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Was this Cleopatra? Some said "No" Her bookplate shows an erotic charm
Forty years after the Great Vampire's death two books have appeared simultaneously about her life. Ronald Genini's Theda Bara: A Biography of the Silent Screen Vamp with a Filmography (LC 96-11764, ISBN 0-7864-0202-4) has been published by McFarland & Company (Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640; phone orders 1-800-253-2187) for $29.95.(The other book is Eve Golden's Vamp: The Rise and Fall of Theda Bara published by Emprise Publishing; it's well-written in a different style, emphasizing different aspects of Theda's life and is also nicely illustrated)
A San Francisco Chronicle ad from July 1918 shows the titilation utilized by the Fox studio.
Theda: beguiler....
or was it...
.
..Theda beguiled?
From this .... to this!
What have the critics said?
"The scope of Genini's research . . . is impressive; his
marshaling of primary materials makes for an insightful and
compelling narration of the invention, exploitation, and erasure
of the silver screen's first sex goddess.... Photographs
illustrate and chronicle the stages of her life. A useful volume
on silent American film."
- Choice (the journal
of the American Library Association)
"Ronald Genini gives us a full, rich perspective on the
seductive young vamp who destroyed men's hearts on the silent
screen.... A splendid treat for all silent film fans!"
- Movie/Entertainment BookClub
"The bibliography must list everything ever published
on the star."
-Classic Images
"Genini successfully places Bara in the context of early
Hollywood....His accounts of her pop-cultural weight in her own
time are fascinating, and encompass murder trials, look-alike
contests -- even a Theda Bara sandwich ("it bites a little
and
says 'more'")."
- Filmfax
The Encyclopedia Britannica Online Articles of Women in American History
(1999) lists this book as one of two bibliographic sources for Theda Bara.What have readers said?
Bettie Page, the quintessential pinup queen and sex goddess of
the early 1950s, wrote to Genini that
"I. . . find it most interesting.... You are such a good
writer that it is a real pleasure to read your books and articles."
Tom Bond, child star ("Butch" in Our Gang) of the 1930s, said that "It's a well put together, beautiful book. Those stars were people we'll never see the like of again."
R.T. Carr, librarian at the Cecil L. Green Library of Stanford University, wrote "I just read your Bio of Theda Bara. Nice work!"
The perception...
and the reality...
(A postage stamp issued in 1994 from a series honoring silent screen stars, a rubber stamp impression of her face as it appeared in "Cleopatra", sitting at home with her favorite Russian wolfhound, looking at a mummy's coffin in an Egyptology exhibit, visiting an Army camp during World War I)
The author, a high school history teacher in Fresno,
California, has covered her life in 168 pages, with 43 photographs
from her childhood, screen career and married life (most previously
unpublished), a filmography including her live theater performances
and an index. The book uses 55# alkaline paper and is set in 10
point type on 12 point leading in red Smythsewn library binding.
Pictures used by permission;
contact Ronald Genini at [email protected]
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