Description: The first in-depth study of one of Hollywood's most popular but forgotten leading men
Brief description: Gillian Kelly is author of Ray Milland: Identity, Stardom, and the Long Climb to "The Lost Weekend" and Robert Taylor: Male Beauty, Masculinity, and Stardom in Hollywood, both published by University Press of Mississippi; Tyrone Power: Gender, Genre and Image in Classical Hollywood Cinema; and Ida Lupino: Multifaceted Performer and Cinematic Pioneer. She has written extensively on gender, Hollywood stars, and country music for academic journals and edited collections.
Review Quotes: Gillian Kelly's groundbreaking book sheds light not only on the complex and unique image of Robert Taylor as 'the perfect star, ' but also on the creation of stars under the studio system, what their lives were like, and how they had to adapt when that system declined. Clearly contextualized within star studies, this detailed and nuanced work is meticulously researched and written with charm and candor. This handsome, frequently forgotten star merits this close attention, which reveals so much about how types of masculinity, male beauty, press coverage, and private life affected the creation and endurance of Taylor's star persona.--Lucy Bolton, senior lecturer in film studies at Queen Mary University of London; author of Film and Female Consciousness: Irigaray, Cinema and Thinking Women; and coeditor of Lasting Screen Stars: Images that Fade and Personas that Endure