by Graham Lord (Author)
For more than forty years, Niven portrayed on screen the impeccable values of a lost breed of English gentlemen - handsome, beautifully spoken, elegantly dressed, witty, with perfect manners and utterly charming. Niv, according to his friends, was much the same off-screen. Both men and women were enchanted by his charisma, humour and joie-de-vivre. Yet Niv's life was punctuated by tragedy. From the death of his father when Niven was five, to his mother's neglect and the stepfather he loathed, through to the death of his beloved first wife and his volatile and disturbing second marriage, unhappiness was never far away. Using new material from Niven's private papers, Graham Lord has written a fresh, revealing, funny and poignant portrait of a brave and brilliant man.
Format: Paperback
Pages: 480
Edition: New e.
Publisher: Orion
Published: 14 Jun 2004
ISBN 10: 0752859285
ISBN 13: 9780752859286
Book Overview: Fully authorised by Niven's family NIV is a fitting tribute to one of Hollywood's greatest heroes Graham Lord draws on dozens of interviews with stars, including Lauren Bacall, Roger Moore and Sir John Mills The hardback edition reprinted 'It is impossible to read this book without thinking what fun Niven must have been ... It is an amusing yet moving story' SUNDAY TIMES 'This is brilliantly researched tribute, capturing the man's true essence ... As hilarious as it is enlightening, this is how all star biographies should be written!' FILM REVIEW Major serialisation in the DAILY MAIL and MAIL ON SUNDAY on hardback publication David Niven's own books, THE MOON'S A BALLOON and BRING ON THE EMPTY HORSES were both bestsellers Graham Lord is regarded as one of the best biographers of popular characters, whose previous books were bestsellers and received very good reviews: 'Graham Lord's biography of a TV icon uncovers the pre-requisite dark side to fame and notoriety ... Lord's book is ... required reading for those of us who want to learn how the art grew out of the man, and you can't ask for more from a showbusiness biography' DAILY EXPRESS [on Arthur Lowe]