MARCH 2019 - AudioFile
Mallory O’Meara offers her first audiobook after a career in the independent film and new media industries. Her pleasant but mostly unvaried narration does little to shed light on her well-researched portrait of the first of very few women who have designed monsters for horror films, former Disney animator and special effects designer Milicent Patrick. Much of the audiobook is about O’Meara herself and the sexist discrimination she and Patrick have met since the release of THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON in 1954. O’Meara’s tone and vulgar language often reflect her anger toward the predominantly male film industry. Patrick, who also acted on the silver screen, was a woman ahead of her time, but O’Meara’s framing of the interesting bits within a strongly feminist agenda does little to boost understanding of the accomplishments of the Creature’s creator. W.A.G. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
The New York Times Book Review - J. D. Biersdorfer
…the book's meandering path should not come as a surprise. O'Meara freely admits early on that she's not an experienced or even objective biographer, and her infectious enthusiasm for her subject may hook similarly curious readers wondering whatever became of the Creature's creator…Despite the disjointed narrative, O'Meara achieves her goal. Thanks to her persistent efforts, The Lady From the Black Lagoon pulls Milicent Patrick and her considerable accomplishments out of the murky swamp of overlooked history and back into the light.
Publishers Weekly
★ 11/19/2018
In this captivating and exhaustively researched biography, screenwriter and producer O’Meara chronicles the largely unknown story of artist and actress Milicent Patrick, designer of the monster in the 1954 film Creature from the Black Lagoon. O’Meara traces Patrick’s journey from precocious art student to her tenure as one of the first female animators at Disney and her discovery by Universal Studios’ head of makeup, Bud Westmore. After designing the creature for the hit film and being sent on a whirlwind press tour, Patrick became the target of Westmore’s jealousy, was fired, and subsequently was denied credit for her work. O’Meara also shares her own filmmaking experiences in modern-day Hollywood, including being accused of getting a job by sleeping with the boss and being sexually harassed by a voice actor, to highlight the continuing challenges for women in the film industry. These personal anecdotes may initially appear a distraction from Patrick’s story, but O’Meara’s enthusiasm for her subject soon overcomes all objections. This is a fascinating slice of Hollywood history with a feminist slant, correcting a sexist wrong from decades ago and restoring Patrick to her rightful place of esteem. Agent: Brady McReynolds, JABberwocky Literary Agency. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
Engaging and compelling.... a fierce and often very funny guide to the distaff side of geekdom.” —Los Angeles Times
“O'Meara's chatty, impassioned book, The Lady from the Black Lagoon, lifts Milicent Patrick out of the mire of obscurity. O'Meara is a dogged researcher and a fierce partisan…Patrick's story [has] resonances for today, when women in Hollywood still find themselves in the company of monsters.” —Maureen Corrigan, NPR “Fresh Air”
“Like the creature, The Lady From the Black Lagoon is a hybrid — part biography, part memoir, part detective story and part #MeToo pushback against the film industry’s deep-rooted patriarchal tendencies, highlighted in revelations of sexually predatory behavior by male actors, directors and moguls.” —The Washington Post
“The Lady from the Black Lagoon describes the author's personal search for Patrick and is equal parts Hollywood history and detective story—and it's thrilling on both counts.” —Christian Science Monitor
"O'Meara's investigative skills match her crackling, engaging prose. Even her footnotes are hilarious. This is a wonderful, enlightening mixture of film history, memoir and love letter to the horror movie genre." —Shelf Awareness
“With a story as full of character and drama as any movie, once The Lady from the Black Lagoon has you in its grip, it won’t let go.” —The Mary Sue
“The Lady From the Black Lagoon restores Patrick to the pantheon of Hollywood trailblazers, where she belonged all along.” —Refinery29, Best Book of the Month Pick
“If you loved Hidden Figures, you’ll love this much-overdue biography of Disney’s first female animator, and Hollywood’s only woman (still) to design a monster for a major motion picture.” —Town and Country
“The Lady from the Black Lagoon is a marvel.” —Tor.com
"An incisive criticism of the erasure of women in Hollywood through the lens of the life and legacy of Milicent Patrick." —Bustle
“Captivating and exhaustively researched…This is a fascinating slice of Hollywood history with a feminist slant, correcting a sexist wrong from decades ago and restoring Patrick to her rightful place of esteem.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“An idiosyncratic, much-needed biography of ‘a woman before her time’… Jam-packed with many funny, goofy footnotes, this passionately written biography will do much to bring Patrick the recognition she deserves.” —Kirkus Reviews
“There's never a dull moment in this beautiful, heartfelt tribute to a pioneering special-effects designer and animator and passionate call for change in the industry that forgot her.” —Booklist (starred review)
“Particularly timely in light of the #MeToo movement, this book is more than simply a tribute to a forgotten pioneer of special effects and makeup design, Milicent Patrick. … This engaging, forthright, and personal history of both the author and her muse will be a valuable addition to most libraries.” —Library Journal
“Fascinating…This is a book that O’Meara was born to write, and she seamlessly meshes her own life story with that of her heroine in a way similar to how Julie Powell paid tribute to Julia Child in Julie and Julia…Even if you’re not a fan of horror films, The Lady from the Black Lagoon is a riveting, sincere Hollywood saga that will quickly win your heart.” —BookPage (starred review)
"Mallory O'Meara's book is a long-overdue tribute to Milicent Patrick, who made her way in Hollywood when women were never given equal standing. Patrick, an artist, actor, and colorful hostess, had an incredible life, and O'Meara lets us know the good and the bad of it." —Charlaine Harris
“The Lady From the Black Lagoon is not just a story that needed to be told, the exact right person told it. At some point, the book starts to resemble troika dolls: echoes of Milicent Patrick’s life can be heard in Mallory O’Meara’s life, and echoes of Mallory’s can be heard in ours, the readers. It’s then that you realize how profound this book really is.” —Josh Malerman, author of Bird Box
“O'Meara's deep dive into this unfairly-forgotten genius of character creation enriches Hollywood history and should inspire future lady monster-makers for years to come.” —Sam Maggs, author of Girl Squads and Wonder Women
“The woman behind the classic monsters of our collective Hollywood fantasies finally comes to life within this compelling odyssey of betrayal, broken dreams and shining resilience. Spanning the worlds of film, animation, horror and glamour, Mallory O’Meara richly reweaves the splintered mystery of Milicent Patrick into a dead-on expose of Hollywood then and now. Dive in!” —Mindy Johnson, author of Ink & Paint: The Women of Walt Disney's Animation
"The Lady from the Black Lagoon is a celebration of the life and shamefully overlooked work of Milicent Patrick. It's also an unflinching, from-the-front-lines recounting of Hollywood's toxic patriarchal culture, a history of all manner of monsters. You'll be infuriated at the legacy of continuing injustice but inspired by the talent, will, and spirit of Milicent Patrick and Mallory O'Meara." —Paul Tremblay author of A Head Full of Ghosts and The Cabin at the End of the World
"Like many women film pioneers, Milicent Patrick's trailblazing creature design and special make-up effects work has largely gone unrecognized, overlooked or even attributed to men. The Lady from the Black Lagoon shines a vital light on one of the unsung women heroes of cinema." —Jovanka Vuckovic, author of Zombies! An Illustrated History of the Undead
“The movie business is full of secret and forgotten histories. In The Lady from the Black Lagoon, Mallory O’Meara dives deep into one of these tales. She tells the story of Milicent Patrick, who designed an iconic monster and was an important Disney animator at a time when women were more tolerated than celebrated. Weaving strands of Hollywood lore with Patrick’s biography and her own personal history, O’Meara has written a book that’s as entertaining as it is necessary.” —Richard Kadrey, author of Hollywood Dead
"With The Lady from the Black Lagoon, Mallory O'Meara has performed true magic. It's a non-fiction detective story, with O'Meara chasing the mystery of how the woman who designed one of cinema's most famous monsters was erased from movie history. It's an intimate, personal quest, and an irrefutable indictment of Hollywood sexism both past and present. It's a love letter to monsters, and to those of us who cherish them. Even if you're not a regular non-fiction reader, you owe it to yourself to read this book. You'll thank me later." —Christopher Golden, New York Times bestselling author of Ararat and The Pandora Room
“At times laugh-out-loud funny, at others deeply moving, this engrossing book challenges the reader to look beyond what they think they know to see the secrets those in power have tried to bury.” —Alexandria Brown, Librarian and author of Hidden History of Napa Valley
"The Lady from the Black Lagoon is a stunningly honest, compassionate investigation into the life of a woman who changed the face of horror. Milicent Patrick's story is as heartbreaking as it is relatable, and O'Meara has written her story with empathy, vulnerability, and courage. The direct discussion of what it's like to be a woman in the film industry—to be a woman in any industry—is incredibly refreshing; The Lady from the Black Lagoon is a blast of fresh air. I've never read anything like The Lady from the Black Lagoon, and I hope it's just the beginning." —Sarah Gailey, author of Magic for Liars
MARCH 2019 - AudioFile
Mallory O’Meara offers her first audiobook after a career in the independent film and new media industries. Her pleasant but mostly unvaried narration does little to shed light on her well-researched portrait of the first of very few women who have designed monsters for horror films, former Disney animator and special effects designer Milicent Patrick. Much of the audiobook is about O’Meara herself and the sexist discrimination she and Patrick have met since the release of THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON in 1954. O’Meara’s tone and vulgar language often reflect her anger toward the predominantly male film industry. Patrick, who also acted on the silver screen, was a woman ahead of her time, but O’Meara’s framing of the interesting bits within a strongly feminist agenda does little to boost understanding of the accomplishments of the Creature’s creator. W.A.G. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2018-12-03
An idiosyncratic, much-needed biography of "a woman before her time."
Screenwriter and genre film producer O'Meara's first book is an engaging chronicle of Milicent Patrick (1915-1998), a woman trailblazer in the film industry, as well as the personal story of O'Meara's own, not always pleasant, experiences in the industry. As the enthusiastic author writes, in 2018, Patrick is "still the only woman to have designed an iconic movie monster." Yet "she's not just the queen of monsters, the goddam Joan of Arc." O'Meara set out on a nearly three-year journey to piece together the life of this largely unrecognized artist. Mildred Elisabeth Fulvia Rossi was born in El Paso, Texas. When she was 6, her father, Camille, was hired to be the on-site superintendent of construction for the William Randolph Hearst estate, and Patrick spent 10 wonderful years as "Alice in Wonderland." Years later, she changed her name in honor of Hearst's wife, Millicent (Patrick left out the second "l"). In 1935, she began her study of illustration and drawing at the Chouinard Art Institute. In 1938, "her work caught the eye of Walt Disney," and she joined his studio, working on The Sorcerer's Apprentice and Dumbo. Patrick did some bit acting and modeling before getting a big break in 1952, when she was the first woman hired by Bud Westmore for his famous special effects makeup department at the male-dominated Universal Studios. After designing monsters for some science-fiction movies, she took on her most famous design, Gill-Man, for the classic Creature from the Black Lagoon, "still one of the best designed and recognizable movie monsters in Hollywood history." She never received any on-screen credit, and a highly successful tour she did promoting the film got her fired by a jealous Westmore.
Jam-packed with many funny, goofy footnotes, this passionately written biography will do much to bring Patrick the recognition she deserves.
