Library Journal
The late Vazzana has left a fine legacy to film fans with this huge necrology of silent film performers, directors, executives, producers, cinematographers, stunt performers, publicists, composers, inventors, and others involved in the industry's early days. Over twice the size of the first edition (LJ 6/15/95), this work aims to be as comprehensive as possible, offering 18,500+ entries on the international silent film scene. Alphabetically arranged by professional name, the brief entries include birth and death dates, place of birth and death, real names (where applicable), age at death, and the bibliographic data of any autobiography or biography. When available, the cause of death is also provided, as is a reference to any obituary printed in the New York Times, Variety, or other significant publication. Unfortunately, there are no indexes or other supplements, so it's impossible to locate individuals easily by year of birth or death, method of death, etc., but other resources can provide that information. For such specialized lists, the user can cross-check Everett Jarvis's Final Curtain (Carol, 1998. 9th ed.), although it covers only a subset of what Vazzana covers. Although the typeface is on the small side, bolded names throughout make it easy to locate entries quickly, and cross references to stars' mates add to the overall utility. An excellent addition to the growing film necrology library, supplementing Paul Donnelly's Fade to Black (Omnibus, 2001), Billy Doyle's The Ultimate Directory of Film Technicians (LJ 6/15/99), Harris Lentz's Obituaries in the Performing Arts (McFarland, annual), Variety Obituaries: 1905-1990 (Garland, 1989), and the above-mentioned Final Curtain. Highly recommended for all public and academic libraries. Anthony J. Adam, Prairie View A&M Univ., TX Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Booknews
Vazzana (1940-2001) profiles over 18,500 actors, actresses, directors, executives, producers,cinematographers, stunt performers, publicists, composers, inventors, and other figures from the silent era of movies in the US, nearly doubling the number of entries in the 1995 first edition. He cites their mention in trade and general periodicals, mostly leaving out the volume number because only the date is needed to find the issue on microfilm, and changes cited death locations<-- >mostly Hollywood<-->to the county where the records can be found<-- >mostly Los Angeles. In addition to several entries for animals, he includes one for Mickey Mouse to remind researchers that a number of cartoon characters were regular features on the silent screen. The cross-referencing is extensive; there is no index. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
