• About Kathy Shaidle
  • Kathy Shaidle: Donate
  • Kathy Shaidle: Privacy policy

5 Feet of Fury

Kathy Shaidle's blog. Est. 2000

Stanwyck and Gardner talk about fame

February 17, 2014 By Kathy Shaidle

NY Review of Books looks at the two new bios:

Both Stanwyck and Gardner knew Hollywood for what it was. Gardner kept the cheap coat she wore when she first arrived to remind herself where she came from. She preferred to hang out with nonprofessionals and lived as simply as she could. (“I’ll go on living according to my own standards,” she said.)

Stanwyck, a disciplined professional who was friendly with her film crews, made similar statements: “It would be the same with me if I were a waitress in Peoria or a chambermaid in Oshkosh instead of a film actress in Hollywood.” Both women knew that fame was transient. “Movie stars write their books,” said Gardner, “then they are forgotten, and then they die.”

Stanwyck warned Robert Taylor, when he first saw his name in lights, “The trick is to keep it up there.” She was coldly realistic about the world she lived in. “When you are up in Hollywood, you are accepted; when you are down, it is as though you do not exist.”

 

More from my site

  • Why Mark Steyn doesn’t have a legal defense drive at KickStarterWhy Mark Steyn doesn’t have a legal defense drive at KickStarter
  • The Magic Schlong: My NEW Taki’s columnThe Magic Schlong: My NEW Taki’s column
  • My NEW book: Confessions of a Failed SlutMy NEW book: Confessions of a Failed Slut
  • Is Oprah Winfrey running for president?Is Oprah Winfrey running for president?

Filed Under: Kathy Shaidle Tagged With: Kathy Shaidle

« ‘I’m trying to think of a better way of saying, ‘It was a bad decision by Judith to not die’…
Who’s up for a 2.5 hour podcast about ‘Watermelon Man’ (1970)? »
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Archives

Copyright © 2022 · Magazine Pro Theme On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in