The slapstick queens

It seems James Robert Parish churns out far too many books. However, his series of books dealing with films and stars of the Golden period of Hollywood are absolutely indispensible for movie buffs. Anyone old enough to remember the old (now defunct) film magazine, ''Films in Review'', will recall the magazine's monthly career article on stars which covered their films in detail. The article was followed by a filmography and many photos. The Slapstick Queens is in similar vein. It covers the careers of female comediennes - stars like Marjorie Main, Martha Raye, Joan Davis, Judy Canova and Phyllis Diller. The great thing about this book is that all of the stars' films are covered in detail along with details about their personal lives (each chapter is like a mini book). At the end is a detailed filmography and a section on photos. Anyone interested in old stars should immediately add this great book to their library.

If you are looking for information on 5 great comedic attresses who haven't always gotten their due, then this book is for you. It has information and photos on Joan Davis, Martha Raye, Marjorie Main, Judy Canova and Phyllis Diller. I particularly got this book for the information about Joan Davis. I've found very little information about her or her "I Married Joan" series. Although, it didn't have too many details about that program, it did have a lot of information about her and her films, as well as 33 pages of photos of her. The rest of them are covered the same. If you can still get this book, if you are a fan of any of these "Slapstick Queens" you won't be disappointed in this book.