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Jolie Gabor
Book by Jolie Gabor, Cindy Adams
315 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1975
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 8, 2016
The Gabors were always something of a spectacle, with their multiple marriages, flamboyant clothing and hair (and jewelry) and those unforgettable accents. In descending order of outrageousness, Zsa Zsa, Eva and Magda were among the first who were "famous for being famous." In this memoir, with the aid of gossipy columnist Cindy Adams, we find that the famed trio of "actresses" were groomed from birth to be as sensational, proficient and "marriagable" as humanly possible by their equally glamorous, outrageous and fiery-spirited mother, Jolie. Jolie revels in being as blunt and as shocking as she can while still retaining an air of dignity (any vulgarity that comes across - and there is a bit - is countered by the fact that she was so desperate to become something other than the ordinary daughter out of a litter of several and by her desire to be as plain-spoken as she can be.) There is certainly romance, drama, suspense and humor in her own story and, deliciously, no small amount of carping about her more famous offspring, who often come off as needy, spoiled and selfish, not that Mama was free of the desire for self-indulgence and material wealth either! It's a fun read in which Adams allowed Gabor to keep many of her off-kilter Hungarian grammatical arrangements and phrases so that we always believe that it is Gabor alone who is telling the story. She could be a foolish, extravagant person, but also quite a generous and caring one as well. Although she was never an actress the way her daughters were, she eventually became a known personality and hostess, so this is still a colorful and engaging read.
January 5, 2024
Jolie Gabor, the lesser known mother of the actresses and socialites Eva, Zsa Zsa and Magda, tells a fascinating, vain, yet thrilling story of her most unique life. She describes growing up in Hungary as the “ugliest” of her sisters, getting married at the tender age of fourteen to an abusive, yet wealthy husband and her harrowing escape to America during WW2. Despite the fact that her 3 daughters marry multiple wealthy men and become successful actresses in the 1940s, Jolie’s desire to make something of herself in America outweighs her dependence on them and she rises to fame with her Hungarian jewelry designs in her New York City shop. Editor Cindy Adams proficiently narrates the memoir in Jolie’s own voice and Jolie’s story is both inspirational and maddening as her hard work ethic and free spirit move us, but her insensitivity to the kindness of her friends, daughters and ex husbands alongside her cruelty to her servants leaves something to be desired. The best part of the book is learning about her great escape from the Nazis to the glittering and glamorous world of America’s elite in the 50s and 60s. This is a book that is as interesting as it is tragic and is hard to put down.
November 1, 2019
Reading reviews and Ebay sales, I find this was sort-of-ghost-written by Cindy Adams! Wow, I barely remember Cindy! But I do remember reading the book and what a fun read it was. I think the mother was more interesting than her daughters! One part that was especially funny was reading about her honeymoon and the details. Also that she used to make paste replicas of jewelry for very rich women. The women would leave the real jewels at home in a safe and wear Jolie's "fakes" to parties.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews