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George Hurrell's Hollywood: Glamour Portraits 1925-1992 Kindle Edition

by Mark A. Vieira (Author), Sharon Stone (Foreword) Format: Kindle Edition
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 232 ratings
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George Hurrell (1904 -- 1992) was the creator of the Hollywood glamour portrait, the maverick artist who captured movie stars of the most exalted era in Hollywood history with bold contrast and seductive poses. This lavishly illustrated book spans Hurrell's entire career, from his beginnings as a society photographer to his finale as the celebrity photographer who was himself a celebrity, and a living legend.

From 1929 to 1944 Hurrell was the "Rembrandt of Hollywood," creating portraits of Marlene Dietrich, Norma Shearer, Bette Davis, Carole Lombard, and Joan Crawford that were a blend of the ethereal and the erotic. His photos of Jane Russell sulking in a haystack made the unknown girl a star -- without a film credit to her name. He immortalized leading males stars of the day from the Barrymores to Clark Gable and Gary Cooper. Latter photo shoots magnified the glamour of the likes of Warren Beatty and Sharon Stone.

Through newly acquired photos and in-depth research, photographer and historian Mark A. Vieira, author of Hurrell's Hollywood Portraits, offers not only a wealth of new images but a compelling sequel to the story presented in his earlier book on Hurrell. Hurrell was himself a star -- rich, famous, successful. Then, at the height of his career, he suffered a vertiginous fall from grace. George Hurrell's Hollywood recounts, for the first time anywhere, Hurrell's rise from the ashes -- how movie-still collectors and art dealers pulled the elderly artist into a nefarious world of theft and fraud; how his undiminished powers gave him a second career; and how his mercurial nature nearly destroyed it.

The photographs that motivate this tale are luminous, powerful, and timeless. This book showcases more than four hundred, most of which have not been published since they were created. George Hurrell's Hollywood is the ultimate work on this trailblazing artist, a fabulous montage of fact and anecdote, light and shadow.
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  1. Print length
    714 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Running Press Adult
  5. Publication date
    November 12, 2013
  6. File size
    34150 KB
  7. Page Flip
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  8. Word Wise
    Not Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Years ago, writer-photographer Mark A. Vieira wrote and compiled a handsome book called Hurrell's Hollywood Portraits.This enormous and elegant volume supersedes it, not only in the quantity and quality of photographs it presents, but in Vieira's candid text, which expands on his earlier work and delves into the second part of Hurrell's life... I think it's fair to refer to this exquisite tome as definitive.
- Leonard Maltin

“A stunning collection of Hollywood portraits by George Hurrell, accompanied by an exploration of his life and career.”
- Shelf Awareness

About the Author

Mark A. Vieira is a filmmaker, photographer, and writer who specializes in Hollywood history. He is the author of Warner Bros. 100, Forbidden Hollywood, Cecil B. DeMille, Into the Dark, and many other film-related titles. He is also the creator of the documentary series DeMille Is Hollywood. Vieira has also appeared in documentaries such as Turner Classic Movies’ Garbo. He has lectured at USC, UCLA, Lincoln Center, and Universal Studios. Vieira resides in the Westlake District of Los Angeles.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00E257THG
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Running Press Adult; Illustrated edition (November 12, 2013)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 12, 2013
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 34150 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 714 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 232 ratings

About the author

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Mark A. Vieira

Mark A. Vieira

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Mark A. Vieira was born in Oakland, California on October 28, 1950. He is a filmmaker, photographer, and writer specializing in Hollywood history. He makes glamour portraits with George Hurrell's camera in the historic Granada Buildings, where Hurrell had his original studio.

In October 2009 Mark celebrated his fortieth anniversary as a professional photographer. In October 2010 the University of Southern California’s ONE Archives Gallery and Museum presented a retrospective of his work entitled “The Glamorous Gaze.”

Mark has lectured at USC, UCLA, at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Universal Studios, the Hollywood Heritage Museum, the Palm Springs Film Festival, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

He has appeared on camera in Photoplay Productions’ "Garbo," in Turner Classic Movies’ "Moguls and Movie Stars," Playboy’s "Sex at 24 Frames per Second," in Universal’s "Forbidden Film," and on "CBS Sunday Morning." In the 2011 BBC documentary "Shooting the Stars," he photographed Leslie Mann and interviewed Jane Russell.

In 2009 Mark guest-curated the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences exhibition: “Irving Thalberg: Creating the Hollywood Studio System, 1920-1936.” In 2011 he co-curated “Harlow at 100” for the Hollywood Museum in the Historic Max Factor Building.

Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
232 global ratings
Mark Vieira captures Hurrell's Hollywood
5 Stars
Mark Vieira captures Hurrell's Hollywood
This book is beautifully written by Mark Vieiraand contains gorgeous portraits of so many stars.I purchased one as a gift for the singer, Sam Smith, and another for myself. I will treasure thisremarkable book forever!
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Top reviews from the United States

Dani M
5.0 out of 5 stars Husband loves it
Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2023
Verified Purchase
Purchased this as a birthday gift for my husband and it was a huge hit. My honey loves old time Hollywood and knew about this photographer. It's a beautiful coffee table book, large and very impressive with amazing photos. Worth the money and highly recommend.
2 people found this helpful
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Mark Westlund
5.0 out of 5 stars GORGEOUS!
Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2023
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Absolutely beautiful book! With some of the most gorgeous photos you’ve ever seen! With an excellent text to tell the life of George Hurrell. Throughly enjoyed this fascinating book!
3 people found this helpful
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NickL
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Hurrell Book
Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2024
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This is a MASSIVE book. It is both a catalog and a study of Hurrell's body of work in Hollywood.
The quality of the images is outstanding, and the coverage is thorough. Anyone interested in
classic pictorials of movie stars by a master photographer will find this book to be both interesting
and useful.
One person found this helpful
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Anthony McGill
5.0 out of 5 stars HOLLYWOOD GLAMOUR AT ITS COLOSSAL BEST
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2014
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Even if you have previous George Hurrell collections in your library don't hesitate to purchase this Mark Vierra colossus. This has got to be the ultimate George Hurrell book; a stupendous collection of the famed photographer's work during the golden years of Hollywood. The golden age photos speak for themselves: to quote "They had faces then" and Hurrell certainly knew how to immortalize them with true Hollywood mystique. Many of these portraits you have seen countless times but there are a substantial of unseen stills presented to warrant buying this new book. There are also some more contemporary photos of musicians and actors of the 80's and early 90's. And the author has provided an excellent and informative biography of the photographer with all the ups and downs of his personal life and his career and the dramas associated with the reproduction of his negatives. Enough material for a movie of the week in itself! Thank goodness they still make books like this!
7 people found this helpful
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james l carroll
5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful book, speedy delivery
Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2023
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Wonderful book about Holllywood, great photography.
2 people found this helpful
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Keith Nichols
5.0 out of 5 stars Best Hurrell book so far!
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2014
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The reproductions in this book surely come as close as possible to doing justice to Hurrell's artistry. The photos are easily the best looking I've found in any Hurrell compendium so far. Mr Vieira's earler bio of Hurrell comes a close second if one has to chose between them. All other attempts I've seen at publishing Hurrell's work fail to varying degrees, apparently, I assume, involving the printers' attempts at holding the large black areas. What most of them produce are undifferentiated blacks and an overall flatness that robs the images of any three-dimensionality, leaving them lying muddily on the page.

The text is excellent, especially in that it chronicles the author's acquaintance with Hurrell to the end of Hurrell's life, specifically by getting into the politics, jealousies, and double-dealing among those involved in collecting, exhibiting, and publishing Hurrell's work. Nobody emerges with a spotless record for integrity.
5 people found this helpful
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Al
4.0 out of 5 stars George Hurrell
Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2014
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He was the master of hollywood glamour photography, with a style all his own that is immedialty recognizable. Have only had a chance to glance thru the book at some of the photographs, but am still looking forward to reading it.
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CJS
5.0 out of 5 stars Stupendous!!!
Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2013
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This coffee-table size book contains some of the most beautiful photographs of Hollywood stars I have ever seen. The photos were taken by famed Hollywood photographer George Hurrell. The book is also a biography of Hurrell. The photos are beautifully reproduced and the story of Hurrell is quite interesting. He went back and forth from being an independent photographer to the various studios including MGM, Fox, Warners, and Columbia. However, all he really wanted to be was a painter. The book contains photos from silent star Ramon Novarro through Paul McCartney and Sharon Stone. There are a great number of photos of Joan Crawford and Norma Shearer (Hurrell’s most frequent clients) and a few of the great male stars including Gable, Flynn, Stewart, Cagney, and Bogart. Highly recommended for anyone who values the artistry of portrait photography and loves the age of classic films and the era when stars were really stars.
23 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Susana
4.0 out of 5 stars Falta de cuidado no envio e falta de clareza nas explicações
Reviewed in Brazil on January 10, 2024
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O livro em si é perfeito, bem ilustrado, fotografias incríveis, bem completo. O vendedor porém não teve nenhuma preocupação com o produto, que veio numa caixa grande sem qualquer proteção, o que acarretou danos a capa. Pra quem vai comprar como entrega internacional saiba que a alfândega de lá (não é a brasileira) cobra imposto também, então o preço final vai aumentar.
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Susana
4.0 out of 5 stars Falta de cuidado no envio e falta de clareza nas explicações
Reviewed in Brazil on January 10, 2024
O livro em si é perfeito, bem ilustrado, fotografias incríveis, bem completo. O vendedor porém não teve nenhuma preocupação com o produto, que veio numa caixa grande sem qualquer proteção, o que acarretou danos a capa. Pra quem vai comprar como entrega internacional saiba que a alfândega de lá (não é a brasileira) cobra imposto também, então o preço final vai aumentar.
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Danbi
5.0 out of 5 stars Meraviglioso!
Reviewed in Italy on April 28, 2024
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Libro con testo inglese, di grande formato e con fotografie sorprendenti delle più grandi stelle Hollywoodiane del passato, realizzate dal maestro della fotografia George Hurrell. Assolutamente da avere per tutti gli appassionati.
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Ruperto
5.0 out of 5 stars Deslumbrante
Reviewed in Spain on January 26, 2022
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La carrera de uno de los fotógrafos más famosos del período dorado de Hollywood es narrada con gran lujo de detalles en este tomo en inglés de gran tamaño, muy buen papel y calidad de impresión, y tapa dura con sobrecubierta. El texto es abundante (y apasionante), pero la cantidad de fotos que aparecen en él es tan grande (mayoritariamente en blanco y negro, muchas a toda página o incluso doble página, y otras a razón de dos por página) que hasta los que no dominen el idioma pueden encontrar atractiva la enorme galería de estrellas, muchas famosas y algunas ya olvidadas, que aparecen en el volumen. Evidentemente las reinas son las dos actrices que se convirtieron en las favoritas de Hurrell : Norma Shearer y Joan Crawford, ambas presentes en gran cantidad de páginas. Pero también hay espacio para Bette Davis, Marlene Dietrich, Errol Flynn, Kate Hepburn, Jean Harlow, Mae West, Carole Lombard, Clark Gable, Ann Sheridan y un largo etcétera. Todos ellos fotografiados con gran creatividad y estilo que hacen del libro una auténtica exhibición del glamour del Hollywood de los años 30 y 40.
2 people found this helpful
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Mr Triggs
5.0 out of 5 stars George Hurrell's Hollywood, a Fitting tribute.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 10, 2021
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What a book this is. Huge in scope and size and full of truly great images beautifully reproduced it takes a prominent place in my reference library.
Even if you don't know his name you most definitely know his work, maybe only a few images, but when you go through this book you will find them, they're all here, along with a wealth of other images that define Hollywood glamour.
It's a biography and a retrospective and a treasure trove all at once and I can thoroughly recommend it to anybody who wants to know how to create the ultimate Hollywood glamour look in their work.
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Vanessa
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful new book from Mark A. Vieira!
Reviewed in Canada on December 5, 2013
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First, let me say this off the bat: I always look forward to Mark A. Vieira's books. They're compelling, they're beautiful and they're wonderfully written. I don't own all his works, but I do own quite a few. One of the last of his coffee table books that I purchased was Harlow In Hollywood: The Blonde Bombshell In the Glamour Capital, 1928-1937 and it's made me cry each time I've sat down to read it.

This time there was nary a tear in sight - unless, of course I came across a portrait of Garbo and stared for hours at her perfectly arched brows without blinking. Believe me, that actually happens 'round here.

In terms of size George Hurrell's Hollywood: Galmour Portraits is a whopper. It weighs in at just over seven pounds and has 416 pages. When I first took the book out of its Amazon box, I literally gasped at how thick it was - the other Hurrell book I own is nowhere near as large (Hurrell's Hollywood Portraits by Mark A. Vieira, 1997). At first I wasn't even completely sold on the idea of purchasing another Hurrell tome because I thought the 1997 edition that I already had sitting on my shelf would suffice. How wrong I was. Perhaps the biggest difference between the two is that this newer book includes a large portion of Hurrell's later work and not just his popular studio-era work from the 20s, 30s, and 40s. This time Vieira goes beyond Hollywood's golden years and really delves into modern-day Hollywood portraiture. So, long story short, if (like me) you own Vieira's original Hurrell book and are debating whether or not you should also go ahead and add this one to your book collection, I'd say it all depends on whether or not you're interested in learning more about Hurrell's later photographic work.

There are a lot of repeats in George Hurrell's Hollywood in terms of portraits we've seen before. Many of the ones that appear in this book also appear in Hurrell's Hollywood Portraits (and Harlow In Hollywood for that matter). I'd say that about 50% of the portraits in Vieira's newest book are repeats, leaving the other 50% as never-before-seen (or, scarcely seen). The most obvious photographic tributes in this book are paid to the likes of Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow, Carole Lombard and Norma Sherear. There are literally pages and pages dedicated to each of these women (but I'm not complaining) when I sort of wish there would have been more attention paid to the famous Hollywood actors of the era (think Gable, Keaton, Powell, and Cagney). A nice addition, though, are the colour images that (personally) I've never seen before!

One of my favourite shots of Jean Harlow.
In terms of the text, there is a very nice foreword written by the sultry Sharon Stone and a nice balance of text and pictorial work on each page. Usually what tends to happen with coffee table books like these is that they're full of glorious images but lack interesting, engaging text - not so with this one! I really enjoyed pouring over Vieira's insightful prose concerning all-things Hurrell: from his humble beginnings as a painter to his storied career as Hollywood's foremost glamour photographer.

If you're even just a casual fan of classic Hollywood or an avid one like me I think you'll really enjoy flipping through this book. There is so much to look at and discover within these pages that you could literally be sitting on your sofa for hours without even realizing it. Do me a favour though, start from the back of the book and work your way to the front from there because there are some really charming portraits that you've probably never seen before - more modern ones - of David Bowie, Paul McCartney and Hurrell himself.

Mark A. Vieira has one other classic film book that's slated for release this year and that's Majestic Hollywood: The Greatest Films of 1939 (published by Running Press on December 10, 2013). That book is already on its way to me (through Amazon) and I plan on reviewing that one next! Like I said at the beginning of this post, Vieira is one of my very favourite authors; I have never been disappointed by him and I'm pretty sure I never shall be. I'm looking forward to delving into that one as soon as it arrives on my doorstep!
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