Reach for the Top

Anne Sinai

doi:10.5771/9781461670766

Summary

The popular screen and stage star Laurence Harvey (1928-1973) is best remembered for his stellar performance in the film The Manchurian Candidate—a 20th century classic. Of his 50 films, Room At the Top not only brought sexual permissiveness to American and British screens and an Oscar nomination, but it also branded him a heartthrob sensation.

For all his fame and fortune, Harvey's short life was riddled with controversy, demonized by critics, and fraught with tragedy. In this revealing biography by Harvey's sister-in-law, readers are provided a close-up view of his career, his three marriages and his longtime sexual affair with one of his male producers. It also details his battle with cancer and his failure to acknowledge its seriousness.

Packed with personal anecdotes, more than twenty black and white photographs, and a filmography, Reach for the Top: The Turbulent Life of Laurence Harvey will fascinate film students, scholars, and fans of the actor.

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Bibliographic data

Copyright year: 2007
ISBN-Print: 978-0-8108-4562-6
ISBN-Online: 978-1-4616-7076-6
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham
Language: English
Pages: 373
Product type: Book Titles

1. Table of Contents No access
2. Acknowledgments No access
1: A Lithuanian Childhood No access Pages 1 - 16
2: Growing up White in South Africa No access Pages 17 - 44
3: The Youngest South African Soldier No access Pages 45 - 58
4: The Scorned Alien Learns his Craft in England No access Pages 59 - 84
5: Becoming Laurence Harvey: The First Films No access Pages 85 - 100
6: A Biting Tongue, Adoring Fans, and Trips to Paris No access Pages 101 - 124
7: Averting a Potential Scandal No access Pages 125 - 134
8: Enter Hermione Baddeley, "A Rather Splendid Old Girl" No access Pages 135 - 150
9: Enter James Woolf, and Fame, Fortune, and Friendship No access Pages 151 - 162
10: Shakespeare and Margaret Leighton No access Pages 163 - 182
11: Romeo and his Juliet No access Pages 183 - 196
12: Coming Home to Mother—Briefly No access Pages 197 - 214
13: Marriage, but not Togetherness No access Pages 215 - 230
14: Room at the Top Brings International Stardom No access Pages 231 - 244
15: The Alamo and Butterfield 8 No access Pages 245 - 254
16: Scandal and Divorce No access Pages 255 - 262
17: The Manchurian Candidate No access Pages 263 - 276
18: "The Hottest Star in Town" No access Pages 277 - 292
19: The Death of James Woolf—Enter Paulene Stone No access Pages 293 - 312
20: Marriage to Joan No access Pages 313 - 332
21: Promises to Paulene, Married to Joan No access Pages 333 - 354
22: Aftermath No access Pages 355 - 362
Laurence Harvey's Films No access Pages 363 - 364
Bibliography No access Pages 365 - 366
Index No access Pages 367 - 372
About the Author No access Pages 373 - 373