Shirley Booth

The Hazel theme music plays to an applauding audience as sixty-four year old Shirley Booth steps up to the stage for her second Emmy Award. As the character Hazel, her superb comedic and dramatic skills resulted from arduous years of perfecting her minimalist approach to acting. More than fifty years earlier, Shirley first stepped onto the stage against the wishes of her father. How could Shirley Booth achieve so much success as an actress, winning every major acting award possible without formal dramatic training? Jim Manago chronicles Shirley Booth’s many years of radio broadcasting, playing in stock theater roles, starring in successful and abortive Broadway shows, to finally reach and go beyond her award winning Broadway performance in Come Back, Little Sheba. “Love is the Reason for it All….” takes the reader through her entire career. This new biography of Shirley Booth examines the critical reception to Shirley’s performances, utilizes interviews with her friends and associates, and most notably provides Shirley’s own words to reveal her distinct philosophy of life. This is Shirley Booth’s inspiring story of absolute determination to succeed despite any and all troubles….