2 comments about A Number.

1. Churchill is never one to shy from difficult subjects, and this play is no different. Here she explores the emotional (as well as legal) aspects of cloning and what identity really means. In each section, Father meets with three of his "sons", all clones, to try to hammer out their complicated relationship with him, his "original" son, and to each other. A good read. Would be OK for college or professional production, but high schools and community productions wouldn't be able to pull it off.



2. On a routine visit to hospital, Bernard receives some shocking news: he's been cloned. When he confronts his father, he finds out it's worse: he is just one in an unknown number of genetically identical sons. But is Bernard the original or a copy? Does it matter? And what's going to happen when two other versions come knocking at the door? "A Number" takes the ethical labyrinth of genetic engineering, and the timeless debate over nature versus nurture, and reconstitutes them as a bracing family drama. As Bernard and his "brothers" wrestle with a range of very human responses to the news - shock, anger, horror and delight - their anxious father ducks and weaves, grudgingly revealing their histories and the anguished choices he's made. The play's themes might be borrowed from science fiction and philosophy, but its scale is confrontingly domestic. There are no speeches, no grand pronouncements, no finely honed philosophical dialogues here. It consists almost entirely of the halting, taciturn exchanges that usually pass for conversation between men, especially fathers and sons. This makes the issues real for us. It grounds them in the eternal questions and doubts that hover over every child and every parent who wishes they could cancel their mistakes. "A Number" looks fearlessly at what is often left over when the excitement of new science fades: damaged people. In this case, they must confront not only what's been done to them, but the more terrifying issue of just what they actually are. By extension, it's something we're invited to ponder about ourselves. As one "son" reminds us: "We've got ninety-nine percent the same genes as any other person. We've got ninety percent the same genes as a chimpanzee. We've got thirty percent the same as a lettuce." So what makes me different? What is it that makes me, me? What accounts for that look in the eyes, the set of the shoulders, the scowl or the smile that allows a father to distinguish between his genetically identical sons? We can create life in a petri dish, but do we actually know what it is? It's a chilling question, and one that may well be unanswerable. But as Caryl Churchill shows in this spare, harrowing and above all humane play, those kind of questions are precisely the ones worth asking.

5 comments about Long After Midnight at the Niño Bien: A Yanquis Missteps in Argentina.

1. The author has talent and knows how to write. However, he does not manage to go even a little bit beyond the usual stereotypes about Argentina. It may have been too easy for him to fall to the temptation of using the same template over and over again when he was working for Reuters during those years when the Argentinian economy collapsed, and the world showed a sudden, albeit passing, interest in that country's fate: this book is just that same template more elaborated and expanded. Although the author seems to be a perceptive young man and seems to have spent some effort researching the country's history, he wasn't able to come up with an understanding beyond the cliche. That's at least my humble opinion, having spent 25 years of my life in that country. I still give this book three stars because it's entertaining and it taught me a couple of things about Discepolo and the tango.



2. 
   
   Books and blogs by women about their tango experiences/epiphanies in Buenos Aires proliferate yearly. (OK, so I'm one of those women.)
   
   It's refreshing to read a story about a foreigner in Buenos Aires written by a man. Sure, we've had the cheap and disgusting Kiss and Tango by Marina Palmer, and the interesting pre-crisis Bad Times in Buenos Aires by Miranda France, among many others, but now we have something entirely different: Brian Winter's Long After Midnight at the Nino Bien; a Yanqui's Missteps in Argentina.
   
   Not a memoir, but rather a well-written attempt to make 21st century readers understand the why-and-wherefores of the Buenos Aires of today. It's not an excuse for the author to delve into his emotional past, or to write about sexual encounters, nor does he do any reflection--the main aspect of a memoir. It's an impressionistic travelogue with fantasy characters--think Wizard of Oz or Star Wars set in South America with lots of illuminating and witty historical citations.
   
   Young Mr. Winter (a recent college grad who floats to Argentina hoping to find a job) also writes about his experience as a tango dancer wannabe. He relates preposterous scenes with fictitious milongueros, but I believe these scenes, while accurately conveying feelings and emotions if not truths, are not from his experience but from research and imagination. He is a fantastic researcher, as well as a hell of a writer. And he's funny, too!
   
   He wanted to write an essay about Buenos Aires, and how then could he leave out tango, even if he knew nothing and cared less about it? His Mafia round table of wise old milongueros allow for exposition and stories about Argentina's history, the influence of the gauchos, the corruption of the politicians, the legacy of Peron and Evita. Miller quotes tangos and the gaucho poem, Martin Fierro. He quotes and relates and integrates, all with humor and a great turn of phrase, and it makes for enjoyable reading, and a history lesson too.
   
   But I do know about the milongas, the milongueros, and certainly, about Nino Bien, the "decaying bar" of the title. His stories of cartoon characters like El Nene, El Dandi, El Chino 1 & 2, and El Tigre entertain and maybe enlighten. Certainly it's not the habit of real milongueros, or anyone else in a milonga, to drink frozen strawberry daiquiris at La Ideal or Nino Bien, let alone wear white terrycloth suits with orange shirts and pink scarves and lead ganchos and barridas. While he has the tango facts and details mostly all wrong, he nevertheless zeros in on the mood, effect and the result. The milonga is an easy target for satire.
   
   Yes, there are countless factual errors in the tango telling, and lots of mistakes in Castellano and Buenos Aires geography, but from my fact checking on the internet, Miller's tales of political corruption, battles, presidents, and gauchos all seem to ring true. I especially enjoyed the story of the depressed tango lyricist Discepolo and his mis-alignment with the government, and his artistic crashes with the tango god himself, Carlos Gardel.
   
   So let's not read this book as a personal memoir, or as history, but rather as a fable of life and times in Buenos Aires from 2000-2004 from a foreigner's perspective. Despite its flaws in accuracy, there's much to be learned here, as well as several laughs and a couple of hours of entertaining reading.



3. LONG AFTER MIDNIGHT AT THE NINO BIEN: A YANQUI'S MISSTEPS IN ARGENTINA tells of an American who decides on a whim to move to Argentina and learn to tango - his quest to shine in the tango hall with a group of elderly men who move like Enrique Iglesias and his quest to understand the tango leads to a deeper cultural appreciation of Argentina as a whole: an appreciation which comes to life in a book highly recommended for a range of collections: those surveying international dance in general, tango in particular, or Latin American or Argentinean culture as a whole.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



4. This book makes Argentina come alive with real people and lively dialogue. I've read a lot about Argentina's social, political and economic crises, but the country never really came together for me until I read this book. Argentina, like the tango, is a sad thought you can dance to. Of course, it's a foreigner's perspective, but a fresh one from a young man who jumped into the whirl of Argentine life without preconceptions and writes about it with a refreshing honesty and lack of pretense.



5. As a Latina who was married to an Argentinean for many years and spent some time in Argentina in both the capital, Buenos Aires, and city of Mendoza in the wine country, I looked forward to reading this book. On the plus side, some of it is wryly humorous, and the author's chronicle of the history of the tango in Argentina is somewhat interesting. The author also captures some of the flavor of Argentina and gives a very decent account of its unstable political history.
   
   Some of the characters described in the book, old tango instructors with whom the author hung out during his stay in Argentina, are colorful, and the author gives the reader a taste of the passion that the tango arouses and of its place in the culture of Argentina. I also felt that these very same characters that the author professed were his friends were probably secretly laughing at the author, a lumbering Texan who wanted to learn about the tango, and would say just about anything to him just for effect, whether or not it was true.
   
   Moreover, some of the author's conclusions are those that only a Yanqui would devise, as I did not feel that they derived from a real understanding of Argentina or its people, given his limited scope of reference. Also, a few of the translations in the book were off the mark, which I found to be annoying. I also found the quality of the writing to be rather pedestrian, overall. Still, there is a modicum of enjoyment to be gotten from this book by those interested in other cultures or in the tango.

2 comments about Let's Dance: The Complete Book and DVD of Ballroom Dance Instruction for Weddings, Parties, Fitness, and Fun (Let's Dance).

1. Instruction for beginers. Beatiful video, but I cant follow it dancing. If I want to dance well, I need a real instructor. If you go to beginers dance class you can get here some very useful basic information to upgrade your knowlege.



2. This is a good basic instruction book for the beginner with two left feet. The DVD was defective because it did not play the waltz instructions and I returned it once. When the replacement was also defective, I just kept it.

5 comments about The Art of Star Wars, Episode I - The Phantom Menace.

1. Probably the best one in the Star Wars Art series, it shows a great amount of the concept art of what became the look of an entirely "new" Star Wars galaxy.
   
   Forget the technological look of the original trilogy. The lavish look of the planets shown in the new movies started at this point. It was a more spectacular age for the galaxy and the paintings show it.
   
   While it is certainly not McQuarrie, Chiang and the other artists do justice to his legacy.
   
   Only the art of the original Star Wars can be compared to the scope and breadth of the art displayed in this book. After all, the other four episodes built upon what was already created for the Phantom Menace and a New Hope.
   
   A must have for any Star Wars and fantasy art enthusiast.



2. Forward by Doug Chiang. This volume (48 pages) contains an excerpt from the book written by Jonathan Bresman. It also contains concept sketches, storyboards and full color illustrations by various artists, among them Doug Chiang, depicting scenes and characters from the movie Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
   
   From the preface: " This book offers a behind-the-scenes look at the lengths the art department went in its construction of George Lukas' universe. The evolutionary stages for each major character, vehicle, and planet are displayed so that the reader can get a sense of how the film was painstakingly sculpted, and finally, how a new style of filmmaking was founded."
   
   This excerpt focuses on how sketches combine and evolve in the development of ideas into the final concepts for characters and other elements in the film.
   
   Staple bound. A Del Ray Book; Ballantine Publishing Group.



3. Sellers are using this page to sell a book that is actually titled: THE ART OF STAR WARS EPISODE I: an excerpt of the book written by Jonathan Bresman. The ISBN matches this work, which is only 44 pages in length and was given away with the purchase of a VHS version of the Phantom Menace. The way Amazon lists this book can be misleading because they refer to it as the paperback edition in the review which claims it is a massive volume with over 600 illustrations. They are actually referring to another edition of the book... the TRADE PAPERBACK EDITION. This error has caused me a lot of fuss with two of the used book traders here at Amazon. Know that you are not buying the 200+ page oversize work with this webpage.



4. I would never have thought that I would stoop so low in nerd-dom and buy a book like this, but there is more to being a nerd than simply obsessing over your favorite fantasies.

   I love Star Wars, hate the Phantom Menace. And yet way back when the VHS release was going on, I too crowded into a Media Play at 12 in the morning with my buddy and his wife to get my advanced Widescreen Collector's copy. DVD has since come and taken away any significance to that item, but what did come along with it was a little booklet featuring excerpts from "The Art of Star Wars; Episode I." For a long time this little booklet and I rarely parted, and I thought I was so priviledged to have this particular booklet and that it would one day be a rarity.

   Imagine my surprise when I discovered THIS book, the actual Art of Star Wars. Not only does it have everything in my booklet, but it presents conceptual art from all corners of the movie. There's so much to look at, and so much that is fascinating to look at, you can't help spend hours just looking.

   The book is hard-bound, with pages made from such high-quality paper, it will make you turn them with tweezers, they feel so expensive. The art is presented in chronological order with the film, so that reading it cover-to-cover is almost like watching the film. For most of the artwork, a little background information is provided in the corner next to a numerical key denoting which works belong to which artists.

   As for the quality of reproduction; I am rarely satisfied when something I've drawn is scanned onto a color-copier, which often is the best option for reproducing them. I still lose something in the translation from pad to paper, a little bit of hue here, some shading here, depth of line there. However, in this book there is nothing lost. (Nothing is lost, or the originals must be stunning to look at!) The artwork shows you just why the movie relies so much on visuals (and not on strength of character or plot). Artists Doug Chiang, Ian McCaig, and Terry Whitlatch to name a few, are so skilled at vividness, their works immediately juice your imagination into action. Looking at concepts for space-ships, you can almost hear them fly.

   The emphasis is on Doug Chiang and Ian McCaig, one a brilliant architectural and mechanical artist, the other a genius at characters and costumes. Whitlatch seems to handle most of the aliens, while gorgeous matte-paintings by Doug Chiang depict, in color, some of the more finalised concepts.

   If you are a fan of Star Wars, this book is a must for any in-depth knowledge of how things developed behing the scenes. For film scholars, I would also recommend this book, for the glimpse it provides into the realm of pre-production, especially for you film scholars who have never set foot onto a film studio, or a design office.

   For fellow artists, I can only say that these works inspire to improve my technique and work even harder at my art. It's always the test of an artist when he runs into someone who is superior; does the work make you want to quit art, or make you want to improve? This stuff will make you choose the latter.




5. I loved the art Ralph McQuarrie did for the first three Star Wars movies, and in the Art of Episode I, Doug Chiang takes the torch and does an awesome job. His grand scale works are so appealing and detailed, I loved it.

   The character concept work in intriguing, there is a lot of evolutionary type paintings which I like a lot. The Sith work is fascinating.

   The one draw back to the book was the lack of explaination each work had. I would have liked more insight as to what the artist was thinking, what Lucas liked and what he disliked. That wasn't in this version as much as I would have liked. But overall, one to own.

No comments about Modern Dance Terminology: The ABC's of Modern Dance as Defined by its Originators.

5 comments about Company of Heroes: My Life as an Actor in the John Ford Stock Company (Scarecrow Filmmakers).

1. A company of heroes by Harry Carey jr. is the most enlightening book that has been written about the legendary director, John Ford (asked to name his three favorite directors, Orson Welles answered, "John Ford, John Ford and John Ford"). Ford has been written about quite a lot and there is some very good material out there but this book captures Ford as a film-maker better than the others. I think it is comparable to Karl Brown's book about D. W. Griffith.
   
   Harry "Dobe" Carey is a very fine actor who has worked mainly in the genre of the "Adult Western." IMDB informs us that Mr. Carey made films in the 40s, '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, and in the first decade of this century. Among his films are Tombstone, The Long Riders, and Red River but this book is about the nine films he made for John Ford and the stock company of actors, stunt men, and motion picture technicians that worked on them.
   
   It is a romantic book, filled with personal stories about people like John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, Henry Fonda, Pedro Armendariz, Ben Johnson, James Cagney, James Stewart, Richard Widmark and Victor McLaglen, as well as some of the finest character actors that ever lived: Mildred Natwick, Ward Bond, George O'Brien, Arthur Shields, former Three Mesquiteer Tom (Captain Marvel, the Phantom, and the Mummy) Tyler, and many others including Harry's mother, Olive Carey (perhaps best remembered as Vera Miles mother in The Searchers), and his father in law, Paul Fix, (an "actors' actor," Fix stands out for the genuineness of his acting--You can't think of him as other than the person he's playing. He's terrific as Elizabeth Taylor's father in Giant, but best known as Sheriff Micah Torrance on TV's The Rifleman. His screen credits are in the hundreds, rivaling those of Donald Crisp and John Carradine. He was John Wayne's acting coach and best friend).
   
   There is a moment close to the beginning of the book in which Carey Jr. describes asking his father, "Why haven't you worked in any of Uncle Jack's films the last few years?" and Harry Carey Sr., who had been one of the three great cowboy stars of the Silent Era and was still an important character actor, and who had given Ford his start in films, answers, "He won't ask me. But he will you. Not till after I croak, but he'll ask you then, you can bet on it. " In context, that moment is as powerful as the movie "Shane." Soon thereafter, the main character takes center stage and stays there, and, while the book is often moving in describing John Ford and his company, it is, mostly, extremely funny.
   
   The book goes into rich, fascinating detail about the Ford films that Carey jr. acted in (namely: 3 Godfathers, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Wagon Master, Rio Grande, The Searchers, The Long Gray Line (in which Tyrone Power plays West Point legend Martin Maher and Harry Carey Jr. plays Cadet Dwight Eisenhower), Mr. Roberts (during the shooting of which John Ford punched Henry Fonda in the face) and Cheyenne Autumn (Ford's "elegy" to the Native American). The book gives those of us who study the Ford films a good glimpse into the character of a man who was an enigma--and not too many biographical efforts succeed in doing that.
   
   Mr. Carey talks about some of the legendary stuntmen: Cliff Lyons, Good Chuck Hayward and Bad Chuck Roberson (and his "falling" horse, Cocaine), Frank McGrath and Terry Wilson (both of whom went on to co-star in Wagon Train with Ward Bond), Slim Hightower and many other great ones. He tells us stories about the cowboy musicians that Ford loved: Stan Jones, who wrote Ghost Riders in the Sky, the Sons of the Pioneers including Ken Curtis (who married Ford's daughter Barbara and who became a star playing Festus Haigin on Gunsmoke using a characterization Ford had forced on him during The Searchers); Lloyd Perryman, the heart and soul of the Pioneers, who was the finest harmony singer that ever lived; and fiddler Hugh Farr and his guitarist brother Karl, who were Western Music's Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt (who may actually have been influenced by the Farrs).
   
   Since the theme of the book is Mr. Carey's experiences as a member of the John Ford Stock Company, he says little about the remainder of his long career. He mentions, in passing, playing Bill Burnett on Disney's Spin and Marty serial on the Mickey Mouse Show, a role hat brought him legions of young fans. I know because I was one of them. I found that googling Harry Carey jr. brought me a wealth of additional material: photos and information from IMDB, Carey's own site, and sites dedicated to the films and television shows in which he appeared.
   
   I can think of only a few other books that touched me as this one did. Buster Keaton's My World of Slapstick and Harpo speaks are among them, and I guess in each case it is because it feels as if these people are telling their stories directly to me. A Company of Heroes is a special book and I highly recommend it. I've been a Harry Carey jr. fan for a long time. 3 Godfathers, Rio Grande, and the Searchers are part of the John Wayne/John Ford dvd collection and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Mr. Roberts, The Long Gray Line, and Cheyenne Autumn are out there as well. The Brits have got Wagon Master and Two Rode together on dvd, but not us Yanks. See them! Read this book! You'll be a Harry Carey jr. fan, too.



2. Madison Books presents "COMPANY OF HEROES: MY LIFE AS AN ACTOR IN THE JOHN FORD STOCK COMPANY" (Paperback) - by Harry Carey, Jr. (Author) --- An American film actor. Harry Carey Jr. appeared in over 90 films --- He is mostly remembered for appearing in Western films and television programs --- He is the son of acclaimed actor, Harry Carey (1878-1947) and actress Olive Fuller Golden (1896-1988) --- As a boy he was nicknamed "Dobe" (short for "adobe", from the color of his hair), by which he is still known to family, friends, and a large number of fans --- A respected character actor, like his father, he acted in a large number of Western genre films --- They both appeared together in the acclaimed 1948 film, "Red River", though they never shared a scene --- Harry Carey, Jr. served with the United States Navy during World War II.
   
   Carey was a good friend of, and frequent collaborator with, noted Western film director John Ford --- Carey became a regular in what is commonly called the John Ford Stock Company --- He appeared in such notable Ford films as: "3 Godfathers" (1948); "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949); "Wagon Master" (1950); "Rio Grande" (1950); "The Long Gray Line" (1955); "Mister Roberts" (1955); "The Searchers" (1956); "Two Rode Together" (1961); and Ford's last movie, "Cheyenne Autumn" (1964) --- He also made 10 movies with actor John Wayne, starting with "Red River" and ending with "Cahill U.S. Marshal" (1973) --- (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
   
   TABLE OF CONTENTS: (Title and Page Numbers)
   In the Beginning - 1
   3 Godfathers - 6
   Myself When Young With Cowboys and Navajos - 44
   She Wore a Yellow Ribbon - 55
   Paul Fix, the OS.S, and Merry Christmas - 72
   Wagonmaster - 85
   Rio Grande - 108
   The Long Gray Line - 128
   Mister Roberts - 145
   The Searchers - 157
   Two Rode Together - 175
   Cheyenne Autumn - 193
   So Long, But Not Good-bye - 205
   Harry Carey, Jr's Appearances in John Ford Films - 209
   Index - 215
   
   BIOS:
   1. Harry Carey Jr.
   Date of Birth: 16 May 1921 - Saugus, California
   Date of death: Still Living
   
   SPECIAL BONUS MATERIAL:
   1. Given nickname "Dobe," short for adobe (the color of Carey's hair as a boy).
   2. Son of Harry Carey and Olive Carey.
   3. Appeared with his father Harry Carey in the film "Red River" (1948).
   4. Inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 2003.
   5. Son-in-law of Paul Fix.
   6. His father, actor Harry Carey started his career in 1909 at the 'American Mutoscope & Biograph' Company.
   
   Check out a new book from Empire Publishing - "GENE AUTRY WESTERNS" (Hardcover) - by author Boyd Magers, like no other book on Gene Autry --- all of Gene's Mascot, Republic and Columbia westerns included, as well as his half-hour TV Episodes --- each segment contains the release date on each film ... major production credits ... complete cast (including character played) ... all songs included, songwriter and who performed them in the film ... running time of each film ... dates of the filming ... bios on the cast and major players (Smiley, Pat Buttram, Cass County Boys, Herbert J. Yates, directors, leading ladies, songwriters and various heavies, etc.) ... locations that were used ... budgets and negative cost ... stunt people involved ... analysis and synopsis on each film ... notes and comments (including film and cast background info, salaries paid, working titles, etc) ... comments from Gene and many other cast members on each film ... theater exhibitors comments at the time of the films release ...this tribute was written from the heart and it shows.
   
   Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of "Trail Talk"), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc) and Bob Nareau (author of "The Real Bob Steele") as they have rekindled my interest once again for B-Westerns and Serials --- If you're into the memories of early westerns and dramas, this is the one you've been anxiously waiting for --- The author has captured the intimate look at the work of Hollywood film director John Ford through the observant eyes of actor Harry Carey, Jr, please stand up and take a bow --- all my heroes have been cowboys!
   
   Total Pages: 280 ~ Madison Books ~ (6/25/1994)



3. Carey's limited autobiography is very readable - though occasionally repetitious - and provides some human insights into the making of some of Ford's most memorable westerns. (However, there is no discussion of the artistic merits of the films.) The text is complementd by crisp black and white photos. Ford emerges as an eccentric and autocratic, and sometimes even cruel, director. Some of his behaviour towards the actors makes unpleasant reading, and I wonder that the actors were willing to put up with his abuse. Some, like Henry Fonda, weren't willing to do so and fell out with Ford. Carey's own father, after working with Ford, permanently parted company with him. My only serious disappointment is that Carey could have told readers more about his own long acting career, but the title accurately describes the book's contents.



4. This excellent book harks back to a Hollywood era when men were men. It encompasses the silent films starring Carey's father, who was a major star and successfully made the transition to talkies, and is full of anecdotes about an age when stars like John Wayne were expected to be as tough as the characters they portrayed.Carey himself even in old age has the boyish looks that probably spoiled his chances of emulating Wayne in the tough-guy roles,but what a career. His stories of Wayne and Ford are great,but what makes the book even more enjoyable are the stories concerning the less well known characters who were the backbone of Ford's films. Actors like Ben Johnson who was also a world champion rodeo rider,Hank Worden who always seemed to get the dotty old-timer roles but who was a great horseman and tough as old boots,Ken Curtis,Ward Bond,and the bit-players who made these films so wonderful. In the days before the computer generated image ruined the action film these men(and women!)literally threw themselves into their roles,and Carey's stories bring the whole era to life. Reading what Ford did to Carey to make his death scene in "3 Godfathers" realistic,and the sadistic treatment handed out even to Wayne ,makes you glad to be reading it from the comfort of your armchair.These films have never been bettered,and this book shows you why.A great read.



5. The value in this book is not just that it paints an interesting picture of the great John Ford, but that it also shows sides of the Ford stock actors we have not seen. Did you know that Ward Bond loved the ladies and had the hots for Vera Ralston when they were filming The Searchers? That Ford and Richard Widmark got along like gangbusters? That Ken Curtis's strange accent in The Searchers came about by accident and got him the part of Festus on Gunsmoke years later? Or that Victor Jory was a tough old bird?
   
   The book is full of interesting little tidbits of information like this about actors I have known and loved. It even gave me an understanding of why The Long Grey Line - one of my favorite Ford films - was not well received. All the details of the problems, the ends and outs, the stuntmen, the jokes, the hard work of making each film made me want to pull all those films off the shelf and watch them again.
   
   If you love old these truly classic films you will not want to miss this book.

1 comments about Casablanca: Script and Legend: The 50th Anniversary Edition.

1. If you're a fan of the great classics then you'll be pleasantly surprised with this behind the scenes look at one of the best examples of American film dominance. This detailed account outines the writer's true motivation and vision for his final masterpiece and leaves one with an unfettered look into an ever lasting symbol of the silver screen.

1 comments about Communication Research Methods (with InfoTrac ).

1. This was the required text for my Communication Research Methods class, so buying it wasn't really an option.
   
   After flipping through the book to see what I was in for this semester, I found the layout of the book to be pretty organized.
   
   1.) Each chapter has an abstract at the beginning and a summary at the end that gives a brief overview of the chapter.
   2.) Each chapter has an outline at the beginning to show you how the chapter lays out the topic.
   3.) Vocab words are bolded, which is great if you have to know them for a test, and a list of "Key Terms" is at the end of each chapter.
   4.) Throughout the chapter, the authors provide examples of warrants and claims to illustrate the points they're trying to make.
   5.) Appendix A - A good guide to writing research reports and essays. Definitely helpful with assignments.
   
   Overall, I think that this is a pretty good textbook. The reading tends to be pretty dry, but not completely untolerable.

2 comments about Psychology of Dance.

1. this book has helped me so much on my journey to becoming a dancer.
   any thing i need is right there in the book,it recently taught me how to avoid slumps,keep focused,it is an amazing book,my dance bible!



2. If you are a dancer or a dance-related professional, just read it no matter what. In such a compact book, you couldn't want any more. A dance department in a college would open a new course named "Psychology of Dance" if they knew that this book existed. I am going to translate it into a foreign language.

3 comments about All My Children: The Complete Family Scrapbook.

1. This is an excellent book for anyone who loves All My Children. I bought mine used and it was in excellent condition. As a long time All My Children viewer (from the beginning) this was a trip down memory lane for me. It covered all the years from 1970 to 1995. The color pictures were beautiful and the trivia section in the back was wonderful. This is a must have book for all serious and long time viewers of All My Children.



2. Have you ever had a question about AMC? What actor played what role or who married who? You will find answers to your questions in this big AMC book. What I loved about this book is that it has a thorough plot summary of every year since it's debut in 1970. The book includes family photos, wedding photos, behind the scenes info, AMC trivia, actor quotes, interesting facts, a complete cast list and much more. This is a wonderful coffee table book!



3. This is the GREATEST AMC Book ever written.Very informative and entertaining, and filled with memories that I have cherished and will now be able to cherish forever!!!As a 20+year fan of the show, I can only say I can't wait for the 50th anniversary scrapbook!