Too Fast, Too Short

American actress and socialite Diana Barrymore (19211960) was a figure often overshadowed by her famous lineage and tragic narrative. In Too Fast, Too Short: The Life of Diana Barrymore, author Jennifer Ann Redmond illuminates Barrymores complex world, revealing a woman caught between the glittering facade of Hollywood and the dark shadows of her personal struggles. That she was the confused, neglected daughter of legendary actor John Barrymore is common knowledge. Just as central to Barrymores story is the profound influence of her mother, poet/playwright Michael Strange. Both distant and domineering, Stranges contradictory nature stifled Barrymore and her siblings, thrusting her into a socialite world she neither desired nor understood. Barrymores familial relationships were marked by pain and complexity. Her older brother, Leonard, was detached and the golden child brother Robin, who lived openly as a gay man in an era of secrecy, died by suicide after the death of his lover, Billy Rambo. Barrymores later years were colored by her relationship with the iconic playwright Tennessee Williams. Viewing Williams as the gateway to her dreams of a successful career, a happy marriage, and motherhood, Barrymores interactions with him reveal her vulnerability and resilience. Unpublished correspondence with mutual friends sheds light on her aspirations and the poignant desperation of her delusions. This biography endeavors to present Diana Barrymore not as a cautionary tale but as a complex individual. Volatile, bristly, and unreliable, yet also clever, funny, and profoundly intelligent, Barrymore was a woman of remarkable talent and beauty, even if she rarely saw it herself. Through this volume, Barrymore emerges as a fully realized person, reclaiming her place in Hollywoods history.