Download PDF The Jean Harlow Films edition by James L Neibaur Humor Entertainment eBooks

Product details File Size 9211 KB Print Length 221 pages Publisher McFarland (March 28, 2019) Publication Date March 28, 2019 Sold by  Digital Services LLC Language English ASIN B07KQGRFTN

The Jean Harlow Films edition by James L Neibaur Humor Entertainment eBooks Reviews

• If you are a fan of Jean Harlow this is a must read. It talks about all the films she made in her short career and the people who starred with her.
• Jean Harlow starred in 22 feature films in under a decade, and was at the height of Hollywood stardom when she suddenly passed away at the age of 26. But her films and her legacy have lived on all these years later, and it’s those which author and historian James L. Neibaur examines in his latest book, “The Jean Harlow Films.”
  
  Harlow appeared in films from 1930 to 1937, and in his book Neibaur devotes a chapter to each year and discusses the films she made within that time. These include such classics as “The Public Enemy” and “Dinner at Eight” as well as some lesser known movies, like the 1932 gangster film “The Beast of the City.” Neibaur discusses each film as a whole, but primarily focuses on Harlow, discussing her performance, her pertinent details about her personal life, and how it contributed to her rise to stardom and enduring legacy. By discussing the films chronologically, this book also offers a lot of insight that allows the reader to trace the evolution of Harlow’s career and the variety of genres she worked in, from pre-code dramas to screwball comedies. Neibaur bookends his chapters on her feature films with chapters about Harlow’s early life and film appearances (such as the Laurel and Hardy short “Double Whoopee”) and her legacy, not just immediately after her sudden death in 1937, but all the way through to today.
  
  “The Jean Harlow Films” is an entertaining and informative read that is gorgeously illustrated throughout with film and publicity stills and posters. The author’s knowledge about the subject comes through in every chapter, providing a clear portrait of not just Jean Harlow the actress, but Harlean Carpenter, the person—leaving the reader to also speculate just what more Harlow could have accomplished had she lived a longer life.
• Much has been written and continues to be written about Jean Harlow, the enduring film icon but less has been written about Jean Harlow, the film actress. Unlike earlier out of print books about Jean Harlow's films which feature mostly still photographs, cast and crew lists and short blurb reviews from newspapers, James L. Neibaur delves MUCH deeper into the rich details of each film and Jean's performances in each film. Through personal analysis, on the record eyewitness accounts and primary resources, Neibaur meticulously chronicles Jean's evolution from a bit player to MGM's most popular female star whose image endures to this day.
  
  This book is NOT a biography but Neibaur does go into what was happening behind the scenes with Jean's personal life during each film, i.e. her marriages to film executive Paul Bern and cameraman Harold Rosson, her friendship with co-star Clark Gable, her romantic relationship with co-star William Powell and the circumstances which led to her shocking and sudden death at the age of 26.
  
  Like Rudolph Valentino before and later Marilyn Monroe, part of Jean's mystique is that she died so young and so full of the promise of more great achievements. From this book, you'll learn more about each of Jean's films and how hard she worked to be taken seriously as a diverse actress and how, very unlike her early "bad girl" roles, she was one of the most beloved by her fellow cast and crew who all deeply mourned her death in 1936.
  
  With the exception of a couple early films, most of Jean's filmography is readily available to purchase on DVD and to watch on Turner Classic Movies so it will be interesting to watch her films and read the behind the scenes information and how the public responded to each film. If you're a fan of classic Hollywood and especially if you're a fan of Jean Harlow, this is one book that is an essential addition to your film book library.