Hollywood Babylon--It's Back!: All Those Celebrities, All Those Scandals, All That Nudity, And All That Sin Hardcover – October 20, 2008

I enloyed this book because I could relate to all of the people discussed. I have been a movie fan (films of the 20', 30's and 40's) for over 60 years I was shocked to read how most of my favorite stars acted. Hollywood, during that peroid, was nothing but a glamorized whorehouse. Stars, no matter how famous or unknown, had to sleep with director, producers or anyone else connected with the making of a film, to get parts.The most shocking, to me anyway, was how Lucille Ball said "She never met a man she didn't sleep with. And her husband Desie Arnes was no better. I enjoyed the many photographs, nudes included, of the stars and other people involved in the picture business. I really couldn't put the book down.............

Having read Kenneth Anger's original two volumes which were noir-ish and fun, I was hoping this might be another go-around at Hollywood doing its level best to cover up for itself and being EXPOSED. Sadly, about the only thing that was true is the exposed part. Never have I seen a book so populated with male frontal nudity. This book abounds with grainy pictures that look as though they've been snagged off the net or photoshopped at a meat market/deli. To assert that this book is gaycentric is an understatement.The only thing that beats the pictures is the text. If you believe Darwin Porter, everyone in Hollywood is gay or minimally bisexual. Special attention is given to gay studs. Elvis Presley, James Cagney, everyone in Hollywood is gay. And for those who are not gay, they are probably promiscuous and have done time as prostitutes. Lucille Ball supposedly falls in the later category. There is some truth in the book, but there is a lot of garbage too.About Darwin Porter: he used to do travel guides, but moved up to write a graphic gay novel THE SILENT CLOSET. From there he managed to 'write' bios of Humphrey Bogart, Valentino, Merv Griffin, and Paul Newman. Yup, his subjects are all gay as are all their celebrity friends. His books are all based on secret notes, interviews, common knowledge, and (I suspect) gossip and urban legend. It would be very easy to write this stuff off as the wishful thinking of a gay man who wants gay to become mainstream, but it isn't that easy for a reader to just walk away. Even if it is obvious that the writer has an allegiance to the gay community, Porter is undeniably a terrific writer and does a great job with his sometimes over-the-top assertions. There is something naughty about reading this expose which can be likened to verbal porn. I felt like a portal had been opened up, I was sucked in, and was privy to all these secrets. I became Alice through the looking glass.There is a good aspect re: reading this book if you haven't been turned off by this and all the other negative reviews. I gave this book a 3* because in a screwy way these fancifully questionable stories were written by a first rate writer. My advice to a potential reader is to enjoy this, but keep an open mind that much is unreliable at best.

If you enjoy reading about what the entertainment industry was and still is like I highly recommend this easy to read book.Included are many old Hollywood photos but be warned unlike some other similar books sold on Amazon this one has graphic descriptions and a couple of photos depicting nudity.So if your easily offended you might want to pass but if not I think you'll find this book fascinating reading.

Oh, this is a horrible, horrible book and definitely NSFW, and never mind that Americans aren't too good about reading or about reading comprehension. I jest. Don't take this book to work and leave it on your desk or you will be in HR. The book has nekkid pix in it. They aren't pix of alien body parts, but they are not the kind of pix you want to display at work.Of course it holds one spellbound so that one has to read it from cover to cover in one sitting. It confirms everything you ever thought about Hollywood. But this is the Golden Era, which you probably thought was Carole Lombard and Clark Gable raising chickens on their homey little spread in the San Fernando Valley. Well, Carole, Clark, Judy Garland and Lucille Ball were about the only unabashed heterosexuals in that Golden Era. Everyone else was bisexual. There weren't even that many fully gay people. Everyone was in the closet. Fifty Shades of Grey? Please. That's a Sunday School story compared to this book, and this is about real people.

I enjoyed the old Kenneth Anger book(s), but this is far better - real sleazy / gossipy and very graphic descriptions of certain acts. Love it all. Only real complaint is the kindle version has some very bad formatting, ocassionally pictures are half missing or fully missing, some text is missing here and there, and can be very awkward to read. Saying that, what I am reading I can't put down, love books like these (and "Hollywood Gays" which I also have on kindle, but is less raunchy). Full marks to the content, but loses 1 star for kindle formatting issues.

The original Kenneth Anger Hollywood Babylon books blazed a trail in the realm of salacious gossip-mongering, provoking much public distaste and even more private enjoyment. This addition to the saga of movieland's sleazier tittle-tattle provides more of the same - enjoyable, racily-written gossip about more recent Hollywood personalities, in a tabloid format, with plentiful photos, mostly concerning the (alleged) sexual proclivities and doings of Tinseltown. Not the kind of book you would probably want to be seen reading, but shamelessly entertaining.

Utter garbage, full of misquotes and depressingly inane. Should be arrested for impersonating a book. Drivel. Good job its too late for them all to sue.

It was the first book I downloaded to my new Kindle. Some pages were missing and some did not fit on the page, so the page did not make sense with some words disappearing into the margin. A great disappointment.

I could not read this book as the text was all mixed up. a total waste of money and I could not find anywhere to complain to get my money back