High Society

July 13, 2009
Noted film biographer Spoto (Spellbound by Beauty
) gives readers a previously unseen glimpse into the life of Grace Kelly (1929–1982), who went from Academy Award–winning actress to princess of Monaco. Drawing on hours of personal interviews with Kelly as well as with her numerous co-stars including Cary Grant and James Stewart, Spoto traces the star's life from her childhood in a wealthy Philadelphia neighborhood through her brief but noteworthy career in Hollywood to her years as the wife of Monaco's Prince Rainer. Kelly attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Manhattan, where she developed a love of theater, nurtured by her uncle, the actor and playwright George Kelly. Though she spent less than seven years in Hollywood, Kelly became an icon of the era. Spoto, as an expert in the films of Alfred Hitchcock and one of the late director's few confidantes, spends considerable time revisiting the trio of films Kelly made with the master of suspense: Dial M for Murder
(1953), Rear Window
(1954) and To Catch a Thief
(1955). Though she admitted to missing acting, Kelly settled into her life as a royal, raising three children until her death in a car crash. Cinephiles will love Spoto's insider look at Hollywood in the 1950s, and even those unfamiliar with Kelly's films will be drawn to the author's warm and generous portrayal of a woman who was more than a pretty face.

August 15, 2009
Veteran celebrity biographer Spoto (Spellbound by Beauty: Alfred Hitchcock and His Leading Ladies, 2008, etc.) capitalizes on his personal friendship with actress and honest-to-goodness princess Grace Kelly (1929–1982) to create an affectionate, informative, though somewhat bland account of the screen icon's life.

Kelly was born into a well-established, wealthy Philadelphia family and enjoyed the privileged upbringing typical for a girl of her class, though she suffered from a lifelong sense of alienation from her success-oriented father and her cold, disapproving mother. With her unforgettable patrician good looks, Kelly found instant success as a model and quickly made a name for herself on the Broadway stage, abetted by such influential family members such as her uncle, playwright George Kelly. Hollywood beckoned, and Kelly made a handful of classic films, including The Country Girl (1954), for which she won an Academy Award; the musical High Society (1956), co-starring Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby; and three pictures with the legendary Alfred Hitchcock: Dial M for Murder, Rear Window (both 1954) and To Catch a Thief (1955). Spoto is particularly interested in the relationship between Hitchcock and his muse, a fraught collaboration complicated by the director's possessive, unrequited passion for the beautiful actress. Kelly famously left show business to marry Prince Rainier III of Monaco, where she devoted the balance of her short life to raising her children and to matters of state. Spoto identifies Kelly's fresh, affectless acting style as the key to her cinematic appeal, and goes on at length about her aptitude for"high comedy," which evidently consists of polite farce free of vulgarity or unpleasantness. The author, a meticulous writer, is guilty of placing Kelly on a pedestal, much as her character is damagingly"worshipped" in High Society. Instead of digging for new or surprising insights into her work or persona, Spoto repeatedly praises Kelly's fine spirit and refutes the claims of the actress's rumored promiscuousness.

A solid reference and affectionate remembrance, but a rather toothless biography.

(COPYRIGHT (2009) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

August 15, 2009
In Grace Kelly's brief but spectacular career (195056), she made almost a dozen films in which she starred opposite Hollywood's leading men until she married Prince Rainier of Monaco. Using an extensive series of interviews he conducted with the princess, best-selling biographer Spoto ("Spellbound by Beauty: Alfred Hitchcock and His Leading Ladies") has produced an affectionate portrait, which, at her request, he waited 25 years after her death to publish. Spoto covers Kelly's life chronologically, from her childhood and early career through her growing distaste for the Hollywood scene, her enduring friendships with costars and Alfred Hitchcock, and her little-known support for civil rights. There is comparatively slight coverage of her years in Monaco, and readers looking for information on her life as princess may be disappointed. Spoto scored a coup in securing wide-ranging interviews with Kellythe book's outstanding feature. VERDICT Spoto's obvious fondness for his subject, plus his intimate knowledge of how Hollywood works, make this honest, refined biography an appealing read for movie buffs and the star struck alike. Arguably the best general book on Grace Kelly currently available.Stephen Rees, Levittown Lib., PA

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2009
Using information from never-before-published interviews with the star and with her friends and colleagues, Spotos tidy biography provides an intimate look at Grace Kellys ordinary early life, her fabulous days as a beautiful and famous movie star, and her seemingly even more fabulous life and fluid transformation into the wife of a reigning European monarch. With tidbits culled from interviews with costars like James Stewart and Cary Grant, as well as director Alfred Hitchcock and with some input from her children, Spoto builds a compelling portrait of the Oscar-winning actress and her whirlwind career and life after Hollywood. Packed with information about her Hollywood heyday, including a look at her rumored dalliances and her actual relationships, a thorough discussion of each of her films, and an overview of her friendships with fellow actors, High Society is an enjoyable read that provides a clear and concise overview of Kellys life.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)