Spada Speaks

James Spada is a prolific celebrity biographer with no less than 15 works in print and a photographer of note. His books traverse the field between the gutter and the stars. I met him online by purchasing a photo of Jackie petting her German Shepherd, who is, delicately put, fully aroused. The vivacious Mr. Spada agreed to an e-mail interview.

The Austin Chronicle: How do you choose your subjects?

James Spada: It varies from book to book really. Many of my subjects are longtime favorites of mine (Jackie, Streisand, Monroe, Jane Fonda, Bette Midler); others are people that I might not have been into to the same extent but who are clearly fascinating characters (Katherine Hepburn, Judy Garland, Princess Grace, Bette Davis, Peter Lawford). Others are people who are very hot at the time and spark my interest (Robert Redford, Shirley MacLaine, and Warren Beatty).

AC: Your biographies of such figures as Grace Kelly and Peter Lawford prove that you are an expert at digging up the dirt. Why are those more difficult books to write?

JS: Investigative bios are much more difficult because you have to spend several years researching, locating people who knew the subject, interviewing those people, cross-checking the thousands of pieces of information that make up a life. It can be very rewarding and exhausting at the same time.

AC: Why did you choose to do a "nice" book about Jackie?

JS: I had always enjoyed the "Life in Pictures" format (which I created with Monroe) and felt Jackie would make a perfect subject for that treatment. There have been plenty of books purporting to reveal her innermost secrets; I wanted mine to be a celebration of her glamour, beauty, and style.

AC: Which of your subjects have you met?

JS: I have met -- either before, during, or after I wrote books about them -- Streisand, Redford, Liza Minnelli, and Shirley MacLaine. I spoke to Bette Davis on the phone (that was fun!).

AC: Having written about both, do you prefer your subjects living or dead?

JS: I have no preference, really. It is sometimes easier to write about a deceased person, because their intimates are usually more willing to discuss them, and of course there's a beginning, a middle, and an end to the story. But I believe that books that serve as a kind of "snapshot" of a life in progress have their value as well.

AC: Who will be your next subject?

JS: My next book is completed and is Ronald Reagan: His Life in Pictures, which is scheduled to be released in February 2001 for his 90th birthday. I have always abhorred Reagan's politics, but my editor persuaded me to do the book by pointing out that whatever one's political beliefs, one has to admit that Reagan led one of the most extraordinary lives in American history. And it was with that in mind that I tackled the project. I like the book very much, and while I still disagree with nearly every stand Reagan took, I have gained a measure of admiration for him as a man.