Though Gielgud (1904–2000) remains best known, especially to American audiences, for his Academy Award–winning performance as the butler in Arthur
, his theatrical career in England and the U.S. spanned eight decades—and if the voluminous correspondence reproduced here is any indication, he wrote to family and friends nearly every day of that career. Mangan, a British theater historian, arranges the letters chronologically, and eschews explanatory text save for minimal bits of biographical data. As with any actor, there are roles that never materialized (e.g., he mentions almost getting Rex Harrison's part in the Broadway production of My Fair Lady
and turning down the lead in Bridge on the River Kwai
) and gossip about colleagues (e.g., from the set of Julius Caesar
, he reports Marlon Brando "seems quite unaware of anything except the development of his own evident talents"). Though sometimes catty about fellow actors, like the "revolting boy who plays Rosencrantz abominably" in a 1930s production of Hamlet
, Gielgud is equally hard on himself, turning down one movie part by confessing to George Bernard Shaw that he fears performing badly on film. (He eventually beat the fear, though he never entirely warmed to the medium.) The real treasures here, however, are the letters to male lovers, unavailable to previous biographers, which reveal Gielgud's ease with expressing both his sexuality and his affections. This thick volume may overload casual film buffs, but Gielgud's fans will delight in its abundant riches. 16 pages of b&w photos and eight line drawings not seen by PW
. 20,000 first printing
. (Apr. 14)
FYI:
The book's publication date coincides with the centenary of Gielgud's birth.
