Book review - "Tab Hunter: Confidential" by Tab Hunter

I remember being astonished when I first discovered there had been a film star called “Tab Hunter”. What sort of a name was that? Indeed , even Tab Hunter hated it. He was a young good looking Californian kid who hung around the movies. I was familiar with the broad basics of his career, but didn’t know all the details: his first role was a starring one with Linda Darnell, and he made a big splash in the fan magazines… but his career didn’t really get going until he signed with Warner Brothers and made Battle Cry.

He was a star – a teen idol star – for the rest of the 50s. Despite his silly name he seems to have been genuine box office, especially with a name co-star. He also tried to expand his horizons. He was a little difficult with the studio – but every actor under contract with Warners became difficult. He actually paid to get out of his contract, and after a few dud films his career plummeted and he was making films in Europe and doing dinner theatre. Having said that he could still make a decent living. He had a sort of comeback as a camp icon in Polyester and is still around today.

In his memoirs Hunter comes across as a decent guy who got lucky in the 50s then got unlucky; his name was too silly and he also received bad publicity over allegedly hitting his dog just at the wrong time – this helped turn him into a joke. Although it probably was a mistake forhim to leave Warners, how much good would it have done for him, really? Troy Donahue, Ed Byrnes and all that lot suffered similar slumps. To his credit Hunter worked hard. His memoir is open about his sexuality - he had a relationship with tony Perkins and a fling with Nureyev, but he also talks about his more serious relationships. He also talks of his friendships with Natalie Wood and Joan Cohn and other adventures in the screen trade. Well worth a read.