Myrna Loy

August 29, 2011
In this well-researched and comprehensive biography, Leider (Dark Lover) shows Loy as an accomplished actress (The Perfect Wife; The Thin Man; and The Best Years of Our Lives) and a humanitarian. Loy was discovered by Rudolph Valentino, and her striking looks initially cast her in exotic roles, playing the daughter of Fu Manchu, a Mexican spitfire, and a gypsy seductress; but once MGM teamed her with William Powell, her comedic ease and style sense made her a box office hit. Leider studies Loy’s work and examines the development of the studio system, offering insight into the careers of co-stars Powell, Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, and Montgomery Clift. Proud of her work with the Red Cross, the United Nations mission, and UNESCO, she championed artists as ambassadors of peace. Leider’s portrait nicely details Myrna Loy as not only a movie star but also an ardent activist.

August 1, 2011

The author makes her case that Myrna Loy (1905–1993) could inspire a fascinating biography, but she doesn't really deliver one.

Though Loy was once one of Hollywood's leading female stars, Leider (Dark Lover: The Life and Death of Rudolph Valentino, 2003, etc.) maintains that she was underappreciated, partly because of the subtlety of her craft. She was too much the complementary role player—most memorably as Nora to William Powell's Nick Charles in The Thin Man and sequels—rarely the spotlight diva whose dark passions might pique the curiosity of the public. In this comprehensive and cliché-ridden biography, the author shows that irony, complexity and contradiction provided tension between Loy's public image(s) and her private life. Initially known for the exotic features that inspired the Asian screen surname that the former Myrna Williams adopted, she was in fact an all-American, freckle-faced ranch girl from Montana. Later dubbed "the Perfect Wife" for the roles for which she was typecast, she had four broken marriages to men who were unfaithful to her and/or unsuitable for her. She was even the target of some McCarthy-era red-baiting, though the lifelong liberal Democrat was an outspoken anti-communist. Other than Loy's autobiography, written toward the end of her long life, this is the first biography of the actress, and it draws heavily from Loy's book. Leider offers a summary of every career step and (it seems) every one of the "staggering 124 films" she made. Yet either there wasn't much psychological depth to Loy, or Leider was unable or unwilling to probe it. For all of the encyclopedic detail devoted to the life, the book mainly illuminates the art of "an enormously subtle actress, whose minimalism belied her mysterious powerhouse capabilities." Such subtlety accounts for the fact that even when the Oscars paid considerable attention to her hits such as The Thin Man and The Best Years of Our Lives, they didn't even bestow nominations on Loy.

Only for fans of a golden era of Hollywood stardom, as long as they're not looking for much gossip or personal revelation.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

September 1, 2011

Leider, author of the excellent biographies Dark Lover: The Life and Death of Rudolph Valentino and Becoming Mae West, has turned her insightful gaze on Myrna Loy (1905-93). Loy, who is best remembered as the "Perfect Wife" Nora Charles in The Thin Man and its sequels, had a career that spanned almost 60 years--yet this is the first biography of her to be published. Leider's meticulous research reveals the shy, warm, and modest figure behind the image of the cool, chic urbanite. Sprinkled throughout the text like small, glittering gems are glimpses of Loy's friendships with famed celebrities such as Joan Crawford, Cary Grant, Rudolph Valentino, Clark Gable, and John Barrymore. VERDICT Leider's books are smart and witty trips through the lives of her subjects, and this work is no exception. It will appeal to cinema buffs, social historians of early to mid-20th-century America, and those just looking for a good read.--Teri Shiel, Westfield State Univ. Lib., MA

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2011
While those hoping for a dishy read will be disappointed, dedicated film buffs will be amply rewarded by this comprehensive biography of one of the most underrated actresses in Hollywood history. Though Loy was married four times, her personal life is distinguished by its relative lack of sordid details. A hardworking professional, she appeared in a total of 124 films and made a number of memorable stage appearances during her later years. Spanning six decades, her career began on the cusp of the sound revolution. She gracefully hit her stride in the 1930s as the glibly elegant Nora Charles in the Thin Man series, playing opposite William Powell, her ideal foil. Initially typecast as an exotic hoochie-coochie dancer, she morphed into the perfect wife and everybody's dream mother during the 1940s. Unfortunately, the domestic happiness that became her box-office trademark eluded the real woman. Thoughtful without being too serious and fun loving but rarely raucous, Loy was personally well liked and professionally respected within an industry that both embraced her and took her for granted.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)