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Hollywood Noir: Fact and Fiction About the Dark Side of the Movies

Here are 50 works of fact(?) and fiction that look at the dark underbelly of Tinseltown. Our compiler has tried to avoid the big trashy novels (sorry, Joyce Haber) and the obviously self- promoting exposés, but trash and hype are part of what makes Hollywood Hollywood. Best bets - Raymond Chandler's take on the movies and James Ellroy's phantasmagorical zL. A. Quartet.
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All the Stars in the Heavens (Trigiani)
All the Stars in the Heavens
1
Trigiani
The Big Nowhere (James Ellroy)
The Big Nowhere
2
James Ellroy
The Black Dahlia (James Ellroy)
The Black Dahlia
3
James Ellroy
Bring on the Empty Horses (David Niven)
Bring on the Empty Horses
4
David Niven
A Cast of Killers (Kirkpatrick)
A Cast of Killers
5
Kirkpatrick
The Castle on Sunset: Life, Death, Love, Art, and Scandal at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont (Shawn Levy)
The Castle on Sunset: Life, Death, Love, Art, and Scandal at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont
6
Shawn Levy
Daddy Was the Black Dahlia Killer (Janice Knowlton)
Daddy Was the Black Dahlia Killer
7
Janice Knowlton
Delayed Rays of a Star (Amanda Lee Koe)
Delayed Rays of a Star
8
Amanda Lee Koe
Detour: A Hollywood Story (Cheryl Crane)
Detour: A Hollywood Story
9
Cheryl Crane
Fritz Lang: The Nature of the Beast (McGiligan)
Fritz Lang: The Nature of the Beast
10
McGiligan
Hollywood (Charles Bukowski)
Hollywood
11
Charles Bukowski
Hollywood Babylon
Hollywood Babylon
12
Kenneth Anger
Hollywood Babylon II (Kenneth Anger)
Hollywood Babylon II
13
Kenneth Anger
The Hollywood Book of Death (James Robert Parish)
The Hollywood Book of Death
14
James Robert Parish
Hollywood Book of Scandals: The Shoking, Often Disgraceful Deeds and Affairs of More Than 100 a (James Robert Parish)
Hollywood Book of Scandals: The Shoking, Often Disgraceful Deeds and Affairs of More Than 100 A
15
James Robert Parish
Hollywood Confidential: An Inside Look Public Careers Private Lives Hollywood's Rich Famous (Coral Amende)
Hollywood Confidential: An Inside Look Public Careers Private Lives Hollywood's Rich Famous
16
Coral Amende
The Hollywood Hallucination (Parker Tyler)
The Hollywood Hallucination
17
Parker Tyler
Hollywood Nocturnes (Ellroy)
Hollywood Nocturnes
18
Ellroy
Hollywood's Eve (Lili Anolik)
Hollywood's Eve
19
Lili Anolik
Hot Toddy (Andy Edmonds)
Hot Toddy
20
Andy Edmonds
I Wake Up Screaming (Steve Fisher)
I Wake Up Screaming
21
Steve Fisher
I'm Losing You (Wagner)
I'm Losing You
22
Wagner
In Search of the Third Man (Drazin)
In Search of the Third Man
23
Drazin
Inherent Vice (Thomas Pynchon)
Inherent Vice
24
Thomas Pynchon
L. A. Confidential (Ellroy)
L. A. Confidential
25
Ellroy
The Little Sister (Raymond Chandler)
The Little Sister
26
Raymond Chandler
The Mammoth Book of Hollywood Scandals (Morgan)
The Mammoth Book of Hollywood Scandals
27
Morgan
Memo From David O. Selznick (Selznick)
Memo From David O. Selznick
28
Selznick
Mommie Dearest (Christina Crawford)
Mommie Dearest
29
Christina Crawford
The Moon's a Balloon (David Niven)
The Moon's a Balloon
30
David Niven
The Movie Star & the Mobster (Law)
The Movie Star & the Mobster
31
Law
A New World of Gods and Monsters (James Cutis)
A New World of Gods and Monsters
32
James Cutis
Only the Dead Know Burbank (Bradford Tatum)
Only the Dead Know Burbank
33
Bradford Tatum
The Oscar (Richard Sale)
The Oscar
34
Richard Sale
The Rat Pack (Lawrence J. Quirk)
The Rat Pack
35
Lawrence J. Quirk
The Rat Pack Confidential (Levy)
The Rat Pack Confidential
36
Levy
Robert Mitchum: Baby, I Don't Care (Lee Server)
Robert Mitchum: Baby, I Don't Care
37
Lee Server
Room 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle (Greg Merritt)
Room 1219: The Life of Fatty Arbuckle
38
Greg Merritt
Scandals of Classic Hollywood (Anne Helen Petersen)
Scandals of Classic Hollywood
39
Anne Helen Petersen
Stardust (Joseph Kanon)
Stardust
40
Joseph Kanon
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