Kate Remembered--Katharine Hepburn's biography

[Guest jeffOH]

Once I started reading this book, it was hard to put down. Positively fascinating. What a life!

 

A. Scott Berg, started out just to do an article about her for Esquire magazine in the early '80s. But, Kate decided that he should do her biography. She asked that he not publish it until her death.

 

I loved her as an actress/human being and having read this, I love her even more.

 

JEFF

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[Guest alanm]

Lucy on Kate

 

Similar books about Lucille Ball's last years always include phone calls from Hepburn ("Lucy dear, someday soon I may rap, rap, rap on

your dower, so we could talk and laugh, wouldn't that be such fun?").

Lucy can not get off the phone quick enough (usually followed by a few well chosen swear words). I am with Lucy. I just never understood

Hepburn's off screen appeal.

 

I looked at four or five chapters of "Kate Remembered" at Borders over the weekend. It took a lot for me to get beyond the author's telling us how close he was to Kate over and over. Once over it, I would recommend the book even for people like me. Hepburn made some great movies ("Long Day's Journey into Night") and the book is a good read. But, this is very much a very loving memory of Hepburn, not a well researched full scale bio like the author's other books.

[Guest jeffOH]

RE: Lucy on Kate

 

You're right, it's not a well-researched bio like Scott Berg's Puliter Prize-winning "Lindbergh"(apparently Kate was instrumental in getting Anne Lindbergh to meet with Mr. Berg)and "Goldwyn". The subjects of which were both dead when those books were written.

 

The book is based mainly upon conversations she had with him. I think this book really showed her "warts and all". It humanized her and I liked her even more having read this book. I highly recommend it to anyone who's a fan.

 

JEFF

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[Guest alanm]

RE: Lucy on Kate

 

I imagine that many people were surprised when the NY Times gave "Kate

Remembered" a mixed to negative review yesterday. You really need to

be a strong Hepburn fan to completely enjoy the book. It would be interesting to know what Hepburn's family thinks about the book,

which reveals that Kate had completely lost her short term memory long before her death. Berg also states that Hepburn was found to have a large, aggressive tumor in her neck weeks before her death.

 

Jeff, I appreciate your understanding response to someone who did not particularly like the offscreen Hepburn (and may not have liked the

bossy offscreen Lucy).