Cleopatra and the Undoing of Hollywood - by Patrick Humphries (Hardcover)

About the Book

"On the 60th anniversary of the film, this book explores the extraordinary story of the making of Cleopatra, the film that changed the face of Hollywood. Cleopatra has its place as one of the most fabled films of all time. While others have won more Oscars, attracted better reviews and taken more money at the box office, the 1963 film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton stands alone in cinema legend. What began in 1958 as a remake of the 1917 Theda Bara film, which starred Joan Collins and was projected to cost $2 millioon, would open five years later, having cost nearly twenty times as much. The budget had skyrocketed enormously as the production went through extravagant sets in two different countries, two directors and six leading men--and this was on top of Elizabeth Taylor's $1 million fee. But it was the off-screen romance between the two on-screen leads that really cemented Cleopatra's place in cinema history. Within weeks of Richard Burton's arrival in Italy, he and Taylor embarked on a tumultuous and passionate love affiar that kept the Cuban Missle Crisis off the front pages and was denouced by the Vatican. Cleopatra and the undoing of Hollywood is a story of lust, excess and hubris--and how one film nearly brought Hollywood toits knees."--Publisher's description.

Book Synopsis

The extraordinary story of the making of Cleopatra, the film that changed the face of Hollywood

Cleopatra has its place as one of the most fabled films of all time. While others have won more Oscars, attracted better reviews and taken more money at the box office, the 1963 film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton stands alone in cinema legend. What began in 1958 as a $2 million vehicle for Joan Collins eventually opened five years later, having cost more than twenty times that amount.

The making of the film soon became a cautionary tale, for the lavish extravagance of Cleopatra all but bankrupted 20th Century Fox and almost singlehandedly set in motion the decline of the major studios. Actors and filmmakers were hired and fired at a breathtaking rate, and by the time the film was finally released, Hollywood could only watch in horror as it died at the box office.

This is an epic tale of love and lust; of gossip, money, sex, movie-star madness, studio politics and the birth of paparazzi journalism. Within the saga of Cleopatra lies the end of the era of Hollywood's studio system, the seeds of the Swinging Sixties, and the stuff of timeless movie legend.

Review Quotes

Cinephiles will be entertained. -- Publishers Weekly

"Film historians and Cleopatra aficionados will enjoy the book's many juicy details..." -- Library Journal

About the Author

Patrick Humphries has been a professional writer and journalist for over 40 years, with over 20 books to his credit, including Rolling Stones 69 (Omnibus, 2019). He was film editor at Vox magazine, which is when he began writing about and researching Cleopatra.