Claude Rains – An Invisible Man (paperback)

Nominated for the 2023 Rondo Award  ISBN 9781629339917 Claude Rains was “the greatest character actor of his age — possiblyof all ages,” according to film historian Richard Schickel. Classic credits include The Invisible Man, The Adventures of Robin Hood, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Now, Voyager, Casablanca, Notorious and Lawrence of Arabia. A stage star in his native England, Rains didn’t make his screen debut until age 43. Throughout his career, he hid behind a movie persona that was suave and sophisticated, but off camera he was insecure and had trouble expressing feelings. Good-natured, still he had few friends and was married six times. A proud naturalized American, Victorian values led him to repudiate Tinsel Town — he was happiest puttering around the 18th-century Pennsylvania farm that was his heart and soul.       As a teenager, Toby Cohen was thrilled to meet her screen idol backstage after his Broadway triumph. Based on her decades of research and exclusive interviews —