Book Review: Dueling Harlows

Subtitled “The Race to Bring the Actress’s Life to the Silver Screen,” Tom Lisanti’s latest book for McFarland is a fascinating, revealing look at two notorious movie bios about Jean Harlow.  Both released in 1965, one featured Carroll Baker, the other Carol Lynley.  Neither was a very good movie, nor very accurate to Harlow’s story.  But the story behind each film’s production and the battle by each producer to get his film out first, is especially fascinating.

Jean Harlow went from bit parts in silent comedies to being one of the leading stars in pre-code Hollywood movies.  She died at 26 in 1937 (not 1935 as the book erroneously states) but her popularity was revived with the release of a 1964 biography that became a best seller. Several producers then planned to bring Harlow’s story to the screen.  While many of these plans fizzled, two producers forged ahead. 

Joseph Levine was a major film producer whose Harlow bio was a lavish, color production for Paramount Pictures, starring Carroll Baker in the title role, with a cast that included Angela Lansbury, Peter Lawford, Red Buttons, Mike Connors, and Martin Balsam.  Bill Sargent was an indie producer whose film was a low budget black and white production with Carol Lynley in the title role, and shot in “electronovision,” which is essentially on video then transferred to film via kinescope like what had been done in early television.  Shot in little more than a week and quickly released ahead of the Levine production, Sargent’s film received bad reviews and little interest.  Levine’s film was a much bigger movie, but its box office was only a meager amount ahead of its production costs.

Lisanti’s book fills in all of the details about each movie, including their approach, their concepts, and their execution.  All of this is quite fascinating, but it really gets interesting when, as the book’s description indicates, it results in “one of the nastiest feuds Hollywood had ever witnessed, nearly culminating in fisticuffs at the 1965 Academy Awards ceremony.

Dueling Harlows is one of the most interesting and entertaining books about film production, promotion, and distribution that this reviewer has read. Lisanti’s skilled writing style, his vast knowledge, and his penchant for detail benefits this truly valuable study that includes exclusive quotes and many revealing surprises.

Dueling Harlows is a highly recommended book for libraries, research centers, and everyone who enjoys stories about the movies.  It is truly excellent. 

The book can be ordered at this link:  HARLOW