Nancie Clare

While on a map it looks like the city of Los Angeles is a giant amoeba that has engulfed everything in the county, there is an island in the middle of it that stands out: Beverly Hills is an incorporated city to this day. It had not existed for very many years as a city (it was originally a lima bean farm) when it was proposed that it be annexed by Los Angeles- the denizens of Beverly Hills had huge gardens with water hungry plantings and the small well in city property wasn’t keeping up with demands. Allowing themselves to be annexed by LA would give them access to the Owens Valley water that was making Los Angeles green. But it would also mean they could no longer have their own school system and police force. In Prohibition Era Beverly Hills, having police that turned a blind eye to booze fueled parties was a very nice perk.

Not all Beverly Hills denizens wanted or needed these perks, and developers were dying to put in more housing but needed a good water source to do so. So it was put up to a vote. This was when the first instance of celebrity campaigning took place. Mary Pickford (and others, but she was the main one) took to speaking for remaining a separate city heavily. And it worked. This started the habit of Hollywood stars speaking out for politicians and issues.

The book is fairly short, and if you are into early century southern California history, it is fun. The celebrities, the horribly corrupt LA police force, the development of what Beverly Hills was going to look like; it all made its mark on the area. Well written. Four out of five stars.… (mehr)

I received a galley of this book via Netgalley; it won't be released until March 2018.

I have been reading a lot about Hollywood in the 1920s of late, much of that revolving around Mary Pickford, in both fiction and nonfiction. Clare's focus is on one particular battle in the 1920s: that of Beverly Hills to maintain its independence from Los Angeles. At heart, the issue was about water. Los Angeles had it in abundance, thanks to its aqueduct, which Beverly Hills could only access if it permitted annexation. But that would have come at a cost: LA was much stricter--and more corrupt--in its policing during the Prohibition. The unusual beauty of Beverly Hills, with its curvy, tree-lined streets, would have likely been forfeit, along with the abundant overuse of waterfalls, fountains, and non-native plants on many of the palatial grounds of the newly-rich stars.

About half of the book is about background material: the growing popularity of "flickers," the affair and marriage of Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, and the incredible sway that had when they combined forces with Charlie Chaplin for a World War I war bonds tour. That same sway was important in maintaining independence for their city, in a contentious debate that included a newspaper office receiving a bomb.

Clare makes a case that Pickford's might established how politicians have wielded incredible political clout over the years, citing people from Sonny Bono to Arnold Schwarzenegger to Donald Trump. The latter example feels like a leap to me, but she does raise an interesting point. If Pickford had lost face, if Los Angeles had developed in a different way, how would that have changed the perception of celebrities engaging in politics?

I recommend this book to anyone interested in early Hollywood and Los Angeles, or the study of celebrity culture. It's curious to me that several books are coming out right now about Mary Pickford, a century after the "Girl with the Curls" became the world's first star, and I am enjoying the trend. She's a fascinating woman, who lived in a fascinating time.… (mehr)