Jackie Collins
Jackie Collins was a British author born on October 4, 1941, in London, known for her compelling and often controversial novels that explore themes of glamour, sex, and power, particularly within Hollywood. The daughter of a theatrical agent, Collins moved to California at a young age, influenced by her sister's film career. After her first novel, *The World Is Full of Married Men*, was published in 1968 and became a bestseller despite criticism for its explicit content, Collins established herself as a prominent writer. Her most notable character, Lucky Santangelo, first appeared in the 1981 novel *Chances*, and became a recurring figure in her works, which often combined elements of the entertainment industry with themes of crime and betrayal.
Throughout her career, Collins penned numerous bestsellers, selling over 200 million copies worldwide, despite receiving mixed reviews from critics. She also produced television adaptations of her novels, further cementing her status as a Hollywood insider. Collins continued to write until her final work, *The Santangelos*, was published in 2015, shortly before she passed away from breast cancer on September 19, 2015. Her legacy endures through her impactful narratives that resonate with many readers, drawing them into the opulent yet tumultuous world she created.
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Jackie Collins
Author
- Born: October 4, 1941
- Birthplace: London, England
- Died: September 19, 2015
Biography
Jacqueline Jill Collins was born on October 4, 1941, in London, England, the daughter of Joseph Collins, a theatrical agent, and Elsa Collins, a former dancer. Jacqueline, or Jackie, had an older sister, Joan, and a younger brother, Bill. Though Jackie was an avid reader and liked to write, she was not a good student, often skipping school to go to the movies. After she was expelled at fifteen, her parents sent her to California to live with her sister Joan, who had already embarked upon her career as a film actor. During the next two years, Jackie attended the parties of her sister’s friends, where she learned about the glamourous lifestyle she would describe in her novels.
Back in England, Collins married Wallace Austin. They had one daughter, Tracy. Because of Austin’s addiction to gambling and drugs, Collins divorced him after four years of marriage. In 1966, Jackie Collins married Oscar Lerman, the owner of a popular London nightclub. They had two daughters, Tiffany and Rory. In 1981, they moved to the United States, settling in Beverly Hills, California. Lerman died in 1992.
In England, Collins had managed to obtain some small parts in films. Meanwhile, she had begun work on her first novel, The World Is Full of Married Men (1968). The manuscript was accepted by the first publisher who saw it. Despite outraged comments about the steamy sexual scenes in the novel, within a week after its appearance in bookstores it was a British best seller.
After Collins moved to California, her books became as popular with Americans as they had been with the British. Her reputation as a Hollywood insider and a confidante of the stars convinced her readers that novels like Hollywood Wives (1983) presented an accurate picture of life among the rich and famous.
One of Collins’s most interesting heroines is Lucky Santangelo, a movie producer, who first appeared in Chances (1981). In that novel and in several sequels, Collins combines plot elements drawn from her knowledge of the movie industry with stories of the mob. In another book, Rock Star (1988), Collins exposes the seamy side of the music business. Some of her later novels incorporate a murder mystery into the plot. However, these variations did not materially change Collins’s fictional formula—portraying a lifestyle dominated by sex, drugs, jewels, glitz, greed, power, and pretense.
Jackie Collins was the producer of several television specials and miniseries based on her books. Although many critics dismiss Collins’s novels as poorly-written, superficial works with pasteboard characters and improbable plots, the fact that her books have sold over two hundred million copies indicates that a great many readers find them both interesting and entertaining.
The newest and ultimately final installment of the Lucky Santangelo series was published in 2015. Titled The Santangelos, the more than five hundred-page book involves Collins's usual mix of Hollywood intrigue and a vengeance story that involves several members of the Santangelo family. Not long after the book's publication, Collins passed away in Los Angeles on September 19, 2015, at the age of seventy-seven. Her family confirmed that the writer had lost a battle with breast cancer that she had kept hidden from the public.
Bibliography
Goffard, Christopher. "Jackie Collins, Best-Selling Author of Sexy Hollywood Novels, Dies at 77." Los Angeles Times. Tribune, 19 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.
"Hollywood Undressed." Economist. Economist Newspaper, 26 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.
Huntman, Ruth. "Jackie Collins's Final British Interview: 'I'm Still Here, I Love What I Do.'" Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 20 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.
Martin, Wednesday. "How Jackie Collins Changed the Way We Think about Sex." Daily Beast. Daily Beast, 22 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.
Stout, David. "Jackie Collins, Best-Selling Novelist of Hollywood, Dies at 77." New York Times. New York Times, 19 Sept. 2015. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.