Possessed: The Life of Joan Crawford »

A prolific and respected biographer and theologian, Donald Spoto is the author of twenty published books, among them bestselling biographies of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Alfred Hitchcock, Tennessee Williams, and Ingrid Bergman. His books have been translated into more than twenty languages. Donald Spoto earned his Ph.D. in theology at Fordham University. After years as a theology professor, he turned to fulltime writing. The Hidden Jesus: A New Life, published in 1999, was hailed by the Los Angeles Times as "offering a mature faith fit for the new millennium." His successful biography of Saint Francis was published in 2002. Spoto lectures worldwide on important topics such as theology, the arts, and social issues.

Joan Crawford was one of the most incandescent film stars of all time, yet she was also one of the most misunderstood. In this brilliantly researched, thoughtful, and intimate biography, bestselling author Donald Spoto goes beyond the popular caricature—the abusive, unstable mother of her adopted daughter Christina Crawfords memoir, Mommie Dearest—to give us a three-dimensional portrait of a very human woman, her dazzling career, and her extraordinarily dramatic life and times. Illuminating and entertaining, Possessed is the definitive biography of this remarkable woman and true legend of film.

Library Journal

Author of more than 20 celebrity biographies, Spoto (High Society: The Life of Grace Kelly) begins his latest by sharing a response from Joan Crawford to a fan letter he wrote when he was ten. Though much has been written about Crawford, who died in 1977, Spoto justifies his contribution by writing, "because no other movie star—with the possible exception of Marilyn Monroe—has been so underappreciated, misrepresented by rumor, innuendo, fabrication, unfounded allegation and rank distortion." Does Mommie Dearest ring a bell? So it seems Spoto wants to thank Crawford for her kindness to him as a boy by setting the record straight and clearing her name. He relies on the Joan Crawford papers, scrapbooks, letters, and ephemera housed at the New York Public Library, as well as what has already been written. VERDICT What sets this biography apart from previous titles? Where other biographers made sensational statements about Crawford as fact, Spoto makes assertions based on his research as to what would and would not have been likely or possible. This is a balanced and readable account of a possibly misunderstood and maligned star. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 6/15/10.]—Rosellen Brewer, Sno-Isle Libs., Marysville, WA

Introduction

One A Prairie Bernhardt (1906-1924) 1

Two The Flapper, Flapping (1925) 20

Three Enter the Prince (1926-1929) 40

Four Enter the King (1929-1930) 62

Five Virtuous Vices (1931-1932) 81

Six Mrs. Tone (1932-1937) 101

Seven Joan, Julie, Susan---and God (1937-1940) 126

Eight A Trilogy of Transformations (1941-1942) 148

Nine Oscar (1943-1947) 168

Ten Children! Children! (1947-1951) 190

Eleven Carrying a Torch Song (1952-1955) 215

Twelve Some of the Best of Everything (1955-1962) 233

Thirteen "Miss Crawford Is A Star!" (1962-1970) 257

Fourteen Fade-Out (1971-1977) 278

Acknowledgments 293

Notes 295

Bibliography 311

Index 315