Hollywood Kryptonite: The Bulldog, the Lady, and the Death of Superman

by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger

Book Overview

Sometime in the early hours of June 16, 1959, George Reeves, the actor known to millions of kids as Superman, died of a gunshot to the head. The L.A.P.D. labeled the death a suicide. Some friends... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312146167
• ISBN13: 9780312146160
• Release Date: October 1996
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 207 Pages
• Weight: 1.14 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Very Well Researched & Plausible Theories

I just finished this book and could not put it down. It is not a spoiler to state George Reeves' death remains essentially unsolved, although the LAPD inisists to this day it was a suicide. I wanted to be challenged with other theories and now, after reading Hollywood Kryptonite, I am convinced suicide for Mr. Reeves is almost impossible, given the crime scene, happenings of the evening, his current situations (financial, romantic, professional, etc.) I completely enjoyed this book, it is packed with endless research and attribution. Read it yourself and decide - I now lean toward it being a murder. RIP George Reeves, our #1 Favorite Superman.

Excellent book. Absorbing reading.

So many books, films, and articles pull people in by asking if George Reaves was really murdered and then let everyone down by saying Reaves' death really was a suicide and not enough evidence proves the murder theory. But anyone who has read news about Reaves' death can tell you the opposite is true. More evidence supports the murder theory. He was shot with an oiled gun that had no fingerprints. No complete autopsy was ever performed by the coroner. A gunshot and tires screeching from a car speeding away were heard by neighbors at the time of the death. Bruises were on the body from when Reeves died. Phyllis Coates (Lois Lane} recieved a phone call telling her Reaves had been murdered early the next morning before his death became public. This book not only gives an accurate account of how a hit man probably murdered Reaves but supports it with facts. It's too bad it wasn't published sooner then after all those involved had died.

Better than Hollywoodland

The movie Hollywoodland is great and brings out interesting theories of George Reeves death and now that I've read this book I realize where they come from. However, the movie left out a lot of the circumstances concerning his strange death because they wasted too much time on the fictional private eye. Actually Reeves' mother and her lawyer did hire a private eye, but this story dwells on all the participants in George's life, and their histories and lives, not on the story of one person investigating his death. It's all here and more. Of course no one has the final answer, but this goes through all the background information and theories. It's a great behind the scenes mystery of Hollywood in the 50s. A very interesting read, indeed.

Hollywood Kryptonite: Intriguing Probe of the Death of Superman

This biography is an impressive and readable work of detection, delving into the untimely death of George Reeves, the t.v. Superman beloved by millions of baby boomers. It is a fascinating read to follow the unraveling of a mysterious death. It's packed with gossipy stories of the tinny glitter of B List Hollywood of the 1950's, written in the hard boiled style of Raymond Chandler and Dashiel Hammet. It's got to be a major source for the movie Hollywood Land. It offers up more intriguing details about George Reeves and 1950's Hollywood than any movie could show. But I'm certainly not going to miss the movie, which looks to be a great film noir apparently inspired by this book.

I need more documentation!

It's a highly enjoyable book which I devoured in virtually one sitting. However, I - like sdr1989@juno.com - would like more more concrete evidence. That is, were Toni Mannix alive, and were someone to take her trial, it would be very difficult to convict her on the items within the pages of this book. That's because virtually everyone's dead, and a lot of the book is hearsay, etc. However, the book is a fantastic read and loads of fun, and I would recommend it to anyone...whether they believe in the book's contentions or not!

Hollywood Kryptonite keeps you prisoner until the end

Born the year Superman died, I still grew up watching George Reeves save the world. I picked up the book not because I was especially interested in the story but because of the slick cover (raised on "Sesame Street", colors are an intricate part of my literary existance). It's a helluva book. The reconstructed story of everyone's favorite hero is gripping and heartbreaking. From his bright beginnings in "Gone With The Wind" to the grim realization he would never play anyone but Superman, not even himself, you will be possessed by this sad story. His childhood, controlling mother, absent father, domineering mistresses, and twisting life paths were told in a fascinating and novel-style manner. I kept hoping for more concrete documentation regarding Reeves' death, but the compelling details which do exist insure you will never again think of The Man Of Steel as a suicide victim, but perhaps instead a true victim. Read this book!