Marlene Dietrich: Amazon.ca: Maria Riva: Books

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From Library Journal

As Marlene, the German-born Maria Magdalena Dietrich (1901-92) was a charismatic movie actress of the 1930s and 1940s. Like Greta Garbo, Dietrich symbolizes glamour and mystery. There are numerous books about the legend, including the star's own Marlene ( LJ 4/1/89). Riva, Dietrich's daughter, here adds her account. As anticipated, Riva's perspective is unique and affecting. Using her mother's diary, radiograms, and letters, she gives proper weight to Dietrich's youth, her experience on the Berlin stage, her collaboration with director Josef Von Sternberg (e.g., The Blue Angel , 1930; Morocco , 1930), and her latter-day triumphs on stage and as a chanteuse. There are arresting tales here (father and stepfather killed in World War I; a stint entertaining U.S. troops during the Battle of the Bulge; affairs with legends of the screen and other arts) that give the reader a true grasp of both biographer and subject. Recommended for public libraries and film collections.Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/92. --Kim Holston, American Inst. for Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters, Malvern, Pa.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Book Description

"Gossipy...Elabroately detailed...Greatly entertaining...Riva leaves no sequin unturned."
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Marlene Deitrich was considered one of the most glamorous stars of her day. A determined perfectionist with an incredible ego, her beauty, her style, her sense of the outrageous, made her a star. In this candid, illuminating, and detailed biography full of photographs, her only daughter Maria Riva, tells the incredible, fascinating, story of the star's life and career, loves and hates, hits and misses, as only a daughter can.

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Customer Reviews

24 Reviews

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4.1 out of 5 stars (24 customer reviews)

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars MARIA ON DIETRICH, Aug 1 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Marlene Dietrich (Paperback)

The trouble with this book is twofold,one is how riva herself comes across,no fault of hers, but i suspect that of the writer,who ghosted this for her,sending her across as so irritatingly,soppy, and gormless, that no sympathy is gained from even revelations,such as a rape at the hands of one of mothers "friends",at the age of eleven,this angle was important for the balance of the book,deprived daughter,world famous egomanical filmstar mother,without this,this does not work! even tragic tammy grates eventually.A pity becauce after seeing riva, on a documentary about dietrich she was anything but soppy,actually coming across as gruff and sincere.Of her recall,although i dont accuse her of lying,she seems to set a formula of what dietrich would have done,and said in certain situtations(some of the qouted conversations sound ludicrous) and procceded from there.

To describe your eighty seven year old mothers toilet habits is bad enough, but to describe them in such curcumstances, is vicious in the extreme, whitch leads me to the most baffling aspect of this tome,it is impossible to trace the actual root of her anger.She dosent just pin it on her on her rape "it abounds everywhere"

The book itself is no different in formula, to the usual hollywood biography of an actress (ie born, discovered,films,love affairs,more films,more love affairs,death!)except this actress was no ordinary indivdual,her films have cult status,yet she couldnt really act,she filled concert halls the world over her well into her seventies,and yet she couldnt really sing!problem number two creeps in here,Riva seems to be as much in the dark as to her appeal as the reader she offers a lot of question marks but no answers,so sadly,it dosent work on any level,strange though,with dietrich this makes her even more of an enigma,perhaps this is why i read it twice,on second thoughts she is better, not analysed perhaps this is her magic.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars a surprisingly engaging read, Feb 26 2004

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datadame (TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marlene Dietrich (Paperback)

I read this book expressly as a result of seeing Maria Riva being interviewed by Larry King. I never was a big Dietrich fan - prior to reading this book, all I knew of her was the caricatures. I love a well-written biography, though, so sought this book out after seeing the interview.

Maria Riva's story of her mother's life and hers as they intertwined is both a tribute and an expose'. Her mother was an odd duck (putting it mildly) and Riva doesn't shrink from any aspect of her mother's life and personality, "warts and all". She loved her mother before, during, and after realizing how different their lives were from other people's, and even after recognizing her mother's shortcomings as a person and as a parent.

"Dietrich" does indeed seem to have been a contradiction in terms - indisputably talented (which was also recognized by her colleagues at the studios), staunchly supportive of people she liked (when she liked them), but also bigoted, manipulative, and phenomenally self-centered. The fact that these qualities could co-exist simultaneously, and the way they affected those around her, is what makes the story so interesting.

Riva's writing style is easy to read. Chapters are well paced, and the story never bogs down in any one time or event. The fact that she was able to publish nearly 800 pages without belaboring any particular event is indicative of how much there is to tell. (Bonus - lots of photos!)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A star biography you can't put down, Oct 6 2003

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babs "babsaholic" (BC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marlene Dietrich (Paperback)

The litany of shocking, incredibly tawdry and abusive things Marlene did do not dull the luster of Marlene's magnificent screen presence. That is a tribute to Maria Riva's extraordinary ability to look clearly at her mother's good side as well as her bad. This was a thoroughly entrancing book, full of insights and gossip about Marlene's friends and colleagues (and lovers.) Especially wonderful were the memories of the old days of movie-making, in the 30's, when von Sternberg beautifully photographed her face.

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