Hedda Hopper's Hollywood

March 1, 2011

Frost (history, Univ. of Auckland, New Zealand) hasn't written a biography of actress-turned-gossip columnist Hopper or a chronicle of Hollywood movie scandals. Instead, readers get a study of Hopper's politics and those of her readers, both explored through Hopper's vastly popular newspaper column, from which this book takes its title. Scandal, made tedious by morality, was Hopper's stock-in-trade in her syndicated column (1938-66). She parlayed her showbiz connections into her position not simply as a dispenser of Tinseltown tittle-tattle but as an enforcer of middle-American mores. She and her archrival, columnist Louella Parsons, had a level of influence among the public and in the industry that successors such as Perez Hilton and TMZ lack. Frost details Hopper's ardent anticommunism and eager participation in 1950s blacklisting. Hopper thought she was a progressive on racial issues--she helped James "Uncle Remus" Baskett get an Oscar--but was considered retrograde by black leaders. VERDICT Frost has done extensive archival research and presents much interesting material, but her writing can be dry and evinces no passion for the history of Hollywood in its golden age, lest the title mislead. This will appeal less to film buffs or journalism junkies than to those studying post-World War II American life.--Michael O. Eshleman, Kings Mills, OH

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