Rating: 
Summary: Mann's treatment of Dorothy Arzner
Review: As a longtime fan of director Dorothy Arzner, I was happy to see that she was among those lesbians celebrated in this book as an important filmmaking pioneer. But William Mann unfairly takes a big chunk of credit for unearthing Arzner's lesbian history. Discussing her longterm relationship with choreographer Marion Morgan, Mann writes, "Details of her [Arzner's] relationship with Marion Morgan have never been presented at length before" (72). Whoa! They were indeed. In Judith Mayne's 1994 book "Directed by Dorothy Arzner," Mayne covers the Arzner-Morgan relationship over several chapters and with great detail. It was the first time anyone had done so. As Mayne makes clear in her introduction, she was the one who found the UCLA archives that included the letters and photos clarifying what had only been rumor and innuendo: that Arzner and Morgan had lived together for more than thirty years. Mann adds a few new details to the history, and he quotes from the same archive. But let's give credit where credit is due. Mann appropriately quotes Mayne's analyses of Arzner's films, but in all fairness, he needs to acknowledge Mayne's biographical breakthrough as well.
Rating: 
Summary: Ok, but...
Review: I believe that I have read all of William J. Mann's published works and really enjoyed them. So it was with great expectation that I approached his new work "Behind the Screen". Sadly, I left the book disappointed and somewhat confused.Mann's attempt to write a comprehensive history of gay Hollywood was admirable, but somehow, he's gotten in the way of his own work. One of my problems with the book is the way in which it was written. As you read any biography, there is a risk of proposing too many names for the reader to handle. Right in the first chapter, as he explains early gay stars, we are innundated with so many names that it is virtually impossible to keep track of anyone after awhile. Talking about people is very important to a biography, but when the reader has little to no knowledge or connection with the names, they merely blend together in a confusing mass of lexiographic confusion. I'd hope it would improve, but sadly, found each successive page more frustating than the last, and I failed to get through chapter three. However, I found a somewhat easier way to read the book. I began looking up celebrities I wanted info on, and just reading those sections. He still manages to litter each page with an abundance of names, but because you may know the celebrity, there is something more to hook into. Mann has an ability to write books that are amazing. Just read "Wisecracker" and "The Biograph Girl", both which celebrate early morning lore. Maybe he should try to concentrate on writing more about individual celebrities than a sweeping work that leaves us confused and frustrated.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting, but almost too exhaustive
Review: I found the thesis of this book to be worthy of attention, but perhaps the extent to which the author evaluates the subject is a bit much. The book is not an easy read, at times it feels like a laundry-list of the life and times of EVERY SINGLE gay man or woman involved in the hollywood scene. The upshot of this approach is that the text is not bogged down with modern lore and urban legends about the great gay stars. They get about as much attention as everyone else, from cameramen to set decorators. The result is an absolutely comprehensive account of the lives of some very interesting men and women. Part of the theme of the text is the similarity of experience between the working/middle-class derived gay population. Perhaps that is what makes the text seem a little repetitive, so many of these people have such similar stories that you forget where you are in the book! As you can probably tell, I'm torn about this review, but all that said, this book has been an interesting read and will be a valuable reference in my library of books on film and filmmakers.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, but almost too exhaustive
Review: I found the thesis of this book to be worthy of attention, but perhaps the extent to which the author evaluates the subject is a bit much. The book is not an easy read, at times it feels like a laundry-list of the life and times of EVERY SINGLE gay man or woman involved in the hollywood scene. The upshot of this approach is that the text is not bogged down with modern lore and urban legends about the great gay stars. They get about as much attention as everyone else, from cameramen to set decorators. The result is an absolutely comprehensive account of the lives of some very interesting men and women. Part of the theme of the text is the similarity of experience between the working/middle-class derived gay population. Perhaps that is what makes the text seem a little repetitive, so many of these people have such similar stories that you forget where you are in the book! As you can probably tell, I'm torn about this review, but all that said, this book has been an interesting read and will be a valuable reference in my library of books on film and filmmakers.
Rating:
Summary: Almost Too Much .....
Review: I found this book sort of a difficult read. I can usually zip through a book very quickly, but I found myself hanging on every other sentence. The author seemed to cram almost too much meaningful information into every paragraph.
From start to finish, this book chronicled the influence of a somewhat externally closeted gay Hollywood community on the total output of work from the film industry. This wasn't all that much of a revelation to me. On one level or another a lot of film historians and movie hounds have always pretty much assumed that fact.
My biggest problem with this book was that it really was two or three separate books crammed under one title. It was almost too much to absorb on the first take. I kept re-reading chapters to make the connections complete. If I had been the editor working on this book I would have divided this book by decades and gone with at least two separate volumes and had it fleshed out with additional supporting information.
I recommend this book as an insightful study of the gay Hollywood film community and their contributions to the motion picture industry. I also caution most potential readers that this book will not be necessarily a quick take. You will miss a lot unless you proceed with caution. It is a lot like a runaway train moving at a very fast speed.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent study of gays and lesbians in Hollywood
Review: I found this book to be extremely interesting, and, ultimately, hard to forget. It is a well-researched account of what life was like in Hollywood for gays and lesbians, both pre-Code and post. While it is true that the book is comprehensive, and many, many people are discussed, I didn't find this to be problematic. They were not necessarily names which I recognized, but that was why I was reading the book. If I had a little trouble remembering who he was referring to in a given section, I let that go and read for content. What the people experienced. Why they did. How they felt about it. The sheer volume of research Mr. Mann did is overwhelming, and necessary for this topic to be taken seriously. Very often, critics of gay and lesbian history books will claim that nothing is substantiated. Given the fact that some of these people were in the closet, therefore have left no documentation themselves, in my opinion, looking to other people who lived at the same time, who knew the people in question is just as valid as having a piece of paper which says, "I am gay/lesbian, and I loved 'X,' and I hid my orientation for 'Y' reason." It is unrealistic, in many cases, to expect that level of documentation, particularly with the generation of people the book talks about. Putting oneself into the closet in, say, 1935 (post-Hayes Code) meant that you *stayed* in the closet, for the rest of your life. That doesn't invalidate the experiences of the people who knew you, took photos of you, saw you and your lover behind closed doors, or at a party. Mr. Mann put in untold hours of research, and when you look at the chapter notes, it's clear that the whole picture he presents is exactly that. He doesn't print mere rumour--there are a number of times when he doesn't "name names." What he does do is present his information, substantiated by any number of disparate sources, and gives it to the reader, straight out (so to speak). All of which, to me, is a valid way to deal with this subject. All of which made the book that much more valuable. I found this book to be eminently readable. I could not put it down. I found a number of the stories heart-wrenching, and terribly sad (for example, Cary Grant and Randolph Scott's relationship). I found others to be uplifting. I learned about people I'd never heard of, and now, when I watch a movie from the 1930's, or 40's, I recognize names of set designers, and writers, and costume designers as *my* forefathers and foremothers (as Mr. Mann calls them). I cannot recommend this book highly enough, for those of you who want to know more about gay and lesbian history, and how the shaping of Hollywood (by gays and lesbians) influenced the general American culture, and vice versa. It's fascinating.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent study of gays and lesbians in Hollywood
Review: I found this book to be extremely interesting, and, ultimately, hard to forget. It is a well-researched account of what life was like in Hollywood for gays and lesbians, both pre-Code and post. While it is true that the book is comprehensive, and many, many people are discussed, I didn't find this to be problematic. They were not necessarily names which I recognized, but that was why I was reading the book. If I had a little trouble remembering who he was referring to in a given section, I let that go and read for content. What the people experienced. Why they did. How they felt about it. The sheer volume of research Mr. Mann did is overwhelming, and necessary for this topic to be taken seriously. Very often, critics of gay and lesbian history books will claim that nothing is substantiated. Given the fact that some of these people were in the closet, therefore have left no documentation themselves, in my opinion, looking to other people who lived at the same time, who knew the people in question is just as valid as having a piece of paper which says, "I am gay/lesbian, and I loved 'X,' and I hid my orientation for 'Y' reason." It is unrealistic, in many cases, to expect that level of documentation, particularly with the generation of people the book talks about. Putting oneself into the closet in, say, 1935 (post-Hayes Code) meant that you *stayed* in the closet, for the rest of your life. That doesn't invalidate the experiences of the people who knew you, took photos of you, saw you and your lover behind closed doors, or at a party. Mr. Mann put in untold hours of research, and when you look at the chapter notes, it's clear that the whole picture he presents is exactly that. He doesn't print mere rumour--there are a number of times when he doesn't "name names." What he does do is present his information, substantiated by any number of disparate sources, and gives it to the reader, straight out (so to speak). All of which, to me, is a valid way to deal with this subject. All of which made the book that much more valuable. I found this book to be eminently readable. I could not put it down. I found a number of the stories heart-wrenching, and terribly sad (for example, Cary Grant and Randolph Scott's relationship). I found others to be uplifting. I learned about people I'd never heard of, and now, when I watch a movie from the 1930's, or 40's, I recognize names of set designers, and writers, and costume designers as *my* forefathers and foremothers (as Mr. Mann calls them). I cannot recommend this book highly enough, for those of you who want to know more about gay and lesbian history, and how the shaping of Hollywood (by gays and lesbians) influenced the general American culture, and vice versa. It's fascinating.
Rating:
Summary: Very insightful
Review: I found this book to be full of hope and enjoyed reading it very much.
Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT HISTORICAL WORK ON HOW GAYS HELPED MAKE HOLLYWOOD!
Review: If Neal Gabler's "An Empire of Their Own" dealt with "How the Jews Invented Hollywood," then William Mann's "Behind the Screen" could be also be called "How Gays and Lesbians made Hollywood!" Mann's book is a serious chronological of the golden age and the people who created it; they just happened to be gay. A very informative book, research extensive, it covers new territory with wit and style dealing with something new in Hollywood history; it is an excellent read. Mann's interviews are astute with survivors of this golden age, a history of a Hollywood movie gay life, that was both creative and glamorous, never to be seen again. It covers the totality of a gay experience in studio era Hollywood and Mann has captured the influence of these men and women behind the screen. Not just movie stars, the book deals with gay directors, that reads like a who's who of Hollywood's creative best, along with the gay set and costume designers who gave Hollywood a look and influenced the taste of the entire world. The material is rich and covers gay producers, character actors, writers, cameramen, agents, executives, etc. It is all enthralling and provides a long needed important volume in Hollywood history. It also chronicles gays who played a part in union organizations, at a time when the studio bosses only concern was profit and greed, along with mentioning their meritorious service during World War II. It makes such contemporary military follies as "don't ask, don't tell," an insult to the memory of these valliant Americans. It is greatly recommended to anyone interested in the movies and how people with great taste and style, something so lacking today, influenced an entire period of our culture.
Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT HISTORICAL WORK ON HOW GAYS HELPED MAKE HOLLYWOOD!
Review: If Neal Gabler's "An Empire of Their Own" dealt with "How the Jews Invented Hollywood," then William Mann's "Behind the Screen" could be also be called "How Gays and Lesbians made Hollywood!" Mann's book is a serious chronological of the golden age and the people who created it; they just happened to be gay. A very informative book, research extensive, it covers new territory with wit and style dealing with something new in Hollywood history; it is an excellent read. Mann's interviews are astute with survivors of this golden age, a history of a Hollywood movie gay life, that was both creative and glamorous, never to be seen again. It covers the totality of a gay experience in studio era Hollywood and Mann has captured the influence of these men and women behind the screen. Not just movie stars, the book deals with gay directors, that reads like a who's who of Hollywood's creative best, along with the gay set and costume designers who gave Hollywood a look and influenced the taste of the entire world. The material is rich and covers gay producers, character actors, writers, cameramen, agents, executives, etc. It is all enthralling and provides a long needed important volume in Hollywood history. It also chronicles gays who played a part in union organizations, at a time when the studio bosses only concern was profit and greed, along with mentioning their meritorious service during World War II. It makes such contemporary military follies as "don't ask, don't tell," an insult to the memory of these valliant Americans. It is greatly recommended to anyone interested in the movies and how people with great taste and style, something so lacking today, influenced an entire period of our culture.
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