Jimmy Stewart: The Truth Behind the Legend

Happened upon this title and recalled how much I loved Jimmy Stewart in so many flicks. Turns out he had a very full and interesting life both on and off of the movie set. Many surprises along the way including his allegiance to J. Edgar Hoover, his highly decorated wartime service as a pilot trainer and leader, and a dedicated friend to Henry Fonda and others. His personal integrity was exceptional for a Hollywood actor, and his fiery temper was news to me as well. I found the bio well researched and thoughtfully presented, and the author brings his own personal relationship with the Stuart's into the story which legitimizes much of the rationale and deductions developed within. One comes away with a newfound respect and admiration for Jimmy Stewart because of the facts of his lifetime journey. It will not disappoint.

I've always been a little bit fascinated by Jimmy Stewart. Although his public image was that of the aw-shucks guy next door, he was really great in roles that required rage and hysteria--so what was that all about? This is a rather unusual biography, as most of the information comes from the writer's informal conversations with Stewart, his wife, Henry Fonda and a few other friends and coworkers, which gives it a very readable quality, especially if you're already fairly familiar with the actor's career. It also allows the author to get much more deeply under Stewart's skin, as Gloria Stewart, in particular, seems to have spilled a lot of secrets to the author, such as Stewart's sometimes uncontrollable temper and the fact that Stewart was an FBI informer during the Communist witch hunt during the 50's, which temporarily busted apart his close friendship with Fonda. If you're willing to take in an honest exploration of Stewart and his work, warts and all, this is a great read. If you're one of those fans who believes its heresy to print anything negative about this American icon, you won't want to read this (it's a big reason this book has some very poor reviews, which are unfair in my opinion).

My boyfriend and I have been watching old movies together the last few years and there are SO many movie stars Jimmy worked with and were friends with. It honestly made it much more interesting to read because I knew so many of those names mentioned and even put me down a rabbit hole of the mob in Hollywood of which I had no knowledge. I can hear his voice when the author quotes him and it honestly just made me so happy.

I was really looking forward to reading this, based on the reviews and being a huge Jimmy Stewart fan. This book is certainly readable, as it has a fascinating subject, but it could have been much better written and edited. The Kindle edition has obviously just had a substandard OCR program run through the text, and subsequently has tons of errors in spelling ("barn" becomes "bam", etc.) which are glaringly repetitive. In addition, I have come to find out that Michael Munn has, shall we say, a loose relationship with the truth. Several of the stories in his bio about Frank Sinatra were patently false, and that unfortunate trend continues here. Most egregious, however, are the inexplicable choices of what movies to spend 10-20 pages discussing, (many of these minor films with not much of interest to discuss) and barely mentioning films like Rear Window, which was arguably Stewart's finest film (along with Vertigo, which also gets short shrift). I enjoyed it enough to read it though to the end without divorcing it, but overall I was not impressed.

I found this book to be interesting, but not inspirational. In some respects, I wish I'd never read it because it tarnished what turned out to be an unfair image that I had projected onto Jimmy Stewart. He was my granddad's favorite actor, and so I wanted his true life story to mirror that of my granddad's, but it didn't. It turns out that Jimmy Stewart was a human being, complete with faults and shortcomings, just like the rest of us."The Truth Behind the Legend" might be a fair title, and Stewart was not a bad guy, especially by Hollywood standards. However, once he got to Hollywood, he is not portrayed to have lived a life consistent with his Presbyterian upbringing. I am glad that the author was able to talk with Stewart directly to get much of his story, but the voice and perspective of his wife Gloria overshadows all other perspectives in the book, including that of Jimmy Stewart himself. There were a couple of times where the author mentioned that Gloria told him something and then advised him not to bring it up when he talked with Jimmy. I'd be interested in reading another take on Stewart's life from a different author without the direction or influence of his wife. Gloria's control over this particular publication reminded me of how Josephine Earp had much influence in how Wyatt Earp was remembered.It was also surprising how little there was in the book about Stewart's most well-known film, "It's a Wonderful Life." I was hoping for more backstory there as well, and that was my primary reason for wanting to read this book. There are only a few pages about Stewart's experiences in that specific film, however. It was disappointing to learn that Donna Reed did not personally like Jimmy Stewart years after that movie was released, however her reasons are certainly understandable: Stewart asked to have her removed from a second movie that they would have starred in together.Even after reading this book, I still consider Stewart a likable legend of the silver screen, and I would like to eventually see all of his films that are described in this book. However, after reading this book, I no longer think of him as George Bailey (although lifelong friend Henry Fonda claims that George Bailey is closer in character to the real-life Jimmy Stewart than any other character he ever played). And I found it intriguing that many of his films are held in higher regard today than they were at the time they were produced. Many were considered flops at the time they were released, including "It's a Wonderful Life." Stewart seemed to have consistently struggled to find lasting success during his acting career, and he was not widely considered a Hollywood legend until well after his acting career had ended.I'd recommend this book in spite of its melancholy overtones, because it helps to spotlight the fact that things are not always what they seem from the outside looking in. Everyone has their own struggles and many of our struggles are similar. In spite of it all, Jimmy Stewart was able to inspire many other people during his lifetime with his acting abilities, and that's what is required and expected of any successful actor.

I'm old enough to remember every movie he starred in, and loved him in every one of them. The book is wonderful!

It may seem simple to write a book that writes itself but to bring the subject to life for the reader is a true emotional experience.

I'm one of that huge class of people who doesn't go out of their way to watch Jimmy Stewart when his movies turn up on the TV, but class him with Alec Guinness as the sort of special star that eclipses any of the modern box office draws.I think this book gets the balance just right. The author is obviously very fond of Stewart, and sometimes you can see him almost fighting himself to put across some of the more negative aspects of Stewart's life and character, but that's admirable - it's much better than a biographer's views are clearly visible, rather than hidden away so we don't know how he or she is slanting the book.I read a lot of biographies, and this was among the best of 2005. Excellent.

I have been a fan of The late, Great Jimmy Stewart.Christmas is never complete without a visit to “It’s a Wonderful Life” and I have watched so many of his other amazing films, so often, that I’ve lost count.This book takes us on an intriguing journey through his life, his career and his many startling exploits.There’s a lot more to this man than an outsider’s perspective can possibly render.If you’re a fan, like me, or even if you’re not, I think you will find this a rewarding journey.

Everyone knows James Stewart. He was one of the true classic actors of America's golden age. Few actors are more recognisable and idiosyncratic than Jimmy Stewart, who came to represent an American every-man during the 20th century.This book follows his life more or less in chronological order, starting with stage work, and gradually becoming a megastar.Stewart had already achieved a certain level of fame when the war broke out. Being extremely patriotic, he felt compelled to sign up. He could have used his star status to avoid seeing action . In fact the studios, as well as the US government didn't want him to come to any harm, aware that the effect on public moral would be devastating if anything happened to him. But he insisted on doing his part. This tells you something about the nature of the man.After the war and during the 50’s and 60’s he teamed up with some great directors and made very memorable films. His had many friendships with other actors of the day, chiefly Henry Fonda, but also including John Wayne, Clark Gable, Fred MacMurray and other famous actors. Single until his forties, he had a wild love life until he finally married.A less admirable episode was his work for the FBI. Stewart had a long time relationship with the peculiar J. Edgar Hoover, and his right wing views saw him working under cover to report on his Hollywood friends. Stewart’s motives might have been worthy (trying to rid Hollywood of gangsters), but he was manipulated by the devious Hoover, who was mainly concerned with outing suspected communists.The final years saw a slow decline, as worthwhile roles dried up, and his long time colleagues died, one by one.I would have liked more in-depth information about his more famous films. Vertigo, voted by some as one of the best films ever made, or It’s a Wonderful Life, or The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence of course are all mentioned, but without much detail. One fun aspect of reading a book about a great star is that you can watch the various films as they are mentioned. This adds another dimension to the experience, and I re-discovered some of the great films of the 50s, such as Broken Arrow and Winchester ’73.An very enjoyable book for anyone interested in film, particularly during America’s golden era.