Beautiful Invention: A Novel of Hedy Lamarr

Interesting title for a woman whose name and popular image became as much an invention as her famous contraptions. Emotional, restless, and frustrated that everyone assumed she was dumb because she was beautiful, Hedy apparently spent her whole life looking for the right partner. I say “apparently” because the novel only takes us through 1949 and the end of her third marriage; she died in 2000 after six marriages. Her first unfortunate film at the age of 18 called Ecstasy showed her running nude through the forest and having an orgasm. What a scandal! Unfortunately, this debacle almost ruined her career and it seems she never quite got over it. When Louis B Mayer took her on (after her first disastrous marriage), it seems he never really gave her the roles she craved and she got caught up in the whole Studio Era:"Throughout the meal, Bob entertained them with tales of Hollywood and its celebrated inhabitants.Hedy, struggling to follow the conversational flow, retreated into silence, as she’d done so often during her husband’s dinner parties. She recognized similarities between Austria’s political and social hierarchy and that of the moviemaking realm. Power was everything—gaining it, holding on to it, and wielding it against competitors and enemies alike. Success ensured it. Failure threatened it. Repeated failure destroyed it."This is a sad story about a frustrated life. Although Hedy seems to come out ahead in her career, her personal life never rises to her expectations. We know she is brilliant and mechanically inclined, and we do see her working on a torpedo design for the war effort, but that, too, is rejected by the government. Although I was really interested to hear about her inventions, I admit this sideline does not make for exciting prose and the author kept it to a minimum. I had a bit of trouble following all her relationships because the transitions were awkward and sometimes nonexistent. But overall the book kept me turning the pages and I got a pretty good feeling for this star-crossed beauty.

Beautiful Invention: A Novel of Hedy Lamarr. Margaret Porter. Gallica Press. October 2018. 378 pp. ISBN#: 9780990742036.“I enjoy drawing up plans and designing and making things…They don’t realize that Hedy Lamarr is an invention.” Yes, Hedy Lamarr was a beautiful actress but also an intelligent woman who invented a war weapon that was almost used to defeat the Germans in WWII.Born Hedy Kiesler, an Austrian, Jewish woman, she aspired to be a wonderful actress, but the films she chose to act in first was Ecstasy. Hedy appears naked and fakes an orgasm which equally gained her universal praise and scorn in the earlier years of the 20th Century. She marries a German munitions dealer who soon becomes her jailor. She winds up escaping from him after realizing she couldn’t ignore her yearning to become a full-time actress. Hedy signed a contract with Louis Mayer after much haggling but seems frustrated by not being given films she feels are equal to her acting abilities. Still, her looks and talents catapult her to fame and stardom status! Her love life is certainly interesting if not very stable.Margaret Porter gives a deft depiction of the lives of actors and actresses who more frequently “use” each other for better scripts or positions in the middle of a turbulent time of history with the rise of Adolph Hitler and the beginning of WWII. Hedy moves through six marriages and has several children, including one adopted son. She is also an avid gardener and inventor. She generously contributes her time for the war by selling bonds and attending clubs to sign autographs and dance with soldiers and sailors on leave.She researches science facts to create the torpedo that can attack without being detected. The work behind this creation is no small feat and highly complex. Hedy herself is a complex character, always searching for deeper meaning and creation, never satisfied. Her private and public life parallel the historical and political turmoil of Europe and America – dramatic and life-changing!Enjoy the scenes where Hedy stuns observers with her appearances in elegant gowns and hats, once an actress, always an actress! Yet also relish the brilliance of her thinking as she seeks solitude to do research and create a soda machine and later a war weapon to be used against Germany. Most of all, just revel in the enigmatic and intelligent talent of one of the most famous actresses in the Gilded Age of American Theatre! Highly recommended!

Captivating, fascinating, and entrancing. These are just three words of many that I could use to describe this incredible novel by Margaret Porter. I was hooked from the very first line. From the moment young Hedy Kiesler appears on screen in the shocking film Ecstasy, she is destined to become one of Hollywood’s biggest, brightest, most alluring stars. But first she must endure her family’s shame over her provocative movie and an unhappy marriage before chasing her dream. A dream that will take her across an ocean and make her the most famous celebrity of her day known by her fans as Hedy Lamarr. Unbeknownst to those who idolize her, she is also a woman of high intelligence who has more to offer than her beauty.Beautifully written with interesting historical detail, this novel is hard to put down. You feel you really do get to know Hedy and all those around her. Trust me—this is a must read for anyone who loves historical fiction.

As a fan of all things Old Hollywood, I was intrigued to read this biographical novel of one of the 20th century's most fascinating people. The "nonfiction fiction" format allows for some license, I'm sure, but if anything, Ms. Porter's compelling book left me wanting to read more about Hedy Lamarr's extraordinary life. The emotional undercurrent of Hedy trying to escape a personally scandalous and politically treacherous past kept me engaged as the events of her life and career unfolded. I was actually disappointed by the ending point of the narrative, as I would have loved to enjoy more of Ms. Porter's take on Hedy's later years. Highly recommended for old movie and history buffs alike.

Hollywood could be a vicious place. Being a glamorous star brought a life of turmoil. Romanceand marriages did not survive the life in the spotlight.