Product Description

Fred MacMurray was one of the most durable stars in motion picture history. Fred arrived in Hollywood in 1934 and within a year he was one of the top leading men in the movie industry. He was the leading actor or one of the leads in films through 1973 when Walt Disney Studios released his final starring role in a motion picture, Charley and the Angel. Thirty-nine years - five separate decades. Few stars have equaled that distinction. Of course every star career has its peaks and valleys. The initial peak of Fred';s stardom was from his days as a Paramount leading man, beginning in 1935 and running roughly until the end of the Second World War. Like many aging stars, the post-war years were a mixed bag for Fred. Public tastes were changing and the kind of frothy, romantic comedies which had been his forte were going out of fashion. But he persevered and continued to do leading roles in a variety of pictures and from time to time found a film which registered strongly with film audiences and critics alike, such as The Egg and I (1947), and especially The Caine Mutiny (1954). By the mid 1950s Fred was appearing, increasingly, in that favorite genre of the aging leading man - the western film. Eight of ten films he made between 1955 and 1960 were westerns, not Fred's favorite genre. But they did keep his name before the public. Then in 1959, Fred began the second peak of his career thanks to Walt Disney, who cast Fred in his studios first live action comedy film, The Shaggy Dog. Incredibly this film which was made for under $1 million became the third biggest box office hit of that year, and Fred found a new audience. Over the next several years, Fred starred in a series of hugely popular family films for the Walt Disney Studios. Then in 1960, Fred did something that solidified his new family friendly image. He accepted the lead in a new television series called My Three Sons. For the next twelve years he played Steve Douglas, a widower with three rambunctious sons. Fred became THE quintessential father figure for a new generation of kids. In accepting My Three Sons Fred succeeded at something that few film actors had achieved up to that time. He became a star in both television and motion pictures. Look at it this way. In 1951 when Lucille Ball began I Love Lucy she had already spent nearly two decades as a motion picture actress, but she never had the kind of movie fame that Fred MacMurray had achieved when he became a television star. Loretta Young began a long running anthology series in 1953, and had been a popular, and Academy Award winning, movie actress prior to that, but when she began on television her days as a film actress were over. When Fred began doing My Three Sons in 1960, he was enjoying a rejuvenated film career thanks to the Disney films and his superb performance in Billy Wilder's hugely popular and Academy Award winning The Apartment. Fred was simultaneously enjoying popularity on both the big and small screens. Many film actors attempted this after Fred, including his contemporaries Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda, but both proved failures in their own series.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #244998 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 392 pages

From the Author
This book is based on over four years of research and dozens of interviews with friends, associates and family. The book also includes over 70 photographs.

About the Author
Charles Tranberg is the author of I LOVE THE ILLUSION: THE LIFE AND CAREER OF AGNES MOOREHEAD and NOT SO DUMB: THE LIFE AND CAREER OF MARIE WILSON. He is currently working on a book regarding THE THIN MAN movies which starred William Powell and Myrna Loy. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

Customer Reviews

A wonderful book about a wonderful actor
I grew up watching Fred MacMurray on My Three Sons and in the Disney films of the '60s. Later, I saw him in films such as The Egg and I and Murder He Says. Later still, I was stunned by his performances in The Caine Mutiny, The Apartment and Double Indemnity. What a remarkable actor, and what a nice man. This book is a real tribute to Mr. MacMurray. My only quibble is that it really needed a good editor.

Solid Offering from author Tranberg
One of the biggest challenges facing biographers who venture into telling the stories of stars from Hollywood's Golden Age is getting input from former co-stars and co-workers - most of whom are no longer with us. Charles Tranberg has accomplished a difficult task admirably. MacMurray's biography is filled with ample commentary from actors, producers, and directors who worked alongside him in films and television. Although MacMurray may have referred to himself as a "boring" subject, this biography is anything but. Background details on some of MacMurray's classic offerings (Alice Adams, Double Indemnity, The Caine Mutiny, The Apartment) make for a very interesting and informative read. Tranberg acquired interviews with MacMurray's TV sons, who give an honest portrait of a talented if often insular man. MacMurray's children were also involved with the telling of this story and they detail their father's passion for the outdoors and their ranch-life in Sonoma County California. Nicely illustrated, this is a wonderful addition for anyone's film library.

Well Done
A thoroughly researched bio on Fred MacMurray, who was always underrated as an actor, and more known to folks today as Steve Douglas on the long running tv series "My Three Sons". This book has plenty of interviews with colleagues and a lot of great photos. The forward is by Don Grady, who played Rob Douglas on My Three Sons. The only thing I would have liked, as with all biographies, is to know what his kids and grandkids are doing.