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Reviews tagging 'Suicide'
The Lady from the Black Lagoon: Hollywood Monsters and the Lost Legacy of Milicent Patrick by Mallory O'Meara
9 reviews
bmpicc's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
... And now I need to rewatch the movie. Part life of Milicent and where she came from, part Mallory memoir, part feminist manifesto. I understand some criticism of this book (the why did Mallory insert herself into the story question), but that WAS part of the story. How Milicent affected the trajectory of her life, the parallels between their stories, and how damn hard it was to find any REAL information about the artist. I enjoyed it.
I tested the audiobook for part of this and Mallory did a fantastic job reading it. I would still get the book though. The images on these pages are stunning. I had no idea how beautiful Milicent was.
I tested the audiobook for part of this and Mallory did a fantastic job reading it. I would still get the book though. The images on these pages are stunning. I had no idea how beautiful Milicent was.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, and Suicide
talonsontypewriters's review
informative
medium-paced
1.5
In an early chapter, O'Meara mentions angrily that some people were dubious that Milicent Patrick's life story could "fill an entire book." In setting out to disprove that, she unfortunately seems to have done the opposite, since the bulk of this book doesn't really feel like it's about Milicent Patrick at all.
Instead, we're treated to lengthy paragraphs about supporting members of Milicent's life -- do we really need that much backstory on William Randolph Hearst (whom O'Meara assumes readers won't know of aside from as the inspiration for Citizen Kane, which feels strange to me) to understand his wife's friendship with young Milicent? -- and O'Meara's own experiences, including many not related to her search for information. The former could have been heavily cut down to the relevant details, and the latter could have been interesting... as an introduction and/or afterword, rather than dispersed throughout the book. Quips and subjective interpretations overwhelm the actual facts, making it difficult to tell what can be gleaned from the records and what comes down to O'Meara's thoughts (and projection).
There's also quite a bit of repetition (so many sentences start with "Remember"), particularly regarding bigotry and abuse. Like, I guarantee you just about anyone interested in this book understands sexism is bad and was rampant in the 1950s. Any sense of intersectionality toward that, additionally, comes across as lip service; the seeming implication that a non-feminine woman would be more easily accepted into spaces dominated by cishet white men than a glamorous woman in "sparkling pumps" particularly rankled. Maybe I'm oversensitive as a butch lesbian who hates that kind of take, but your personal relationship with dressing up/makeup does not magically erase the standards of conventional femininity women (especially marginalized women) are forced to uphold.
O'Meara does note that Milicent's race, gender/sexuality, appearance (which she comments positively upon in the same breath she criticizes others for focusing on), and social status enabled her opportunities other women didn't and still don't get -- but fails to really delve into that. If the main point really was to simply describe Milicent Patrick's life and work, that would have been fine, but if there's room for everything else I've mentioned... why not add another layer of social commentary?
A Portuguese man is also described in passing as a person of color? I admittedly haven't seen The Creature from the Black Lagoon yet, so maybe his character there is Indigenous, but odd either way.
All that contributes to a sense of complete disorganization, to the level that I genuinely questioned if anyone had edited/proofed this multiple times. There is some interesting information about Milicent Patrick's life in here, but I do feel I could have learned the same from a more concise, focused article. In short, a super interesting premise and person overrun by tangents and an obnoxiously quirky narrative voice.
Instead, we're treated to lengthy paragraphs about supporting members of Milicent's life -- do we really need that much backstory on William Randolph Hearst (whom O'Meara assumes readers won't know of aside from as the inspiration for Citizen Kane, which feels strange to me) to understand his wife's friendship with young Milicent? -- and O'Meara's own experiences, including many not related to her search for information. The former could have been heavily cut down to the relevant details, and the latter could have been interesting... as an introduction and/or afterword, rather than dispersed throughout the book. Quips and subjective interpretations overwhelm the actual facts, making it difficult to tell what can be gleaned from the records and what comes down to O'Meara's thoughts (and projection).
There's also quite a bit of repetition (so many sentences start with "Remember"), particularly regarding bigotry and abuse. Like, I guarantee you just about anyone interested in this book understands sexism is bad and was rampant in the 1950s. Any sense of intersectionality toward that, additionally, comes across as lip service; the seeming implication that a non-feminine woman would be more easily accepted into spaces dominated by cishet white men than a glamorous woman in "sparkling pumps" particularly rankled. Maybe I'm oversensitive as a butch lesbian who hates that kind of take, but your personal relationship with dressing up/makeup does not magically erase the standards of conventional femininity women (especially marginalized women) are forced to uphold.
O'Meara does note that Milicent's race, gender/sexuality, appearance (which she comments positively upon in the same breath she criticizes others for focusing on), and social status enabled her opportunities other women didn't and still don't get -- but fails to really delve into that. If the main point really was to simply describe Milicent Patrick's life and work, that would have been fine, but if there's room for everything else I've mentioned... why not add another layer of social commentary?
A Portuguese man is also described in passing as a person of color? I admittedly haven't seen The Creature from the Black Lagoon yet, so maybe his character there is Indigenous, but odd either way.
All that contributes to a sense of complete disorganization, to the level that I genuinely questioned if anyone had edited/proofed this multiple times. There is some interesting information about Milicent Patrick's life in here, but I do feel I could have learned the same from a more concise, focused article. In short, a super interesting premise and person overrun by tangents and an obnoxiously quirky narrative voice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
Moderate: Chronic illness and Sexual harassment
Minor: Cancer, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicide
danimacuk's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
Moderate: Cursing, Suicide, and Terminal illness
Minor: Cancer, Death, Infertility, Grief, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
jooheart's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
Moderate: Cursing and Xenophobia
Minor: Suicide
rtaire's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Suicide
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Body shaming, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
bradleygiselle's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
Upon reread I love this even more! O'Meara is hilarious and so engaging. I devoured the whole book and instantly grabbed her next book Girly Drinks: A Women's History of Drinking even though I don't drink because she's just such a pleasure to read!
Content Warnings
Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
laurenleigh's review against another edition
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
This was soooo amazing, and right up my alley! It’s inspiring me to read more biography and more nonfiction. I also adored Susan Orlean’s The Library Book, so I think I just love nonfiction set in 20th century LA. The focus of this book is on the artist who created and designed the monster in Creature from the Black Lagoon. For decades, her work has gone uncredited, for a whole host of reasons that O’Meara explores. This alone was a fascinating tale of Old Hollywood, but this book is so much more than that. Milicent Patrick’s life is such an amazing story! Her history touches on the creation of Hearst Castle and Julia Morgan’s architecture, the early animation days of Disney, and of course, the legendary monster movies from Universal. If you love California history, this is a must read! I really enjoyed how O’Meara tells Milicent’s story alongside how she discovered these facts. As a lover of research, this was so fun. O’Meara also uses her own life as material, especially where it mirrors Milicent Patrick’s. At the heart of this is an important discussion of Hollywood’s sexist roots, and how this disease is still infecting the entertainment industry today. This book comes at the perfect time in the Me Too movement. I can’t wait to read her next book on the background of women making and participating in the alcohol industry!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Suicide and Medical content
Minor: Body shaming, Infertility, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
mandkips's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, and Suicide
lezzieborden's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Alcoholism, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship