Ben Ohmart

A bit of a disappointment. While a lot of the book was in Frances's own words, there was very little information about her life before show business. It was mentioned she had a brother but did he outlive her? Did she have nieces and/or nephews? Did she move her folks to Hollywood after she gained success? Additionally, text was often missing words which made it, at times difficult to follow. For example, page 122 reads: Back at Universal Frances would Follow the Band (1943) by singing "My Melancholy Baby". The sentence probably should have read: Back at Universal, Frances would appear in Follow the Band (1943) by singing "My Melancholy Baby". Even her own words/writing could have been edited to make them more readable as on page 125 where it reads: "I looked over at Bob and said, ,'What are you think about right now?'" Page 161 has a sentence that reads "Blanche plead with the man to turn over on his side...." instead of saying "would plead" or "pled". On page 219 the author mentioned that Frances was given a choice of moving peacocks off her estate or clipping their wings but we never learn what decision she made. Appendix 2 is a diary of her visits to various military hospitals and while there is a month and day associated with the entry, it would have been nice to have the year included. No mention either of her funeral service and who might have attended - did her brother outlive her, etc?. There are good appendices of her film, radio, and television appearances. There are also a lot of photographs, many of which are unlabeled as to date or who is in them other than Langford, and many are so small it is impossible to see who is in them without a magnifying glass. The effort was a bit sloppy and overall unsatisfying as a biography.… (altro)

Short and sweet, this book really tickled me. The relationship between the Bickerson's started out like most: awkward nervousness and endless flattery. However, somewhere along the way it is obvious that Blanche is not as "generous" as John is in regards to how she shows her affection. In the end, though, it is still a love story that was able to stand the test of time. Like most married couples, the love letters thin out quite a bit after the bliss of a new marriage wears off, but it is evident that the two are still very much in love. After reading their story, I want to find out more about these two who were so enamored with one another.… (altro)