Title: I love the illusion: the life and career of Agnes Moorehead
Author: Charles Transberg

In ten words or less: Detailed history of Agnes Moorehead's long, illustrious acting career.

Review: Agnes Moorehead donated her papers--159 boxes--to the State Historical Society in Madison. The author used these archives as the basis for this book, as well as interviews with actors and others connected with Moorehead.
Moorehead's remarkable acting career is the focus of the book; her stage, film, radio, and television roles are examined in great detail. The tales of her association with Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre are particularly fascinating. She appeared with most of the noted actors of the 1930s-1960s, and received 4 Oscar nominations, seven Emmy nominations, and other awards.
The weakness of the book is that there is so little insight into her personal life. She was a very private person, and apparently even her closest friends were not privy to her intimate thoughts.
My favorite anecdote recounts a party at which Moorehead was a guest--it was when she was on "Bewitched." The teen son of the host arrived home with his friends and was introduced to her. As he was about to leave, he was asked if he didn't want to stay to talk with Moorehead. "Why should I," he scoffed. "It's not like she was in 'Citizen Kane' or anything." (Moorehead was Kane's mother in the film).

Why bother?: For film buffs only; no dirt dished here.