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An 80-year-old woman who was once a famous movie star entices a 20-year-old newspaper reporter to help in the writing of her memoir, gradually enfolding him within a web of control and manipulation. If it sounds like Sunset Boulevard, there are indeed similarities in this fascinating true story. Patsy Ruth Miller was a silent movie star, best known as Esmeralda in the 1923 silent classic, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, opposite Lon Chaney. Jeffrey L. Carrier was a 20-year-old college student and part-time news reporter who fell under her spell. Beginning in 1984, It took four years to complete the book, and Carrier writes about that fascinating experience in clear and engaging prose as he describes happy days and heated conversations, a feeling of giddy delight and almost unbearable stress, sometimes enjoying being pampered and sometimes being rigidly controlled. It was often an uncomfortable experience, making him feel like a "kept man," and he made his escape when the book was finished. Dramatic moments (the sudden death of her husband, a serious angina attack) are juxtaposed with moments of pathos (Miss Miller's touching admission that she felt forgotten by Hollywood), making it a book that offers something to savor on every page. Patsy Ruth Miller's memoir was published in 1988 and has been delighting fans of silent films ever since. This book pulls back the curtain to reveal how that book was created and describe how two people - one an old and faded star and one a young and naïve reporter -- formed a very unusual friendship.
