Lord Larry

the long version

"Laurence Olivier, considered by so many to have been Britain's greatest actor, was a man of many secrets. In this biography, Michael Munn explores the experiences that shaped Olivier as a man and performer." "Having got to know him between 1965 and 1981, Olivier came to trust Michael Munn and he discussed many areas of his fascinating life with the author. Not least the most dramatic and surprising aspects: he was sexually abused by a priest at a young age - an experience which profoundly affected the way in which Olivier presented himself to the world, on and off stage for the rest of his life; he tried hard to make his early marriage to Jill Esmond work, his efforts ultimately proving to himself and his wife that he was bisexual; and, most intriguingly, the fact that in his desire to contribute in a significant way to the war effort he became involved in a propaganda project secretly driven by Churchill's SOE and possibly MI-5 in an attempt to gain support for the war effort in isolationist America. As a front for this activity, Alexander Korda, who worked for SOE, was commissioned by Churchill to produce British propaganda movies in Hollywood. The result was Lady Hamilton, starring Laurence Olivier and his wife Vivien Leigh. Olivier's work for SOE, as Munn reveals, resulted in a Nazi plot to kill him as the Abwher pursued the Oliviers from America to Lisbon."--BOOK JACKET.