Hollywood Boozers, Brawlers and Hard-Luck Cases

In the Golden Era of moviemaking, motion picture studios “owned” Hollywood from the beat cops on up, meaning that the wild misadventures of top-earning movie stars were regularly swept out of the public eye. But no such effort was expended on behalf of minor stars, and their shenanigans became tabloid gold in newspapers across America, damaging careers, reputations and lives.
This book presents 15 life stories of Golden Age Hollywood from the sordid to the sad, from battles with the bottle to nightclub brawls, hard-luck childhoods, and even murder. Each write-up includes biographical information, much of which has gone unseen for decades, and filmographies. Actors covered include Ross Alexander, David Bacon, Bruce Cabot, James Cardwell, William Eythe, Wallace Ford, Billy Halop, Weldon Heyburn, Ronald Lewis, Tom Neal, Allan Nixon, Craig Reynolds, Danny Scholl, Lawrence Tierney, and Sonny Tufts.

Writer Laura Wagner lives in New York. She is the book reviewer and contributing editor of the magazines Classic Images and Films of the Golden Age.

Laura Wagner
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 356
Bibliographic Info: 105 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2025
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9011-7
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5406-5
Imprint: McFarland

Introduction and Acknowledgments       1
Ross Alexander       5
David Bacon       19
Bruce Cabot       32
James Cardwell       61
William Eythe       69
Wallace Ford       91
Billy Halop       120
Weldon Heyburn       132
Ronald Lewis       147
Tom Neal       164
Allan Nixon       195
Craig Reynolds       216
Danny Scholl       229
Lawrence Tierney       245
Sonny Tufts       281
Bibliography       305
Index       325

“Wagner devotes a chapter each to 15 actors, many unknown today, who enjoyed some fame before tragic circumstances or bad decisions took it all away. …movie mavens will lap up Wagner’s book. This is Hollywood Babylon for “B” movie stars.”—Library Journal