The recently rereleased tome of upright rejection to the rules of engagement for Hollywood success and its predictably perverse path to stardom as told by author Alison Mills Newman in Francisco, is enjoying a revival of its initial success. The work from the trailblazing starlet who achieved acclaim during a pivotal period for Black actors in Hollywood – celebrates her personal breakthroughs with a purity of perspective that is unparalleled for more seasoned and perhaps less fortunate performers. In Francisco, she pursues and achieves an elusive goal – fame without the consequence of spiritual compromise.
Newman’s highly acclaimed novel is a beautifully written and spirited accounting of life in the limelight, and in the shadows of a more nuanced and ethereal culture of subsurface activity and after-hours living. Published by Reed, Cannon and Johnson and on the New York Times recommended reading list, this splendidly colored and vibrant tale of life as an artist in front of the camera, behind the scenes and encapsulated in the love a great is as irresistible as it is informative about the enticements of entertaining.
The narrator occupies the in-between space, with a worldly innocence that ferries her from the cold, hard heartedness of the spotlight to the warm and seductive embrace of a blue light in the basement kind of existence.
This masterfully crafted literary work is nothing short of theater for Black women in the rhythmic motion of living and loving on their own terms, absent the corruptive influence of substance abuse and sexual assail.
Mills successfully escaped the excesses of both.
In an exclusive interview the author shared how she persevered, thrived and emerged remarkably aware and stunningly intact.
“You know, after having been a child star in such a strong, overpowering environment since I was 12, and people didn’t realize that during that time in life, that season in Hollywood, a lot of child stars died, committed suicide, got on drugs and just [lost] their lives,” explained the actress who at the age of 12 made history as the first Black teen with a recurring role in a television series. Mills played Carol Deering on the groundbreaking NBC sitcom “Julia” starring Diahann Carroll. She would go on to land a co-starring role on another groundbreaking show, “The Leslie Uggams Show,” the first variety show led by a Black actress.
“I think some of the reviewers and [critics], they don’t understand or maybe they do comprehend how much pressure there is being on that level of existence and awareness before the public eye, especially at such a young age. The humanity is lost and you don’t get to be a person … you lose your personhood,” she adds.
The tragic stories circling the plight of child stars who have found fame under the bright lights and ultimately dimmed by consumption, extravagance and the sometimes perverse indulgences of celebrity life, have in recent years surfaced in every category of entertainment.
Mills’ ability to prevail against the pitfalls of stardom and emerge wonderfully intact is echoed in Franscisco’s seamlessly scripted dialogue, that dances fluidly from street vernacular to the King’s English and back again with complete ease, never contrived and never forced.
“I had a vision, and in that vision, that encounter with God … I was able to obey it and get out of there. I was able to survive,” says Mills whose good looks and remarkable talent had industry insiders hailing her as the next Dorothy Dandridge or even Marilyn Monroe.
“You know, I was going to be made into a sex symbol. And I had a certain image of what I wanted to be, and it wasn’t as sex symbol. I wanted to be an actress, a great actress, doing great movies that changed people’s lives, that empowered black people. I had a real black consciousness and a real artistic consciousness in vision that I was devoted to.”
In Francisco, which is at some junctures remarkably reminiscent of the Harlem Renaissance, the author illustrates in splendid detail and with utter clarity that her only real option was to rail against the seduction of stardom and rebuff the advances of casting couch bandits and industry predators.
At a moment when the nation is experiencing renewed attention to retrospect of public personas and pop-culture morality, Franscisco is a much-welcomed respite from the clatter of the all too rampant social confusion and every day mediocrity.
Franscisco is an exceptional read, and timely counterpoint to the relentless pursuit of fame at any costs and influence for any reason.
“I want the audience who reads the book to consider that writing was a gift that I had, [and one] that I returned to in absence of being active in Hollywood. … I was writing about my day-to-day and writing about my nights and my impressions,” says Mills. “I want the audience and people to read and consider that the beauty of being able to be a person, to just be a human is a remarkable accomplishment.”
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