Rating: 
Summary: A disappointing read for many reasons.
Review: The first line of the preface of this book says it all:
"I knew Joan Crawford for thirty years".
Lawrence Quirk goes on to reveal that he met Joan here and there over the years for dinner and conversation, which leads me to believe that he is hardly an expert on the Queen of Hollywood. I can understand why, as a "personal friend", he would want to save Crawford's reputation, which has been tarnished considerably since her adopted daughter published "Mommie Dearest" almost 30 years ago. But Quirk, along with co-author William Schoell, goes way too far here. And that's just the beginning.
After the book rushes through Crawford's unhappy childhood, it turns into a very long-winded filmography with just a smattering of details concerning Joan's personal life. It was a breath of fresh air from other biographies to read about the roles Joan played, how she got them, and how she got along with her cast mates. But such intriguing material is seriously overshadowed by the endless attempts of the authors to excuse Crawford's unfavorable behavior, both on screen and off.
The authors absolutely slam Christina Crawford and her brother, Christopher, throughout the book for the horrifying picture they have painted of their late mother. And while I am glad to see someone defending Joan after all these years, I give little credence to the authors because they weren't there. They have no idea what happened behind closed doors, and neither do many of the people (mostly celebrity friends of Joan's) who agreed with Quirk and Schoell. That doesn't mean I absolutely believe Christina Crawford either, and if she has been truly lying about her mother's cruel and abusive behavior all these years, the authors of this book are no better than she is for sinking to her level with unsubstantiated allegations of their own.
The authors also bring up some seriously personal details about Joan's life (especially her childhood) that I never knew and have never read about anywhere, which leads me to wonder how much of it is true. Just because some of it came straight from Crawford herself, years and years after the fact, doesn't mean all of it is true.
I have to give the authors credit for writing a decent filmography, but that's all the good I can say about it. The book is too unbalanced, too biased, too arrogant, and too mean spirited. I don't recommend it to anyone looking for a good and fair biography.
Rating: 
Summary: Essential? Hardly!
Review: The main problem with this book can be summed up by quoting its own dust jacket:"Schoell and Quirk [the authors] move beyond the myths and misconceptions about Crawford by looking extensively at her film work, which in many respects---as Crawford herself admitted---was her life." And that's it right there: as admirable an actress as Crawford may have been (and I am a fan of many her performances), her roles in films cannot provide much of a basis for a biography about her actual life. The line between fantasy and reality is, in this case, not only blurred, but erased almost completely. I understand that Quirk was a fan and professed confidant of Crawford's (that fact is hard to miss, it's mentioned so many times) and his intentions seem to be to try his best to defend her honor and reveal his version of the truth about her. In doing so, however, Quirk makes several missteps, the most notable among them being his complete and utter of savaging of Christina Crawford because of her allegations of abuse against her mother. He says terrible things; for example, he expresses his opinion that Christina's near fatal stroke in 1981 was "Joan getting revenge beyond the grave." For someone who thinks Christina was wrong to say bad things about her mother, Quirk in turn says even worse things about Christina. In trying to dispute the charges she made in "Mommie Dearest," he protests way, way too much, and stoops even lower than the level he accuses her of sinking to. Even other friends of Crawford's are criticized for not living up to his exacting standards. For example, in 1984 about 125 friends and family of Crawford took out a tribute ad in the "Daily Variety" to show their support in the wake of the "Mommie" book and movie. I thought it was a nice gesture, myself, but Quirk says that it was "put together for the wrong reasons by the wrong people." What really seems to be wrong is the fact that he wasn't included, and now he's pouting. When I got to the "Notes" section at the end of the book, I thought, "okay, now we'll see where he got all this information." I was disappointed to discover that the majority of his sources are "Joan Crawford to Lawrence Quirk." Interviewing the subject of a biography is of course helpful when it's possible to do, but any writer worth his salt knows that it can't be your only, or even your primary, source. People have an impression of themselves they want to perpetuate; this needs to be balanced by opinions and information from others as well. In that regard, this book falls far short.
Rating:
Summary: Lame Drivel
Review: The picture of the author with Joan (inside the book) says it all: "An obsessed fan must not let Joan's star fade!" It's amazing that anyone would really think that some of Joan's movies (Queen Bee, Straight-Jacket, and Berserk!)were anything more than crazy camp. But these guys think so. Please! Much of this book is an insult to Crawford's acting credibility in the films where she does shine (and there are many) Way too much time is spent on going over the plots of each of Joan's films. Who really cares about the minute details of her bad films? There are also huge gaps about the details of Joan's private life. However, these guys spend pages and pages deriding Christina's story. It gets really tiresome. It only made me believe Christina more. It was nice to hear that Joan garnered respect and understanding from such performers as Ann Blyth, Diane Baker, and even Diana Dors. It was also interesting to read about Joan's sexual appetite for her co-stars. (Why did she even waste her time on Henry Fonda?...yech!) Joan was one amazing woman. Totally self-made, hard-working, generous, and considerate. Because she loved working so much, she made some bad choices in movies...big deal. And, she screwed up in the parent department; but who didn't in the forties and fifties? By trying to hide Joan's flaws, these guys only discredit her. Too bad.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Joan, Bad Joan
Review: This book demonstrated to me how complicated the relationship between Joan and Christina really was. I think Mommie Dearest tended to simplify Joan as this evil character, but she was obviously a generous person and a very good friend. I think Christina did have some legitimate complaints. Joan was probably abusive to her kids. With a strong husband and father figure around, Joan probably would have been kept in check. It confirms my belief that you need two parents to raise a healthy child. But through this book I learned that Christina was certainly not a passive victim. Christina could have patched things up with her mother as an adult, but she chose to remain angry and vindictive. The information given by Myrna Loy about Christina's deplorable behavior during the play Barefoot in the Park shows that Christina was a prima donna in her own right, and expected certain priveleges because she was the daughter of a star. No wonder Joan had such a difficult time with her. Joan worked and slaved her way to the top, and Christina expected to reap the benefits. If my daughter acted that way, I would cut her out of my will too. Also, I think the author is wrong about his criticism of Faye Dunaway's performance in Mommie Dearest--it was a classic!! I can't give this book more than three stars because I have seen the photographs in this book a million times. Every Crawford fan has. Couldn't the author find some more personal pictures of Joan rather than Hollywood stills?
Rating: 
Summary: A Must for Joan Crawford fans!
Review: This book is a wonderful "must-read" for any fan of the late Joan
Crawford. It details her films and the events surrounding them better than any book ever written about her. Most importantly, this biography drives home that Ms. Crawford was a STAR in the truest sense.. and awards her some true dignity that has not always been afforded to her in other biased works..
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating after all these years---
Review: This book on my favorite star was disturbing, to say the least. I felt I knew almost everything there was to know about the late Joan Crawford, but this book definitely proved me wrong. Her relationship with her step-father was disturbing, and the animosity felt toward her by Robert Montgomery and Melvyn Douglas was never noticed by me at all. This book showed me otherwise. Perhaps I needed another reminder of how excellent she was as an actress. To me, there will never be another like her. She is still the ultimate performer, and this book certainly points that out. It does not give her a halo; it also does not give her the sword of evil. She was a complex person who wanted more than anything to please her fans. Well, Joan, I have no regrets. You are still the best!
Rating:
Summary: Hagiography--emphasis on the hag
Review: This books claims to be a serious study of Crawford's life and art--in truth it is nothing more than the gushings of two fans, one of whom clearly was one of Joan's many "pals," willing to excuse any bad performance or ill-mannered action because they were allowed to be in her circle. The writers completely disavow any possibility that Christina Crawford told anything true in her memoir--with no more evidence to support their claim than Christina provided for hers. Their commentary on Crawford's performance is shallow, amateurish, and laughable. Shame on a university press for publishing this tripe.
Rating:
Summary: Essentially Joan
Review: This is a well-written, thoughtful and gracious homage to a wonderful American actress and Hollywood Star who, at her best was lauded, and at her worst was still celebrated. It's a great read with a lot of information I'd never read anywhere before including her many kindnesses to her peers with an occasional catfight just to show them she meant business! If you love Joan, you'll definitely want to read this - if nothing but to read about "Tina darling" getting a little bit of the dirt she flung in her mother's face thrown back at her!
Rating:
Summary: Deluded Fan Magazine Gush...But Morbidly Fascinating
Review: This is in NO way a good book. The writing is sophmoric and mannered and the authors have a very clear agenda: to discredit Christina Crawford. That said, it has its own fascination, like an autopsy or a public hanging. The authors are completely on Joan Crawford's side about EVERYTHING. They knew her when she was alive, and they have chosen to be the keepers of her very dubious flame now that she is gone. They do NOT make a very good case on behalf of Ms. Crawford, but their attempts are what fascinate the reader. Like desperate Irish catholic women of a certain age who can not bring themselves to think that a priest would do THAT, the authors are in deep, deep denial...You almost sense that Crawford woudln't care what people think of her, but these guys do. Their delusion makes the book weirdly compelling, despite all its flaws. So this can be honestly reccommended to folks who like bad, offbeat, bizzare books. One caveat: child abuse is wrong. The authors should be ashamed of trying to cover it up. Like Joan Crawford herself, this book is bad but it holds your attention.
Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: This is the second Joan Crawford biography I have read, and it's great! It really explains her life and career.
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