Eighty Odd Years in Hollywood: Memoir of a Career in Film and Television

by John Meredyth Lucas

Overview

John Meredyth Lucas, son of silent screen star and screenwriter Bess Meredyth (Ben-Hur, The Sea Beast, When a Man Loves, Don Juan) and stepson of renowned Hungarian-born director Michael Curtiz (Casablanca, Mildred Pierce, Yankee Doodle Dandy, Life with Father), came of age in Hollywood during the 1930s. Lucas went on to an impressive career of his own as a writer-producer-director. He made films with Hal Wallis, Ross Hunter, Walt Disney, and others, and he wrote, produced, and directed such classic television series as Mannix, The Fugitive and Star Trek.

Completed shortly before his death in 2002, Lucas' memoir is filled with never-before-told recollections of many Hollywood greats and features previously unpublished photographs. With Lucas, we go behind the scenes, onto the studio lots and into the parties with family friends John Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Errol Flynn and Jack Warner, to name just a few. It's a boy's-eye-view of Hollywood in a time of glamour, decadence, and the golden years of filmmaking.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786418381
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	06/08/2004
Pages:	319
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

The late John Meredyth Lucas was a writer, producer and director whose Hollywood career spanned eight decades.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Foreword by Cari Beauchamp     

1. A Hollywood Family     
2. Cast of Characters     
3. Home, School and Earthshaking Events     
4. Life with Stepfather     
5. Resisting Education and Other Pursuits     
6. Coming Up for Air     
7. Hungarian Goulash     
8. Off Camera     
9. In the Wings     
10. Takeoffs and Landings     
11. New Directions     
12. Test Patterns     
13. Foreign Accents     
14. Finding Focus     
15. Gains and Losses     
16. Letters of Transit     
17. Fade Out, Fade In     
18. New Horizons     
19. Full Circle     

Epilogue     
Index     

Editorial Reviews

an unusually witty and observant look at growing up in Movieland during the 1920s, 30s, and 40s...anyone who’s interested in vintage Hollywood will respond...with rapt attention...wonderful rare photos and a warm introduction by film historian Cari Beauchamp are icing on the cake”—Leonard Maltin.com; “an intimate and heartfelt memoir...provides a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes during Hollywood’s Golden Era...a great deal to relish in this book”—Ron Howard.

From the Publisher

"an intimate and heartfelt memoir...provides a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes during Hollywood's Golden Era...a great deal to relish in this book"

Ron Howard

an unusually witty and observant look at growing up in Movieland during the 1920s, 30s, and 40s...anyone who's interested in vintage Hollywood will respond...with rapt attention...wonderful rare photos and a warm introduction by film historian Cari Beauchamp are icing on the cake

Leonard Maltin.com