Vivien Leigh

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By Kendra Bean & Claire Bloom

Publisher Description

Vivien Leigh's mystique was a combination of staggering beauty, glamour, romance, and genuine talent displayed in her Oscar-winning performances in Gone With the Wind and A Streetcar Named Desire. For more than thirty years, her name alone sold out theaters and cinemas the world over, and she inspired many of the greatest visionaries of her time: Laurence Olivier loved her; Winston Churchill praised her; Christian Dior dressed her.

Through both an in-depth narrative and a stunning array of photos, Vivien Leigh: An Intimate Portrait presents the personal story of one of the most celebrated women of the twentieth century, an engrossing tale of success, struggles, and triumphs. It chronicles Leigh's journey from her birth in India to prominence in British film, winning the most-coveted role in Hollywood history, her celebrated love affair with Laurence Olivier, through to her untimely death at age fifty-three in 1967.

Author Kendra Bean is the first Vivien Leigh biographer to delve into the Laurence Olivier Archives, where an invaluable collection of personal letters and documents ranging from interview transcripts to film contracts to medical records shed new insight on Leigh's story. Illustrated by hundreds of rare and never-before-published images, including those by Leigh's "official" photographer, Angus McBean, Vivien Leigh: An Intimate Portrait is the first illustrated biography to closely examine the fascinating, troubled, and often misunderstood life of Vivien Leigh: the woman, the actress, the legend.

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17 Reviews

4.0

Megan

Created about 2 months ago

Michelle Dumars

Created 11 months ago

“A great biography about an amazing actress.”

Feel good Easy to read

katie :)

Created about 2 years ago

Michalianna

Created about 3 years ago

Natalie Seymour

Created over 3 years ago

“I recall my first time seeing Vivien Leigh like it was yesterday (although it was actually around 17 years ago). I was in seventh grade and decided to be the class bigshot (or book nerd) and read the newest book in the elementary library, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22079504.Gone_With_the_Wind_Cookbook__Famous_Southern_Cooking_Recipes_ . It was a whopping 1024 pages. See? My memory is like a steel trap. I had never read anything like it before, which may be why about two chapters in, I had no idea what the hell I was reading. I was able to borrow the VHS from my (older) neighbor to see if I could make sense of what was going on. Oh, Vivien Leigh. It was love at first sight. How could I not be hypnotized by this? https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1429487664ra/14594452.gif I'd never seen anyone like her. And then the magic died after the book became one of my favorites and I watched the movie again five years later. I became judgmental of her acting and deemed it not worthy of the book. Fast forward a few more years. I came across a gem on Netflix. A Streetcar Named Desire. MAN. I was blown away. I will admit that much of my admiration had to do with this perfection: https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1429488051ra/14594497.gif Seriously. Just one more (I promise): https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1429488245ra/14594506.gif After I had my panting under control, I was able appreciate this: https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1429488245ra/14594507.gif Yes, that's the same woman. What a transformation. She was once again playing a lady of the South but in a completely different way. I was beyond impressed by that haunting performance. So here's what I knew in regards to Vivien Leigh: 1. I loved her in Gone with the Wind the first time I saw it. The second time I saw her in Gone With the Wind, I was annoyed. In the times since, I've still not warmed up to the performance completely but could never deny the power of her beauty or those expressions that can flicker in and out so quickly. 2. I was perturbed by her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in Streetcar Named Desire. Perturbed in the best way possible. Now on to this book. I bet you thought I'd never get to it. I checked this out from the library on a whim and became even more excited to read it once I saw the "Do Not Put in Book Drop" sticker on the cover. Clearly, this was a book to be respected. Upon opening the cover, I was giddy. THE PHOTOS! ALL THE WONDERFUL, GORGEOUS PHOTOS OF THIS STRIKINGLY GORGEOUS WOMAN! The text/biography section was quite good as well. I'm not sure someone who has read about Vivien Leigh's life before would find a lot of new information, but I was able to learn plenty about her mental illness, her husband and great love (Laurence Olivier), and her other roles (I was surprised to learn that the majority was on the stage rather than in films). While I didn't necessarily find her very likable (not the author's fault per say...I just feel she wouldn't have been my cup of tea), I was still hypnotized by the story and (ESPECIALLY) the photos. A quick and worthy read for any fan. 3 Stars for the text. 5 Stars for the photos. 4 STARS”

About Kendra Bean

Kendra Bean is a historian and curator. She is the author of Vivien Leigh: An Intimate Portrait. She runs the popular classic film blog VivAndLarry.com. Her writing has also been published by the British Film Institute and Bright Lights Film Journal, and she has lectured on cinema at the National Portrait Gallery (London), Victoria and Albert Museum, the BFI, the San Francisco Presidio Officers' Club, and the Walt Disney Family Museum. She lives in London.