eBook Olivier download

This lengthy authorized biography- authorized by Olivier's third wife, Joan Plowright- must certainly be the definitive work about the great actor and his world. And yet I still find Sir Laurence somewhat of an enigma. even after plowing through this lengthy book. There is so much information presented, often really trivial stuff, that it is easy to get waylaid.

I found that the love letters written by Olivier and Leigh to each other were embarrassing and I felt like an eavesdropper who had no business reading those letters. However author Coleman pretty much bares the souls of the players on the Olivier stage and you may not like what you see.

Olivier himself was rather like a chameleon who often changed his colors. That may have been the actor in him as he was always in real life as well as on the stage playing a part. There is no doubt he was a womanizer, however, and he cheated during all three marriages. He was relentlessly driven throughout his whole life to become the best actor in the world as well as the best producer and director. The author mentions that Olivier often embroidered stories about himself - however, he was not a liar, but again the actor, with showmanship written on every chromosome. Because of Olivier's embellishments, it's difficult, Coleman points out, to get a proper handle on Olivier's personality as well as crucial events in his life. The real Olivier will not please stand up.

Olivier was severely ill during much of the last twenty years of his life, enduring kidney problems, pleurisy, a thrombosis in his leg but he bulldozed on, his ambition forcing his body to fall in line.

His tempestuous relationship with Vivien Leigh is the stuff that dreams are made of- sort of. Author Coleman lays out the dynamics of their famous twenty plus year love affair. Those dynamics are a bit excruciating. As Noel Coward remarked toward the end of their marriage:"Their life together is really hideous...they are eminent, successful,envied and adored, and most wretchedly unhappy."

Manic depression is a ghastly disorder and much more about it is known today but one standard treatment is still electric shock therapy. Vivien underwent the shock treatment several times which effected her memory, making it hard for her to memorize her lines. During a manic episode she could appear crazy. Poor David Niven, who witnessed one of her worst breakdowns, helped all he could but remarked in his memoirs that he had come to hate her.

As an actress, Vivien could not scale the heights achieved by Olivier. Considered a narrow range talent, Vivien nevertheless was perhaps the greater star, which brought friction into their marriage. Narrow range or not, Vivien won Oscars for her two greatest roles, that of Scarlett O'Hara and Blanche DuBois. Ironically both characters are Southern but Scarlett was a survivor while Blanche could not cope with reality. When called "Scarlett O'Hara" by a nurse, Vivien shot back "No! I am Blanche DuBois!" She was right.

There are many fascinating scenes and episodes in the book, including Olivier's disgust with Marilyn Monroe while they were filming "The Prince and the Showgirl." Marilyn's unprofessional behavior drove Olivier up the wall. But when Marilyn faced the camera, an extraordinary metamorphosis took place, Her "showgirl" is simply delicious and she stole the show from Olivier, hands down.

Olivier showed great forbearance of Vivien's deteriorating health and the marriage took years to finally become unraveled. But when Olivier moves on to Joan Plowright and Vivien to Peter Finch and others, the reader feels somewhat let down. The apple tree, the singing and the gold disappear and you're kind of left hollow. Olivier achieves as much happiness as his condescending character can, and Vivien, of course, died many years before Olivier did. This comprehensive study doesn't quite plumb the depths of Laurence Olivier, but the complex story is a fine tapestry, and you may even shed a tear here and there.

Well, I was hoping for more insight into who Sir Larry was, but sadly this book seemed a bit more focused on accuracy of details. The reading is sometimes stiff, boring, of little interest to me. I realize the National Theatre is/was important in his life, but certainly other elements of his amazing life would have been of greater interest. Perhaps I'll try his biography and see how that compares. I bought this book based on other's reviews, and for the most part enjoyed the journey. I would say the last third of the book becomes bogged down and didn't keep my interest. Coleman seems most interested in keeping the facts straight, which is great, but I am a soul seeker, and walked away longing to know Larry even better than Coleman would let me. Loved the photos, award listings in back, all his productions-great stuff there.

I find the first 1/3rd of this book interesting and while its an "honest" account of the "man" Sir Laurence Olivier, most all of his biographer's seem concerned with his sexuality first and foremost. Coleman is also extremely callous referring to Miss Leigh as "mad" when today she would have bipolar disease or access to many drugs along with a publicist - "As Sheridan Morley put it "Vivien" needed someone to stand between her and the fans/people which terrified her." Non of his biographers nor Olivier mention that despite her lack of medical care, she stood up to this "disease" and wrote an apology letter to every person whom she had hurt. As for Olivier and Leigh together, I think his decision to return to the stage benefited him and his obsession to compete with his contemporaries. On film, even Sheridan Morley said that "he was not very good on film but treated film as something that photographed a play versus Vivien who knew you made love to the camera and that you went in close." Of course, the competition that existed in their relationship perhaps did not help their marriage later in life especially when Kenneth Tynan came along like Iago with a surreptitious need to criticize her and Kaye with a razor pen. That Olivier even spoke to him or entertained him were clear demonstrations of his character. But Elaine Dundy, Tynan's first wife knows more about Tynan's weakness and Vivien's courage. As the V&A Museum in London reveals more of the letters of both Leigh and Olivier - perhaps a biographer will put the pieces of the dedication both these fine artist has to their craft and complex relationship together.