Are you interested in the books I most reference when I write podcast episodes and notes for my live tweet watch party nights?
A thread:
Each time I want to talk about a costume designer, I pull this baby off the shelf. Jorgensen and Scoggins have researched the biographies and the history of wardrobe in film. Worth the price.
David Chierichetti’s book is a mix of biography and interviews with stars and also his staff (esp acting coach Phyllis Seaton) that I find indispensable. Mitchell Leisen is one of the most important directors of woman’s pictures. This book is a treasure.
Interviews with screenwriters edited by Patrick McGilligan has great stories. I find myself thinking about Norman Krasna all the time—how he sold shoes in Macy’s and wrote at night with a picture of Sylvia Sidney over his desk.
I wanted more, more, more from Charles Higham’s interviews with cinematographers.
I’m pulling this collection from Bogdanovich off the shelf at least twice a month
I’m assuming that if you follow me here, you already know about Molly Haskell’s cornerstone text on woman’s pictures but you know what they say about ‘assume’.
Victoria Wilson’s biography of Barbara Stanwyck is gold, but Ella Smith’s is a gem crammed with backstory on her pictures. Worth it alone for the quotes from Stanwyck’s directors (who all swoon) and co-stars (ditto).
Gorgeous coffee table book with a compelling and thoughtful look at the pre-Codes from Mark A. Vieira. Love this book.
This is a collection of essays by film directors and has tonnes of good stuff.
Bob Thomas wrote a juicy page turner on the mogul of Columbia pictures. Worth it alone for the story when Carole Lombard was on loan out for Virtue (1932).
Jack Warner’s book is fantastic. Sure, he’s a megalomaniac, but his bits on editing film and reusing stock footage, show a man with a keen eye. And his story about how his stomach flips in a shoe shop because of when he slept on slabs of fresh leather is a classic immigrant tale.
Another gorgeous coffee table book, with archival pictures and media. Great background on his production across studios.
The new book on Adrian is very good, but I find Howard Gutner’s book has my number. The chapters are arranged by the major stars he dressed in MGM. I learnt so much. It’s perfect.
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