Sydney Guilaroff, Hairdresser to the Stars

[quote] he had decades-long romantic and sexual relationships with Garbo and Ava Gardner

So he's a Hollywood hair dresser, never married, adopts kids and names one "Jon" after Joan Crawford... yet he's straight?

Another good book/memoir is by the late fashion designer Mr. Blackwell. Love the title - "From Rags To Bitches."

It's easy for him to stretch the truth when all these people are dead, and can't counter his assertions.

He made up the "affairs" with female stars

Why no pic in the title post, OP?

I'm always amazed when I see his name turn up in credits in stuff from the '70s and '80s. He was the hairdresser for The Two Mrs. Grenvilles, for instance. Unbelievable that in the mid-'80s, the hairdresser of Louise Brooks, Joan Crawford, et al was still plugging away at his trade..

He was gay (duh) and had affairs with male MGM stars like Peter Lawford. The shit about affairs with female stars was made up.

Another amusing part of the book is his takedowns of Cecil Beaton as a two-face hack: he wrote him a letter after a dispute saying, “as far as I can tell, everything you do resembles a Victorian piss pot”; Lucille Ball (cunt- she was mean to Crawford when she guest starred on her TV show); and, surprisingly, Irene Dunne (she intentionally fucked up screen tests to make more money).

He did all of Liz's hair for CLEOPATRA. For that alone he is a God.

Didn't he do dead Judy'd hair?

Judy Lewis, Loretta Young's semi-legitimate (eventually!) daughter with Clark Gable also said Irene Dunne was a cold bitch in her memoir too, "not at all the way you might imagine", something like that. Dunne visited her while she was very ill and bedridden while her family was on the West Coast and brought her.... a rubber plant.

Those mean old Catholics can be hardcore bitches!

Not Judy R10, but he did dead Marilyn’s hair (using a wig from “Something’s Got to Give”) and Natalie Wood after she died.

Guuurrllllll

I'm guessing both Marilyn and Natalie got perms.

He made leading ladies in the 50's look like bull dykes. All those awful short hairstyles that made actresses look forty years older? That was his trademark that decade. A hack.

r15, those hairstyles were popular across the board. He didn't invent them.

[quote] Lucille Ball (cunt- she was mean to Crawford when she guest starred on her TV show

Because Joan showed up drunk, and could barely function

[quote] one other amusing part of the book is his takedowns of Cecil Beaton as a two-face hack: he wrote him a letter after a dispute saying, “as far as I can tell, everything you do resembles a Victorian piss pot”

Oh, that definitely sounds like a guy who had years long sexual relationships with Ava Gardner and Greta Garbo. Absolutely.

He and Cecil Beaton must have been fighting like cats over the favors of the divine Miss Garbo.

Canadian Guilaroff's book is the worst kind of sophmoric, eldergay ghostwritten garbage. He could've told the truth and spilled some tea we didn't know on himself and others, instead he wrote a book that's like Barbara Cartland visiting MGM. Why is there no intelligence or insight after seeing all those legendary ladies as they were "Offstage"?

I was about to say that it wasn't THAT long ago that someone mentioned this book on DL, but I think I'm remembering a post from 2009!

He was no José Eber!

[quote] that he met Lana Turner coming out of the hardware store after she bought the kitchen knife that Cheryl Crane used to kill Stompanato!

How does he know that it was that particular knife? Did Lana say, "Oh, I was just in there buying this knife that my daughter will one day use to stab my mobster lover"?

I own Sydney's book and while it's good, it's hard to believe some of the anecdotes he shares because he shares so little about himself. He was so obviously gay. It takes away from the other gossip when he's hiding who he actually was. It's a breezy read.

He had decades-long romantic and sexual relationships with Garbo??? Ha ha ha. Gay as an Easter basket. Might as well have a "sexual relationship" with a lesbian.

I'm not sure if you can still find the threads in the search, but there was someone who had access to the files of Howard Strickling (MGM's "fixer") and posted a bunch of gossip about MGM stars. Guilaroff got around with the male starlets. And, yes, the stuff about affairs with Garbo and Gardner was pure bullshit.