Jimmy Stewart

The Truth Behind the Legend

By: Michael Munn

Narrated by: Mark Whitten

In this definitive biography of one of Hollywood's most beloved stars, Michael Munn reveals the truth behind the diffident, earnest and kindly persona of Jimmy Stewart. Drawn from the author's formal interviews and informal meetings with the star and his friendship with Stewart's wife, Gloria, is this portrait of a man who came from the Presbyterian traditions of Pennsylvania to become one of the silver screen's enduring legends.

An openly right-wing Conservative and super-patriot, Stewart worked for the FBI at the behest of J. Edgar Hoover, directing his undercover sleuthing to crack organised crime in Hollywood. But he was unscrupulously manipulated by the president into flushing out Communists from the film industry. Among these revelations, there are also tales of heady love affairs, hookers and hoodlums, and of Stewart's run-in with the most dangerous of all gangsters, Benjamin 'Bugsy' Sigal. Accusations of racism are explored, as is Stewart's notoriously volatile temper. There is a comprehensive account of his experiences as a colonel in the US Air Force in World War Two - and, of course, there are the films: It's a Wonderful Life, The Greatest Show on Earth, Rear Window, the westerns and his Academy Awards.

©2013 Michael Munn (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Wonderful biography of an equally wonderful actor

Where does Jimmy Stewart rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It was quite good though not my favorite, due to the narration.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Mark Whitman's attempt to sound like Stewart and others was a bit off putting, as well as his mispronouncing people's names or in the case of Henry Fonda calling him Henry Ford at least once. As a trivia buff I am aware that Bette Davis referred to herself as Bet, but when Whitman refers to her in this manner it's just confusing.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Perhaps one of the final lines "Moments in time: The Jimmy Stewart Story"

Loved this book

Wonderful story about a wonderful and surprisingly interesting man.
Mark Whitten did a great job reading the book just enough flavor without going overboard. Will look for more book read by him.

Great man, great story

A very concise and beautiful biography of a beautiful human. Learned much about a fabulous life.

I've always wanted to learn about Jimmy Stewart

This is a great story told very well. I loved the biography. I am disappointed about his philandering, but loved that he was so committed to his wife and kids.

I learned alot about Jimmy Stewart!

I came into the biography only on the wings of It's A Wonderful Life. Obviously, I treasured the portrayal and wanted to know more about the actor behind the performance. This was a great dive into a life in films.

Nice Overview of His Life

I have always enjoyed Jimmy Stewart and enjoyed this audio book. The narration was well done. I feel like the narrator could have pushed himself a bit more to sound even more like Jimmy Stewart to easier differentiate when he was talking. But it was still good.

Jimmy Stewart had a great life !

A great story about a great man and his wonderful life !
Michael Munn does a terrific job telling about the real Jimmy Stewart and all the people that were close to him. Michael makes me want to go watch all Jimmy's movies all over again.

Thanks for the memories!

What a great look at stars before my time… I just saw “It’s A Wonderful Life”, but this book proves that Mr. Stewart was much more than that movie. Thank you for this memoir of his life.

Rewriting history through the lens of today is distorted!

Jimmy Stewart will always be one of America’s finest actors and even this author’s distorted interpretation of his shortcomings will not change this! It was enjoyable to learn more about Stewart’s friendships and experiences. Although I enjoyed many aspects of this book, I was disappointed that the narrator did not study pronunciation of common names of the era like Senator Estes Kefauver and actor Jose Ferrer, among others. It took away from the delivery like nails on a chalkboard! Jimmy Stewart will ever be a hero in my eyes!

Engaging and wonderfully delivered

An interesting telling of the life of Jimmy Stewart, skillfully narrated with a good impersonation of Jimmy’s voice and that of his wife Gloria