Full name: Wisecracker: The Life and Times of William Haines

Author: William J. Mann Year: 1998 Rank: Rating: Original Rating: Pop Rating: Genres/categories: Biographies, History, Non Fiction, Gay & Lesbian Purchase/reserch links: LibraryThing Goodreads Amazon ISBNs: 9780140275681 9781522672784 0140275681 1522672788

In 1930 William Haines was Hollywood's number-one box-office draw--a talented, handsome, romantic lead. Offscreen, he was openly gay. This bestselling biography captures the rich gay subculture of Hollywood before the Production Code--before studio intimidation led to the establishment of the Hollywood closet. Alone among his contemporaries, Billy Haines (1900-1973) refused to compromise and was ultimately booted out by Louis B. Mayer. Forced to give up acting, Haines went on to become a top interior designer to the stars and to clients such as Nancy Reagan. By his side through it all was his lover, Jimmie Shields; their fifty-year relationship led their best friend, Joan Crawford, to call them the "happiest married couple in Hollywood." Wisecracker is an astounding piece of newly discovered gay history, a chronicle of high Hollywood, and--at its heart--a great and enduring love story. Similar books: Clara Bow by David Stenn Montgomery Clift by Patricia Bosworth Vivien by Alexander Walker Brando by Peter Manso Jean Arthur by John Oller Robert Mitchum by Lee Server How to Be a Movie Star by William J. Mann John Wayne by Randy Roberts Clark Gable by Warren G. Harris Dark Lover by Emily W. Leider Jimmy Stewart by Marc Eliot Bogart by A. M. Sperber Haunted Idol by Geoffrey Wansell Groucho by Stefan Kanfer James Dean by David Dalton Lost Prophet by John D'emilio Genet by Edmund White Wild Heart by Suzanne Rodriguez Bosie by Douglas Murray Love in a Dark Time by Colm Toibin