Giant: Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Edna Ferber, and the Making of a Legendary American Film Hardcover – 10 April 2018

Read on Net Galley...great story-telling which puts the reader on the set of Giant in Marfa, Tx. Splending anecdotes on cast members and that hard task master of a director George Steves

Overall disappointed. Could have been so much better produced

With a bibliography of roughly nineteen pages of very fine print listings of sources, it is hard to believe that Don Graham’s Giant: Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Edna Ferber, and the Making of a Legendary American Film clocks in at 260 pages. This is a concise monument to an iconic movie whose three stars proved, ultimately, to be larger than life. Graham, whose Texas books range from topics such as ranching to literature, has tackled the making of and the impact of one of Hollywood’s great films. Without having to scan all of those diverse sources listed in that enormous bibliography, we are treated to all the details of the creation of the film, the peccadilloes of its stars, the reactions of bystanders, the critiques of the film, and the film’s lasting impact. Graham pulls no punches about Taylor, Hudson, or Dean. We learn that Dean, the relative newcomer to films (although Giant would prove to be his last of three he made before his untimely death,) was not even remotely considered a “star” of the film by its auteur George Stevens or the “powers that be.” The real stars were Taylor and Hudson. The film actually made both their careers as mature actors. But it is Dean who arguably became the star of the film because if his antics and the legend that grew around him after his death. We, as readers, grow to understand the young actor perhaps but, as Graham describes him, I for one didn’t learn to like the erratic, emotionally charged hellion James Dean was. Taylor and Hudson’s faults are liberally pointed out in the book, but their reputations pretty much remain intact by the end of the tale. This book is fascinating and a welcome addition to any movie buff’s collection. After reading Edna Ferber’s novel Giant a few months ago, I immediately watched the film, all three hours, twenty minutes of it, for about the six or seventh time. Now, having read Graham’s book, the movie is once again cued up on my DVR, awaiting recording so I can view it again with a new, fresher, more discerning outlook.

When director George Stevens began casting for Giant, it was clear it was going to be a big movie. Everybody who was anybody wanted to be in the film, which was based on Edna Ferber's blockbuster novel.Among those considered for the role of Bick were Robert Mitchum, William Holden and Stewart Granger. Those mentioned as possibilities for the role of Leslie included Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Patricia O'Neal and Ann Baxter. Actors considered for the role of Jett included Alan Ladd, Gene Kelly and Robert Mitchum.In the end, the roles went to Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. Hudson, not known as a particularly good actor, would give the best performance of his career. Taylor was an established superstar and Dean was a mercurial young actor.At first, Dean held both Hudson and Taylor with contempt, but he softened toward Taylor. Dean and Hudson never got along. Although Hudson was homosexual and Dean was probably bisexual, they both were, in a sense, pursuing Taylor.Dean is the most enigmatic of the trio. He and George Stevens clashed from the very beginning.Stevens, who tolerated Dean, described him as "equal parts brilliant and a royal pain in the ass."Dean, hungry for publicity and attention, tried to steal the film from Hudson, Taylor and Stevens. Although his role was only a supporting role (he's on screen about a third of the movie), he acted like the movie was all about his character, Jett Rink. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Actor in a Leading Role category. He didn't win. But, he probably would have won an Academy Award if he had been nominated in the Best Action in a Supporting Role category.Author Don Graham provides plenty of background on Stevens, Taylor, Hudson and Dean. I have read a couple books on James Dean and I learned things about Dean from Giant that I didn't know.Dean was described as a "nervous bundle of volatile polarities, brash bad-boy behavior, open aggression, little boy wounds and exposed nerve endings."Someone said Dean acted "like a gifted angel and behaved like a juvenile delinquent."Graham also provides readers with plenty of interesting, behind-the-scenes stories about the making of Giant.Dean died before the movie was finished, but director George Stevens insisted upon not missing a day of filming. This particularly upset Elizabeth Taylor, who had grown fond of Dean.If you have any interest in any of the actors involved or the movie Giant, this is a must read.

I thought it was a good book. Great? No..It didn't delve too much into the actual making of the movie. Maybe there just wasn't enough info so the author padded it with actor bios - I don't know.The chapter on James Dean was much longer than Rock or Elizabeth. And, to be honest, I did not need to get a rehash of Rock and Dean's sex lives. At least, not in this book.I was hoping for more "behind the scenes" info. For example, the fact that they used molasses for the oil was interesting - but that was only a parenthetical statement. There was not even a mention that Nick Adam's was the one who did the drunken speech by Jett Rink at the end - and that's the kind of info I wish this book included.It wasn't a bad book - but I don't feel like it lived up to its title; maybe it just needs a new one...

I admire this book for the story it tells and the way it tells it. Don Graham’s well-documented account of the making of “Giant,” a 1956 movie based on popular novelist Edna Ferber’s scathing attack on Texas arrogance and racism, reads like popular fiction with characters drawn straight from central casting—from a crusty genius of a director to actors who defined Hollywood celebrity in the post-war era: Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, and James Dean.The book is timely too: I recently watched “Giant” with a young Texan who had neither heard of the movie nor recognized any members of its cast. Yet the film was a revelation to him, grand in scale, memorable in its details, and prescient in its critique of racism and sexism. Graham’s book is similarly evocative —underscoring how remarkable director George Stevens’ achievement was. The author gives due attention, of course, to Hudson, Taylor, and especially Dean, but he doesn’t ignore the other people who contributed to the film or landscapes they worked in, especially Marfa, Texas—a stark and gritty town that comes to life in this fine and highly readable book.

To the point, I thought the book was sort of padded with far too much material devoted to the lives of certain actors in the movie. If the book was cut in maybe a half, and more attention given to the actual movie and its production, I would be more positive about the contents. I also add, some details were presented which were inaccurate or best said, wrong or clearly incorrect. I am a stickler for statements that are very clearly facts being accurate and real and true. Early in the book I read some details that were incorrect and as usual for me, I started to question other parts as well. I understand some things are a matter of opinion or are of gossip type nature. However, facts about certain towns are facts easily checked, known, and thus presented. The author and/or editors made mistakes there and for me, do not enhance the book as based on something I think to be true.