55 pages • 1 hour read
Jacqueline SusannValley of the Dolls
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1966A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Anne Welles
Though she is identified by Susann as just one of three protagonists, Anne is the book’s main character. The opening and closing chapters of the narrative as well as the largest portion of the story are devoted to her. At the outset, Anne is a recent Radcliffe graduate from Lawrenceville, Massachusetts, who detests her staid, small hometown and moves to New York City immediately after graduation. Susann portrays her as bright and ambitious, though naive about city life. She is also sexually inexperienced and initially uninterested in romance. As noted by various characters, Anne is strikingly beautiful in a girl-next-door way.
Though she is identified by Susann as just one of three protagonists, Anne is the book’s main character. The opening and closing chapters of the narrative as well as the largest portion of the story are devoted to her. At the outset, Anne is a recent Radcliffe graduate from Lawrenceville, Massachusetts, who detests her staid, small hometown and moves to New York City immediately after graduation. Susann portrays her as bright and ambitious, though naive about city life. She is also sexually inexperienced and initially uninterested in romance. As noted by various characters, Anne is strikingly beautiful in a girl-next-door way.
Anne initially works for show business attorney Henry Bellamy, which draws her into association with celebrities, producers, agents, and reporters. As the novel progresses, she eventually becomes the Gillian Girl, the advertising icon for Gillian cosmetics. She transitions from print advertising to the new medium of television. Anne is good with money, acquiring a small fortune over the course of the novel, and her ambitions are more traditional than her counterparts: She wants to get married to someone she loves.
Though she is pursued by wealthy, important men throughout the narrative—and becomes temporarily engaged twice—Anne’s true love is Lyon Burke, whose charms prove irresistible. With Lyon, Anne takes on the roles of wife and mother, but she is ultimately dissatisfied because Lyon cheats on her, first with her friend Neely and then with a much younger actress. In a novel concerned with patriarchy’s tendency to treat women as disposable, Susann uses Anne to show that even marriage and motherhood aren’t secure options.
Anne initially works for show business attorney Henry Bellamy, which draws her into association with celebrities, producers, agents, and reporters. As the novel progresses, she eventually becomes the Gillian Girl, the advertising icon for Gillian cosmetics. She transitions from print advertising to the new medium of television. Anne is good with money, acquiring a small fortune over the course of the novel, and her ambitions are more traditional than her counterparts: She wants to get married to someone she loves.
Though she is pursued by wealthy, important men throughout the narrative—and becomes temporarily engaged twice—Anne’s true love is Lyon Burke, whose charms prove irresistible. With Lyon, Anne takes on the roles of wife and mother, but she is ultimately dissatisfied because Lyon cheats on her, first with her friend Neely and then with a much younger actress. In a novel concerned with patriarchy’s tendency to treat women as disposable, Susann uses Anne to show that even marriage and motherhood aren’t secure options.
Neely O’Hara
At the beginning of the narrative, Neely is a 17-year-old singer and dancer in a post-vaudeville trio, the Gaucheros. She lives in the same rooming house as Anne, professing that she just wants a loving man to take care of her. Susann initially portrays Neely as vivacious, childlike, and not afraid to ask for what she wants. Over the course of the narrative, she develops addictions to narcotics and alcohol, resulting in a lengthy stay in a mental health hospital. By the end of the narrative, most characters come to regard Neely as a person who ruthlessly uses others to satisfy her own desires, making her Anne’s foil.
Neely first comes to prominence as an understudy in a Broadway musical. As her musical, dancing, and acting abilities become apparent, she eventually ends up in Hollywood as a fan favorite, winning a Best Actress Oscar. She is also a target for gossip columnists as she sheds two husbands and has a series of notorious affairs. Her grandiosity and self-destructive behavior destroy her career, though she manages a successful comeback. Many strive to help her personally and professionally, and Neely accepts their assistance but expresses no gratitude.
At the end of the book, Neely overplays her hand by telling Lyon that he needs to do as she says because the studio values her so highly. While Neely feels empowered by her success, Lyon gets her fired immediately, highlighting how even wealth and fame can’t protect Neely against a man’s word under patriarchy.
Jennifer North
Susann describes Jennifer as a gorgeous young woman with a voluptuous figure. As a schoolgirl in Switzerland during World War II, Jennifer carried on a three-year same-sex affair with the daughter of a wealthy Spanish businessman. After returning to the US, Jennifer quickly marries and divorces a European royal who turns out to be broke, someone who intends to use Jennifer’s appearance to enhance his stature. Jennifer describes herself as a person with no talent apart from her remarkable beauty. Her ultimate goal is to support her widowed—and obnoxious—mother and settle down with a loving husband, though her beauty attracts a steady stream of superficial men.
In Chapter 1, Jennifer catches the eye of rising singer Tony Polar and eventually persuades him to marry her. They end up in Hollywood, where Jennifer is dissatisfied with just being the wife of a celebrity. She attempts to secure his affection with a child, but his sister informs her that Tony has a developmental disability, and their child likely would too. Jennifer returns to New York, terminates the pregnancy, and divorces Tony when he says he’ll always prioritize his career over her.
Her next lover, Claude, brings her to France, where she stars in soft-core porn movies. He convinces her to undergo invasive treatments and surgeries to preserve her youth. Eventually, she returns to America, where she meets and falls in love with a US senator, whom she believes loves her for who she is. However, upon learning she has metastatic breast cancer, she also learns that he values her breasts above all else. Believing a life-saving mastectomy would make him leave her, Jennifer dies by suicide. Jennifer’s string of unfulfilling romances complement Anne’s experiences; while Anne is traditional and Jennifer is modern and glamorous, the men in their lives objectify them both.
Characters in Supporting Roles
Susann’s narrative consciously moves from Broadway to Hollywood to television—even touching briefly on radio shows—with performing artists continually in the foreground. In addition to the three obvious lead individuals, the author involves many other characters who impact the lives and development of the protagonists. These characters may properly be listed as supporting actors in an elaborate drama.
Lyon Burke is a soldier just returning from World War II to his old job as an attorney working for Henry Bellamy. A handsome ladies’ man, Lyon finds himself drawn into a serious relationship with Anne. She persuades him to abandon his legal career and pursue his dream of writing about his war experiences. Eventually, he and Anne wed, though he repeatedly breaks her heart. In the last chapters, he begins an affair with Neely, then eventually replaces her with a younger actress.
Henry Bellamy is the law firm’s longtime senior partner. Sly and manipulative, Henry grows fond of Anne and becomes her mentor. His insight and advice are the most reliable information she receives throughout the narrative.
Helen Lawson, a major Broadway singing star, is portrayed as “middle-aged” at the outset of the story, though she claims to be only 34 years old. Helen is cynical, brassy, demanding, jealous, and childish. Virtually everyone who knows her dislikes and distrusts her. Her stated desire—to have a lasting relationship with a reliable, acceptable man—eludes her.
Tony and Miriam Polar are brother and sister, though children of different fathers. Tony is a popular singer who falls for Jennifer and marries her. Susann depicts him as weak-willed and overly dependent upon Miriam, who is a dozen years his senior. Tony also prioritizes his career over Jennifer, causing their marriage to deteriorate. Miriam knows that Tony has a developmental disability but has kept that information from Tony his whole life. She convinces Jennifer to get an abortion because Tony’s child would likely inherit this disability.
Allen Cooper, the son of a wealthy real estate tycoon, wants to sweep Anne off her feet and down the aisle. Kevin Gillmore is the president of a cosmetics company who immediately recognizes that Anne has the particular look he needs to propel his beauty brand. Anne is briefly engaged to each of these men, each time breaking off the engagement when Lyon approaches her romantically.
Mel Harris is a gangly young press agent who writes complimentary pieces about Neely at the outset of her singing career. They marry, and Mel follows her to Hollywood. Ted Casablanca is a bisexual makeup artist in Hollywood. Neely leaves Mel for Ted, after which Ted leaves Neely for a younger starlet.
