Dolls! Dolls! Dolls!

May 1, 2020

There are movies (and books) you love, those you hate, and those you love to hate. The undisputed queen of the "so bad it's good" genre is Valley of the Dolls, Jacqueline Susann's runaway best seller of 1966 and the 1967 film adaptation starring Patty Duke, Barbara Parkins, and future Manson murder victim Sharon Tate. Screenwriter, author (Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho), and Dolls superfan Rebello packs tons of information into this loving look at a cultural and cult phenomenon, sprinkling gossipy bits among the stats. He tells how much money was made (and translates the figures into "today" money), who got along (and who didn't), where things went wrong, life stories of the stars of the movie and the people upon whom the characters were based, why Judy Garland didn't make it onto the screen, the studio ("20th," as he refers to it) machinations, Jackie Susann's early years and later success, and what happened to nearly every major player involved with the film and the book. VERDICT Some knowledge of the book and definitely of the film is required, but go ahead: Indulge yourself. Fans will love! love! love!, and newcomers will enjoy the Hollywood insider aspect.--Liz French, Library Journal

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2020
A Hollywood screenwriter's ultimate in-depth guidebook to an enduring book and female-driven film sensation. Rebello delivers a meticulously detailed paean to both incarnations of Valley of the Dolls, which, despite scathing reviews, were runaway commercial successes. As he writes, the book was a "magnificent obsession" since he first read it as a "precocious kid and an insatiable reader." He explores author Jacqueline Susann's early "full-on assault at stardom" in New York in the 1930s as she pursued an acting career, and he traces the dedicated, rigid schedule she adhered to while writing Dolls. When the novel finally published in 1966, it garnered mixed reviews, but it caused a promotional commotion and became a publishing juggernaut. Susann's later opulent life as a "master of self-promotion and pioneer of branding" was embodied in her active participation in the outlandish film treatment a year later. The complete backstory of the film decorates the second half of the text, as Rebello enthusiastically stuffs each chapter with widely unknown scandalous tattle. The author's dutiful scrutiny shines in the series of lists pointing out all the differences between the various screenwriters' treatments and the final production. This scrupulous quality makes the book a blissful treasure trove of gossipy insider details that Dolls fans will swiftly devour. In grand fashion, the author delivers frothy particulars on the agonizing casting process to "find the right Neely" (under consideration, among many others, were "Petula Clark, Helen Mirren, Liza Minnelli, and Andy Warhol 'superstar' Baby Jane Holzer"), the film designer's perfectionist "wardrobe plot," and, of course, the competitive infighting among the four leading ladies: Patty Duke, Barbara Parkins, Sharon Tate, and Susan Hayward (who replaced the unceremoniously fired Judy Garland). Written with a cinematic excitement and giddiness bordering on satire, this is an indulgent treat for Dolls fans. Memorable reading for die-hard devotees and those seeking to relive all the breathless histrionics.

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June 8, 2020
Screenwriter Rebello (Bad Movies We Love) plunges into all aspects of a famously guilty pleasure in this exuberant examination of Jacqueline Susann’s racy tale of sex, drugs, and Hollywood. Rebello recounts Susann’s early experiences as an actress and playwright, and numerous affairs with stars, including Ethel Merman and Eddie Cantor, and the scorn she drew from literary heavyweights, including Truman Capote and Gore Vidal, when Valley of the Dolls, marketed as a scandalous roman à clef of her showbiz career, hit 1966 bestseller charts. Rivaling the book’s salacious plot, the making of the 1967 film version was fraught with drama. Patty Duke, a Hollywood veteran, resented being given second billing to newcomer Barbara Parkins—who, for her part, had pursued Duke’s role, as a Judy Garland–inspired singer. Garland herself was cast as an older performer (in turn inspired by Merman), but the troubled actress was soon replaced by fellow star Susan Hayward. When the much anticipated movie premiered, a combination of projection snafus and the actual film’s “rancid dialogue and over-the-top performances” drew ridicule—yet over time, the film attained cult status in its own right. Anyone seeking nonfiction escapism will be well served by Rebello’s loving dissection of a camp classic’s print and screen incarnations. Agent: Mary Evans, Mary Evans Inc.

June 1, 2020
Jacqueline Susann's iconic 1966 novel about three women chewed up and spit out by the Hollywood machine is regarded equally as a feminist social critique and worthless filth. The 1967 movie version achieves a clearer consensus as one of the worst films ever made. Still, the legendary behind-the-scenes drama helped Valley of the Dolls attain cult status. Rebello (Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, 2013) uses interviews with those who were there to reveal the ugly ego clashes and media frenzy that plagued production. Harlan Ellison wrote one version of the script; everyone from Barbra Streisand to Debbie Reynolds to Candice Bergen was considered for the roles that eventually went to Patty Duke, Barbara Parkins, and Sharon Tate. Director Mark Robson seemed to have it out for his female stars, which only contributed to the chilly (understatement!) atmosphere between Parkins and Duke. Judy Garland's brief time as the washed-up Helen Lawson (before she was fired and replaced by Susan Hayward) has enough pathos for another entire Susann novel. This exhaustive history will be a summer treat for film buffs and campy culture fanatics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)