Monday, July 27, 2009

A Star is Born: The Making of the 1954 Movie and its 1983 Restoration by Ronald Haver

A Star is Born is a movie with many more stories than just its plot. Its second incarnation in 1954 starred Judy Garland and was heralded as a triumph of moviemaking, until Warner Brothers inexplicably cut the film's length by half an hour after it was released. This book chronicles the making of the film, its undoing, and the fascinating later attempts to restore it (the author spearheaded the restoration effort, which was made more difficult because there was no known original version). Anyone interested in film history, or just simply a good story, should read this book.

Leatherby Libraries Call Number: PN1997.S65923 H38 1988
3rd Floor Film/TV Library
Review submitted by: Jennifer Bevan, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies
Rating: Highly Recommended

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