"The Life and Times of Moss Hart" by Dazzler and "Act One" by Moss Hart makes for an interesting read when read in the same period. I am enjoying them both for several reasons. I have always been interested in the question of success especially those born into poverty as was Moss Hart. It has always fascinated me to observe how some good folks seem to rise above their surroundings while others do not. So the book by Moss Hart, outlining how he did it, is fascinating. "Act One" ends when he is forty and has made it into the world of the successful, both on Broadway and in Hollywood. "The Life and Times" deals with the theater of the early half of the 20th century, an era full of talented people who seem no longer to exist now, so I have never understood how this happened.
The part that is fascinating is the information Moss Hart leaves out or changes in his autobiography. According to the biography, Moss Hart sketched out a musical outlining the development of a playwright, but it was never produced. Several years later, Bennett Cerf published the story as the autobiography and has been in print ever since. I have read in a review that it is still the bible for aspiring writers trying to get ahead. It is a great read. But I don't understand the problems with his memory. I suspect that his goal was to present the issue concerning with development of success and left out or changed the story that did not fit the model. Even his aunt died in his book at the date that is inaccurate by many years, even where he was living when she died. And this was a beloved difficult aunt.
Both books are worth reading but together they are a better read than either by themselves.
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