Genius and Lust

Résumé du livre

The private lives of Cole Porter and Noel Coward are as fascinating and as revealing about social mores as their public careers were glittering and defining of popular entertainment. They were gay in the truest sense, not just in their sexuality. We still marvel at their creative accomplishments. They led dazzling lives on both sides of the Atlantic: the stages of New York and London, the studios of Hollywood and the mansions of Beverly Hills, and the cafe society playgrounds of Paris, Venice and the Riviera. They were famous and rich. They set fashion and the rules of sophisticated love. And they did all this for over half a century while keeping their homosexuality a secret. Although their astonishing output was deeply influenced by their sexuality, they feared exposure and went to tragic lengths to hide their true identities. This new book, like the men it so honestly portrays, has a dual purpose. It combines revealing biographical portraits of Porter and Coward with an absorbing account of the homosexual world that shaped their creative work. Joseph Morella and George Mazzei take a fresh approach to lives that remain unendingly interesting. Extensive new interviews with still-living friends, lovers and colleagues highlight this new look at our theatrical culture, and this book treats frankly the lovers of the two men and the parts they played in the artists' lives. This dual biography also shows how sexual scandals have ruined stars throughout show business history - and that surprisingly little has really changed in the public perception of homosexuals since the days of Noel and Cole.