IN A LONELY PLACE
'Suicide Blonde', is an excellent 'biop' of a true Hollwood icon- the much missed actress Miss Gloria Grahame.
Her life ,was a sad ,sad affair, due in part, to her slightly off kelter view of life.
On the other hand, she seemed to just manage to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, on many occasions.
Her choice of male partners also seemed to be slightly suspect. However, a lot of her
female contempories and beyond, also seem to be stricken with this burdensome affliction.
It is unfortunate, that, just when she was seemingly headed upwards in her career and life, she suddenly succumbed to illness and consequently died.
My only regret ,is that, I was unfortunate not to have seen her perform on several different stages in England in the late nineteen seventies and early eighties.
Her portrayals of strong women in 'Glass Menagerie','Rain' and 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf' ,rated a lot of coverage and high praise in the British press.
Her biographer has done her proud, by presenting on one hand ,a seriously flawed human being(aren't we all?) but, on the other hand, a relaxed, much loved Mother, daughter and sister.
Also, a woman with a huge fan base, to this day, who never failed to answer fan's mail by writing personal letters to one and all.
Fortunately, she has left behind many, many films and lovers of great movies can assess her talent way into the future.
The inscription on her headstone, above her grave ,reads -GLORIA H. GRAHAME-
LOVING MOTHER.
Enough said!
Finally, a big thank you to her biographer for his even handed presentation of the life and career of the lovely Gloria.
Would that we all could have such a gifted writer, pen our individual life story?
A highly recommended book!