Simon & Schuster, $35 (576p) ISBN 978-1-5011-9211-1. Other Editions of This Title: Library Binding, Large Print (1/27/2021) Compact Disc (10/20/2020) Paperback (11/2/2021) Description. In a put-upon voice, the man begged for an autograph. “He was talking about going back to Los Angeles and maybe seeing a doctor there. October 18, 2020 October 17, 2020 by PG. He was stuck with stilt-walking, and even that was presenting problems. But it’s the only one I’ll sign tonight, I’ll tell you that!” A young man named Greg Mank was in the audience and thought it was possible that Grant might storm off and end the evening prematurely. A perfect model for biography standards Recently, headlines erupted about a popular celebrity accused of being someone entirely different off camera than their public persona would have us believe. Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise. . He was still conscious, but deteriorating quickly—a photograph taken as he was being moved shows that Barbara Grant had covered his face, so that his distress couldn’t be observed. That’s the comedy line.… As soon as it’s getting a little quiet, the straight man talks into it, and the comic answers it. “You’re obviously the same man who previously requested an autograph at the stage door. In Stamford, he was asked about both Sophia Loren and Randolph Scott. Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant in a scene from “Bringing Up Baby” (1938). He’s actually at his best in medium shots, when he’s reacting to another performer. Other threads involve Grant’s multiple marriages and notorious stinginess (house guests reported receiving laundry and phone bills from the wealthy star). And unlike Marc Eliot's Cary Grant, which devoted much space to speculating on Grant's possible bisexuality, Eyman presents the facts of Grant's professional and personal life in a detailed yet conversational tone, neither shying from his relationships with men nor exploiting them for unnecessary gossip. The theater manager was told Grant would have to cancel the show. by Scott Eyman. Grant’s personal life, on the other hand, gets mixed reviews: Only his fifth marriage succeeded, though the birth of a child during his fourth marriage, to Dyan Cannon, brought him lasting happiness. You had to mix the drink correctly or someone in the audience would be sure to notice and complain, but at the same time you also had to make sure to hit your marks and remember the dialogue. He set the stool on which he would sit downstage, close to the audience, and instructed the stagehand, a man named Jack Dexter, about the necessity of timing his entrance on the stage to synchronize precisely with his entrance on the film. Archie remembered his salary as $40 a week, which sounds high for an out-of-work vaudevillian, but his memory for money was good, so it’s certainly possible. Film historian and acclaimed New York Times bestselling biographer Scott Eyman has written the definitive biography of Hollywood legend Cary Grant, one of the most accomplished?and beloved?actors of his generation, who remains as popular as ever today.Born Archibald Leach in 1904, he came to America as a teenaged acrobat to find fame and fortune, but he was always haunted by his past. There was also a willingness to repeat themselves within the niche they created, which they both got away with because of a remarkable ability to simulate spontaneity. Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise and Cary Grant: The Making of a Hollywood Legend Reviewed by Christopher Bray. O’Connor remembered the friendly atmosphere, the way the showgirls hugged and stroked him, the way the great magician Thurston would help him with his correspondence school homework. “We’ll go through it again,” he said. Similarly, in movies as varied as Bringing Up Baby, To Catch a Thief, and Charade, he gazed impassively at stunning women, then backed away, leaving the chase to them. Orry George Kelly was born on December 31, 1897 in Kiama, New South Wales, a small coastal town seventy-three miles from Sydney. It was, simply, a catastrophic event. Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904 – November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. Underneath Grant’s fascinating, nonpareil facade was a personality of nearly perpetual anxiety—a perfectly natural response to his experience of life. He would sit amongst the reporters and answer questions in a tone that never strayed far from the light touch people expected from Cary Grant. By Scott Eyman. Orry-Kelly dated this event as 1926, but Archie was working for most of 1926, so it’s probable that it came two or three years earlier. This was the area known to vaudevillians as Panic Beach, where dancers, singers, and actors would wait around for their next audition while cadging a cup of coffee and sorting through the mail that had arrived while they were working out of town. I’d sent word to you then that I’d sign one for you before leaving. In ‘Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise,’ working-class Archie Leach becomes a Hollywood legend. Cary Grant’s charm was legendary, ... “Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise.” The book offers ample evidence that many who knew Grant were convinced his charms were genuine. At the automat everything was cheap.”. Then his mind began to turn.…, “The truest of the true believers.”  Haywood Hansell came from an aristocratic southern military family. Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise by Scott Eyman is a 2020 Simon & Schuster publication. Over the space of four-hundred-odd pages, several thousand vaudeville artists are advertised, including Jack Benny and Burns & Allen (they had the same agent). Burns reported that Orry-Kelly would buy a dozen ties for a dollar apiece and paint them, after which Archie sold them for three dollars apiece. They were identical to the glasses worn by Lew Wasserman, the head of MCA-Universal, who had made Grant extremely wealthy. Before Grant was introduced, the audience was told there would be no photographs and no autographs, the latter a pet peeve since he became a star a half-century before. One reporter shouted, “It’s a hell of a note to learn from London that Cary Grant has died in Davenport.” The report originated with Stanley Fox, who had been told by Barbara Harris Grant that her husband had died. What started with headache and nausea was inevitably extending to weakness and clumsiness of the hands—all completely unfamiliar sensations for a man whose absolute command of his body had been a hallmark of his professional life. “After the third encore,” said Burns. —Robert Osborne, The Hollywood Reporter Print the Legend: The Life and Times of John Ford "Eyman has emerged as one of the most distinguished and reliable of popular film historians." From its almost accidental birth in 1968, 60 Minutes has set the standard ... Judith Viorst is known and loved by readers of all ages, for children's books such ... Judith Viorst is known and loved by readers of all ages, for children's books such This is a riveting, scrupulously researched account of how Archie Leach, a penniless runaway from a broken home, willed himself into becoming one of the most iconic stars in Hollywood history. From the acclaimed biographer Scott Eyman comes a new portrait of one of the great actors of the 20th century. —HARRISON FORD  Was the Star Wars series bound to succeed?…, 50 green  This was a job with benefits. Grant would take his place on a stool, and after a brief introduction, take questions, generally from women in various stages of emotional distress at being in the same geographic space as Cary Grant. Celeste Holm Syndrome: On Character Actors from Hollywood’s Golden Age A gripping narrative on a Hollywood legend. Canny business dealings, meanwhile, provided enormous financial reward. Why the child of a broken family hid behind the silver screen’s definition of easy charm and handsome masculinity is another story entirely. He said it while in the throes of nausea, said it as a stagehand and two policemen carried him to a car to go back to the hotel. Eyman’s biographical insights show that [Grant's] jauntiness was a mask covering insatiable unease. Come visit our Cary location at Cary Commons, Cary, NC 27511. Though overlong and burdened by extraneous detail, this showbiz chronicle creates an insightful portrait of a man at war with himself. Cary Grant seemed to be ultra-cool and ultra-sophisticated. Share to Twitter Share to Facebook Share to Pinterest. And how lucky we were, his adoring public, to have watched it happen. Cary Grant had died in the Davenport hospital at 11:22 p.m. Archie Leach’s version of this event was slightly different. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise. Hardcover | October 20, 2020. Acting didn’t work out, but the man who became known as Orry-Kelly—his friends called him “Jack”—eventually found a viable alternative by becoming one of Hollywood’s legendary costume designers. On occasion, he would step out of his comfort zone and allow his natural disillusion to show through, seasoned with a touch of bitterness—Sylvia Scarlett, None But the Lonely Heart, Notorious, a few others. The death certificate, signed by Dr. Gilson, stated that his death was due to “massive intracerebral hemorrhage.” There was no neurological ICU in Davenport, and, allowing for the state of medicine in 1986, even if the stroke had occurred in a major city such as Chicago the outcome would probably not have been any different. Film historian Eyman (Hank and Jim) presents an enjoyable if overstuffed biography that reveals screen legend Cary Grant (1904–1986) as a man whose self-presentation as a “matchless specimen of masculine charm” masked deep insecurities. "The most entertaining and enlightening star biography in years . Similarly, he tended to emphasize the comedy in “romantic comedy.” What really turned Grant on as an actor was the possibility of fun, so that he could unleash his inner clown, which is why he seemed to stimulate other actors to his own level of attentive intelligence and joie de vivre. Grant told Doug Fairbanks that he chose the large rims because he didn’t want to go to the trouble of plastic surgery, and the rims covered the bags under his eyes. Hardcover. “He is always fretting at, muttering against, or edging away from the solitude that stars generally inhaled with the light,” wrote David Thomson. House as it reels in the wake of the Whitewater scandal, Vincent Foster’s suicide, and Paula Jones’ allegations of sexual misconduct.In July 1993, White House ... “An illuminating TV show biography” (Kirkus Reviews), the ultimate inside story of 60 Minutes—the program ... “An illuminating TV show biography” (Kirkus Reviews), the ultimate inside story of 60 Minutes—the program He was always the conspicuous object of desire; his character preferred to be left alone—passion was to be ignored, love was to be endured. If the doctors had somehow managed to save Grant, he would have spent the remainder of his life severely damaged, in a wheelchair. Mencken was doubtful that Shakespeare wrote the plays assigned to him because there is substantial evidence that he acted in them, which is an amusing way of saying that actors are not notable for searing intelligence. The only thing that surprised me about the allegations was that people were surprised by the allegations. He had been doing “A Conversation with Cary Grant” for several years, playing second- and third-tier towns, avoiding New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles in favor of Fort Lauderdale, Joliet, and Schenectady. “You look gorgeous—what’s your secret?” “Who was your favorite leading lady?” “What was it like to kiss Grace Kelly?” The answers were, in order, think thin, Grace Kelly, and divine. It was a reasonable enough supposition; most movie stars play emphasized aspects of themselves filtered through fictional contexts. The audience loved him. “It wasn’t restricted to people who could sing or dance or fly through the air—anybody who could do anything that somebody else would pay to see could be in vaudeville.” One of Burns’s favorite acts was called “The Twelve Speed Maniacs,” which consisted of a dozen men who would assemble a Model T in precisely two minutes. Orry George Kelly was born on December 31, 1897 in Kiama, New South Wales, a small coastal town seventy-three miles from Sydney. “If the audience likes you, it makes getting laughs easier,” Burns would say. He doesn’t move while that line is said. The back-lot gossip will most likely entertain casual fans more than the intricate box office and budget details. “Now, that’s confidence!” remembered Archie. Available in stores. In examining Grant's incredible feat of self-invention and the steep price the actor paid for his extraordinary success, Eyman once again demonstrates why he is one of our finest biographers. —Pauline Kael, "The long quest by Scott Eyman to reclaim the Golden Age of Hollywood reaches its apotheosis with this always intelligent, carefully documented, intimate life story that helps explain the charm, genius, and immortality of Cary Grant. - Cary Grant A Brilliant Disguise - Review - Classic Film at BellaOnline Choose Expedited Shipping at checkout for delivery by, Learn how to enable JavaScript on your browser, Blood Sport: The Truth Behind the Scandals in, Fifty Years of 60 Minutes: The Inside Story, Gatecrasher: How I Helped the Rich Become Famous, How to Lead: Wisdom from the World's Greatest, Jackpot: How the Super-Rich Really Live-and How Their. It was those apparently relaxed sessions with reporters that Grant sought to replicate with “A Conversation with Cary Grant.” He expected the mixture as before when he arrived in Davenport by private plane on Friday evening, November 28, 1986. The acts on offer ranged from Eddie Cantor and Al Jolson, whose vaudeville days were far behind them, to one Al Lydell, “America’s Foremost Portrayer of Senility.” But Archie Leach is nowhere to be found. "As Scott Eyman's masterful biography reveals, being 'Cary Grant' required A Brilliant Disguise. That night in Baltimore, the first question came from a man in the rear of the audience. He had maintained the trim figure of his movie star prime; his only apparent concessions to age were a full head of white hair and glasses with heavy black rims. Eleanora Duse died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Archie had met Burns when he was known as Nat Burns, was courting Gracie Allen, and was already a close friend of Jack Benny’s. Replete with meticulous research, perceptive observations, and sharp critiques, this account of the actor’s life consistently engages and illuminates. Aside from this preference for being left alone, he brought the unusual addition of pratfalls and somersaults to romantic comedy, a genre that favors the genteel. Cary Grant . Nevertheless, he was not grateful. That night in Baltimore, and in all the other cities, he was cumulatively charming, funny, and demonstrated excellent recall. (Oct.), "Here is the astonishing story of someone with enormous talent and charm, who never quite believed he had become the man he most wanted to be. But it was all too late. And in February 1984, while speaking at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, things teetered uncomfortably. He was arguably more poised, more focused than any movie actor of his generation; he played every emotion except self-pity with a touch of acerbity. Soon came film work in Hollywood, as Archie gradually became the eternally suave, impeccably groomed Cary Grant. The reporters were waiting, only to be flummoxed when United Press ran with a bulletin from CNN in London that Cary Grant had died in Davenport, Iowa. None of us could afford it alone, but together we managed the rent, though there were times we didn’t manage anything else.… It was right back of the Cherry Lane Theater, and looked out on a charming little courtyard. An hour after Grant’s death, the Weerts Funeral Home was called to prepare Grant’s body for transportation to California. But Grant didn’t come back after a few minutes, so the stagehand assumed that he had decided everything was all right after all. His specific genius was to project a consistent image of style and grace... with a little something extra. Dillinger has…, WE’RE NOT CHEERFUL ANYMORE  “I tried to change. He was eighty-two years old. Just about the time he was being admitted to the hospital, Grant fell into a coma. That was the entire act! Eyman then chronicles Grant’s early—and often terrible—forays into film, followed by masterworks such as His Girl Friday, The Philadelphia Story, and Notorious. When Kelly was seventeen he moved to Sydney to study, and in 1922 he moved to New York to become an actor.