Kate Hepburn had sexual assignations with more than 150 women. Spencer Tracy swung both ways. Cary Grant and Randolph Scott – an item. Charles Laughton and Tyrone Power were into “water sports.” Anthony Perkins and Tab Hunter were lovers. Harold Lloyd spent money on hookers – lots of hookers – but he would never touch them. He photographed them with a special 3-D camera.
Such are a few of thejuicy revelations to be found in Full Service: My Adventures in Hollywood and the Secret Sex Lives of the Stars (Grove Press, $25), a titillating tell-all from Scotty Bowers, a gadabout go-between in the closeted and scandal-wary world of moviedom. From just after World War II, when he returned from his stint as a Marine in the Pacific and started pumping gas (and got propositioned by actor Walter Pidgeon), up through the decades until the advent of AIDS, Bowers was -- or claims to be – a facilitator of sexual favors, matching movie stars who were secretly gay with their gender of preference, and fixing hetero and bisexual celebs with all manner of obliging company.
Bowers’ book, written with Lionel Friedberg (a documentary producer who is working on a film with, and about, Bowers), rehashes a lot of familiar Hollywood Babylon-style gossip and dirt. But Full Service is also chockfull of detailed descriptions of dalliances between leading men and other men, leading ladies and ladies of the night, of orgies, hedonistic hijinks and angry spouses. (Lucille Ball had it in for Bowers because he hooked husband Desi Arnaz with countless, compliant women – or so Bowers says.)
Written in a chatty, affable style, and loaded with the sort of specifics that suggest 1) this stuff could well have happened or 2) Bowers is possessed of an extremely vivid imagination, Full Service is never less than entertaining. But beyond that, truth or fabrication, the book paints a picture of a different kind of Hollywood, where the press only went so far in reporting scandals, where great efforts were taken to conceal an actor or actress’ true proclivities, where there was no TMZ and no celebrity porn videos and where there was a lot more to lose if the real story ever got out.
I would bet 99% of what is written is not true and 1% is an exaggeration.— neddyflanders- ...too easy to say things about people who are no longer around to defend themselves. Actually, I heard that Scotty Bowers likes animals, if you know what I mean. (wink wink)— republicrat
- There have been numerous books on the sex lives of Hollywood people. In fact, personal letters and photos have been disclosed to prove some of these allegations of sexual deviation. It's no big deal what people chose to do in their private lives. The real problem, as I see it, is how some people want to profit from their privacy.— Jefferson1
- Who cares!?!?!— eeemery
- The tip-off that this book is garbage is that he refers to his buddy the Duke of Windsor, as "Eddie" - everyone called him David, and I can't believe he called Wallis Simpson Wally. Give me a break. It looks like he has just inserted himself into Darwin Porter's phony stories.— Suspira44
- The tip-off that this book is garbage is that he refers to his buddy the Duke of Windsor, as "Eddie" - everyone called him David, and I can't believe he called Wallis Simpson Wally. Give me a break. It looks like he has just inserted himself into Darwin Porter's phony stories.— Suspira44
- The tip-off that this book is garbage is that he refers to his buddy the Duke of Windsor, as "Eddie" - everyone called him David, and I can't believe he called Wallis Simpson Wally. Give me a break. It looks like he has just inserted himself into Darwin Porter's phony stories.— Suspira44
- never heard of any of them. has beens.— OhOkay
- OhOkay... that says more about you then them I'm sorry to say..— Elbarad
- I agree Elbarad.The author of this book is a little too late . He should have written this so called tell all in the 60's and 70's he would have made a fortune.I could care less about who did who to what back in the day.As far as today's so called stars who and what they do reads like a complicated flowchart on how to get an STD or worst— vrb1955
Comment removed.- Let us pretend for a moment that all of these stories are true because they very well may be. This man was entrusted with these secrets and probably well paid. Now that he is old he most likely blew his money on hookers and gambling so he is going to sell whatever dignity he has left for a quick buck. Is there no honor on earth?— shortpat81
- @krakatoa - "poofer" - Thanks for the laugh!— Hoofty
- except that it should be "poofter".
or maybe you were laughing at his spelling?— ekw555 - I'm sure this book would be very popular w/ the sort who lives for every shred of gossip about Kim, Snooki & Paris.
Unfortunately, that sort doesn't read books and would not recognize any of the stars in it.— ekw555
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