5 comments about Lulu in Hollywood: Expanded Edition.

1. I first read LULU IN HOLLYWOOD long ago but I did not see Louise Brooks in a full-length feature until I bought PANDORA'S BOX on DVD a couple of years ago. I believe you have to see her on film to truly "get" her. While I don't agree at all with the French proclamation, "There is no Garbo, there is no Dietrich, there is only Louise Brooks", I was impressed by her performance and her intensely charismatic and erotic/quixotic presence. She should've become a superstar after this - but the times and her own idiosyncrasies were against her. She faded into obscurity, alcohol, poverty, ill-fame till the 1950's.
   
   LULU IN HOLLYWOOD is of most interest to Brooks aficiandos. I recently re-read the book and enjoyed it - but this time around I was more aware of the ax Brooks was grinding. Most of her essays are ostensibly about Hollywood stars and creatures of the movie business, but she is really writing about herself and what she writes is telling. Brooks had earlier written of herself that she was "selfish and stubborn" with a "rotten temper", and that's obvious, but she is also cleverly observant. While I agree with another reviewer that she tends to generalize and ramble, she can be poetic:
   "...he reduced reality to exclude all but his work, filling the gaps with alcohol whose dim eyes transformed the world into a distant view of harmless shadows." ("The Other Face of W.C. Fields")
   
   More than the book, I recommend the Criterion Collection's PANDORA'S BOX DVD package. The film is a classic. Brooks is captivating and the viewer instantly understands the uproar that ensued when the film and the star were rediscovered. This set includes the TCM production, LOOKING FOR LULU, Kenneth Tynan's profile, a 70's interview with Brooks herself, etc. Lots of extras.
   
   I highly recommend LOUISE BROOKS, the 1989 bio by Barry Paris. It's extremely thorough and well-written. Paris is very even-handed in his treatment of Brooks. He provides much background and documentation but leaves conclusions to the reader.



2. What made Louise Brooks interesting beyond just the typical celebrity she was unusually intelligent. She was an extraordinary beautiful woman but if that were all - she would have been just another face in the Hollywood crowd albeit a striking one. Her life was not so much one of just ups and downs but most generally straight down starting at the top. Lucky to have so much success early in life but maybe unlucky for her vision as to witness the folly of those who gave it. Louise's insights and critical assessment of her life and those around her were a " blessing and curse" but then again she had no choice but to follow her own mind as it played out to the end. She was certainly not one to parlay her attributes as a cunning femme fatale as it were but she existed as a passing player through a masquerade of "bread and circuses" orchestrated by those with lesser sensibilities. No, Lulu could have never been satisfied with the status quo, the mundane of the hoi polloi, the trappings of the superficial she was an individual who saw life in its raw form and played no game and for those who did not understand Louise - missed - that her only glory was the truth and its price to pay. She was an intriguing and talented woman who deserved more but would not sell her soul to gain it. Her book tells of her life and times and the pathos within it.
   I will recommend highly Barry Paris' biography of Louise Brooks as a necessary read for anyone interested in reading about the life and times of Louise Brooks. The book is excellent and engrossing. It gives a most informative detail of all aspects of Lulu's life. Actually Paris' book should be read first to gain a comprehensive overview of Brook's life before reading "Lulu in Hollywood." A better biography you could not read.



3. This book will be helpful for anyone interested in silent film. Brooks' insights about certain aspects of Hollywood are original. She has no fear of revealing some of the ugliest secrets of the past, and also has valuable things to say about why she believes certain directors and players created works of art. However, in my opinion she could have been a better writer if she'd had more education and/or editorial experience. Some of her essays are rambling and disorganized, and a number of her claims are unsupported. (e.g., that many actresses were pulled from the screen not because of the arrival of sound, but because they couldn't live up to Garbo, p.88.) She also tends to make bold generalizations (e.g., "Every actor has a natural animosity toward every other actor"), which, depending on whether you agree with them, are either smart and charming or arrogant and imprecise.
   
   Some of Brooks' cleverest comments are reported in the introduction by Kenneth Tynan, not in her own writings. My favorite was her joking suggestion that she and Marlene Dietrich write each other's memoirs: "'Lulu' by Lola, and 'Lola' by Lulu".
   
   Note: this is a collection of essays, which don't necessarily follow a sequence. The brief history of her family and childhood given in the first chapter fooled me into thinking this book would be an autobiography, but Brooks leaves much of her own story untold. (In fact, the epilogue is titled, "Why I Will Never Write My Memoirs.") Tynan's introduction fleshes out a little more of Louise Brooks' history, but fans will probably want to keep looking for other writings and biographies after they've read this one.



4. This book is a collection of Brooks's autobiographical essays together with an interview by Kenneth Tynan.
   
   It shows a Louise Brooks as a fiercely independent character, as well as her failure as a social creature, because of her open critic of people's false faces.
   But at what price? She survives as a kept woman by three lovers and ends in poverty, rejected and lonely.
   
   She characterizes her work in Hollywood's film factory as slavery and throws a shrill light on Hollywood's morals (the casting couch) and cynicism: the end of the silent period served as an excuse to terminate all contracts.
   
   The all important feature of her life was sex, not love: 'I have never been in love.' But, 'A person's sexual loves and hates and conflicts ... It is the only way the reader can make sense out of innumerable apparently senseless actions.'
   She considers that 'the most fateful encounter in my life' was a sexual one with George Preston Marshall.
   Nevertheless, she had some regrets: 'How often do we change the whole course of our lives in pursuit of a love that we will have forgotten within a few months.'
   
   She never wrote her biography because 'I am unwilling to write the sexual truth that would make up my life worth reading.'
   
   Barry PARIS did it for her, admirably. His book contains also a few corrections on Louise Brooks's statements in her book.
   
   A moving text with admirable pictures.



5. I remember when this book came out, but, unfortunately, it took me over twenty years to read it. Though Louise Brooks is far from a household name, in film scholar circles, she is an icon. Her rememberances here of certain individuals and events from her years in the "Dream Factory" are brilliant. Aside from the fact that these are names that most are familiar with, Bogart, Hearst, Pabst...it is her writing style and unique observations that make these recollections interesting. Where as someone as, say, Adela Rogers St. John, a famous reporter and contemporary of Brooks, wrote accurately of that long ago time, her dusty rememberances would only interest the most devoted of film student or fan. But Brooks writings are so fresh and witty and humourous, often at her own expense. She is not only unimpressed with most of silly society, but, she was equally unimpressed with her status as film icon. In those pre Hepburn-Davis times, she was a true rebel, who was more than willing to saboutage her career rather than do anything she didn't want to do. There is no remorse detectable in her memories of her fall from status. Though it would be unfair to imply that most film stars would not be expected to be good writers, it was surprising, then and now, to find that Miss Brooks was such a highly intelligent and captivating writer. In my review of her most famous film, "Pandora's Box", which isn't so much a review of that film as it is a homage to our Miss Brooks, I recounted my having met her more than once, when I delivered her prescriptions to her in my hometown and her final, adopted city of Rochester, New York. I was very young at the time, and though I had been told that she had once been a famous actress, which fascinated me, I am sorry to have to honestly admit that my memory of her is only of a shadowy figure who I remember with intimidation. How I would have loved to have been a little older, to possibly converse with this great lady, though she may have found what undoubtedly would have been my reverence to her "legend" as film icon to be obnoxious at the least, silly at best. Well, never mind. She was and is wonderful. And, as this book attests, a scathingly intelligent lady. Celebrities of her league are no more, now we have tarts, thugs, and arrogant, illiterate self-important jerks showing off their bling-bling. How sad. If you want to hear the entertainingly clever views of this great lady who, though she went from brilliant star to near- pauper obscurity, yet never lost her class, intellect, nor pride, then read "Lulu In Hollywood." One wishes she had written much more, and, left behind more films where her inate brilliance reaches out from the screen eighty years later. But, if all we have is this book and "Pandora's Box", that's legacy enough.

5 comments about Writer's Guide to Hollywood Producers, Directors, and Screenwriter's Agents, 2002-2003: Who They Are! What They Want! And How to Win Them Over!.

1. There is some decent info, but the worst part is how outdated the numbers and addresses are! You go to call a company and they're gone! Same with addresses--I had many queries returned to me because the company was no longer there. So then, what's the point of the book if you can't get ahold of the people?



2. The truth is that if you want to make it in Hollywood, you have to come to Hollywood. You can't phone it in, and producers don't have the time or the inclination to track down scripts... they are sent 100 a week to choose from. This book is worse advice than you would get in one night of hanging out at any bar in LA that real, credited writers go to. I mean, look at the other credits this writer has... "your modeling career"... what the heck sort of background does this give so that the writer can speak to script writing, being that he has no script sales (verified by using Studio System, the entertainment industry database) or movies to his credit? The advice in here is plain, common sense, not insightful... and what the other poster said about telling Black writers where to get the best fried chicken in LA is just the sort of stuff you get. He spends three pages detailing how many brads to bind scripts with... and if you actaully talk to any agent, the truth is they don't care. In short, this book is worthless, written by someone with no experience in the subject.



3. This book is mostly hype and little delivery. The "inside" information can largely be found on the net and/or in better-written books by screenwriters of prominence. The agent and producer listings are vague and of little help. The book tells you almost nothing about "what they want" and virtually nothing about "how to win them over." All in all, it's poorly written and verbose and could have been cut down to a third of its length. Some of it is shockingly inappropriate, such as recommending to African-American writers where they can get good fried chicken in LA. In sum, it's yet another add-water-and-stir screenwriting book by somebody long on self-aggrandizement and short on Hollywood experience. I also find it quite suspicious that twelve five-star reviews here on ... were posted within a three-day period. Yeah, right.



4. I love this book! Mr. Press has done a terrific job. I strongly recommend this book to anyone wanting to make a career as a screenwriter!



5. As a professional writer in South Africa on an award winning sitcom, amongst others, I have endured constant battles to even have my feature scripts read in Hollywood - to a large degree because of Tinsel Town's blinkered approach to writers who are not based in LA. It really is a business where WHO you know, far outweighs WHAT, and in this respect alone, Skip's book is an invaluable resource. Not only does it provide a wealth of interesting and useful information about the movie industry, it also includes a substantial list of contacts for those who feel they have, to the best of their abilities, mastered the craft of scriptwriting and are ready to start querying producers, agents and managers. Thanks to Skip's book, and his monthly newsletters, I am now repped by a WGA signatory agent and receive regular readings of scripts that before no-one would bother with. While I still haven't sold anything in Hollywood, my confidence has risen since purchasing this book and when I do sell, it'll be to a large degree due to Skip's assistance.

5 comments about Joe Turner's Come and Gone (August Wilson Century Cycle).

1. Herald Loomis says this to his estranged wife in the final scene of this play, set in a 1911 Pittsburgh boarding house.
   
   The play was first performed in 1986, and it is part of August Wilson's ten-play tetracycle about African-Americans in Pittsburgh during each decade of the 20th century.
   
   Charles S. Dutton and Delroy Lindo played the role of Herald Loomis in the early productions of this play. Loomis is a 32 year old man who is looking for his wife, whom he lost touch with after he was put on Joe Turner's chain gain in Memphis for seven years.
   
   Seth Holly is the 50 year old owner of the boarding house in which Loomis and his daughter stay (along with Holly's wife and a number of other residents). Seth is both practical and skeptical (of people, banks and society): "Anybody liable to do anything far as I'm concerned." (2.1)
   
   It's a story about identity and relationships. Bynum, the 60 year old mystic who lives in the house, sums it up well: "Seem like everybody looking for something."
   
   Herald Loomis is looking for himself.



2. We lost a great playwright when August Wilson died a few years ago. And the greatest contribution to theatre was the chronology of 10 socially critical plays. August Wilson's plays contained a lot of dialogue, with great monologues, that drove the plight of African Americans.
   
   As Joe Turner is from the second decade of storytelling, you can begin with "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" which takes you to the world of black musicians in the 20s. Explore the chronology of August Wilson.
   
   Joe Turner's Come and Gone is about the disconnect from slavery and the search for their identity and place in America.
   
   The setting for "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" takes place in a boarding house where owners Seth and his wife operate with strict rules for the many transients. Joe Turner is NOT a character in the play, but a man who enslaved Harold Loomis, the main character, for years. Now Loomis tries to find his wife. This is a wonderful story with folklore, blues, spirituality, search and identity, which is metaphorically referred to as a "song". ......Rizzo



3. "Joe Turner's Come & Gone" is the first play of Wilson's that I've read. I finished the play the week before his death. As a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, many have obviously already recognized the quality of Wilson's work. "Joe Turner's Come & Gone" won the Tony Award for Best Play in 1988 with L. Scott Campbell winning the Tony as Best Featured Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Bertha Holly. Set in a Pittsburgh boardinghouse in 1911, the play is part of Wilson's cycle of plays. Seth Holly is a no-nonsense man who does not allow any shenanigans. His wife Bertha cooks and tries to soften Seth's hard edges. Seth makes dustpans and coffeepots out of metal for travelling salesman Rutherford Selig, who is the lone Caucasian in the show. The show is populated by a series of characters including Jeremy Farlow who is a young guitar player who longs for a girl. Molly Cunningham and Mattie Campbell fill the bill. Herald Loomis is an ex-convict who was incarcerated because of Joe Turner. He got out of prison and found his daughter Zonia. (I think I remember the character was named after Wilson's mother.) Herald, as his name might imply, has a spiritual mission to locate his wife. Loomis employs the peddler Selig who makes extra money by finding people whose names he records as he makes his rounds selling his wares. Angela Bassett played Martha Pentecost who has changed her name from Martha Loomis and is eventually reunited with Zonia. Bynum Walker is also a mystical character who has stories of the shiny man. The play's action flows together organically with great tension and humor. The otherworldly mystical elements imply both spirituality and superstition. The play is an interesting reading experience that makes you wish you'd been able to attend one of the 105 Broadway performances! Enjoy!



4. The title "Joe turner's Come & Gone symbolizes the American socialized system of oppression. Joe Turner is "the Man", Joe Turner is jail, and oppression. In this play, Herald Loomis has been detained by Joe Tuerner for seven years. Upon his release he searches to find his daughter and his wife while all along he has been searching for his inner self.
   Bynum Walker is a "Rootworker", one who practices unconventional spiritual worship. He lives in the boarding house an tells a story of a shiny man who has the secrete of life. This secret that he refers to, the secret of life, symbliizes the meaning of all in existance and most impoprtantly the knowledge of self. Joe Turner, "the Man", "the system", and American society have stripped, robbed,and raped the African American of self. It is this quest for idenity that Herald Loomis searches for within himself. This same quest is also found in all of the other characters in the play as well. Those that come to the boarding house are unstable and have not found their true selves. Even Seth and Bertha, the owners of the house also quest for their idenity. They have a better financial system than the others, but they are stil timid when they encounter white America. Seth constantly states the rules of the boarding house. He proclaims to operate a clean, safe, and respectful house. He feels that any other behavior would call too much attention to him and his home. Resulting in white American society to take oppresive actions against his achievements.
   Joe Turner's Come & Gone is an excellent concept that spiritually looks at the concept of knowing ones-self. August Willson's use of quest for idenity among all his characters allows the reader to unmistakenly find a connection with their own secret song to sing.



5. August Wilson, a Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright captures the essence of the African-American experience of slavery, migration, and the quest for an identity. These themes are part of the written slave narrative, from which the African-American literary tradition was born. In "Joe Turner's Come and Gone", Wilson brings the struggle of migration from the agricultural South to the Industrial North to light; set in the early 1900's when this great migration had just begun. The quest for self/an identity is one of the many scarring ramifications of slavery, and the result of namelessness. Wilson, is able to capture this central theme through religion, allegory, and music-Jazz/Blues. The quest for ones identity is rooted in the metaphorical use of the quest for a song. Songs mean different things for different people; they touch people in different ways. Why? Because each individual is unique, each individual has a song, an identity. With the historical culture of the African-American, and its connection to Music, this collaboration of rhythms and imagery proliferate the importance of this quest to life. Wilson, like Toni Morrison, offers his work as an illustration of the Blues Theory of Art-the idea that music has the ability to reach deep into the soul, and pull from it the raw feelings that may otherwise be unreachable. Music goes to the core of ones being, and helps the healing process. With Loomis, this was evident in the search for his song, his identity, it was all part of the restorative process, yet a consequence of America's greatest shame-Slavery. I must say that "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" in a wonderful way, using symbolism, folklore, and like Jazz, a non-written form of art, serves as an anchor and captures the heart of the African-American experience.

3 comments about Almodovar on Almodovar.

1. Known throughout the world for his unique directorial style and his often absurd characters, Spanish director Pedro Almodovar talks about his films, plots, actors, and other interesting facts that many of his fans knew little about. The book, which is part of series that spotlights many of the world's talented film directors, features Almodovar speaking about many of his films up from "Pepi, Luci, and Bom" to "The Flower of My Secret."

   Providing interesting views, facts, and insight on many of his films and actors, there is no one who knows more about Almodovar than the man himself. His discussions are usually very open, especially when discussing several incidents that were high publicized in the European press, mainly his falling out with his most famous actress, Carmen Maura, after the completion of his masterpiece "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown." Their professional divorce left Almodovar without a dependable leading lady (feature lead actresses Victoria Abril and Marisa Paredes never could capture Maura's persona) and it marked Maura's somewhat decline in Spanish film (she later went on to do several unsuccessful Spanish films and some television work before moving to France to break into French cinema.).

   The book which is out of print is one of the best one-to-one interviews I've ever read. Almodovar's contributions to world cinema are so numerous that they can be all listed here, and his work has opened the door for many other Spanish and Latin American film directors such as Carlos Arau and Bruno Bareto in showing the world that foreign language films can be as professional and productive as any big budget film churned out by Hollywood.

   "Almodovar on Almodovar," is a must have for any Almodovar fan and film studies student. An excellent book on one of the world's most gifted directors.




2. Almodovar became the enfant terrible during the '80s for his outrageous actions on and off the film set. Frederic Strauss's collection of interviews helps to dispel many of the myths surrounding the Almodovar mystique. Almodovar burst on to the scene with "Pepi, Luci, Bom," a film renowned for a woman in it being urinated upon, and Almodovar's films have been doused in controversy ever since. Almodovar points out that he creates characters who live on the fringes of society and rebel against laws and regulations. Yet he does not pick up on the fact that as a homosexual director in the male world of Spanish cinema he works outside of the norms to create his films. Almodovar's comments on film making illuminate the artificial world he creates. Almodovar has refused to acknowledge the remnants of Franco's Spain and builds his narratives without societal contexts. "Law of Desire" takes place in a dizzying world of discos, beaches, and theatres while "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!" breaks down the fourth wall by setting some of the action on the set of "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown." No other director has consistently played with film narrative and conventions as Almodovar does and I wonder if we really need to know the backstage gossip. The truth dispels the myths and I am not sure I want to relinquish the myths. Nonetheless, Almodovar's observations and revelations are fascinating, especially in regards to his actors. He comments that he treats Antonio Banderas like a child in order to get a workable performance out of him. He lectures Victoria Abril on how to say simple phrases like "I love you" and "Have a good day." He became so professionally entangled with Carmen Maura on the making of "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" that their occupational divorce made headlines all over Europe. I wonder who this collection of interviews is intended for. As a connoisseur of his films, I relished his delineation of the creative process that goes into the making of his films even when they told many of his secrets. Yet I am in the minority, as many Americans do not even know Almodovar or his films. If they do, it's as a footnote in Antonio Banderas's film bibliography. Potential film directors will salivate over interviews that place a microscope upon the workings of a director. Actors will be fascinated by Almodovar's comments on acting such as when he criticizes Robert DeNiro for showing technique instead of building a character. He prefers the French method of acting where the actor IS the character. He believes that the performances of Antonio Banderas and Carmen Maura in "Law of Desire" are his greatest achievements as a director. Yet, he has been hailed as resurrecting the floundering Spanish film industry with such worldwide hits as "Matador," "Labyrinth of Passion," and "High

   Heels." Almodovar has always maintained a love/hate relationship with the Spanish film industry. Almodovar was denied funding for "Matador" due to his critique of the machismo inherent in the world of bullfighting. He linked the violence of bullfighting with the practice of necrophillia infuriating much of the Spanish public although the film was a smashing success. He was again denied funding when the board rejected the homosexual themes that make up "Law of Desire." AIDS activists accused of failing to deal with the disease because he failed to mention it altogether. Almodovar points out that his movies do not exist in a real place and in his world, AIDS does not exist. As with his collection of stories, "Patti Diphusa and Other Stories," Almodovar's interviews have a care-free attitude that is infectious. He discusses all of his eleven films including last year's "The Flower of My Secret" which many critics compared favorably to the women's films of the early '40s. This collection of essays is a gentle kiss harking back to such a magical women.




3. Frédéric Strauss brings us this amazing piece of work from the hand of Pedro Almodóvar, in which he describes the life: the beggining and the actual work, of the spanish director. He describes what he wants to inspire in his movies and if you have seen them you might get to understand them a little better. If you like this director's movies, you might want to get this book.

5 comments about A Woman's View: How Hollywood Spoke to Women, 1930-1960.

1. This is one of the most enjoyable "film studies" I have ever come across, essentially about "soap opera" 'women's pictures' of the 1930's and 1940's but expanding into the 1920's and 1950's a bit and touching on other types of films and the great women stars from this time period. From Kay Francis (who is the cover girl and Basinger's main muse for this tome) to Rita Hayworth, this is a wonderful book for any one obssessed with films from the era, it's like finding a new best friend to talk about these classic films. Basinger writes informatively yet in plain academic-free language making the book a pleasuer to read - and she knows when to crack wise and when to be serious, no mean feat. It's a skill a lot of "movie historians" don't have.



2. If you love movies you must read Ms. Basinger's marvelous study of "women's pictures" which encompasses the stars that acted in them, the directors that guided them, the writers that gave them life and the studios that distributed them. Hollywood history, women's history, art history all rolled into one readable and thought provoking volume. This one is right up there with Louise Brooks by Barry Paris as one of the best books on film and those who created it.



3. A Woman's View, by Jeanne Basinger, was rightfully the most interesting history based book I have ever read. Although it can be lengthy at times, it touches on subjects in which I had barely any knowledge of, and shows how it was reflecting the time period of the 30's, 40's, 50's, and 60's. Seeing as though this was about women right after the women's rights movement in the 20's, this book shows how Hollywood used female movie stars to incorporate the countries opinions on them. With that, I thought the introduction chapter on the genre of these types of movies was absolutely spectacular. It really made me have so much respect for women during these time periods. They had such class and such morals, which, sad to say, is starting to slowly fade away, or can at least be argued that it is.
   A few of the sections of this book that I thought was the most interesting, were the ones about twin women in movies and the fashion and glamour of women. Before reading this book, I never really thought into the idea that being a woman in Hollywood, and acting a certain role represented something as a whole. These actresses were not just playing the part of their assigned character; they were representing women as a whole. With their fashion, their speech, and their actions, I found it truly inspiring to know that they were stepping out of their comfort zone and taking risks with the roles that they chose to act out.
   One chapter, entitled Duality, included how Hollywood used twins in their movies to represent one specific point in these movies. This chapter, being one of the more detailed ones, showed how twins portrayed particularly two things: the good and the bad. The good twin, usually dressed in fashionably acceptable clothes and appropriate styles, was usually criticized by her twin, which represented evil, or the bad. I thought it was very much a shock to me how many of the so called "bad" twins in these Hollywood movies were constantly pretending to be their twin to confuse their family, friends, or even their husbands! Many of them did this only to find some sort of revenge on their twin for whatever reason they could think of. In my mind, I would have never thought of this as being presented in movies during these time periods, but I also have to remember that this was also a time when women were really standing up for what they believed in and stepping out of the ordinary molds they had always been put into.
   What was so fascinating about this book was how Basinger found a way to represent women in film in such a respectable way, and not so much trashy as some may have viewed it at the time. Women like Loretta Young, Kay Francis, and Greta Garbo are true heroines when it comes to paving the way for all future actresses, and also for open our countries eyes to the lives of women, and really shows that they were becoming less and less like housewives and more like the hardworking entrepreneurs that they really were and always will be.



4. This book articulates for me why I have always loved this genre of film. The author highlights the work of many fine actresses of the period whose work is overlooked in many film books. Although the ideas they espoused may be dated, the desire of women to see the concerns of their private lives played out on screen still exists. I believe that the next century may bring a resurgurce of this type of film.



5. Jeanine Basinger is to be congratulated for shedding light on a too-little studied aspect of Hollywood history. She puts the movies and the stars she discusses in the context of how movie-going women perceived them at the time. In doing so, she concentrates not on the "greatest" stars, but rather on secondary figures like Kay Francis, Ann Dvorak, and Loretta Young, women who had (sometimes surprisingly) immense popular appeal while they were making movies but whose careers either faded, made the transition to character rather than leading-lady status, or moved to television. She reminds us that the "woman's picture" was far more than the drama of suffering and renunciation (like "Now, Voyager", "Back Street", or "Autumn Leaves") we most commonly think of today. She broadens her definition to include virtually any film that either focused on a woman as its central character or concerned itself with traditionally "women's" concerns.

   What she makes clear is that, despite the pronounced limitations of the world view of the woman's picture, it represented a varied and vigorous film culture in which (as she writes) "on the screen ... the woman will decide. She is important. She matters. She is the Center of the Universe."

   "A Woman's View" is that rare thing -- a scholarly examination of mostly obscure figures and works that is at the same time an excellent and entertaining read.

3 comments about Freaks and Fire: The Underground Reinvention of Circus.

1. Gorgeous cover and the hand-designed letterpress titlepages are fantastic, but I thought there would be more color photography. There are several spreads on nice big color images but most photography in the book is black and white. Definitely an interesting read though, and looks great on a coffee table. I bought this for a friend who's a Burning Man enthusiast and he was pleased with it. Props to Phil, Jeff, and Casey!



2. J. Dee Hill is a former bureau chief of Adweek writing about "radical" or "alternative" circus. This is not your familiar Ringling Brothers Circus, meant mainly to drawn families and entertain and awe children. This radical circus cannot even be compared to a typical, traditional circus. Think the most outrageous performance art you even saw--and then some. The side show has taken center stage. Although some of the costumes and performances resemble the Mardi Gras carnival festivities of Rio de Janiero. Zamora the Torture King, Brothers Grim Sideshows, and Bindlestiff Family Circus are the names of some of the troupes. Hill takes these and a few others one by one with accompanying photos by Hollenbeck to demonstrate the exotic make-up and dress and the startling acts. The book doesn't play up the sensationalistic, sometimes macabre, occasionally repulsive aspects of such circuses--this is evident enough without any emphasis by the author. The book has a sociological and cultural vein too, with performers telling their interesting stories of what drew them to this field of contemporary entertainment and how they got into it.



3. This book offers a lot--it is an insightful and intriguing look inside the world of alternative circus shows, and is both entertaining and riveting. The accompanying photographs really capture the essence of the performances, as well, and complement this thought-provoking tome quite nicely. I would heartily recommend this book to anyone.

5 comments about Gene Tierney: A Biography.

1. My name is 'Tierney' and when I was old enough to understand how I got my unusual name, my mom showed me a photo of a beautiful woman and explained that she was a very famous Hollywood actress from a long time ago. That photo was Gene Tierney.
   
   I had heard that her life was very sad. I didn't know a lot about her and was intrigued about what happened to her. My mom had this book and I picked it up one day and just started reading bits and pieces of it. All of a sudden I looked at the clock and over an hour had passed! I ended up going to the very beginning and read the entire book in three nights. It was amazing!!!
   
   Now that I know about her life and what she went through and how she overcame such sadness, I'm honored to be named after Gene Tierney. I knew she was beautiful but I had no idea what strength and courage she had. This book tells the whole story and makes you wish there were more people in the world with as much grace as she had during her lifetime.



2. A fascinating story and a wonderful reading experience, that begs for more. I wish it could have lasted longer. Vogel writes for a wide audience. The narration moves along effortlessly, holds the reader's attention and does not let go. Photographs are chronologically ordered, and placed beside the text for maximum effect.
   This book tells the life story of one of the most beautiful women who ever lived. But, sadly, her great success as an actress was followed by great suffering and tragedy in her personal life - all undeserved.
   After reading the story and seeing her photos, I was so taken by Gene Tierney that I felt she should be listed on the Periodic Table of Elements in view of her long half-life, overwhelming radiance, and unforgettable roles that still mesmerize people today.



3. Well written and insightful. I was especially interested in Daria as my son is deaf from war time German measles. Good book, good to know her famiily carries on.



4. Gene Tierney: A Biography is a thorough look into the world, both personal and professional, of one of Hollywood's most beautiful, most troubled and most underrated actresses ever seen. This book covers everything from her childhood, teenage years, stage work, break into Hollywood, loves, marriages and of course the tragedy of her eldest daughter's birth that led to her mental collapse and years of suffering. In and out of mental institutions at the height of her career, Gene Tierney made an amazing comeback after a decade away from the industry she loved. Her eleven year marriage to fashion icon, Oleg Cassini, was rocky but it seems she was the one true love of his life. Although he became engaged to Grace Kelly after their divorce, she eventually dumped Cassini for Prince Rainier and he never remarried.
   I would love for McFarland to start publishing at least some of their photographs in color and that's the only reason why I gave this book four stars instead of five.
   
   Fantastic book! It'll make you cry, for sure.



5. I initially borrowed this book from my local library, read it, enjoyed it and returned it. I told my father about it and he wanted to read it too. Went back to my library and someone else had borrowed it in the interim. There was even a waiting list of two people ahead of me to borrow it when it came back in. In the end I purchased two copies. One for me and one for my elderly father who remembers seeing Gene Tierney's films in theaters when they were initially released. There has been a lot written about how fantastic this book is so I won't bother to repeat what others have already written. Just wanted to convey how much I enjoyed the book and that story of how I came to own my copy.

3 comments about As the World Turns: The Complete Family Scrapbook.

1. Yes, yes, I have been a fan of this show since I was 13, so it's a really guilty pleasure revisiting all the storylines that so enthralled me. This book has great pictures, and covers the entire history of the show from 1956-1996. That's a lot of twins, kidnappings, murders, and family drama. What comes through best about this book is its sense of history. I truly will always have a place in my heart for this show, and the Hughes family.

   PS... even more fun is seeing the old pictures of Julianne Moore and Meg Ryan, both major characters in the 80's...




2. Whether you are a long-time fan of As The World Turns, or a new fan of this CBS daytime drama, you will want to add this book to your library. Lifelong fans of the show will enjoy re-living the rich history of As The World Turns, and new fans will enjoy learning the history of the plot twists and turns of this popular daytime drama.

   The book is chock-full of pictures of cast members, and includes special sections on As The World Turns weddings, personal anecdotes from the actors, and features pieces on former ATWT actors who have achieved superstardom. A wonderful feature of the book is a complete cast list.

   If you watch As The World Turns, you must add this book to your personal library.




3. As The World Turns is one of the longest running soap operas. This book is a wonderful gift to the numerous fans of the show. It has beautiful pictures and poignant stories about the characters, some who have been on the show from the beginning.

1 comments about Nitrate Won't Wait: A History of Film Preservation in the United States.

1. Anthony Slide writes a fascinating history of the film preservation movement in the United States. After covering the dangers of nitrate film and the wholesale junking of film prints during the silent era, he documents the beginning of the archive movement in the 1930s and 1940s. You would think that the book would be filled with stories of heroic efforts to save films, but there are just as many stories of incompetent and egotistical administrators who did more damage than good. The American Film Institute did a good job for a few years helping archives to preserve and restore films, but it quickly became a political organization and mostly claimed credit for projects that it had nothing to do with. The book goes into detail into the "colorization" controversy, a process which thankfully has pretty much disappeared since this book was published in 1992. There is also a section on how Scandinavian archives have done a much better job of preserving their countries' film heritage. If you are a serious lover of silent films or the golden age of sound films, you will definitely want to read this book!

5 comments about The Truman Show: The Shooting Script.

1. This film is a Masterpiece of history of the contemporary cinema,wonderful book and wonderful screenplay. Andrew Niccol is a genius..!



2. The Truman Show written by Andrew Niccol in 1998 shows the last few days of a reality show. Truman Burbank is the main character. He is the only person in this show who is no actor. Everything around him is fake. Even his hometown Seahaven is only a film studio but Truman doesn't know this. Christof is the director who controls everything. He gives the directions to his parents, his wife and his friend. In these last few days a lot of strange things happen so that Truman may soon find out everything.
   Andrew Niccol wants to show the impertinence of the media which do not respect the rights of human beings.
   In my opinion the subject of the book is very interesting and it is worth dealing with it. But in this case it is easier to watch the movie because the book is difficult to read because of all the stage directions.



3. The Truman Show is about Truman Burbank, the main character, and his fake life. He lives in Seahaven an artificial world that has only built for him. When he finds out that he is part of a reality show he wants to escape. Everybody betrayed him even his wife Meryl and his best friend Marlon who are actors like everybody in his world Seahaven.
   The author wants to warn people of the danger of the modern media
   culture and high technology.
   We must be mor critical of the invented world of the television and think about its effect on us.
   I like the book because it includes everything: lovestory, friendship, tension... It is dramatic but from time to time also funny.



4. The Truman Show is a drama with a lot of funny aspects. It deals with a young man whose whole life is documented in a reality show. The reviewers can watch him all day in the whole world.
   The duration of the show was for 29 years without bigger problems but one day, Truman, the main character, seems to find out the truth about his life. He notices that everything is artificial and that his whole world is made fake only for him. Christof, the director of the show loses the control over Truman when the latter tries to escape. Christof does everything to stop him and keep him in the town where the Truman Show takes place- Seehaven. The message of the Truman Show is that our society is losing control more and more and that we let ourselves be influenced by the media and TV. We think the book is good, because it shows the problems of our society and what the manipulation of the media could result in. It is represented in a very funny way.



5. The book "The Truman Show" by Andrew Niccol was written in the 20th century. The story is about a 29 year old man who has been televised every moment of every day. The book is mostly dramatic but sometimes funny. Truman Burbank lives in a small artificall town named "Seaheaven". This world was created by Chrsitof, the director of the reality-show. In this show everyone of his frinds is an actor. The only genuine person is Lauren. He has fallen in love with her.
   
   Imagine you find out that nothing in your life is genuine, you are controlled by others and everythin is filmed by cammeras so that millions can watch you. This is the message of the book. And it should make you think about how the media control our lives.
   
   I like the story because we can identify with Truman and his situation. I recommend the film and the book because sometimes it is quite funny.
   
   YOUR RICHI