Böcker av Axel Nissen

Best known for her roles in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, It's a Wonderful Life and Make Way for Tomorrow, Beulah Bondi (1889-1981) had a 60-year long acting career. This biography is the first to unpack Bondi's life before and throughout her film career.

Agnes Moorehead (1900-74) was unique among twentieth-century American actresses in making a major career for herself in all four entertainment media after the age of 40. This title focuses on Moorehead's career in radio, on the stage, and in television. A representative selection of 25 of her most interesting and representative performances in these media are discussed in separate profiles.

Drawing on historical documents and newspaper reports, this book provides a fascinating group portrait of a diverse group of character actresses who left their stamp on Hollywood from the early sound era through the 1960s. The lives of 40 actresses are explored in detail. Some are familiar, others are nearly forgotten.

From the early days of sound film through the end of the studio era, this volume documents in detail the lives and careers of two score of Hollywood's most talented character actresses. It presents information regarding birth, death, film credits and prizes and analyzes each player's unique talents, signature roles and overall career development. Forty individual profiles are provided from a representative range of backgrounds, character types and career experiences. These include actresses such as Marjorie Main, Agnes Moorehead, Thelma Ritter, Fay Bainter, Beulah Bondi, Lucile Watson, Sara Allgood, Lee Patrick and Jessie Ralph, among others. A fascinating tour through Hollywood's big studio era and the lives of its characters.

Analyses the contributions of female supporting players in the films of Hollywood's Golden Age. The twenty-five actresses profiled range from the easily recognisable to the long forgotten, and from the prolific to the one-work wonders. Each profile captures the essence of the individual performer's on-screen persona, unique talents and popular appeal, with special emphasis on the single definitive performance of the actress's motion picture career.

Examining the novels and short stories of Victorian America, this book uncovers the widely overlooked phenomenon of passionate friendships between men. It offers a fresh perspective on nineteenth-century America's attitudes toward love, friendship, marriage, and sex.

Before she achieved immortality on the long-running situation comedy Bewitched, Agnes Moorehead had established a distinguished career as a character actress. After her screen debut in Citizen Kane (1941), Moorehead became one of the most familiar female faces on the silver screen. For moviegoers of the 1940s and ';50s, she was the quintessential character actress, earning four Academy Award nominations during a career that saw her gain the respect of her peers in all four major entertainment media: radio, film, theater, and television. In The Films of Agnes Moorehead, Axel Nissen looks at the actress's sixty-three feature films between 1941 and 1973. Each film is profiled here, with particular emphasis placed on the films that merit closer attention: Citizen Kane, The Magnificent Ambersons, Mrs. Parkington, Dark Passage, All That Heaven Allows, The Left Hand of God, The Swan, Tempest, The Bat, and Hush Hush, Sweet Charlotte. Arranged in chronological order, the discussion of these films highlights Moorehead's contribution to each feature. In addition to analyzing her performances, the author discusses the development of Moorehead's career as a whole, along with her relationship with various studios, directors, producers, and fellow actors. Based on extensive interviews with the actress's surviving friends and co-workers, as well as detailed archival research into primary sources, this book brings to light new information not just about Moorehead's work in film, but on her life and career in general. Though this book will certainly appeal to movie buffs, The Films of Agnes Moorehead will also be of interest to students and scholars of classic Hollywood films, including those interested in women and film, gender studies, and film history.