**2019 SCIBA Book Award Winner for Biography
A Hugo and Locus Award Finalist
Winner of the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award
The** Los Angeles Times **Bestseller
A Thrillist Best Book of the Year
A Book Riot Best Book of 2019
One of** Booklist's 10 Best Art Books of the Year
The Lady from the Black Lagoon uncovers the life and work of
Milicent Patrick--one of Disney's first female animators and the only
woman in history to create one of Hollywood's classic movie monsters
As a teenager, Mallory O'Meara was thrilled to discover that one of her
favorite movies, Creature from the Black Lagoon, featured a monster
designed by a woman, Milicent Patrick. But for someone who should have
been hailed as a pioneer in the genre, there was little information
available. For, as O'Meara soon discovered, Patrick's contribution had
been claimed by a jealous male colleague, her career had been cut short
and she soon after had disappeared from film history. No one even knew
if she was still alive.
As a young woman working in the horror film industry, O'Meara set out to
right the wrong, and in the process discovered the full, fascinating
story of an ambitious, artistic woman ahead of her time. Patrick's
contribution to special effects proved to be just the latest chapter in
a remarkable, unconventional life, from her youth growing up in the
shadow of Hearst Castle, to her career as one of Disney's first female
animators. And at last, O'Meara discovered what really had happened to
Patrick after The Creature's success, and where she went.
A true-life detective story and a celebration of a forgotten feminist
trailblazer, Mallory O'Meara's The Lady from the Black Lagoon
establishes Patrick in her rightful place in film history while calling
out a Hollywood culture where little has changed since.
Don't miss Mallory O'Meara's upcoming novel, Girly Drinks!
