Where a actor or celeb lived?-newspapers

[tali122]

Before the days of the PC and the net, how did newspapers know where actors/celebs lived - did they follow them? -or did the actors agents give the address?

[torinfan]

They probably followed them.



Most actors in Hollywood lived behind high walls so the paparazzi couldn't really get to them, though.

[penfold]

Before celebrity culture went nuts, addresses were available from a variety of sources. Film Encyclopaedias carried addresses of the stars, sometimes c/o agents or studios, sometimes not. Other possible sources included the phone book (Fewer people had phones back then) I assume the electoral roll was available then as now from local libraries, and there were Street directories such as Kellys for most major cities and towns which name owner/occupiers by house. If you had a vague idea of which areas to target, a few minutes work and you would have a full postal address.

[Steve Crook]

In the UK, film fan magazines would often do "at home with ..." articles which would include photos of their homes and would often give the address. If they didn't give the house number they would often say which road it was in and give a photo of the outside of the house, so it wasn't hard to work out.



Steve

[Moor Larkin]

Maybe people would get chatting to the principal actors on the bus on the way to the theatre..............



There are many stories of old footballers discussing the merits of their performance the previous week, with fans of the team, on the bus to the ground, for the next game.....



I imagine the bigger stars had more than one home. Possibly one in London, which would be their *official* address......... and then one they kept more private.



Patrick McGoohan had a well-known home in Mill Hill, but not so many knew about his other house near Horsham in Sussex.

[CaptainWaggett]

name='penfold']Before celebrity culture went nuts, addresses were available from a variety of sources. Film Encyclopaedias carried addresses of the stars, sometimes c/o agents or studios, sometimes not. Other possible sources included the phone book (Fewer people had phones back then) I assume the electoral roll was available then as now from local libraries, and there were Street directories such as Kellys for most major cities and towns which name owner/occupiers by house. If you had a vague idea of which areas to target, a few minutes work and you would have a full postal address.

If you look at pre-war phonebooks you can find more or less anyone - Coward, Olivier, Gielgud - they're all there. Plus, it's quite surprising how many people would put their home address in Who's Who - for example I can tell you Jack Hawkins lived at The Penthouse, 34 Ennismore Gardens, SW7.

[batman]

Where did Max live?

[CaptainWaggett]

name='batman']Where did Max live?

Tragically he never made it to Who's Who though his missis did... I'll check the phonebooks tomorrow though obviously it would help if he had a more unusual surname.



Baz lived at 4 Old Burlington Street, just behind the Royal Academy. Which is nice.

[batman]

name='CaptainWaggett']Tragically he never made it to Who's Who though his missis did... I'll check the phonebooks tomorrow though obviously it would help if he had a more unusual surname.



Baz lived at 4 Old Burlington Street, just behind the Royal Academy. Which is nice.

Thanks .... it would be interesting to know where he indulged in his 'wild man' antics.

[Mark O]

name='CaptainWaggett']Tragically he never made it to Who's Who though his missis did... I'll check the phonebooks tomorrow though obviously it would help if he had a more unusual surname.



Baz lived at 4 Old Burlington Street, just behind the Royal Academy. Which is nice.

Baz?........enlightenment please!



If anyone ascertains where Maxwell Reed lived (in London) I'll happily take a pic next time I'm roving........

[batman]

name='Mark O']Baz?........enlightenment please!



If anyone ascertains where Maxwell Reed lived (in London) I'll happily take a pic next time I'm roving........

Baz = Basil Radford.



I would love to see a pic of Max's pad, thanks Mark for the offer Mark.

[Santonix]

name='CaptainWaggett']If you look at pre-war phonebooks you can find more or less anyone - Coward, Olivier, Gielgud - they're all there. Plus, it's quite surprising how many people would put their home address in Who's Who - for example I can tell you Jack Hawkins lived at The Penthouse, 34 Ennismore Gardens, SW7.

Jack Hawkins also had a house in Branksome Chine Bournemouth.

[Mark O]

name='batman']Baz = Basil Radford.



I would love to see a pic of Max's pad, thanks Mark for the offer Mark.

You're welcome Bats..........maybe Rank may have Maxwell's former address?.......does anyone know if they give information willingly?

[Moor Larkin]

name='batman']Where did Max live?

Surely the house would have a blue plaque?

[batman]

name='Moor Larkin']Surely the house would have a blue plaque?

'Here in this house Maxwell Reed tried to sell Joan Collins to the Arabs'.

[Moor Larkin]

name='batman']'Here in this house Maxwell Reed tried to sell Joan Collins to the Arabs'.

Joanie would have given them a sheikh-down........



How different the Middle East could have turned out..........

[CaptainWaggett]

There's a Maxwell Reed in the 1949 phone directory at 14 St George Street W1, phone number MAY 2857. QUite posh - just behind Regent Street.

[Mark O]

name='CaptainWaggett']There's a Maxwell Reed in the 1949 phone directory at 14 St George Street W1, phone number MAY 2857. QUite posh - just behind Regent Street.

Thanks Cap'n, it's quite feasible that that's Maxwell's address at the time, Mayfair was then a magnet for Thespians to live, as he had already made his mark as a character actor in Film's

[batman]

name='CaptainWaggett']There's a Maxwell Reed in the 1949 phone directory at 14 St George Street W1, phone number MAY 2857. QUite posh - just behind Regent Street.

In an old magazine article it said he lived in Mayfair so that's probably it. Thank you!

[Mark O]

name='batman']In an old magazine article it said he lived in Mayfair so that's probably it. Thank you!

Yup, that must be it as I've been flicking through Joan's biography and says "we drew up outside an old Georgian house in Hanover Square", Hanover Square abutt's St. George's street so I daresay it's on the corner there..........Joan goes on to say "we walked up four flights of stairs past empty office suites and at the top came to a door which he unlocked with a key, etc; etc; the flat was decorated in Medieval-Spanish-Hollywood style, there was a lot of crimson velvet and gold braid, purple silk lampshades on six-masted schooner lamps, some carved wood throne-like chairs and three or four Impressionist oil paintings. Oh, there was also, I saw out of the corner of my eye, a sort of sofa bed against the far wall which appeared to be covered in a zebra-skin rug and three thousand velvet cushions".



Maxwell then promptly went and had a Bath!