Kate Remembered

Last updated
Kate Remembered
Kate remembered.jpg
Author A. Scott Berg
Country United States
Language English
Subject Biography, Memoir
Genre Non-fiction
Publisher Putnam Publishing Group
Publication date
July 11, 2003
Media type Hardcover
Pages 370
ISBN 978-0-399-15164-4

Kate Remembered is a book released on July 11, 2003 by A. Scott Berg, which tells the story, life, and his experiences with actress Katharine Hepburn. The book was released 12 days after Hepburn's death at 96 on June 29. The book received mixed reviews.

A. Scott Berg Biographer, journalist

Andrew Scott Berg is an American biographer.

Katharine Hepburn American actress

Katharine Houghton Hepburn was an American actress. Known for her fierce independence and spirited personality, Hepburn was a leading lady in Hollywood for more than 60 years. She appeared in a range of genres, from screwball comedy to literary drama, and she received a record four Academy Awards for Best Actress. In 1999, Hepburn was named by the American Film Institute the greatest female star of Classic Hollywood Cinema.

Contents

Synopsis

Published within days of her death at 96, this life of Katharine Hepburn is able to take her to her final hours, following her career from her aristocratic, fresh-faced, and slightly audacious youth to her extreme old age. A. Scott Berg knew Hepburn for the last 20 years of her life, and his book is not only the biography of a beloved actress but a tribute to a friend to whom she told the truth about her life, including her great loves and pet hates, with an eye to its eventual publication.

Friendship with Hepburn

Berg was a personal friend of Hepburn, after meeting her in 1983. He told her he wanted to write a biography about her life and she helped him, providing information about her life. Berg told Hepburn he would release the book after her death.

Reception

Reviews were mixed after the book was released. Gossip columnist Liz Smith, a friend of Hepburn's, said that Berg's book was "Self-promoting fakery …. Hepburn would have despised it and his betrayal of her friendship."[ citation needed ]

Liz Smith (journalist) American writer

Mary Elizabeth Smith was an American gossip columnist. She was known as "The Grand Dame of Dish". During her career, she wrote columns for the New York Daily News, The Washington Post, and Cosmopolitan. She worked exclusively with Fox Broadcasting Company with Roger Ailes. From 1995 to 2005, Smith worked with Newsday.

Berg later issued this written statement via his publisher, G.P. Putnam's Sons:

"Over the last two months, I have been truly shocked at Liz Smith's professional behavior-or, more accurately, her lack thereof," Berg wrote. "My family and friends have reacted with utter disbelief at the level of personal disdain conveyed by Ms. Smith toward someone she barely knows; (indeed, beyond my appearing at one of her Literacy Volunteer events, I've met her but a few times.) And I've heard that people I don't even know are shocked by her personal assault on my reputation, one that stops just short of character assassination."[ citation needed ]

Cynthia McFadden, executor of Hepburn's will and estate, had similar feelings to Liz Smith's about the book, as did Hepburn's family.[ citation needed ]

Cynthia McFadden American journalist

Cynthia McFadden is an American television journalist who is currently the senior legal and investigative correspondent for NBC News. She was an anchor and correspondent for ABC News who co-anchored Nightline, and occasionally appeared on ABC News special Primetime. She was with ABC News from 1994 to 2014 and joined NBC News in March 2014.

Positive reviews about the book include: "From the start, Berg's book is a paean of praise and love...." [1]

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References

  1. Robert Gottlieb, New York Times Book Review, 08/17/2003.