Tales of a Hollywood Housewife: A Memoir by The First Mrs. Lee Marvin Paperback – September 2, 2011

This book is a most interesting read and holds your attention until the very end. It is the story of a woman who grew up with her grandparents - not knowing her parents until she became an adult. After high school, Betty moved to California to live with her father and attend UCLA; thus beginning a journey in life you will not forget. She is very talented as a singer and would most likely have had a wonderful career in music had she not met and fell madly in love with Lee Marvin. They married and he did not become famous until after a few years and 4 kids later. Lee was an alcoholic and as he fell deeper into his addiction my belief is he was madly in love with Betty, but alcohol clouded his judgment. He became involved with Michelle Triola while making the movie "Ship of Fools" in London, England. She dug her claws into him and he eventually left Betty and lived with Michelle who eventually changed her last name to Marvin. They never married, but after they broke up she filed the famous palimony suit against him. Betty begins her journey as a divorced woman and has lived to tell the tale of her many adventures. I wish there had been more to read about Betty. She lived with Lee the best years of his life. Lee did marry a second time to a woman named Pamela he had known before he met Betty. Pamela was not kind to Betty or the children of Lee and Betty. I feel that Pamela was more of a caretaker to Lee in his last years. Betty is a lady that I would want to know - smart, witty, intelligent and talented. Wonderful book.

A most interesting book that was a quick read. While it could have used a better editor/proofreader, the book held your interest, not just during the time the author was married to Lee Marvin but her life after she was divorced from Marvin. We know from other books that Marvin was a hopeless alcoholic but the fact that he seemed to have no interest in his children, when they were little or as adults, is heartbreaking. Despite Marvin's promises that he will take care of his ex-wife and children, he did not. Unfortunately, Betty Marvin had to learn things the hard way as her attorneys did not look after her best interests in the divorce and the judge was awed by Marvin's celebrity so of course, also did not provide fair judgment. Betty Marvin continued to be taken in bad real estate and business deals because she was so trusting. This is one book that everyone could learn from as first, you cannot trust anyone but yourself to look after your interests, never sign anything you don't understand, and you need to constantly reinvent yourself to survive. Luckily Betty Marvin was able to reinvent herself and I think became a strong, independent, well rounded woman that she would never have been if she had stayed with Marvin. The book could have had more photos but overall, I found it very interesting. The photo of the house she designed in Baja, California is very interesting.

Good book, but there were some items I wanted to comment on. First of all, she grows up with her grandparents, as both parents abandoned her & her brother. Her brother's older, but they weren't close. Hmmm, odd, you'd think, being both abandoned would have brought them closer, but I suppose some families are like that. However, I was perplexed why the parents who abandoned her got a lot of print in the book, but the grandparents who took her in and raised her were only afforded one mention - that of one trip to visit them. Are they still alive? She doesn't even mention if they pass away, nothing.She writes that she's poor and has no money, yet the next thing you know, she's on a world-wide trip to photograph the homeless. I'm not homeless and living in poverty, but I most certainly have never (and doubtless, never will) have the money sufficient to sustain myself while I run around the world photographing. Was there something I missed?I was surprised to think that she had been around "Hollywood types" all those years, had a lot of socializing (she notes herself she loved to cook and have people over) and she never picked up once which specific attorney was the one to go to when getting a divorce. She acknowledges her attorney wasn't very good at protecting her interests, but evidently didn't feel she should make waves. Perhaps I would roll over and play dead for a hot shot movie star if I were alone; however, she had four children with this man. She needed to protect THEM. It was no longer about her. Totally stumped at her complete acquiescence.Lastly, I would have enjoyed her perspective on Christina Crawford's book, "Mommy Dearest." As she spent some time as Joan Crawford's nanny, she could have added to the conversation, even if just a short opinion.These are just random thoughts that occurred to me. It's a good read, gives you some background into Hollywood life. I think I could have really liked Lee Marvin, despite the drinking, but the way he shut out his children was unacceptable.

An honest biography of a Hollywood wife. I enjoyed this book and her so of life with and without Lee Marvin

A lot of lessons to be learned here. Interesting journey to self.Sorry to see the end of the book!

I enjoyed this book but it really wasn't that riveting. I can't believe that she could be married to Lee Marvin and still end up living rough.

A thoroughly enjoyable read .What an inspirational lady !I could not put this book down ,Highly recommended .

This book, by title is entirely the type I never read. I wasn't interested in Lee Marvin, the cover & title looked too predictable, as in, thumbs down on this tell-all, once he's dead, by a scorned wife. I'm not sure why I threw in the $2 investment (more about wasted time) when it popped up on Kindle specials. Yeah, I occasionally read autobiographies by aging rockers, or actors but usually know the theme is the same, fame & wealth, drugs & booze, power trips, cheating on wife, resentful offspring seldom seen, marriages & divorces - the nice guy gone narcissistic . While this book suggests the stepford wife, & yes, in the 50s this role was more prevalent, & yes, obviously Lee Marvin is part of the memoir, there's more to it once he's not - that's where imo, Betty Marvin demonstrates that her life became that more interesting, & could not only weather hardest of times, but come out all the better for it. In this case "Don't judge a book by its cover (or title)", & keep with it, as Life after Lee Left (my phrasing) makes for the best half of the book.