Dashing to the End

Reviews / Votes

"Perhaps Milland was the ultimate example of being in the right place at the right time. Still, Dashing to the End does an excellent job in recalling his ability to spin a long and Oscar-capped career from his remarkable good luck." - Phil Hall, The Epoch Times

"Fans of Milland will no doubt enjoy Eric Monder's Dashing to the End: The Ray Milland Story, a well-researched biography and tribute to Milland. Monder examines Milland's life, career, and key roles in this highly informative book. Monder's efforts to tell Milland's story thoroughly and objectively are impressive and supported by quotes and anecdotes from stars who knew him. Perhaps the most moving part of this book occurs near the end when Milland's legacy is discussed as well as its overall uncertainty as the years go on. (Hometowns to Hollywood) Most reviewers ignore blurbs, but it is hard not to be impressed by renowned film critic Molly Haskell's endorsement of a book 'we've been waiting for' of a star who 'brought a dark shadow self to his matinee idol roles,' or that of a Tony Award-winning playwright, David Rabe, who lauds an 'engrossing biography' that portrays an 'ambitious, serious, sometimes turbulent' career, reflective of a 'rebellious psyche behind a perhaps too placid veneer.' Mr. Rabe's comment captures the subtle, sometimes hidden drama of Milland's roles and his off-screen life, which now have been conjoined in Eric Monder's splendid achievement." - Carl Rollyson, The New York Sun

"A recommended new book on filmmaking. . .the first comprehensive biography on Milland. - Christopher Schobert (www.thefilmstage.com) Dashing to the End is the biography of Ray Milland we've been waiting for. The Welsh actor was underserved by his studio and, at the end of his long career, underestimated by critics and the public. He had to wait this long for the full-scale treatment, but luckily he got the biographer he deserved and then some! With tremendous skill and insight, Eric Monder shows how Milland brought a dark shadow self to his matinee idol roles, a self-deprecating humor to his seemingly unflappable protagonists. His skill, charisma, complexity, and career choices (the dark roles he hesitatingly accepted, the juicy ones he turned down) are elucidated with style and easy scholarship in this entertaining work. The introduction alone is a masterpiece of succinct storytelling, drawing us irresistibly onward into what promises to be a classic of its genre." - Molly Haskell, American film critic and author

"During my childhood and early adult years in Iowa, Ray Milland occupied a steady place, my window into the larger world. Films like Beau Geste and Reap the Wild Wind, along with The Lost Weekend, were all indelible in my young imagination. And yet Milland, though ever present, remained somehow a secondary figure. Dashing to the End, Eric Monder's aptly named and engrossing biography, takes us into the ambitious, serious, sometimes turbulent-Milland's career was damaged by a love affair with Grace Kelly-and even rebellious psyche behind a perhaps too placid veneer." - David Rabe, Tony Award-winning playwright

"Eric Monder's incisive, insightful biography of Ray Milland has been a long time coming and well worth the wait. So much more than another story about the Golden Age of Hollywood, Dashing to the End follows the Oscar-winning actor through six decades, using comprehensive research and little-known backstory. Today, Milland's work should resonate with younger audiences: the gifted Welshman had a modernism about him, he played characters that were flawed though fascinating-disaffected, snarky but witty, and, yes, narcissistic. A Milland retrospective is in order!" - Rosemary Rogers Downey, best-selling writer

"Eric Monder is one of our best film critics and historians. His latest book is a marvelous critical analysis of the career of Ray Milland, whose place in classical Hollywood cinema is given its due for the first time. Meticulously researched and admirably written, Dashing to the End is a valuable contribution to US cultural history. - Toby Miller, cultural studies and media studies scholar Dashing to the End has been a years-long project in which the author has been deeply invested. Monder possesses a broad knowledge of the world of cinema scholarship, of its archives and institutions. He knows the field, and he most certainly has an extensive knowledge of the career of Ray Milland." - William Luhr, American film author and professor

"Impeccably researched and richly detailed. Monder takes the reader on a compelling journey of Milland's life and career with insightful analysis of films and television shows and the business of Hollywood." - Susan Kouguell is lecturer in the School of Film and Media Studies at SUNY Purchase College and senior contributing editor of Script Magazine

"What a riveting and informative biography . . . I've learned so much about the man and the actor and can't wait to revisit his films." - Clive Hirschhorn, British film reviewer and author