Book Reviewed: Hollywood's Hard-Luck Ladies: 23 Actresses Who Suffered Early Deaths, Accidents, Missteps, Illnesses and Tragedies, by Laura Wagner

Images of women lost during the early years of Tinseltown This book discusses the lives of 23 ladies of entertainment industry of the 1930's, 1940's, and 1950's who were known in their heyday but are virtually unknown today to anyone under the age of 50 unless you watch Turner Classic Movies (TCM) regularly. That was the Golden Age of Hollywood, between 1920s and 1950s, when the studio system ruled the film industry. The Big Five studios controlled the business, they created stars and owned their work contracts and marketed their talents like a product. There have been many tragedies in Hollywood history. The well-known are, Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Natalie Wood, Sharon Tate, Jean Harlow, Thelma Todd, Carole Lombard, and Jayne Mansfield. But there are many stories which are less documented, and they found it either difficult to navigate the rough waters of entertainment industry or saw their dreams shattered by hard luck. Many girls braved the entertainment industry. They were looking for long and lucrative careers, but they never attained stardom, but their stories deserve to be heard, and this book narrates the stories of each of them. They had pressures of work and competition that exacerbated the performer's drinking and her already fragile mental stability. Some suffered from mental illness, drug addiction, victims of accidents, suicides, and murder. There were few medical treatments for mental illness those days, and some were victims of bipolar disorder like Lynne Baggett, Mary Castle, Mae Clarke, and Mayo Methot. With no medications to ease their pain, alcohol and controlled substances was their escape which complicated their careers. Actress Suzan Ball lost a leg to cancer; a hunting accident paralyzed Susan Peters; a car crash put Marjie Millar out of commission. Lynne Baggett and Helen Walker were involved in vehicular homicide that affected them emotionally. Car crashes brought untimely deaths to promising screen personalities like Dorothy Dell and Judy Tyler. Actress Susan Cabot was clubbed to death by her own son. Morphine addict Mary Nolan was in and out of hospitals many times. There are too many fascinating stories in this book that makes an interesting read. TCM cable channel offers a great opportunity for movie fans. I have watched the films of many women in this book over the years and it has helped me connect with their work and challenges. Some of them endured harsh circumstances in their short and unsuccessful careers. You will find inspirational stories which are sad, but there were also brighter moments of joy and victory in their lives.