Synopses & Reviews
Savor the inside scoop on over-the-top superstars
""I'm not a paranoid, deranged millionaire. . . . I'm a billionaire!""
""Acting is an empty and useless profession.""
""Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls go everywhere else.""
""I'm interested in being provocative and pushing people's buttons.""
Which screen icons gave us the quotes above? How do stars get away with self-indulgent, unrestrained behaviors-or do they? In The Hollywood Book of Extravagance, longtime industry insider and Hollywood historian James Robert Parish gives you a provocative look behind the scenes at the lavish indulgences and larger-than-life egos of Tinseltown's rich and famous. The featured celebrities range from heartthrobs to industry tycoons, and from yesterday's matinee idols to today's hottest celebs. The stars are grouped according to their excesses: ego, neurosis, partying, power, rich living, and romancing. You'll devour little-known details on the excesses and exploits of notables ranging from Mae West to Madonna, Greta Garbo to Marilyn Monroe and Marlon Brando, Bela Lugosi to John Belushi, Zsa Zsa Gabor to Paris Hilton, Errol Flynn to Jude Law, and many more.
Synopsis
Throughout Hollywood’ s lengthy history as a major entertainment center, many celebrities have succumbed to conspicuous living, overindulged their bad habits (or vices), and persistently exploited their colossal egos, hang-ups, and idiosyncratic behavior. Between too much partying, too much money, or just too much too young, such over-the-top living hasn’ t diminished between the old and new guard in Hollywood. The Hollywood Book of Extravagance looks at an assorted selection of these colorful Tinseltown celebrities, such as Lindsay Lohan and what happens when child stars have too much; Madonna and the success her ego brought her career, and Robert Downey, Jr. and how addiction tarnished his. Over the decades, these pampered souls set the high water mark in excess both for their peers and their successors.
Synopsis
Star-struck fans will love reading the scoop on over-the-top superstars
This fascinating look at the lavish indulgences of Tinseltown s rich and famous spans from yesterday s matinee idols to today s hottest celebs. Stars are grouped according to their excesses: ego, neuroses, partying, power, rich living, romancing, and so much, so young. Readers will devour details on the exploits of notables ranging from Mae West to Madonna, Garbo to Monroe and Brando, Bela Lugosi to John Belushi, Zsa Zsa Gabor to Paris Hilton, Errol Flynn to Jude Law, and much more. As today s obsession with celebrities continues, this exposé of outrageous self-indulgence is a winner.
James Robert Parish (Studio City, CA), a former entertainment reporter, is the author of numerous books on the entertainment industry, including It s Good to Be the King: The Seriously Funny Life of Mel Brooks (0-471-75267-3) and The Hollywood Book of Breakups (0-471-75268-1).
Synopsis
Savor the inside scoop on over-the-top superstars
"I'm not a paranoid, deranged millionaire. . . . I'm a billionaire!"
"Acting is an empty and useless profession."
"Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls go everywhere else."
"I'm interested in being provocative and pushing people's buttons."
Which screen icons gave us the quotes above? How do stars get away with self-indulgent, unrestrained behaviors-or do they? In The Hollywood Book of Extravagance, longtime industry insider and Hollywood historian James Robert Parish gives you a provocative look behind the scenes at the lavish indulgences and larger-than-life egos of Tinseltown's rich and famous. The featured celebrities range from heartthrobs to industry tycoons, and from yesterday's matinee idols to today's hottest celebs. The stars are grouped according to their excesses: ego, neurosis, partying, power, rich living, and romancing. You'll devour little-known details on the excesses and exploits of notables ranging from Mae West to Madonna, Greta Garbo to Marilyn Monroe and Marlon Brando, Bela Lugosi to John Belushi, Zsa Zsa Gabor to Paris Hilton, Errol Flynn to Jude Law, and many more.
About the Author
James Robert Parish is a former entertainment reporter and publicist and the author of It's Good to Be the King: The Seriously Funny Life of Mel Brooks, Fiasco: A History of Hollywood's Iconic Flops, and The Hollywood Book of Breakups (all from Wiley). Parish appears frequently as an expert on network and cable television documentaries like A&E's Biography and E! Television's True Hollywood Stories.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments.
Introduction.
1. So Much, So Young.
Drew Barrymore.
Danny Bonaduce.
Gary Coleman.
Jackie Coogan.
Macaulay Culkin.
Patty Duke.
Lindsay Lohan.
Tori Spelling.
2. So Much Ego.
Richard Burton.
Bette Davis.
Rex Harrison.
Al Jolson.
Jerry Lewis.
Madonna.
Jayne Mansfield.
Burt Reynolds.
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Barbra Streisand.
Mae West.
3. So Much Neurosis.
Woody Allen.
Jean Arthur..
Kim Basinger.
Marlon Brando.
Joan Crawford.
Greta Garbo.
Betty Hutton.
Jennifer Jones.
Oscar Levant.
Marilyn Monroe.
Sean Penn.
Peter Sellers.
4. So Much Partying.
John Barrymore.
John Belushi.
Montgomery Clift.
Sandra Dee.
Robert Downey Jr.
Chris Farley.
W.C. Fields.
Judy Garland.
David Hasselhoff.
Dick Haymes.
Whitney Houston.
Buster Keaton.
Veronica Lake.
Bela Lugosi.
Liza Minnelli.
River Phoenix.
Elvis Presley.
Richard Pryor.
Zachary Scott.
Charlie Sheen.
Gale Storm.
5. So Much Power.
Johnny Carson.
Michael Eisner.
Mel Gibson.
Louis B. Mayer.
Louella Parsons.
Martha Stewart.
Lew Wasserman.
6. So Much Rich Living.
Marion Davies.
Zsa Zsa Gabor.
Sonja Henie.
Paris Hilton.
Howard Hughes.
Demi Moore.
Mary Pickford.
Gloria Swanson.
7. So Much Romancing.
Warren Beatty.
Clara Bow.
Louise Brooks.
Charlie Chaplin.
Joan Collins.
Tony Curtis.
Marlene Dietrich.
Errol Flynn.
Ava Gardner.
Lorenzo Lamas.
Jude Law.
Julia Roberts.
Mickey Rooney.
Frank Sinatra.
Elizabeth Taylor.
Lana Turner.
Shelley Winters.
Bibliography.
Index.