1 comments about The Musical as Drama.

1. McMillin may have been a fine English professor, but that doesn't mean he's adequately equipped to talk about live theatre intelligently. Theatre is not literature. A script and score are not a show; they are merely blueprints. The show only exists live in performance, with the collaboration of a director, actors, designers, musicians, and an audience. McMillin (like too many others) doesn't get that.
   
   Too much of this book is spent on interesting theories that don't really make sense when applied to actual musical theatre pieces. And though the book is new, it assumes musicals are pretty much the same as they were mid-century, apparently unaware of the profound evolution the art form has been going through since the mid-1990s. So, sadly, many of his conclusions have no relevance whatsoever to musical theatre today. And, as often happens when people who don't work in the theatre try to write about it, there are just too many factual errors and misunderstandings of the art form throughout the book.

3 comments about His Dark Materials.

1. my love for and obsession with his dark materials began when i saw the national theatre's production in january '04. so it's only fitting that i would recieve the script version from my sister. obviously, it's not nearly as detailed as the trilogy, with entire characters (such as mary malone) not even appearing, but for a quick read-through, it's perfect. and it brings back, for me, the fabulous memories of seeing it all on stage.



2. This particular book is an adaptation of the HDM trilogy for the stage...something I'd have bet money couldn't be done. It would be a bear (armored bear? ;} ) to stage, but I'd love to see it that way. Some things got elided, but the main points remain. A real tour-de-force.



3. Not that there's anything wrong with Harry. But Lyra, rather than being portrayed as a slightly inept side-kick, is THE HEROINE. Her adventures through the Dark Materials have many levels, in which both adult and older child will find many meanings both metaphorical and physical. I couldn't put this down until I'd read all 3 books in the series. I'm leaving for vacation with all three again after being away for 3 years -- I want to do it all again! I hope you enjoy this wonderful trilogy.

2 comments about 120 Singing Games and Dances for Elementary Schools.

1. Someone gave me this book my first year of teaching. I have now taught music for 6 years, and have used this book every year. Each song is notated musically, and accompanied by the game and a short introduction as to the origins. I also teach Kindermusik, and can see that many of our activities must have been taken right out of this book. I HIGHLY recommend this book, and although I wish you great luck in finding it for under $100, or at the library, you wont be disappointed if you spend the money.



2. This book has a wide variety of different musical games, all of which are singing and movement games. Perfect for the Kodaly educator. Many of the games can be found in more readily available and inexpensive resources, however, so try to get titles before you buy.

1 comments about Plays From the Contemporary American Theater (Signet Classics).

1. The package got here in time, i didn't really have a bad experience with its shipment date and it is in excellent shape.

5 comments about Chaplin: His Life and Art.

1. David Robinson's book is the finest biography extant of this indispensable genius of movies. I first read this monumental book 22 years ago and it has remained an indelible part of my understanding of movies and of the life and work of this complex, infuriating, somewhat naive but always questing and humanistic comedian, whose movies are finally being issued on DVD in luminous copies of his own carefully preserved originals.
   
   At the time of Robinson's book, and for a number of years after, Buster Keaton was the preferred choice in silent comics. To take nothing away from Keaton, whom I regard as sui generis ("The General" is a masterpiece, and "The Navigator" is the funniest movie I've ever seen) this may have been more a reflection of the then-current attitudes of "cool," reacting against Chaplin's perceived sentimentality, than an argument for Keaton as the greater artist. Chaplin has recently become of greater interest, and at present his star seems much more firmly fixed, due in large part I think to the recent availability of his work on DVD. Robinson himself, in tandem with the silent cinema scholar Kevin Brownlow, is partly responsible through his access to Chaplin's mint copies of his own movies, which resulted in the superb Thames documentary "The Unknown Chaplin." In any case, it's much easier now to see and to recognize Chaplin's innate (yet painstakingly arrived-at) genius for mixing uproarious physical comedy and subtle pathos; if there is a more moving finale in all of American movies than the last moments of "City Lights," I'm not aware of it.
   
   Robinson's approach is both scholarly and eminently accessible. And he dispels a great many erroneous "facts" that have accrued to Chaplin over the decades, many of them directly attributable to Charlie's own myth-making. The author also refutes some aspects Chaplin's late (and appallingly egocentric) memoir "My Autobiography," whose appearance in the 1960s shocked and saddened many of his former creative collaborators, who found themselves conspicuously absent from Chaplin's over-stuffed tome. If this book is not definitive -- and who can say what future writers may produce in the fullness of time? -- it is at the very least the one fixed starting point for all serious Chaplin research.



2. There are only two books necessary for the true Chaplin fan; "My Autobiograpy", by Chaplin himself, and this book by Robinson. While there are scores of other books on the market concerning Chaplin's life, Robinson's is THE definitive work.
   
   If Charlie had been around to read this work, he might have amended his famous phrase from "If you want to know me, see my movies," to "If you want to know me, see my movies and read this book".



3. David Robinson has written the definitive biography of Charlie Chaplin. It is largely the basis for the movie "Chaplin" because it was authorized by the legend himself and thoroughly explores his life to a greater extent than his autobiography. It is truly a moving and informative work.
   
   Robinson begins his chronology of Chaplin's life in his childhood. He was largely orphaned by his alcoholic father and was only allowed to spend time with his mother while she was mentally healthy. It was through a failed performance of his mother than he got his first taste of acting as a child. From this point, he would devote almost all of the rest of his 87 years to entertainment. In his youth, he specialized in the stage productions which entertained England. He got his first taste of America on one of these traveling tours. On a later tour, he was offered a contract by an American film company. Chaplin agreed to honor his stage contract before beginning his film career.
   
   The book documents with reasonably precise details the process of each film he released in addition to one the public never saw and the final project he never started. Through this filmography, we see the development of "the tramp" character. With each film, the character moves closer to the final product we know.
   
   Chaplin's personal life is well documented. Unlike the autobiography all four wives are addressed, even the one Chaplin was not very fond of discussing. The fact that his first two wives were young is not avoided. However, it must be put in perspective that people did marry and have babies a lot sooner in those days. It is only unique in Chaplin's case because the husband/father is famous and much older. Despite his work for America during war time and a professed love for the country, the slanderous allegations of McCarthyism, also known as the 1950's witch hunt for communists, forced him to finish his life away from the country he loved. Truly the red scare is made to be a more terrible embarrassment to America by this result.
   
   Today's cinematic audience has little appreciation for the roots of the art form. Charlie Chaplin was a revolutionary and founding father in the film industry. Reading about his life is only a step in appreciating his brilliant work.



4. Robinson is the premier researcher on the life of Charles Chaplin, and this book is the result - a fact filled, balanced book that allows equal focus on Chaplins films and personal life. Most books tend to focus on WAY too much personal life and innuendo, but Robinson avoids this problem, and makes a good book that truly encompasses the entire life of Chaplin.

   Robinson's book includes a well detailed filmography, scripts from several early Keystone films, excellent appendices, and many rare pictures. My only complaint is that many of the pictures could be printed much better, and larger too.

   Superb reading!




5. This book, though thicker than brick, is a swift and fascinating read. You'll wish you'd known old Charlie, you really will. Robinson doesn't care for those who don't care for Chaplin, and that's a little too evident. It's hard to blame him. Overall, a stupendous piece of work.

4 comments about Smart Actors, Foolish Choices: A Self-Help Guide to Coping with the Emotional Stresses of the Business.

1. One of the most important things you can do for yourself as an actor is take care of yourself emotionally. This book has some good stories and some interesting tid bits, but it is lacking in real how to's. I recently bought a book called Twelve Step Plan To Becoming an Actor in LA and found it not only fun to read but extremely helpful. The author is also a therapist so she really arms you, to go to battle, with daily and monthly excercises to keep you grounded even when the going gets tuff. Do yourself a favor and carry this book with yo ,no matter what city you live in.

   Mark Carl
   Seattle




2. Judy Garland could have used Katherine Mayfield's book. She,like so many unique,talented and sensitive actors allowed the business of acting to define them, with tragic consequences. Smart Actors, Foolish Choices is not an artificial feel-good book;it is an honest book about the necessity of knowing and accepting yourself so that you can deal with the business of acting in which actors are product. The interviews with actors are excellent in bringing, in 12 unique personal stories, this reality to light. As one interviewee observed, Who you are as a person, how good you are as an artist, and how well you do in the business seem to be completely unrelated." (Johnny Kline) Katherine Mayfield's extensive experience with acting herself makes this a credible and insightful guide for actors. I would also recommend this book to non-actors in its ability to make you appreciate the human being behind each actor and the courage it takes to choose acting as a profession. The paricularly mean-spirited review she recieved from the actor in California discloses the depth at which an honest critique of the business is offensive to those needing a feel good fix. I highly recommend this book for its unflinching look at the realities of choosing acting as a career.



3. The title of this book caught my eye at the bookstore, and after leafing through it for a few minutes I bought it, thinking it would help prevent me making more of the "foolish choices" as an actor I had in the past. Upon reading it, the author gives a few anecdotes of the masochistic nature of being an actor (such as standing out in the cold all night in period dress to audition as an extra for a movie.) However, I found very little solid advice as to what mistakes to watch out for and more importantly, what to do to avoid being a foolish actor. Instead the author makes general comments of enjoying what you're doing, not to be masochistic, which is basic advice actors should learn by themselves after taking a few hard knocks. I read the book from cover to cover, and can't remember a single piece of advice that was specific to help me avoid the pitfalls of acting. The chapters ramble aimlessly and appear to have almost no organization.

   The title is great, but the interior is disappointing. I am at a loss as to why it got such a high rating from the other reviewers. My advice is to search for this at the bookstore, sit down with a good cup of coffee and really look through it. If you buy it sight unread, you deserve the title of "foolish actor."




4. The most useful and informative book ever put to press! Anyone working in the "business" should make this their personal bible. Ms. Mayfield's insights speak directly to the struggling actor with a clarity only made possible by her intense personal experiences within the acting field. Don't miss this one!

No comments about Ronald Reagan in Hollywood: Movies and Politics (Cambridge Studies in the History of Mass Communication).

5 comments about I Remember Mama..

1. This book was advertised as an actual book and I received a thin play about the book. I was very disappointed.



2. I purchased this to look at because I was writing about another fascinating "Mama." I forgot what a wonderful story it is. It's about an era most of us have forgotten or never knew. I loved it, as I loved the movie which saw when I was quite young. It is a touching story of the influence this woman had on her family. We should all have this kind of mother. Too bad we don't. Read "Dancing in the Dark: Things My Mother Never Told Me" and you will find the story of an entirely different mother.



3. Kathryn Forbes' "I Remember Mama" is a classic tale of Norwegian newcomers on the west coast, which became a long-running, highly popular tv series as well as a movie. The central figure is the wise, loving, enduring matriarch of the clan. Supremely happy in her new home, she proudly says, "I am a San Franciscan." Surrounded by sisters and cousins and other relatives from the old country, as so many immigrant families were at that time, she raises her own brood in changing times.

   The book portrays family unity, love and laughter rising above hardships. Children will enjoy this book as much as adult readers, as it speaks to the best in immigrant experience.




4. I read this book with my teacher and classmates. I would, first of all, reccomend this book to teachers to read with their class, because it is a play, and it is fun to read with a lot of children. There are a lot of things we can learn from the book. Except an occasional swear word ( this is the reason I only gave the book 4 stars), It is a very good book.

   The book is about a family who was very poor. Some of the very important characters are: Mama- who is a very smart person, who counts every penny papa (her husband) brings home from work. Katrien- one of Mama's daughters whose dream is to become a writer when she grows up. Lars, Christine, & Dagmar- Mama's other children. Jenny, Sigrid, & Trina- Mama's sisters. Uncle Chris- Moma's brother, who is also the "head" of the family. Mr.Thorkleson- Trina's husband to be. These I think are the most important characters in the book.

   It is kind of hard to understand at first, but you'll get get used to it. Happy Reading!




5. "I Remember Mama" is a delightful book, a fond remembrance of "Mama" with all her strengths and weaknesses. It has all the charm of a bygone era when families seemed to be more cohesive and life may have had its ups and downs, but the family always pulled together. The book is written from the viewpoint of the eldest daughter, and looks back lovingly at Mama's life and how she did her best for her family. There are those occasional moments of epiphany when the daughter, now grown, realizes the adult reasons her mother had for making the choices she made, and understands the love that motivated them. I would put this book in the same category as "Cheaper by the Dozen", "Belles on Their Toes", "Mama's Bank Account", "Life With Father", and "Life With Mother", because all of these books show the ups and downs of family life in a simpler age, but with kindness and good humour. They allow the reader to be entertained, educated, and uplifted without a heavy tone or obscure references, and give the impression that it is still possible to have a happy, close family, even in these modern times.

5 comments about The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, Seventh Edition.

1. This volume covers the history of television from its infancy to recent years. The book begins with a short essay on the history of television.
   
   Most of the book is devoted to synposes of prime time television shows that were on for at least four weeks from the 1940s up through recent years. For each show, the cast is listed, and the dates of first and last telecast are given. The book lists the networks that shows appeared on and even lists the time slots each show appeared in during its life.
   
   At the end of the book, there are several appendices. These appendices cover such topics as year-by-year prime time schedules for each day of the week for the major networks, Emmy Award winners, rankings of top-rated shows for each year based on ratings, and other information.
   
   You will likely spend a lot of time browsing through this book the first time you open it.



2. This is an awesome book if you need to know anything about prime time TV



3. A gift for my husband who couldn't pull himself out of it once he had cracked the cover. He's over 60 and a TV junkie with a love for trivia.



4. THIS BOOK HAD ALOT OF INFORMATION, YEARS ON TV, ALOT OF SERIES LISTED,
   REGULAR CAST AND SPECIAL GUEST STARS,MOST HAD A RE-CAP ABOUT WHAT THE SHOW WAS ABOUT,I LIKED LOOKING THROUGH THE PAGES AND READING ABOUT ALL THE PAST SHOWS, THERE IS SOME FUN TRIVIA IN THE BACK OF THE BOOK AND ALL THE EMMY WINNERS.
   THIS BOOK IS A GREAT PRICE AND I AM REALLY ENJOYING IT.



5. I own the first, fifth and eighth editions of this book, and they are absolutely superb. For years, I had wanted a book such as this and in the late seventies, I heard about the first edition. I went to a book store and ordered it. The book would be flawless if Tim and Earle would include two features in their next edition. I noticed in the eighth edition, they give the number of episodes for some series. I think it's only the syndicated shows. Anyway, they should do that for ALL the shows. Also, tell if a show was in color and if it didn't begin in color, give the date when it switched. Tim and Earle should also do a book that lists all the TV specials and TV movies. That would be interesting.

5 comments about Coaching Cheerleading Successfully (Coaching Successfully Series).

1. I couldn't find much help from this book. However, I'm Swedish and how to start a program here is really different from in the USA. The stunting section was very short. The illustrations to the dancemovements were adequate but sometimes not enough descriptive. There are other books out that will tell you the same things, and more. I recommend "the ultimate guide to cheerleading" by leslie something.



2. A must-have for all coaches. There are a fair variety of motions and jumps depicted, but they are drawings rather than photographs. Also, there is no visual depiction of how to prep for a jump, and this book starts you off with a thigh stand instead of stag stunts but there are stunt variations here not shown in "The Offical Cheerleaders Handbook" or "The Ultimate Guide to Cheerleading" and the photographs lead you pretty much through the whole sequence.
   
   Also in its favor it does have great tips on:
   
   *forming a team
   
   *keeping on top of your legal responsibilities
   
   *developing a practice plan
   
   *reaching out to parents and the community
   
   *building up your members' self-esteem
   
   *evaluating and tweaking your program
   
   My advice is to buy this book in conjunction with the other two mentioned above to get the most knowledge of cheerleading basics.
   
   Coach ~Jen



3. I recommend this book to anyone interested in coaching or advising cheer. One of the best purchases I have ever made, and I bought one for my entire coaching staff. I also run a training website and discussion group and constantly urge my visitors and participants to buy this great resource for coaches of today. A true cheerleading must-have!



4. I enjoyed this book! I use it with every turn in cheerleading coaching. I have been coaching for the last 11 years and this is one of the best resources that I have come across. I use this for both my All Star Team as well as my Varsity High School Team. This is perfect for the coach or advisor, however I would not suggest this book be viewed by the cheerleaders. This would confused them more than what they are already when any season starts. Coaches get your hands on this one!



5. A very informative book for new coaches or as a refresher for more established coaches. Covers alot of organizational information regarding cheerleading practices, try-outs and how-to's for starting a new program. I also used this book to inform parents and school board officials on establishing a school program. No coach should be without this book!