The Book Report: Librarian and film fanboy Peter Shelley takes a new tack on explaining the waste that was the life of Frances Farmer: He gives a lot of background in a biographical essay, then analyzes quite thoroughly the actual work turned out by Frances Farmer in her short career. He goes on to bring us the details of the various post-mortem biopics made about her, with analysis of their merits aesthetic and factual. It's quite a lot of work, this, finding and screening and mulling over entertainments long unseen. Kudos for caring so much.

My Review: Because I certainly don't. This is amazingly dense stuff. Since I, a mere civilian, can't get most of these films, I have no context to put them in. I trust Mr. Shelley a little less with each sloppy mistake, like I do all authors. The one that came close to causing me to put the book down permanently came in the biographical essay, where Frances was was fobbed off with a car. A Plymouth Dusenberg.

Google is your friend. Use it. Duesenbergs were huge, luxurious cars not made after 1936. Plymouths were cheapiemobiles sold to Aunt Mildred and Uncle Cyrus to get them from the farm to the church on Sunday. Mr. Shelley's Australian, it's true, but a quick check would've told him what was what. Why, even a car-phobic friend to whom I bleated disgruntledly said "you're kidding" when I mentioned this!

There were others much more minor that I caught; but I find that, when I catch one or two howlers like this, I wonder what howlers I'm too ignorant to catch, and trust the book I'm reading less and less. So why give it three stars? Why not simply consign it to the local cathedral's charity bin, as I do with books I detest and don't ever want to see again? Because of Farmer and her enduring mystique. She's famous if you know who she is, she's got that tragic queen of Hollywood thing, she's forgotten by all but the few who, in this day and age, seek out Jessica Lange's memorable portrayal of her from 1982 in the film "Frances". I batten on obscure grandeur. This book limns it for me in klieg lights. I like that enough to hold my nose and add a star to what I feel the book, solely on its merits, deserves. ( )

A long-overdue biography on Frances Farmer that focuses on her career and not on her downfall. The beginning of the book covers her life in non-tabloid format, then the bulk of the remainder is a highly detailed filmography.

My only regret is that I cannot view most of the films discussed by the author due to them being out of print. ( )

Before receiving Peter Shelley's book about Frances Farmer, I was most familiar with her from having years ago seen the film bio starring Jessica Lange. Although I was expecting a straight-forward biography of Ms. Farmer, the format used here is one I think would be very useful for the film enthusiast or student of her career: A long biographical chapter is followed by shorter chapters for each of her films or television appearances, allowing the reader to focus on each one individually.
Of less interest to me was the section about the various film biographies and documentaries about Ms. Farmer, although I can understand their inclusion since many or all of them are probably more available for viewing than her own films.
An attractive book with many photos. I wouldn't mind seeing Peter Shelley tackle a few other actors with books in similar fashion. Recommended. ( )

_Francis Farmer, The Life and Films of a Troubled Star_ by Peter Shelley (McFarland & Company, Publishers, c. 1911) is a compendium of information about one of Hollywood's acclaimed actresses whose meteoric rise to fame in the mid-1930s and tragic fall into obscurity beginning with her arrest and incarceration in October 1942 for driving in a ‘dim light’ zone along the Pacific Coast Highway with her automobile lights on high beam during wartime. (It was feared the Japanese submarine force patrolled the western coast of the United States notwithstanding the Japanese defeat at Midway six months earlier in April 1942.) From 1936 to early 1943, Farmer appeared in 15 movies, most under the now iconic star-encircled, snow-covered mountain with ‘Paramount’ above its peak. Some major Paramount stars of the 1930s include Marlene Dietrich and Mae West, Gary Cooper and Bing Crosby, and Paramount at the time released a movie a week, a veritable film factory. Farmer’s last Paramount film was ironically titled ‘No Escape’ and for the next ten years she was in a downward spiral of alcohol abuse, psychiatric evaluations, another arrest and incarceration, rest in a sanitarium, electric shock therapy, and eventual commitment to the Western Washington State Hospital for the Insane at Steilacoom in 1944, from which institution she was paroled and finally released in July 1953. Soon thereafter she moved to Eureka, California, and began work as an office assistant in a photographic studio, and by 1957 was a hotel receptionist in San Francisco, where she was ‘rediscovered’ and eventually appeared in her last movie, ‘The Party Crashers’ (1958) in a supporting role. And from 1958 to 1964, in Indianapolis, she hosted a television series, ‘Frances Farmer Presents’ which broadcast feature films. Another bout with alcohol led to her release from this job and for the next few years Farmer appeared in plays and ran a gift shop until her health deteriorated and on August 1st, 1970, Frances Farmer died aged 56 from esophageal cancer.

Shelley's book, as he makes clear in his Preface, “is an attempt to provide an in-depth analysis of the films of Frances Farmer and to restore her place as a significant actress of the 1930s and 1940s.” (p. 3) Following a 60-page ‘Introduction and Biography’, Shelley provides a detailed review of each of Farmer's films as well as appearances on television shows such as the Ed Sullivan Show, Playhouse 90, and This Is Your Life. The last section, ‘Biopics and Documentaries’ reviews the 1982 film, ‘Frances’ with Jessica Lange playing Farmer, and the 1983 TV production, ‘Will There Really Be A Morning’ with Susan Blakely as Frances Farmer, among other docudramas.

Notwithstanding a few glaring ‘typo’ errors, ‘Mason Dixie’ for Mason Dixon (p. 107), ‘John Steinbeck’s novel Murder at Lidice’ (p. 29), more likely Edna St. Vincent Millay’s verse play ‘The Murder of Lidice’, and ‘Greenwich Village apartment on West Seventy-Fourth Street’ (p. 9), which ought to be West 4th Street – not W. 74th St. on the upper West Side of New York City), this is a well-researched book. The most frustrating part of writing a review of it, however, has been not being able to view any of the films discussed, at least not on television over the past month from mid-March to mid-April. But Peter Shelley's _Frances Farmer_ has inspired me to continue to search the airwaves for the enigmatic, beautiful, if troubled star. ( )

Peter Shelley has compiled a thorough and well-written filmography in this book on Frances Farmer's work. Plot summaries, extensive notes, release information (both theatrical and DVD/VHS), and quotes from reviewers are included for all of Farmer's films (including 'No Escape' which she was dismissed from after the infamous assault of a hairdresser and may or may not have appeared in it for, at the most, a few seconds), television work, and biopic/documentary specials about the actress.

Preceding the filmography, Shelley includes a lengthy biographical section. Farmer's life is full of controversy, especially when looking at the rumors that surround her time in various institutions and the treatment she received, most notable is the question of whether or not she was lobotomized. Shelley chose to present the various arguments on these subjects made by family members, biographers, and in the documentaries and films made about her. As others have noted, at times this approach did make the reading a bit confusing, mainly in keeping track of all the names of various authors and directors. I preferred this approach, however, as it made this section free of bias and speculation. This was especially important in a book whose stated goal is to focus on the actress's body of work and to avoid sensationalizing her personal life.

On a side note, and as the book mentions, most of the films detailed within are not currently available commercially. This was disappointing since it's only natural to want to judge Shelley's synopses for oneself. After some online digging, however, I was able to view a handful of Farmer's films ('Come and Get It,' Exclusive,' 'Son of Fury,' and 'The Party Crashers') as well as the biopic 'Frances' and the 'E! Mysteries and Scandals' episode about her. While I would have enjoyed viewing the complete list of movies, this smaller selection at least gave an idea of Farmer's acting style and how she was depicted in biographical treatments. ( )