Design for Living

August 18, 2003
In 1951, Alfred Lunt revealed insecurity when he said of his acting partnership with wife Lynn Fontanne, "I hope people don't get tired of us." Peters's penetrating biography shows why Lunt's fears were groundless and why theater audiences from 1909 to 1962 relished their work, individually and together, in such productions as The Guardsman, Taming of the Shrew
and Design for Living. Fontanne (1887–1983), a protégée of Ellen Terry and Laurette Taylor, was critically applauded from the start. Lunt (1892–1977) overcame childhood scarlet fever and loss of a kidney to pursue acting. Peters portrays the pair as tempestuous beings (Lunt once screamed, in a fit of rage, "you're the rottenest actress I've ever worked with!"). Warned by Taylor that Lunt would make a terrible lover and a worse husband, Fontanne married him anyway, and they dedicated themselves to joint theatrical greatness. Peters laces her story with anecdotes about close friend Noël Coward, self-destructive John Barrymore and others. She handles the issue of Lunt and Fontanne's bisexual marriage thoughtfully, and perceptively analyzes their acting styles. Wit abounds throughout, and Peters points out the paradox that made Lunt and Fontanne—whose marriage may have been unconsummated—generate heat onstage, as opposed to sexually active married couples who had no acting chemistry together (e.g., Burton and Taylor; Cruise and Kidman). More poignantly, she quotes Fontanne as admitting Lunt's decision to lock himself into a team prevented him from achieving full recognition of his stature. The book's blend of breezy humor, along with darker insights into complex personalities, make it a potent, provocative journey. 62 photos. Agent, Lynn Nesbit.

August 1, 2003
Before movies, television, and the Internet, when audiences were entertained by live theater and many stars began their careers performing in plays, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne were a superstar couple who performed internationally for over four decades, sought after by major playwrights of the time. The Lunts helped to launch the Theater Guild, then created their own production company. Though rumors abounded that Alfred was homosexual and Lynn was bisexual, a passion for acting and theater held their unusual marriage together until Alfred's death in 1977. If this book were a play about the Lunts, it would close on opening night. Peters (Victorian literature, Univ. of Wisconsin) has done an extensive amount of research using mostly secondary sources. The retelling of the Lunts' incredible journey through life does not have the spark it needs to make this a satisfying biography, and though it may hold limited interest to theater aficionados, it will not appeal to the general public. Not an essential purchase.-Rosalind Dayen, South Regional Lib., Broward Cty., FL

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2003
As icons of the theater, few names are as illustrious as those of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne. Separately and together, they reigned as king and queen of the American stage for decades, revolutionizing dramatic performances with their innovative staging and delivery. From Shakespeare to Shaw to Sherwood, the Lunts had the power to revitalize classics and create new ones, and could catapult a fledgling playwright to instant fame by sheer dint of their appearances. As actors, their on-stage personas were perfection; as spouses, their off-stage lives were equally entertaining. At their beloved "Ten Chimneys" estate in rural Wisconsin, the creme de la creme of the theater world--Coward and Woollcott, Olivier and Hayes, Clift and Greenstreet--basked in the haven they provided. In a masterfully detailed examination of two very public lives, Peters reveals the behind-the-scenes chemistry that ensured their before-the-footlights success. Treating her subjects with a balanced reverence and learned recognition, Peters has penned an engrossing biography as stylish and charming as the Lunts themselves.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)