Unfortunately, Laurence Olivier was not quite the man he would have liked to be - and certainly not the man he presented to the public. Holden is quite fair and not in awe of his subject. Although it was written during Olivier's lifetime, Mr.
It is well researched, easy to read, and doesn't seem to pull too many punches. I am only about half-way through this book, but it is just an excellent document (a long one) on acting in the theater, especially in England but also in America, in the 20th Century. Investigating the truth behind these claims as well as rumors of Olivier's alleged gay affairs with the likes of Marlon Brando and Danny Kaye, this biography brings together the many strands of Olivier’s life and sheds new light on this remarkable man. But since his death in 1989, new revelations have come to light concerning the vicar's son who filled the Old Vic at 30, married three times, and shared West End billing in his eighties with a succession of pop stars. Knighted in 1947, he received many awards, including Oscars for Henry V and Hamlet, an Emmy for his role in Brideshead Revisited, a Golden Globe for Marathon Man, and a BAFTA for Oh! What a Lovely War. During his distinguished 60-year career he made numerous Hollywood movies appeared in several highly successful TV series worked closely with actors such as John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Marilyn Monroe, and Dustin Hoffman led the British theatre in a Golden Age and packed theaters in London and New York. Onstage and off, Olivier played many parts and lived many lives. Its chapters touch on his achievements as a director of both plays and films, his central role in the founding of the National Theater, and the off-stage dramas of his private life. Revealing the man behind the myth, this perceptive, witty, and penetrating portrait investigates Laurence Olivier-not merely the greatest actor of the 20th century, but perhaps of all time.
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