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I hadn't realized until recently what a difficult life Mary Astor led. To me she was always the gal in THE MALTESE FALCON who led a life "worse than you could imagine," but I had no idea it really was.

She wrote her story in 1959, and later an evaluation of her films. Both books are quite expensive on the used market today. I'll try and get a library copy.

Has anyone attempted to write a biography of her in recent years? Any good articles, essays, that anyone could recommend?

Although Maltese Falcon is my least favorite of all her pictures, due to the dour nature of her role, hers is a name that instantly draws me to any film I haven't seen. (Though I don't think I've missed any of her pre-war pictures.)

Was unaware there was anything particularly difficult about her upbringing--she found the support for training as a concert pianist, which wouldn't have been inexpensive.

I don't know about any recent biography. Recently her daughter emailed into some website(I can't remember if it was N'trateville or other) and reminisced about her mom. The daughter was very wonderful and enjoyed talking about her mom and I think how she would've enjoyed the internet.

Mary Astor recounted her affair with John Barrymore whom she met while filming BEAU BRUMMEL (1925). She said she spent afternoons in his hotel room and he gave her a gift of pajamas with the initials M.A.B. embroidered on them. Whatever talk there might of been of marriage didn't go anywhere. Indeed, Barrymore was married at the time. Years later in 1939 when they were paired in MIDNIGHT, he supposedly told her, "It's just as well that we didn't marry. You would have had a miserable life."

Bob about Beau Brummel, that was shot in 1923 and released in '24. The two of them were contemplating either starring in a play or making a silent film on the 'Paola & Francesca' story. Hence several photo graphs of them in costuming:

http://broadway.cas.sc.edu/content/mary-astor-0" target="_blank" target="_blank

http://37.media.tumblr.com/58e50b546a27 ... o1_500.jpg" target="_blank" target="_blank" target="_blank

http://www.barrymorefamily.com/images/mary-john.jpg" target="_blank" target="_blank" target="_blank

Good article here about Mary Astor on the Chiseler website: http://chiseler.org/post/6004428599/a-l ... mary-astor

sepiatone wrote:I don't know about any recent biography. Recently her daughter emailed into some website(I can't remember if it was N'trateville or other) and reminisced about her mom. The daughter was very wonderful and enjoyed talking about her mom and I think how she would've enjoyed the internet.

The blog that was contacted by Mary's Astor's daughter Marilyn was Self Styled Siren.
The two posts are here (excellent reading as is every entry on The Siren's blog):
http://selfstyledsiren.blogspot.com/201 ... k-she.html
and
http://selfstyledsiren.blogspot.com/201 ... rylyn.html

Back to the original question, I know someone who is thinking about working Mary Astor (who would be fabulous, he's a very good writer, and more importantly, fantastic researcher). but I think he has something else in the hopper first.

Astor's first memoir, My Story: An Autobiography, is available in full on Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/mystoryanautobio001183mbp, but I would recommend her second, A Life on Film, ahead of it. She's a good writer, and very clear-eyed and unsentimental about her career. I'm not sure why it's so expensive on Amazon or Ebay; I bought mine in a secondhand shop for $3!

Thanks everyone, for the comments. You've been incredibly helpful here. This site is a great resource!

Mary Astor grew on me gradually to the point that I now adore her and eagerly anticipate any film in which she appears which is new to me. I remember wondering many years ago while watching the Huston Maltese Falcon why on earth the director had cast her. She seemed insipid, plain and lifeless. Now I wonder how I could ever have thought that, I love her performance in the MF.

As I say learning to love her was a gradual process; it was movies such as Dodsworth, Across The Pacific, I Am A Thief which helped to pull the scales from my eyes. Wonderful actress!

I saw Beau Brummel recently and Astor was just delightful. I'll watch again with new eyes now that I know about the affair with Barrymore. And those 2 autobiographies just moved to the top of my must-read list.

aldiboronti wrote:Mary Astor grew on me gradually to the point that I now adore her and eagerly anticipate any film in which she appears which is new to me. I remember wondering many years ago while watching the Huston Maltese Falcon why on earth the director had cast her. She seemed insipid, plain and lifeless. Now I wonder how I could ever have thought that, I love her performance in the MF.

As I say learning to love her was a gradual process; it was movies such as Dodsworth, Across The Pacific, I Am A Thief which helped to pull the scales from my eyes. Wonderful actress!

I saw Beau Brummel recently and Astor was just delightful. I'll watch again with new eyes now that I know about the affair with Barrymore. And those 2 autobiographies just moved to the top of my must-read list.

Have you seen PALM BEACH STORY? If not, put it alongside the books at the top of your list.

Danny Burk wrote: Have you seen PALM BEACH STORY? If not, put it alongside the books at the top of your list.

I had no idea that Mary Astor was in it! I've seen several Preston Sturges movies but hadn't got round to seeing that one. To the top it goes.

rudyfan wrote:

sepiatone wrote:I don't know about any recent biography. Recently her daughter emailed into some website(I can't remember if it was N'trateville or other) and reminisced about her mom. The daughter was very wonderful and enjoyed talking about her mom and I think how she would've enjoyed the internet.

The blog that was contacted by Mary's Astor's daughter Marilyn was Self Styled Siren.
The two posts are here (excellent reading as is every entry on The Siren's blog):
http://selfstyledsiren.blogspot.com/201 ... k-she.html
and
http://selfstyledsiren.blogspot.com/201 ... rylyn.html

Back to the original question, I know someone who is thinking about working Mary Astor (who would be fabulous, he's a very good writer, and more importantly, fantastic researcher). but I think he has something else in the hopper first.

Thanks Rudyfan, the user name sounds about right.

Astor's early film years seem as prolific as Clara Bow's . Bow's number of appearances in 1925 alone has to be some sort of record. Astor is in some good programmer silents as well as big budget . I wish she had more of a role in Fairbanks's "Don Q". Im waiting for a surviving film of hers from 1924 "Fighting Coward" based on a Booth Tarkington novel. A pretty high class film and directed by James Cruz. She did two silents with the 'Fighting' in them in 1924, "Fighting American" which I have and the Tarkington story. Thankfully they both survived all the years.

"Fighting Coward" used to be available from Grapevine. I still have an old VHS of it. "Fighting American" was also available in same format. I have that one, too.