"This little book isn't bad.not really. But it sure-as-s*it ain't worth 50 bucks. It is talky, and repetitious and not even very original. Die hard fans will recognize many of the anecdotes" from other books. From Sherk to Kear to Tranberg, we've heard it all before. I'll admit that Nissen can be VERY amusing. His bitchy rant(s) put me in mind of John Simon. Which is to suggest that at times, Nissen can be too much. The badly reproduced photographs in the book culled from the author's collection) aren't anything special either. They've been floating about the Web for ages. Which brings me to Sunny Point #2-Paul Gregory. When will this bitter Queen just lie down and die It would seem that during the writing of "The Films of Agnes Moorehead" Paul Gregory and Axel Nissen became fast friends. God help us all."
(only half kidding). Every Moorehead "biographer" seems compelled to treat the old bugger like the Oracle at Delphi(at least on the subject of Agnes) and here, Nissen is no exception. And so we get the usual melange of camp, rant, and vitriol. Agnes "devastated" over the dissolution of her marriage to Gist. Agnes(perhaps channeling Emily Hawkins) pining away over Joe Cotton(!?!) New one on me. Agnes made to look as ridiculous as possible. The book hits an all-time-low with PG's account of his reaction to a painting of Aggie as Queen Elizabeth (The Story of Mankind)-"With the small crowned head atop the hugely dressed body, I thought it looked like Frankenstein." Charming.
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