Let's Talk About Esther Williams

She always seemed so sad to me, profoundly, desperately sad in an almost clinical way.

She had a dry sense of humor.

Jeff Chandler's family is till holding a grudge.

Did she ever try to transition away from swimming movies? Why didn't it work out?

I don't think she had dramatic actress chops. She was in The UnGuarded Moment with John Saxon. Kind of a ridiculous film but Saxon was great as usual.

Debbie Reynolds and the others doing publicity circa THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT or after..... funny quote from Debbie about Esther's big problem with everybody cashing in except Esther... Debbie said she was a bore to hang with...can't find quote..

Fannie Brice's assessment: "Wet, she's a star. Dry, she ain't."

I would have hung with her. Read her memoir--she would have been a gas. And she liked to cook.......

[quote]Wet, she's a star. Dry, she ain't."

Even though everyone seems to think that was directed at Esther, it was originally a put down of fellow competitve swimmer Eleanor Holm, who Billy Rose (Brice's husband) had an affair with (and later married.)

Esther was the reason waterproof mascara was invented.

She almost broke her neck while filming a dive for "Million Dollar Mermaid”.

She had terrible luck with men.

Here's a great "You Must Remember This" episode about her.

I love her movies because they are total escape Hollywood fabrications filmed in glorious Technicolor.

Thanks for the correction, r9. Eleanor Holm makes much more sense than Esther as a target for Fannie's ire. I'll retire that chestnut now.

Esther's films still hold up. She lived a long life. Good for her.

And Julie Newmar invented pantyhose.

I read it...in two sittings!

It was fun, but I could tell where she was just making shit up, and there were a number of factual things she got wrong, as memory is an imprecise thing. She also completely glosses over why lots of her Hollywood peers found her obnoxious, mainly that she was a total drunk! Every story in the book where Esther has cunty things to say about people you can read between the lines that all involved were drinking heavily.

She also has a comically awry story of her departure from MGM, claiming they screwed her out of a "pension" for refusing to appear in "The Opposite Sex", a remake with songs of "The Women"! After countless swimming musicals Esther suddenly finds her inner Pauline Kael and decides this is a line she can not cross, giving up her 2 million dollar "pension" and ending her contract. The actual facts are so different, but sure Esther...

I adore her memoir--it's very funny....and she was avid for hot dick. What's not to love?

Esther was open about being a ravenous size queen. I respect that.

She's one of the few Golden Age stars I haven't seen a single film from, probably because they always struck me as being very lowbrow. So gays, if you had to recommend me one EW musical, which one would it be? Neptune's Daughter?

I always felt that Esther was very underrated. She's really charming in her non-swimming moments and very funny as well with a dry sense of humor. I always liked her until I read her book. I don't think she comes off well in it. After that, I decided she probably WOULDN'T be fun to hang out with. Debbie on the other hand...

She would pee in the pool.