David Fantle
David Fantle has interviewed more than 250 show business personalities over the past 45 years, including such legendary names as Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, James Cagney, Lucille Ball, Bob Hope, George Burns, Debbie Reynolds, Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh and Gregory Peck. His second book of celebrity interviews, Hollywood Heyday: 75 Candid Interviews with Golden Age Legends was published by McFarland and Company in 2018. His latest book, 𝄞 C’mon, Get Happy♪: The Making of Summer Stock came out in Fall 2023 from the University Press of Mississippi. Both books have been written with his longtime collaborator Tom Johnson.
Fantle is an adjunct professor at Marquette University in Milwaukee where he teaches courses in film, television and popular culture. He is also the former Deputy Secretary of Tourism for Wisconsin. |
Hollywood Heyday: 75 Candid Interviews with Golden Age Legends
Golden Age Celebrity Interviews
"What audacity!" exclaimed actor Robert Wagner when he heard about the authors' adolescent exploits in nabbing interviews with Hollywood celebrities. In 1978, Fantle and Johnson, St. Paul teenagers, boarded a plane to meet with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly. They had written the stars requesting interviews--and to their amazement, both agreed. Over the years, more than 250 other stars also agreed--Lucille Ball, Bob Hope, James Cagney, Mickey Rooney, Debbie Reynolds, George Burns, Rod Steiger, Milton Berle, Frank Capra and Hoagy Carmichael, to name a few. Published for the first time and with exclusive photos, this selection of 75 interviews chronicles the authors' 40-year quest for insights and anecdotes from iconic 20th century artists. |
C'Mon, Get Happy: the Making of Summer Stock
Film History
In their third and final screen teaming, Judy Garland and Gene Kelly starred together in the MGM musical Summer Stock. Despite its riveting production history, charismatic lead actors, and classic musical moments, the movie has not received the same attention as other musicals from MGM’s storied dream factory. In C’mon, Get Happy: The Making of “Summer Stock,” authors David Fantle and Tom Johnson present a comprehensive study of this 1950 motion picture, from start to finish and after its release. |