What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
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4.2 • 10 Ratings
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- £0.99
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- £0.99
Publisher Description
The literary classic that inspired the iconic film - the story of two sisters and the hell they made their home.
Once an acclaimed child star of vaudeville, Baby Jane Hudson performed for adoring crowds before a move to Hollywood thrust her sister, Blanche, into the spotlight. As Blanche's film career took off, a resentful Jane watched from the shadows as her own career faded into obscurity - until a tragic accident changed everything.
Now, years later, the two sisters live in a decaying mansion, isolated from the outside world. Crippled by the accident, Blanche is helpless under the control of her abusive sister, who is slowly descending into madness. And when Baby Jane decides it's time to revive her childhood act, she won't let anything - or anyone - stand in her way.
This edition features exclusive extra material: three previously unpublished short stories by Henry Farrell, including the inspiration for the movie Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte, and an introduction that reveals how the original novel came about as well as the behind-the-scenes drama of the iconic film starring Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, now recreated in the TV show Feud.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Before this tale of two sisters locked in the ultimate sibling rivalry became the hit 1962 movie starring Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, it was a novel by Farrell (1920 2006) written because he needed a commercial success to pay for his wife's medical bills. As readers can see from this reissue, the original 1960 novel about a former vaudevillian child star, Baby Jane Hudson, who torments her wheelchair-bound sister, Blanche, who was once a glamorous movie star has a deep layer of psychological suspense that's obscured in the campy film. Farrell delves into Baby Jane's psyche, showing a woman mourning her childhood success and stymied by her inability to act on her emotional needs. A foreword by Farrell's literary agent, Mitch Douglas, features gossipy tidbits about the Davis-Crawford rivalry. Three short stories, including the wryly entertaining "What Ever Happened to Charlotte?," which inspired the film Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte, round out the volume.
Customer Reviews
Not what I expected
Better than expected. Amazing read, definitely recommended. Couldn’t put it down!