Malice in Wonderland (1985 film) June 28, 2004 with a running time of 94 minutes. Malice in Wonderland (1985 film) Malice in Wonderland is a 1985 American made-for-television biographical film based on the 1972 novel "Hedda and Louella: A Dual Biography of Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons" by George Eells. Starring Elizabeth Taylor and Jane Alexander, it tells the based-on-real-life stories of powerful Hollywood gossip columnists Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons, once friends and later rivals. The film premiered on CBS on 12 May 1985. The film was a ratings success gaining an 18.3 rating equaling to 15,536,700 households tuning in its original air date.
Hedda Hopper Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In 1945, Hopper reprinted a press release for Mildred Pierce in her column, which described Crawford as a leading contender for the Best Actress Oscar. Such was Hopper's influence that she was credited with swinging the decision in Crawford's favor when she won the award. Hopper's support has been described as the first instance of lobbying the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to favor a certain winner. Actress ZaSu Pitts compared Hopper to "a ferret". Joan Bennett sent Hopper a ""$435 valentine. The $35 went for a skunk which carried a note: 'Won't you be my valentine?