American writer, the most prosperous woman novelist in the history of U.S. publications. She was a former actress on Broadway and in TV commercials with a modest success for some 20 years. Her first book “Every Night, Josephine,” released on 11/14/1963, sold a million copies, followed by two other noted novels, “Valley of the Dolls,” February 1966 and “The Love Machine,” May 1969. A schlock writer, Susann was a woman of great drive and determination, aided by media hype and her own genius at self-promotion.
Susann graduated from high school at 15 with an I.Q. noted as 140. She adored her dad, an artist. At 18, she moved to New York and followed the casting couch route to stardom, having affairs with Eddie Cantor, Joe E. Lewis, George Jessel, Carole Landis and Walter Pidgeon. Tough, mean and self-centered, she slept her way to the middle, getting bit parts in various productions and living a life of recreational drugs and booze.
When she teamed with Irving Mansfield, Susann found her niche. They married on 4/01/1939 and he helped promote her work, managing her career. They had one son, Guy, born on 12/06/1946, who was institutionalized at the age of three.
She entered the hospital for a breast cancer operation on 12/25/1962, followed up by cobalt treatments. Exactly ten years later, 12/25/1972, she entered the hospital again with cancer of the bronchi and lungs. Less that two years later, she died of cancer on 9/21/1974, New York, NY.
Barbara Seaman published a biography, entitled “Lovely Me: The Life of Jacqueline Susann.” David Hanns published “Jacqueline Susann,” 1975.
Link to Wikipedia biography