Scott Allen Nollen

Scott Allen Nollen is an American author known for writing about the history of film, music, literature and African American studies. He was born on April 2, 1963, in Harlan, Iowa. His father, Harold N. Nollen, served in the United States Coast Guard prior to running a successful petroleum distribution business, to which his mother, Shirley A. (Stoltz) Nollen, also contributed. Nollen was educated at the University of Iowa (1984-1989), where he received Bachelor's Degrees in Broadcasting and Film and Honors History, Phi Beta Kappa, and a Master's Degree in U.S., Modern European and African-American History. From 1991 to 2001, he served as an archivist and historian for the National Archives and Records Administration.^[1]

Life and work

Scott Allen Nollen became intrigued with Boris Karloff when his mother had him watch James Whale's ''Frankenstein'' (1931) at the age of five in 1968. He identified with Karloff's "monster", who never spoke in the film, but effectively conveyed a portrait of the misunderstood individual cast out by society.

Nollen knew he wanted to write a book about Karloff and had begun in high school. In 1981, Nollen's parents took him to England and Wales as a graduation present. While there, he contacted Karloff's widow, who appreciated Nollen's interest in and respect for Karloff; they remained in correspondence for the twelve years remaining of her life.^[2]

Nollen's literary collaborators include science-fiction legend Ray Bradbury, author-filmmakers Nicholas Meyer and Michael A. Hoey (son of actor Dennis Hoey), British musicians Ian Anderson and Dave Pegg, R&B singer Ruth Pointer, celebrity offspring Dame Jean Conan Doyle (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle), Sara Jane Karloff (Boris Karloff) and Chris Costello (Lou Costello), and film historian Paul M. Jensen.^[3]

Nollen says about the 24 books he has produced in 32 years,

Writing scholarly books is a poverty-generating career: One spends far more on the projects than is recouped in royalties. Book sales are now about 25% of what they were just a few years ago, so these volumes are always a labor of love and an attempt to discover the truth for people who like to read, a group dwindling rapidly. The challenge, as a trained research historian—a detective, really—is always the effort to remain as “objective” as possible, to whatever extent that is possible.^[2]

Cliff Aliperti states regarding Nollen's incredibly prolific output, "This large body of work is all the more amazing when I take my experience with Boris Karloff: A Gentleman's Life into account... it's as exhaustively-researched a biography as you're going to find on the market, not just about Karloff, but any subject."

Nollen was chosen by the National Film Registry at the Library of Congress to write permanently held essays to accompany a group of films selected by the registry for preservation. Specifically, Nollen wrote the essays for Stagecoach, The Quiet Man, The Searchers and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance all of which were directed by John Ford. He also wrote the essay for The Emperor Jones, with actor Paul Robeson.^[4]

Literary works

Nollen's Boris Karloff: A Critical Account of His Screen, Stage, Radio, Television and Recording Work (1991) and Boris Karloff: A Gentleman’s Life (1999) were highly praised by classic film site Immortal Ephemera.^[2] His other well-regarded books include Robert Louis Stevenson: Life, Literature and the Silver Screen (1994), Sir Arthur Conan Doyle at the Cinema: A Critical Study of the Film Adaptations (1996), Jethro Tull: A History of the Band, 1968-2001 (2001), Louis Armstrong: The Life, Music and Screen Career (2004), Warners Wiseguys: All 112 Films that Robinson, Cagney and Bogart Made for the Studio (2007), Abbott and Costello on the Home Front: A Critical History of The Wartime Films (2009), Paul Robeson: Film Pioneer (2010), Three Bad Men: John Ford, John Wayne, Ward Bond (2013) and Glenda Farrell: Hollywood's Hardboiled Dame (2014).^[3]

In 2016, Nollen published The Making and Influence of I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang, regarding the 1932 film. The book was reviewed as "a fascinating account of the film's production," for which Robert E. Burns, the author of the autobiography^[5] on which it was based, served as an advisor."^[6]

Also a well-known authority on the life, music and films of Frank Sinatra, Nollen wrote The Cinema of Sinatra: The Actor, on Screen and in Song (2003), co-wrote the Grammy-nominated book for the Time-Warner CD box set Frank Sinatra in Hollywood 1940-1964 (2002), and frequently can be heard on the Hawaii Public Radio show Sinatra: The Man and the Music, hosted by Guy Steele.^[3][7]

In July 2018, Nollen was included as a commentator in the BBC2 Radio program Double Acts: Abbott and Costello, hosted by Dame Barbara Windsor, also featuring archival recordings of Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, The Andrews Sisters, Martha Raye and Ella Fitzgerald.^[8]

Currently, Nollen is writing four more books on classic cinema: two on top Japanese actors, Takashi Shimura and Setsuko Hara; and, with his wife, Yuyun Yuningsih Nollen, two on Hollywood actors, Chester Morris and Mike Connors. He also is co-editing a new up-to-date anthology book on film and television adaptations featuring Sherlock Holmes.^[9]

Books

• The Boys: The Cinematic World of Laurel and Hardy. McFarland, 1989. ISBN 978-0786411153.
• Boris Karloff: A Critical Account of His Screen, Stage, Radio, Television and Recording Work. McFarland, 1991. ISBN 978-0786440733.
• Robert Louis Stevenson: Life, Literature and the Silver Screen. McFarland, 1994. ISBN 978-0786467129.
• Sir Arthur Conan Doyle at the Cinema: A Critical History of the Film Adaptations. McFarland, 1996. ISBN 978-0786421244.
• Midnight Marquee Actors Series: Vincent Price. Midnight Marquee, 1998. ISBN 978-1887664219.
• Boris Karloff: A Gentleman’s Life. Midnight Marquee, 1999. ISBN 978-1887664233.
• Midnight Marquee Actors Series: Peter Lorre. Midnight Marquee, 1999. ISBN 978-1887664301.
• Robin Hood: A Cinematic History of the English Outlaw and His Scottish Counterparts. McFarland, 1999. ISBN 978-0786437573.
• Jethro Tull: A History of the Band, 1968-2001. McFarland, 2001. ISBN 978-0786411016.
• Frank Sinatra in Hollywood 1940-1964. Reprise/Warner Bros., 2002. ASIN B000066BN9.
• The Cinema of Sinatra: The Actor, on Screen and in Song. Luminary Press, 2003. ISBN 978-1887664516.
• Louis Armstrong: The Life, Music and Screen Career. McFarland, 2004. ISBN 978-0786418572.
• Midnight Marquee Actors Series: Peter Cushing. Midnight Marquee, 2004. ISBN 978-1887664530.
• Warners Wiseguys: All 112 Films that Edward G. Robinson, James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart Made for the Studio. McFarland, 2007. ISBN 978-0786432622.
• Abbott and Costello on the Home Front: A Critical Study of the Wartime Films. McFarland, 2009. ISBN 978-0786435210.
• Jilly! Sinatra's Right-Hand Man. Vegas Broom Press, 2009. ISBN 978-0578009216.
• Paul Robeson: Film Pioneer. McFarland, 2010. ISBN 978-0786435203.
• Three Bad Men: John Ford, John Wayne, Ward Bond. McFarland, 2013. ISBN 978-0786458547.
• Black Diamond: The Real Illusion. Midnight Marquee, 2013. ISBN 978-1936168361.
• Glenda Farrell: Hollywood's Hardboiled Dame. Midnight Marquee, 2014. ISBN 978-1936168477.
• It's the Disney Version!. Rowman & Littlefield, 2016. ISBN 978-1442266063.
• The Making and Influence of I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang. McFarland, 2016. ISBN 978-0786466771.
• The American Civil War on Film and TV: Blue and Gray in Black and White and Color. Lexington Books, 2017. ISBN 978-1498566889.
• Takashi Shimura: Chameleon of the Japanese Cinema. McFarland, forthcoming. ISBN 978-1476670133.
• Setsuko Hara: Madonna of the Japanese Cinema. McFarland, forthcoming. ISBN 978-1476672656.
• Chester Morris: The Life, Film, Stage, Radio and Television Career. With Yuyun Yuningsih Nollen. McFarland, forthcoming.
• Mike Connors: The Life, Military, Athletic, Film and Television Career. With Yuyun Yuningsih Nollen. McFarland, forthcoming.

References

External links

• Scott Allen Nollen on IMDb
• Globally recognized historian for 30 years at creators.co
• Nollen's Life is One of Many Talents and Challenges at harlanonline.com