, irrepressible talent to amuse but at first find couldn't find his voice; the man who married "the most beautiful woman in the world," the very social, very southern Linda Lee Thomas, but who preferred his own sex. He had long relationships as well as frequent dalliances with many men but for thirty-five years maintained a loving marriage to the woman he truly adored.
        We see the supremely gifted Porter who created twenty musicals on Broadway (Anything Goes, DuBarry Was a Lady, Gay Divorce, Born to Dance), writing for such stars as Ethel Merman, Fred Astaire, Mary Martin, Bert Lahr, and Bea Lilly; and who gave Hollywood Fifty Million Frenchmen, The Gay Divorcee, Rosalie, Broadway Melody of 1940, Night and Day, High Society, Silk Stockings, Can-Can, and Kiss Me, Kate.
        Porter was "the top" and lived at the top, but his life was catastrophically transformed after a near-fatal horseback-riding accident. The thirty-one operations during the next eighteen years brought on increasing pain, and the growing paralysis that darkened his life was never hinted at publicly nor in his work.
        Interweaving the life and the music, McBrien shows us a man whose genius as a composer flowered in deceptively simple melodies that were thought to be completely modern but today are considered ingenious, complicated, and steeped in the nineteenth-century tradition of lieder; a composer whose craft concealed complicated solutions to musical problems while it enchanted his audiences. And we come to understand how Porter's doubts and desires, longings and infatuations, insinuated their way into the heart of his incomparable words and music.

Genres: Biography, Music, Nonfiction, History, Biography Memoir

480 pages, Hardcover

First published October 6, 1998

Reviews

[La Tonya Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had a slow start for the first 100 pages. The book starts to get interesting when Cole graduates from Yale and starts his musical career. The life of Cole Porter was complex and high society. The lifestyle of the fabulous wealthy in the era of the early 1900's was that of servants, travel, luxuries, automobiles, on-going parties, etc. that this country may never see again. Cole Porter was raised in this lifestyle; therefore, finding defeat in his choice career in the beginning was humbly. But, with the love and encouragement of his mother and devoted wife he became a legend in Broadway musicals and show tunes.

His marriage to Linda was of convenience since Cole Porter was a homosexual. This was widely known in the theatre to his friends and family. But, of course in that day and time, it was not widely known to his fans. Many of the love ballads in his music were written for his male lovers. The book gave you an insight to a life lived to the fullest with relationships some would consider fragile. But, for Cole Porter, these relationships were dear to his heart.

Quote:
She considers this cruise to have been her "first exposure to dazzlingly sophisticated people."

"It is always strange for me how many fables are connected with the facts of anyone's life."

"A gentlemen never eats. He breakfasts, he lunches, he dines, but he never eats," was typical of the dictates he propounded.

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm of two minds about this biography. On the one hand, it's clearly well-researched and tries to offer a well-rounded portrait of Porter, with all due respect for his musical and literary genius and sympathy for his personal issues (though less for his wife Linda, whom I felt didn't get enough space).

On the other hand, it's simply poorly written. The narrative flow is choppy and interspersed with irrelevant factoids. The prose is stilted and excessively formal, with formulations like "[t]hey queried Cole as to whether or not he could compose a song," instead of something simpler like "they asked Cole whether he could compose a song." Or how about "Cole chose Jack Coble to effectuate this project"? Really? Porter himself probably could have gotten away with using that word, but at least he'd have found something amusing to rhyme it with.

If McBrien had any of Porter's own flair for language, this could have been a very good biography. As it is, it's a slog I can recommend only to fervent Porter fans.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

The very best bio of the great songwriter, and the only one who gets all the boyfriends mentioned.

A must read. Why? Well as Cole would say "You don't sing enough, you don't dance enough, you don't drink the great wines of France enough. You're not wild enough, you're not gay enough, you don't let me lead you astray enough."

[Thomas Armstrong · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this biography of Cole Porter. It was a fun read, vicariously living his sophisticated, urbane, cosmopolitan life along with all his eminent and eccentric friends. Call me naive, but I didn't know he was homosexual and that his marriage was a non-sexual union. Porter seemed to enjoy his gay lifestyle, but it must have been very trying to have to separate that life from his public and marriage life. I picked up the book because I've enjoyed his songs, especially Begin the Beguine (mystic Indian sage Meher Baba's choice to be played seven times after his death), I Love All of You (his sneaking in the line ''love the south of you'' was delightful), and Anything Goes, which is kind of like the anthem of the Roaring Twenties in many way (even though it was written in the early thirties). He had kind of a Jay Gatsby life, growing up in Peru, Indiana and then going off to live in fancy houses in Venice and apartments at the Waldorf Hotel. I think the author did a good job of tracing Porter's complexity. It was so sad when he had his leg amputated and he never wrote another note after that. He suffered a lot. But he gave the world a lot of joy.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't put my finger on what's lacking from this biography. The language isn't particularly noteworthy but it's good enough. Maybe it's Cole Porter himself: a very talented rich guy who wrote some of the most popular and memorable songs in the English language -- a great entertainer, which is an extremely valuable thing, but mostly he devoted himself to enjoying himself, partying and living the high life, a number of doomed love affairs, a snob who was also very generous to his friends, a homosexual husband who was nevertheless fairly committed to his wife -- but all in all a bit shallow. The luxury of his life is stunning and utterly alien to me. Interesting how well his songs resonate with so many people, given how rarefied was the atmosphere in which he lived. I wonder how hard the biographer tried: would it really be so hard to nail down the details of his World War One service?

[Cathy Day]

If you love Cole Porter, read this book alongside George Eells THE LIFE THAT LATE HE LED. McBrien's biography is incredibly thorough; he tracked down many, many people who knew Cole. Eells, however, was friends with Cole, and it shows in his biography, published shortly after Cole's death. The problem, of course, is that Eells never mentions that his subject was gay. Twenty years later, McBrien's book fills in that gap (and a few others) in wonderfully readable ways.

[Demi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful for someone who wanted to know the true Cole - not just the man of De-Lovely. Learned much about his life both with his male lovers and his wife, Linda, as well as the success of his music, his relationships with his colleagues, and above all, the incessant and endearing dandyism that went along with his clever personality.

Truly engaging.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this book to answer some questions about Porter and his music. I have always loved his music. My questions were answered. Not sure I like knowing many of his beautiful love songs were written for young soldiers during WWII he was in love with. He was very brave facing the loss of his leg and living with the agony of a dreadful riding accident. The book seems well researched and full of respect for Mr Porter.
My only thought was if Mr Porter were alive today he might be in rehab with Kevin Spacey

[Barbara Backus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I purchased this book in the theater where I had just seen a revival of the glorious "Kiss Me, Kate" and was interested in learning more about Cole Porter whose songs are recognized as gems of the American theatre.

In this voluminous biography, William McBrien includes details and more details about Porter's life, his friends and acquaintances, his loves and practically anything you might wish to know about this great songwriter. In fact, the details are overwhelming. After a while my interest waned in the lunches, the dinners, the trips to Paris, to Hollywood, to Williamstown, Massachusetts, his male lovers, his wife, and so on. So much to read about and I think only the diehard Porter fan will not skip a paragraph or two.

[Michael Joe Armijo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is simply a ride down memory lane.

I was more curious about Cole Porter's life because I, too, am in love with the lyrics and music he created. Songs like ANYTHING GOES, YOU'RE THE TOP, I LOVE PARIS to name a few are classics to no end. I like a book that takes me back in time, but I'd prefer a good story. I was a bit disappointed how the book became too informational with naming of who's who and who did what vs. a classic story. There are definitely stories behind the stories that would be much more interesting...so, I suppose we have to use our imagination. This book is a great resource to anyone studying about Cole Porter. I had no idea about his horse accident which really put a damper on his lifestyle. He was quite the world traveler in the 20s & 30s which is quite an accomplishment in those days. He definitely had a way with words...but if you read this...complement it with a CD of the COLE PORTER Songbook. It took me a while to get through this because it IS a book that you can put down & keep on your coffee table for a long time (before you pick it up again).

[Claudia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very dry look at Cole Porter's life & work.

[Peter Parziale · Rating 3 out of 5]

For such a colorful and impactful person, the book is pretty much a tangled dud. The three stars are due to Cole Porter's own dazzling, complicated, and erratic personality more than to the way that this biography was told. One star might be because Cole Porter is a midwestern boy (Peru, Indiana), and I have some friends and family in the Heartland who I miss.

I really like the big musicals, both on stage and on film. These, and the hedonistic Porter legend, should be ample enticement to dig deeper into his life. Because Porter's music is so important to these genres, when I saw the book at the thrift store I picked it up. I started it soon after seeing the biopic De-Lovely, but got slogged down and set it aside until COVID-19 allowed for dedicated times of extended reading. That it took six days to read is some indication of my lack of enthusiasm for the book. Problematic for this author is that I had read two excellent biographies earlier in the pandemic, and author McBrien simply isn't in the league of that author -- by comparison, he pales.

Giving McBrien the benefit of the doubt, it could have been that he was so immersed in Porter's life and lifestyle that he simply became such a master that he assumed that his readers were similarly knowledgeable (but then why would we buy his book?). Then, the failure lies with his editor, who coulda/shoulda reined him in with the blue pencil.

My stylistic objections include:

*the parade (after parade, after parade) of name-dropping as to attendees at this party, that premiere, this cruise, that collaboration, this dinner, that boyfriend, etc. It was baffling to keep any of this organized. It was McBrien's practice to often drop in names without any context. For example, Diana Vreeland is named six times, from early in Porter's life to near the end...so, fairly frequently; while her name is familiar to me, I couldn't tell you if she was an actress, a model, a singer, a critic, or otherwise, and McBrien never reveals this either. This absence of contextual identification occurred repeatedly with and countless friends and acquaintances in Porters life. Help me out, Mr. McBrien! Who ARE these people, and why should I care that they were invited to the show's after-party? Another person: Bricktop, mentioned nine times from early until late. She is prefaced by "singer" and is never even identified by other than this nickname. Do you know who she is? [She lived a remarkable, colorful, and long life in her own right, and I want to know more about her!] Why is McBrien so secretive? Maybe he's just not that able as a biographer...or we can blame his editor again.

* Of the people of whom McBrien did elaborate, they popped in so suddenly that I had to go back a few paragraphs to figure out their import. I started (trying) to keep track of them on a piece of paper with arrows and notes regarding how they connected with each other. But the author should have helped readers like me. I didn't try to keep track of Porter's lovers; it seems like they came, stayed for awhile, and then disappeared like phantoms after Porter tired of them.

* There were plenty of photos. The photographs were poorly placed. Commonly, they were on the page after the anecdote or person was introduced. An especially egregious example was a phot of Cole on a donkey (dated 1955) which appeared near the end of the book after Cole's death (1964) without any reference whatsoever why it was there. It would have been better to have them on the same page as the story and I checked, that appeared to be easily managed. Put the "donkey" photo eleven years earlier when he was on the trip. Or, because these people jump in and out of Porter's life, put all the photos in pages in the middle of the book so that readers can refresh their memory easily -- just what DID his pal Monty Woolley look like? Or Again, that's likely the editor's fault, but the review is of the book. The photos are arranged as to be less helpful than they might be.

* There was very, very little of context for anything happening elsewhere in the country or the world while Porter was doing his thing in California, New York, ore elsewhere. For one example, Porter is in the midst of his excruciating pain in the mid-fifties -- early sixties. What else is happening, and where? Maybe, uh, the Vietnam f-ing War... To be fair, McBrien did mention WW2 in context in that the lads at Porter's California pool parties, one of his lovers, were in the armed forces and he interacted with them while they were on leave from service. Generally, however, from this biography one would think that the entire world revolved Cole Porter -- maybe it did, from Porter's point of view.

* The book ended with a thud. Porter, after a lingering and debilitating series of illnesses, dies. He is buried. The book is over. What???!!! Where is the chapter that lends some closure to the story? A logical and pleasing concluding chapter would have summarized Cole Porter's impact on the American Songbook and the world of musical theater. Instead, McBrien gives us the Index. Thud.

Now, to find that biography of Bricktop.

[Juan A. Ramirez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cole Porter led a boring life. Or, rather, lived such an exciting playboy life that reading about it is like hearing about that legendary party you missed because of a cold. These kinds of morning-after stories are only exciting if filled with gossippy detail and flare.

Now, his craftsmanship and musicality are subjects well worth mining, and would certainly make for an interesting read. Arguably the most sophisticated lyricist of the early 20th century, Porter’s genius is evident.

This book manages to detail the wrong aspects of both of these ideals. The musical analyses are seldom nuanced or enlightening. The personal details are tedious, with the bulk of commentary boiling down to “Porter was a snob who loved partying with young men. He loved his wife, despite neglecting her towards the end of her life.” Was Porter’s life boring? Of course not. But he didn’t exactly show much character (or artistic) growth, which makes for a dull 400 pages. If anything, his rich-adolescent outlook on life only becomes more annoying as the years pass.

I believe the reason the book fails lies in an inherent fault in the author. Porter was, in the most loving, gay-man-to-gay-man way, a faggot. Some of his best-known songs include “You’re the Top” and “My Heart Belongs to Daddy.” And we love him for it! He certainly kept himself between sheets and affairs throughout his life, but the author is completely uninterested in the one thing that seemed to drive Porter: hedonism. Why not indulge in some tabloid rumors? How annoying it is to chalk this up to latent homophobia, but there is a basic misunderstanding of who the man was and the joie de vivre he brought to American music. Porter spent so much on enjoying himself, it’s a shame a heteronormative canon can only see him as a string of successes.

[Malcolm Frawley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't the fascinating read I expected it to be. Firstly, there is something too formal (?) in the way it is written. But, mainly, because I found Porter so hard to access in these pages. Which may say more about me than it does about him. The composer/lyricist of some of the greatest popular songs of the 20th century (Night & Day, Begin The Beguine, True Love etc etc) was born into affluence &, around the age of 30, inherited unfathomable wealth - $2,000,000! In 1923! So the rest of his life was spent in castles, chateaus & a lush apartment in the Waldorf Hotel & his travels through Europe, the Mediterranean & pretty much the rest of the world were choices he never had to think about twice. He was gay but a long-term heterosexual 'marriage' didn't inconvenience him with children either. Don't get me wrong, he was always working, & was at least partly responsible for some of the most successful musicals in theatre history, but his lifestyle allowed him the freedom a mythical composer of similar talents who had been born into a trailer park in Florida would never have enjoyed. Porter endured his share of failure along the way but his livelihood never relied on success. He left behind dozens of pop music standards but it was like reading a science fiction story about alien life. I said it was probably more about me.

[Debra Pawlak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Composer Cole Porter was a musical genius and one of the rare ones who didn't have a partner. He not only wrote the music, but the lyrics as well. Porter was responsible for such classics as 'Begin the Beguine', 'Night and Day', and 'Anything Goes'. From his early beginnings in Peru, Indiana to the high life he led throughout Europe and America, author William McBrien presents a man with great talent, as well as crippling conflict. In addition, to the timeless music, McBrien describes the many sides of Cole Porter from his homosexuality to his life-changing accident that left him in severe pain for decades. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but I also felt that O'Brien included some unnecessary gossip about several members of the Hollywood set that had no real truth/proof behind it. If you are looking for a good read about Cole Porter, this is a good one.

[Susan Dworkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a huge Cole Porter fan and I've sung many of his songs. I loved learning more about his life; the ups and downs, the people in his life. Unfortunately, all these details made this a long, sometimes tedious read. (I listened to the the book via Hoopla).

It was hard to read about all the difficulties in his life, on Linda's life. Wish they knew more about depression and anxiety back then,; medicine may have eased his torment. My guess, is that he would have had easier life,, but also think it would have dulled his manic bouts of creative genius. One can still be creative when life is calm, but one has to make time for it and allow oneself to get in the zone.

Rest in peace, Cole Porter. Thank you for the incredible music legacy you have left for us.

[Cara · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book felt like gossiping with your gay BFF about his hometown when you don’t know anything about the people, places, or things that he references. Cole Porter’s life was fascinating, but this book was convoluted and difficult to follow in some places.

I think this lyric from Silk Stockings in 1955 is a perfect allegory for Cole Porter’s pursuit of love in a homophobic world, battle over censorship, and living with chronic pain and disability.

Page 360: I love the looks of you, the lure of you,
I’d love to make a tour of you,
The eyes, the arms, the mouth of you,
The east, west, north, and the south of you.
I’d love to gain complete control of you,
And handle even the heart and soul of you,
So love, at least, a small percent of me do,
For I love all of you.

[Aaron Ambrose · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a letdown. Three big barriers for me here:

1) McBrien writes weirdly sequenced sentences that are hard to read for no discernable reason. You literally don't know who or what the statement is about until the end of the sentence, or possibly until the next one. Baffling.

2) McBrien includes every god damn piece of research that he came across - no matter its relevance. It's like eating a meal that is 35% ground-up newspaper.

3) The leaps in time, event and cast of characters reminds me of Drunk History, except not amusing - intentionally or unintentionally.

This is a badly structured, poorly written book. I'll go ahead and say it's a fan wank. And, slightly beside the point, Porter comes across as a coddled, snobbish, thin-skinned, OUTRAGEOUSLY TALENTED pain in the B.

[Jim Kelsh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a Porter fan...I love his music...I thought I's love this. It's ok. Massively overwritten with a weird point of view. Full of facts and what he wrote next stories, McBrien spends a lot of ink on lists of society mavens and doyens who fluttered around Porter through his life.
It's dull going sometimes. Also part of the weird point of view is the authors near obsession with Cole's homosexuality...I knew he was gay...I don't care. However, McBrien attempts to name each gay lover Porter ever had . Tedious
Three jimmys out of five

[Joseph J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Watched the Kevin Kline slant on Cole, a bit of a disappointment, the other day and returned to this Bio for the real story, especially about he an wife Linda. Also in 2000 I saw the Broadway revival of Kiss Me Kate with the now late Marrin Mazie and fell "So In Love" love with Porter. This is well paced and well written, and a rounded portrait of a music and cultural genius. Also interesting portrait of a gay man in 20th. century America, and the culture he helped define and celebrate.

[Lauren Patton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was really well researched and well done. There was a lot of information presented, but still the narrative flowed really well and I was constantly invested, entertained, and learning new details. The ending wasn't very gentle, but I enjoyed that it was different than a lot of biographies in that way.

[Jordan Kinsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

This biography is not very good, primarily because McBrien is just not a very good storyteller. Lots of things out of order chronologically, emphases on lesser details while barely touching on more important aspects, overly pretentious language, etc.

[Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chatty, somewhat gossipy account of Porter's life.

[G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating, talented, and conflicted man. I found this book dry, primarily because the author poured in too much information.

[Ken Proudfoot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-researched bio of this great, yet somewhat mysterious songwriter. Shares both his working life as a successful songwriter and his rather complicated personal life.

[Mark W · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intimate look at one of the greatest minds in musical theater history. Well researched and full of details. It’s a thorough story of a man who made his mark on the world.

[andrew rabatin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very thorough book on Cole. The book is clearly well researched. I did enjoy the sections on his relationships with his wife and other men and the complex private life he had to live during that period of time. The book name drops on all, and I mean all, the people Cole knew during his life. I don't think you will find a more comprehensive book on Cole Porter. I did find the book somewhat dry and stilted. In the final analysis it comes off as a great bit of research, but a very slow read.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a life story of emergence from small-town Peru, Indiana to the global entertainment stage. Well-researched and filled with many interesting life details. Highly recommended for people with an interest in classic Hollywood films and their musical accompaniment.

[Jill H. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure why I didn't particularly like this book. I am interested in Porter and his music......wonderful songs which have become a part of American popular music history and are still enjoyed today. But, the book did not keep my attention.....was it the writing style, the overuse of lyrics in the text, the not-very likable persona of the subject?.....I don't know but I was disappointed. There was an overabundance of people in Porter's life and they are all here....some you know, some you do not......but it might be more information than we need to know. I am not particularly interested in what someone was wearing at some party in some city with some people. Some portions of the book offered insight into the life of 30s and 40s Broadway and the music business but overall I just didn't get involved.

[KJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the plus side, any biography of one of America's finest songwriters has to be worth a read and McBrien has the advantage of being able to reveal what was previously hidden about Porter's life, i.e. his pool parties and numerous homosexual liaisons.

On the minus side, McBrien's style is truly NOT a thing of beauty. Using absurd archaisms like 'cicerone', he writes like an elderly opera queen on a spree.