E.J. Fleming

For a decade Wallace Reid was the most recognized face in Hollywood, the most universally beloved actor in silent film. Today all that is widely remembered of "Wally" Reid is that he died in a padded sanitarium cell, the victim of a fatal morphine addiction. Of all the actors who have enjoyed great fame only to vanish from the public eye, Reid perhaps fell the fastest and the hardest. This first full biography recounts Reid's complicated childhood, his disrupted family history and his rise to film stardom despite these restricting factors. It documents his myriad talents and accomplishments, most notably his gift for brilliant onscreen acting. The text explores in depth how the modern studio, however unconsciously, turned the popular star, a well-adjusted man with a loving family, into a drug-dependent mental patient within three years. His death rocked the foundations of Hollywood, and the huge new industry that he helped build nearly died with "Dashing Wally Reid."

"This work examines Landis's life and career in Hollywood, focusing on how her movie career affected her short, unhappy life"--Provided by publisher.

Spending Time in the Word is a collection of lessons from the bible that can be taught in twenty minutes or less. As a rendition of The Bible Lesson Pocket Book, this is great for small group bible studies, conference call bible studies, Sunday School, and mid-week prayer service. In addition, this is a great resource for ministers and teachers who are always on the go and called upon to teach at the last minute. The lessons contained herein are concise and to the point. Yet, they are still attention grabbing and discussion stimulating. You will find lessons on faith, taking matters into you own hands, steps for finding joy, placement of trust, making up your mind, your spiritual geography, standing in your own way, and dealing with defeat. The author does a great job with getting into the heart of the lesson but yet leaving enough room for the minister and teacher to incorporate his or her personality, knowledge, and experience into the teaching moment. This book is a great jewel for any minister or teacher to have.In addition to being a great teaching resource, this is also a wonderful devotional book. Why wait for a bible study to go through the lessons? The lessons can be simply read any time of the day for meditation and enriching one's personal spiritual journey.

For over 100 years, people have been drawn to sites of tragedy involving the rich, beautiful, and notorious of Hollywood. Tourists visiting the center of the movie universe flock to Rudolph Valentino's grave, the house where Marilyn Monroe died, the “O.J. murders” condo, the hotel where John Belushi overdosed, and myriad haunted mansions. The book tells the fascinating stories and makes finding those locations simple. It is an extensively-researched update to E.J. Fleming's first Hollywood Death and Scandal Sites book, published in 2000.Seventeen driving tours include over 650 sites relating to celebrity deaths and scandals. Each tour covers a specific area from Hollywood and the Sunset Strip to Brentwood and Malibu, covering the entire L.A. basin. There are concise, easy-to-follow, directions to each location (over 150 photos help pinpoint the sites) and the fascinating real story behind each stop. Mildly curious? Wildly morbid? Whatever your style, turn to this book - and you'll soon be turning some of Hollywood's darkest corners.

Eddie Mannix and Howard Strickling are virtually unknown outside of Hollywood and little-remembered even there, but as General Manager and Head of Publicity for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, they lorded over all the stars in Hollywood's golden age from the 1920s through the 1940s--including legends like Garbo, Dietrich, Gable and Garland. When MGM stars found themselves in trouble, it was Eddie and Howard who took care of them--solved their problems, hid their crimes, and kept their secrets. They were "the Fixers." At a time when image meant everything and the stars were worth millions to the studios that owned them, Mannix and Strickling were the most important men at MGM. Through a complex web of contacts in every arena, from reporters and doctors to corrupt police and district attorneys, they covered up some of the most notorious crimes and scandals in Hollywood history, keeping stars out of jail and, more importantly, their names out of the papers. They handled problems as diverse as the murder of Paul Bern (husband of MGM's biggest star, Jean Harlow), the studio-directed drug addictions of Judy Garland, the murder of Ted Healy (creator of The Three Stooges) at the hands of Wallace Beery, and arranging for an unmarried Loretta Young to adopt her own child--a child fathered by a married Clark Gable. Through exhaustive research and interviews with contemporaries, this is the never-before-told story of Eddie Mannix and Howard Strickling. The dual biography describes how a mob-related New Jersey laborer and the quiet son of a grocer became the most powerful men at the biggest studio in the world.

The tragic death of 13-year-old Danny Croteau in 1972 faded from headlines and memories for 20 years until the Boston abuse scandal--a string of assaults within the Catholic Church--exploded in the early 2000s. Despite numerous indications--including 40 claims of sexual misconduct with minors--pointing to him as Croteau's killer, the Reverend Richard R. Lavigne remains "innocent." Drawing on more than 10,000 pages of police and court records and interviews with Danny's friends and family, fellow abuse victims, and church officials, the author uncovers the truth--church complicity in a cover up and the masking of priests' involvement in a ring of abusive clergy--behind Croteau's death and those who had a hand in it.

Paul Bern, known throughout the movie business as "Hollywood's Father Confessor," earned a reputation for being a loyal and supportive friend and for becoming one of MGM's most respected and creative directors. After his death, though, he was said to have grown so depressed and despondent over his own apparent sexual inadequacies that he committed suicide, and he would be denounced for attempting to rape his new bride Jean Harlow. In this biography, the author uncovers startling new facts and argues that MGM knew the real story of Bern's death--that an estranged, mentally ill common-law wife murdered him. MGM understood that the earlier spouse rendered Bern's marriage to Harlow, its fastest-rising star, ambiguous if not bigamous, so the studio staged a suicide and embarked on a very public tarnishing of his memory. Included are 93 rare photos, many lost for decades, along with three appendices examining the handwriting on an alleged suicide note and Bern's will and estate.