Preview "Ava Gardner: The Secret Conversations" in a new window.

Book Description

The wickedly candid New York Times bestesller that Ava Gardner dared not publish during her lifetime—“the heartbreaking memoir of the ultimate heartbreaker” (Philadelphia Inquirer).

Ava Gardner was one of Hollywood’s biggest and brightest stars during the 1940s and 1950s, an Oscar Award–nominated leading lady who costarred with Clark Gable, Burt Lancaster, and Humphrey Bogart, among others. But this riveting account of her storied life, including her marriage to Frank Sinatra, and career had to wait for publication until after her death—because Gardner feared it was too revealing.

“I either write the book or sell the jewels,” Gardner told coauthor Peter Evans, “and I’m kinda sentimental about the jewels.” The legendary actress serves up plenty of gems in these pages, reflecting with delicious humor and cutting wit on a life that took her from rural North Carolina to the heights of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Tell-all stories abound, especially when Gardner divulges on her three husbands: Mickey Rooney, a serial cheater so notorious that even his mother warned Gardner about him; bandleader Artie Shaw, whom Ava calls “a dominating son of a bitch...always putting me down”; and Frank Sinatra (“We were fighting all the time. Fighting and boozing. It was madness. But he was good in the feathers”).

“Her story is a raw-nerved revelation....A vivid portrait” (Chicago Tribune). Witty, penetrating, unique in its voice, it is impossible to put down—“A complete delight” (Philadelphia Inquirer).


In The Press


About the Author


Read on Your Favourite Devices

to find out more



Ebook Permissions

to find out more

About this Ebook

File formats
This ebook is available in:
The publisher has not yet supplied format information.
Pre-order formats shown are based on publisher intent and may change before release.
File sizes shown are an approximation. The actual download size will vary based on the application you use to read the book.
Publisher
Published
; Copyright:
ISBNs
Title
Series
Author
;
Edition
Imprint
Language
Number of Pages
Page count shown is an approximation provided by the publisher. The actual page count will vary based on various factors such as your device's screen size and font-size.