Jeffrey Vance

A Star Is Born -- the classic Hollywood tale about a young talent rising to superstardom, and the downfall of her mentor/lover along the way -- has never gone out of style. It has seen five film adaptations, but none compares to the 1954 version starring Judy Garland in her greatest role. But while it was the crowning performance of the legendary entertainer's career, the production turned into one of the most talked about in movie history. The story, which depicts the dark side of fame, addiction, loss, and suicide, paralleled Garland's own tumultuous life in many ways. While hitting alarmingly close to home for the fragile star, it ultimately led to a superlative performance -- one that was nominated for an Academy Award, but lost in one of the biggest upsets in Oscar history. Running far too long for the studio's tastes, Warner Bros. notoriously slashed extensive amounts of footage from the finished print, leaving A Star is Born in tatters and breaking the hearts of both the film's star and director George Cukor. Today, with a director's cut reconstructed from previously lost scenes and audio, the 1954 A Star is Born has taken its deserved place among the most critically acclaimed movies of all time. Now, Lorna Luft, daughter of Judy Garland and the film's producer, Sid Luft, tells the story of the production, and of her mother's fight to save her career, as only she could. Teaming with film historian Jeffrey Vance, A Star Is Born is a vivid and refreshingly candid account of the crafting, loss, and restoration of a movie classic, complemented by a trove of images from the family collection taken both on and off the set. The book also includes essays on the other screen adaptations of A Star Is Born, to round out a complete history of a story that has remained a Hollywood favorite for close to a century.

Although many books have been written about Charlie Chaplin, most are the products of research gathered from second-hand sources and various archives. Eric James had the privilege of knowing and working with Chaplin as his Music Associate for more than twenty years, during which time he collaborated in the development of compositions and subsequent orchestral arrangements that became celebrated film scores. In Making Music with Charlie Chaplin, James details his relationship with Chaplin, from their auspicious first meeting, to his frequent visits to Switzerland when he lived with Chaplin and his family. The book chronicles James' decades-long collaboration and provides new insight into his protean musical genius. Alight with levity and behind-the-scenes anecdotes, James allows us to glimpse the artist behind the legend, a Chaplin too rarely seen.

Examines the life of the actress Lita Grey, her marriage to Charlie Chaplin, and the bitter divorce which followed