Starmaker: The Autobiography of Hal Wallis

by Hal B. Wallis

The legendary Warner Brothers movie producer recounts his days in the hectic movie world and reveals his role in discovering such talents as Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster and in making Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon

Genres: Nonfiction, Film, Autobiography, Biography, Media Tie In, Memoir

240 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1980

Reviews

[Chuck Neumann · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Starmaker", the autobiography of movie producer Hal Wallis, is a very enjoyable book that covers a long period of Hollywood history. He started working in studios in the early 1920's and produced his last film in 1975. The book was published in 1980, and Mr. Wallis was still planning on producing more films. We get a look at his life prior to moving to L.A., and I found that period interesting. Of course, it is his career in movies that the reader is interested in, and he soon tells us that story. It isn't long before the young Wallis advances from the Public Relations office to being the chief producer for Warner Brothers Studios. In the 1930's and 1940's he was the executive producer for such films as "Gold Diggers of 1933", "Captain Blood", "Adventures of Robin Hood", "Sergeant York", "Maltese Falcon", "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and "Casablanca". Tired of Jack Warner taking the credit for his work, he moved over to Paramount as an independent producer. There he mainly made very popular films starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, and Elvis Presley. In the late 50's and 60's he produced "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral", "Becket". "True Grit", "Anne of a Thousand Days" and "Rooster Cogburn", his last film in 1975. He discusses problems he had on different films and his dealings with actors and directors. Humphrey Bogart (who never liked Wallis even though he became a star in Wallis' films), Errol Flynn (who never took his roles very seriously but was quick to ask for more money), James Cagney, Jerry Lewis (who drove Wallis crazy with his demands and feud), Elvis Presley (very easy to work with), John Wayne (a total professional who didn't let cancer effect his work) and Katherine Hepburn (one of his favorites) were some of the actors he discussed. He spends some time on his private life as well, including his marriages. His first wife Louise Fazenda passed away in 1962, he married actress Martha Hyer in 1966. The book also includes a few memos he sent out to others concerning the films he produced. They show very clearly the role Wallis had in shaping these films. Hal Wallis was a very successful producer, twice winning the Irving Thalberg award, and did a very good job on his autobiography as well. Highly recommended for anyone interested in classic Hollywood.

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book years ago, however still remember how honest it seemed to be, especially with the threat of libel. He did not enjoy working with Shirley MacLaine, Jerry Lewis (without Dean Martin) or Tony Curtis to name a few. He did enjoy working with Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn, and Elvis Presley, who he thought had a real acting talent that was unfortunately never tested.
Hal Wallis was responsible for some of the best movies made, from 1931's "Little Caesar" to Bette Davis in "Jezebel"; then thru 1940's with "Sante Fe Trail", "King's Row" and "The Maltese Falcon" and of course the wonderful "Casablanca."
If you are a fan of old movies I recommend this book.

[Jason Bergman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable enough read, with some nice anecdotes. But really, it's a chronicle of Wallis' successes, with very little in the way of insight. Recommended, but there are better books about Hollywood out there.

[Mediaman · Rating 2 out of 5]

This work is alluded to in other celebrity memoirs and film reference books as being a great autobiography about Hollywood. It's not. There are about a half dozen interesting inside stories on famous movie stars that Wallis worked with, but otherwise the extremely short book (185 pages before addendums) is simply the author skipping through his production history without going into any depth. At the end is a list of all his movies and many of his most popular aren't even mentioned in the narrative.

He likes pretty much everyone in his brief mentions of them, and that also makes for a boring read. He overpraises famously difficult stars like Bette Davis and Katharine Hepburn claiming to never have a problem in any of the films he made with them. Seriously? The only person he really slams (and justifiably so) is Shirley MacLaine, who he virtually discovered but she criticizes him for her low pay in the early years. There are a few directors he says are difficult and the Warner Brothers studio head gets called out for picking up Wallis's Oscar, but otherwise there is little conflict in the book.

He ends with some memos he wrote during his years, which pad the pages and are used to prove he had a lot of creative impact on major projects. There might be a few sentences or stories about Elvis or Casablanca that could be used as good quotes in other film books, but otherwise if this were one of his films it would be a flop.

[Janice Forbes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating perspective from an independent film maker. It was very enjoyable, at times the anecdotes were very funny.

[Christopher Heaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Middling memoir by Wallis, the former head of production for Warner Brothers and then independent producer.