Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

Name: Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood
Genre: Documentary
Released: July 27, 2018
Duration: 98 min
Rating: 67
Cast: Peter Bart, Robert Hofler, Scotty Bowers, Stephen Fry, Stephen Fry

2018

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Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews

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Generally favorable reviews based on 6 Ratings

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7.2	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 6 Ratings

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Scotty And The Secret History Of Hollywood

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Movie Details & Credits

| Release Date: July 27, 2018 | Not Rated

Starring: Peter Bart, Robert Hofler, Scotty Bowers, Stephen Fry, Stephen Fry, William Mann

Summary: A portrait of unsung Hollywood legend Scotty Bowers, whose bestselling memoir chronicled his decades spent as sexual procurer to the stars.

Director: Matt Tyrnauer

Genre(s): Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 98 min

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Critic Reviews

Chris Nashawaty

Jul 27, 2018

He’s not just a name-dropper, but a master storyteller. Whether you believe every spicy morsel that drops from his lips is entirely up to you. Read full review

Movie Nation Roger Moore

Jul 23, 2018

As our understanding of sexuality and its “fluid” nature among much of the population changes, Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood serves a larger purpose. By telling these tales now, he’s blunting the shock of the pace of changing mores and acceptance of the different. Read full review

Nathalie Atkinson

Aug 2, 2018

The film is also a chronicle of the sexual politics of the era – and the subsequent systematic erasure of LGBTQ history (under the guise of privacy and not “spoiling” the illusion) by the juggernaut industry that shaped our culture. That perspective on the proclivities makes Scotty as fascinating as it is poignant. Read full review

Tim Grierson

Jul 23, 2018

Tyrnauer smartly dissects how stifling the era’s sexual politics were — and his affectionate portrait of Bowers sneaks in some balance by critiquing him for writing a juicy tell-all that, in essence, outed people without their permission. Read full review

David Edelstein

Jul 27, 2018

You don’t have to be a moralist to see the tragedy of Scotty Bowers’s life. You only have to have an eye for things that don’t fit comfortably. Tyrnauer has that, as well as the compassion not to probe too deeply. What’s onscreen is enough to make you conclude that you can’t make people truly happy without fixing the world. Read full review

Moira Macdonald

Aug 23, 2018

“Scotty” the documentary, entertaining as it is, leaves its hero’s surface mostly unscratched; his life seems a story still not fully written. Read full review

David Fear

Jul 27, 2018

A sexual-revolution pioneer, a “gay renegade” who was also “pre-gay,” a cultural saboteur, a sad old man in denial — we get a lot of opaque Scottys, all semi-attached to an alternate “history” that feels maddeningly incomplete and barely surface-scratched. Read full review

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porgain

Sep 14, 2018

This documentary is a fascinating rewrite of history that reveals the real story of sexual happenings in post WWII Hollywood. Scotty is a Zelig who is finally revealing the people behind the studio masks of famous stars. This isn't gossip but rather shows the complex nature of humanThis documentary is a fascinating rewrite of history that reveals the real story of sexual happenings in post WWII Hollywood. Scotty is a Zelig who is finally revealing the people behind the studio masks of famous stars. This isn't gossip but rather shows the complex nature of human sexuality and the ways it was repressed by society's puritanical attitudes. Scotty enabled his cohorts to pursue happiness despite the strictures imposed on them. He also enabled Alfred Kinsey's groundbreaking research. I highly recommend reading his book, which goes into more detail about the past, while the movie covers the bittersweet present of who Scotty has become over time.… Expand

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WhiskeyStories

Dec 2, 2018

It's less of an informative documentary and moreso just a touching portrait of the life and times of one Scotty Bowers.

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GreatMartin

Aug 24, 2018

In “Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood” is a documentary that goes into, lightly, a little about the Gay World that existed among movie stars at the big studios back in the 1040s and 1950s.

It will mainly serve as nostalgia for men over 50 who were ‘out’ and could understand whatIn “Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood” is a documentary that goes into, lightly, a little about the Gay World that existed among movie stars at the big studios back in the 1040s and 1950s.

It will mainly serve as nostalgia for men over 50 who were ‘out’ and could understand what life was like back then. It was also bring back memories to those who remember when the “Confidential” newspaper/magazine outed Hollywood stars or the book “Hollywood Babylon” scandalized the ‘flyover States’ and was banned shortly after being published in the 1960s.

The stories also brought back memories for this writer of when he lived in Hollywood, Laguna Beach, Santa Monica and Beverly Hills who, as a Marine at 19 went to a couple of the George Cukor Sunday brunches, saw and met a few stars there but has nothing solicitous to report as I didn’t go into the house but hung around the pool.

I didn’t meet Scotty Bowers who wrote the book the title of the movie is based on but from seeing the man today you wonder how much is true, how much is exaggerated and how much is outright lies. He claims to have never made a dime from the connections he made, that he wasn’t a pimp and yet he seems to have done quite financially after he stopped working at the gas station where it all started. Though he bartended some of the parties where he introduced some of the ‘boy and girls’ and saved enough money to buy a home, it still doesn’t explain the $900,000 he was left or the three houses he has.

Some of the ‘tricks’ are still around plus many of the old-timers talk about what a nice guy he was and is and yet the persona of the man doesn’t match up with the photos and the man he says he was. There also no mention of what may be the cause for his being a mass hoarder in his 3 homes, so much so he and his wife can’t seem to walk through the homes.

Though “Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood” may offer some news to a few people, shock a few others and some people may shake their head because everyone he talks about is dead like Katherine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Lana Turner, Ava Gardner, Rock Hudson, Cary Grant, etc.

The bottom line is the movie is a curiosity more than a good or informative documentary.

P.S. I don’t remember ever seeing a skunk---not human, but animal—in the Laurel Canyon Drive, above the Sunset Boulevard area.… Expand

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