Cole Porter

Not as witty as a Porter song (which could match the incomparable Cole?), But honors the full biography worldliest Broadway musical, the composer smarter taken seriously.
Voluminous research buttresses William McBrien's portrait of a charmed life marked by tragedy. Born in 1891, Porter left his wealthy family in Indiana thoroughly enjoying himself at Yale University in Connecticut, where his songs gave the odd cheeky Midwestern social influence.
Although exclusively homosexual, Porter was spent, however the rich widow he married in 1919 and McBrien's narrative of his travels in Europe 1920 captures the brightness of the glamor of their life together.
Porter had some initial success with programs like fifty million Frenchmen, but their sustained implementation of hits began in 1932 with Gay Divorce, continuing through the 50's and Kiss Me Kate.
The author quotes liberally deliciously naughty lyrics of Porter, that reminds us how most of the songs corny show seems when compared to "Love for Sale" or "Anything Goes." McBrien painful account of the horrible consequences of a 1937 riding accident that left Porter in the pain that only ended with his death in 1964, reveals a stoic silence, without complaint the substance of which matched his dazzling style.
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