Monique Grant, a little known magazine writer, has been chosen by 79-year old actress, Evelyn Hugo, to write a biography about her. Monique has been reeling because her husband left her 5 weeks ago. She leaves her own world of upheaval and delves into the actress's life and movies, visiting her daily, tape recorder capturing their conversations.
Evelyn started out poor, living in Hell's Kitchen in New York City, but her mother had big dreams about moving to Hollywood. However, her mother died when Evelyn was 11, and Evelyn's first need was to get away from her father, who was violent, and whom she didn't know if she could trust to keep his hands off her once she started developing. She was tall and slim with large breasts, some of the traits that gained her attention, and she used that attention to gain her first husband, Ernie, at age 15, because Ernie was heading to Hollywood to get work as a key grip. Evelyn got a job as a waitress, where she caught the attention of a Hollywood producer, Harry Cameron, beginning her tenure as an actress.
Evelyn's story over the decades between the 1950s and the 1980s is fascinating, and I had to keep telling myself it is fiction; it seems so real. Evelyn insists that she is not sorry for anything she did to get the security and the life she lives. She tells all. And when the story is told, there is even more—the answer to why Evelyn chose to give her story to Monique. Highly recommended.
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