Van Johnson: MGM's Golden Boy (Hollywood Legends)
The first in the new "Hollywood Legends" series, edited by Davis  (history, Southern Methodist Univ.), this is the only  full-length biography of Johnson, who rose to film box-office  stardom during World War II as a genial, boy-next-door  bobbysoxer idol while struggling with sexual ambiguity. The  red-haired, freckled Johnson appeared in war films like Thirty  Seconds Over Tokyo, then later in films like The Caine Mutiny.  He remained popular on stage and television after his film  popularity waned. Unfortunately this chronicle of Johnson's  career, while most astute in showing how a public persona may  have little to do with the human being, relies a great deal on  secondary sources and does not provide true insight. Recommended  only for large public libraries and academic libraries with  performing arts collections. Bruce Henson, Georgia Inst. of  Technology Lib., AtlantaCopyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.