The Hollywood Book Of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings Of More Than 125 American Movie And TV Idols By James Robert Parish

The Hollywood Book of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings of More Than 125 American Movie and TV Idols by James Robert Parish

The Hollywood Book of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings of More Thank 125 American Movie and TV Idols was written by James Robert Parish who has authored a number of books about the infamous citizens of Tinseltown. This 413 page book tells the stories of the demise of some of Hollywood’s brightest stars while giving some insight into their lives and careers. What can you expect to find in the book?

The book is divided into seven sections including:

Accidental Deaths

Some of the actors and actresses who met an untimely fate:

- Sonny Bono

- James Dean

- Grace Kelly

- Brandon Lee

- Carole Lombard

- Jayne Mansfield

- Ricky Nelson

- Will Rogers

Alcohol & Drugs

Celebrities whose end came from the use of substances include:

- John Barrymore

- John Belushi

- Chris Farley

- W.C. Fields

- Judy Garland

- Bela Lugosi

- River Phoenix

In Obscurity

Some of Hollywood’s renowned stars who met their end after their Hollywood heyday:

- Theda Bera

- Clara Bow

- D.W. Griffith

- Hedy Lamarr

- Mary Pickford

- Martha Raye

- Norma Shearer

Murders

This section included such stars as:

- Dominique Dunne

- Phil Hartman

- Sal Mineo

- Rebecca Schaeffer

- Tupac Shakur

- Carl Switzer a.k.a. “Alfalfa”

- Sharon Tate

Natural Causes

Some of the Hollywood notables included:

- Bud Abbott

- Gracie Allen

- Jim Backus

- Lucille Ball

- Amanda Blake

- George Burns

- John Candy

- Lou Costello

- Joan Crawford

- Sammy Davis Jr.

- Marlene Dietrich

- Redd Foxx

- Clark Gable

- Greta Garbo

- Betty Grable

- Susan Hayward

- Rita Hayworth

- Audrey Hepburn

- Rock Hudson

- Madeline Kahn

- Anthony Perkins

- Gilda Radner

- Lana Turner

- Rudolph Valentino

- Loretta Young

Puzzling Death

Some Hollywood passings still have an aura of mystery surrounding them including:

- Bob Crane

- Bruce Lee

- Marilyn Monroe

- Elvis Presley

- George Reeves

- Natalie Wood

Suicides

This section includes such stars as

- Clara Blandick

- Dorothy Dandridge

- Peg Entwistle

- Carole Landis

- Dana Plato

- Freddie Prinze

- Herve Villechaize

- Gig Young

My Thoughts:

The Hollywood Book of Death: The Bizarre, Often Sordid, Passings of More Thank 125 American Movie and TV Idols definitely keeps your attention from cover to cover. It was interesting to read some of the life and career details of each person as well as to get an insightful look into the final days of some of Hollywood’s icons. Most of the 125 entries do come with a black and white picture so it was nice to “put a face with the name” of some of the more obscure listings. The book also has two appendixes. The first lists quite a few Hollywood notables that weren’t part of the original 125 mentioned and includes their birth and death dates. The other appendix lists some of the notable cemeteries that hold the final resting places of popular stars. There were a few things that I thought distracted from the book. There were quite a few comments about some actors/actresses sexual preferences, liaisons, etc. Since the person is no longer here to confirm or refute the insinuations, I failed to see where it was necessary to include it in a book that’s supposed to deal primarily with “bizarre and often sordid passings” especially since it didn’t have any bearing on his/her demise. While it was interesting to read about each person, I found myself wondering why other people weren’t listed. For example, since Lucille Ball was mentioned, why not Desi Arnaz. I thought the same thing about Heather O’Rourke (who wasn’t mentioned) who co-starred with Dominique Dunne in “Poltergeist”. There were also a few legends I would have liked to have seen mentioned such as Humphrey Bogart, Lon Chaney (father and son),Bette Davis, Boris Karloff, James Stewart, Spencer Tracy, Orson Welles and the rest of the Rat Pack. Perhaps in a few years, there will be an updated version with an entirely new list of Hollywood notables. All in all, the book does keep your interest as you delve into the fates of some of the infamous individuals from Hollywood.

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