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It never occurred to me that gay people went down on the Titanic. But of course they did. Think of how gay an airplane or cruise ship is today. Why is the Titanic always considered a straight experience? This book makes the probable seem very real. Also the other stories in the collection are good--particularly the camp-like "I Married an Aquanymph" and the butch story of gaining muscular weight in the hot "Buzz Spaulding's Training Academy." The Hollywood theme keeps going in the porno screenplay of an actual video, "Buck's Bunkhouse." Also, I liked the dozen photographs in the book--for nights when I don't want to read as much as "look."

Be assured this tale of gay victims and gay survivors is historically accurate in its details of Titanic culture on board in all classes, and in its details of the sinking and rescue.

This novel is reviewed with praise at several Titanic websites for both its accuracy as well as for its rather daring angle in being the first book to deal with gay men on Titanic as passengers, pursers, and stokers.

This story, which is a QUEER EYE FOR THE STRAIGHT READER, is a metaphor of what gay people must do to save themselves in a time of Aids and fundamentalist politics.

As such, it is true to the legend of Titanic which has always been about progress and how ALL OF US, STRAIGHT AND GAY, MUST SAVE OURSELVES IN A TIME OF TERROR that changes everything.

The tone of the book is romantic and will be culturally challenging in a good way to those readers who have never thought about all the gay people who served on Titanic. This is their FORBIDDEN STORY that till now they were NOT ALLOWED TO TELL.

It's a charming hoot to read how MOLLY BROWN interacts with the gay men on board! And to read how Molly, handing out her ballgowns, teaches "survival at all costs."

Fritscher is also the author of the nonfiction books, "Popular Witchcraft: Straight from the Witch's Mouth" and "Mapplethorpe: Assault with a Deadly Camera."

"Titanic" is recommended for those readers open to cross-cultural experiences. Actually, Fritscher's "Titanic," despite the ending, has a fun, musical-comedy feel appropriate to the way the passengers felt as the celebrated ship set sail.

Enjoyed the read(so did my seat mate as I flew to NY).
Hot and very creative man to man action..a real fantasy come to life in the pages. The scenes on the Titanic with the hunky engine crew is amazing. A bit of romance and nostalgia as well.

I was glad to search "disaster" and find this book, because the 9-11 attacks on the World Trade Center made me wonder about the human interest stories of all the lesbigay people in the Twin Towers. Then I read that it took 3.5 hours for the Titanic to sink and only 2.5 hours for the Twin Towers to collapse. Which all brought me to this book which tells the gay stories from Titanic. Not only informative, but imaginative and probably true, and certainly erotic, particularly the scenes with the sexy Stoker below decks. The story does not trivialize disaster, but rather makes you think about what being gay and being inside a tragedy is like. AIDS, of course, is a parallel subtext symbolically present in the Titanic sinking, just as HIV scares for gay people make the anthrax scares a bit simple by comparison. (At least for now.) I recommend this book particularly at this time that everyone is watching disaster on TV and maybe wants to read some escapist fiction around disaster--where some survive. Timely and hot.

"Love And Slumming." Okay, that about wraps this one up. Or how's about: "Now I know why handguns should be outlawed."

This is the fourth collection of Jack Fritscher's short stories, collected from three decades of sensual erotica. But perhaps this time, more than in any other of the collections, "Titanic" displays his razor sharp wit. The temptation to just list line after memorable line in this batch of stories is tough to resist.

Tied loosely together by a Hollywood concept, "Titanic" is also something else that many never expect from a collection of Fritscher's magazine work. There is very little leathersex involved here. Plenty of man on man horseplay, more than a few uncircumcised folks (the book could just as easily been subtitled Memories Of Headcheese) and lots of hypermasculine images, but the ropes and the dungeons are pretty much kept locked in the projection booth. That doesn't make the pieces any less wild, in fact, it enhances the craziness of a story like "CBGB 1977" and reminds you that the 70's in New York weren't all boogie nights at Studio 54.

Yes, the sex is fast and dirty, and often, funny. Funny in a way that suggests whimsy, which is pretty much a lost art in American humor, where a fart joke is easier to insert than a set up for a pattern of good belly laughs. To have a starlet so shamelessly exploit her he-she sexiness (in "Aqua-Nymph") will make many squirm in the fact that they're becoming more than a little female icon worshipping suckler, all while looking for Fritscher's usual cask of rough players. Think Bette Davis. Or even Cher. Not leather. Glitter. ...

OKAY! You want the nasty? Read "Buck's Bunkhouse Discipline: The Screenplay." (You thought no-one concerned themselves about porn film plotting!) "Three Bears In A Tub," which attempts to answer the question of how much sex can you fit into a single sentence. It's a gasping run-on of he-men in the wild for reel men in the big screen world. There's not a story here among "Titanic's" dozen that won't leave you with a 16cc smile. I'll indulge myself with one more Jack Fritscher quote to close this review: "Most people prefer masculine men...masculine in the best sense, not macho in the worst."

I have every one of the Charmed series books, this is just as good as all the rest. The girls keep you on the edge of your magical seats in another great adventure.

Trickery Treat (Charmed) was an awesome book. It had lots of history, detailed history that made me realize that it was the last in the series, but it still could have gone on another few years. They could have done what the Buffy book have done, written stories in different seasons. They could have had short stories even books written by fans. I think that would have really ended the series on a much higher note. To bad there was no Prue in this book! This whole time, we could have seen Prue at some point,especially since when we didn't get to see it in the series. Only a few minor bloopers, but all and all a great book for all you Charmed fans. A great ending to a wonderful show.

The Charmed Ones must stop this ghost before it does more harm to the house.

'Trickery Treat' was a wonderful treat to read. It gave us 'our' witches back AFTER the end of the TV series. I was delighted to resume my relationship with the characters and would encourage more books on the same vein. We want to know what happens with Wyatt growing up and Peobe pregnant. And please note not all readers are aged 9 to 12. Us grownups loved the series and I consider the books a continuation of this relationship. Thanks Diana and keep em coming!!

As always great book loved it & would like to see more books written on the charmed series

I had no idea the spectrum of videos available until I read this book. It's also the perfect book if you want to get a video to watch with your lover and tells you how to introduce the idea to them. Plus it tells you who the good filmmakers are. Comprehensive and highly recommended.

I always thought I would watch adult movies if only there were any good ones! I was never very excited about adult movies but I am a fan of the author, and the video guide is not only her best book to date but made me want to go out and rent some of these movies. As a woman I am used to being insulted by adult movies, but the guide is written by an intelligent woman and she's pointed the way for me to find hot movies, and her recommendations have been right on the mark. She gives the reader a guide with which they can make informed decisions about what they do and do not want to watch. How refreshing.

This is a great book! My girlfriend and I love it, and she's now happily put herself in charge of renting our videos. Violet Blue's tone is warm, funny, and excited about sex and adult videos, and she takes no prisoners in her hilarious video reviews. There are hundreds of films in this book and she explains how to find the good stuff. My girlfriend liked where Blue explained how to avoid seeing things that are offensive and we cracked each other up reading the "porn glossary" out loud to each other. It's nice to see a guide that takes us readers and porn watchers seriously. It's a great book for us couples. Don't read it alone! Thank you Violet Blue!

This is the ultimate consumer guide to porn and it's perfect for women and couples. The female perspecitve is utmost here and it shows you how to steer clear of low quality and female degredation while still finding really hot porn. This is an encyclopedia of modern adult film and nothing has been left out. History, backstories, profiles on interesting people in the business, lots of women-made erotic films and even softcore and mainstream titles are covered here. Nice sections on finding and selecting porn to suit individual's tastes. This book is a welcome relief and is intelligent, funny and free of the usual judgement and stigma in other porn writing. Blue treates porn like an independent film genre, and it's about time.

As someone who has been recommending intimate videos to my girlfriends for years, I was anxious to see what I might learn from Violet Blue's, `The Ultimate Guide to Adult Videos.' As it turns out - if you're an experienced porn watcher - not much! (More on why not later.) But if you're a newbie, this book actually has a lot to offer!

For those of you who might be hesitant to watch porn, this book offers many reassurances, such as - people who watch porn are NOT compulsive masturbators, or - porn watchers DO enjoy regular sex with their partners, and, most significantly - watching porn will NOT affect your ability to have a meaningful relationship but, in fact, it might do just the opposite! (Hear, hear!)

On the positive side, the book also provides many GOOD reasons for watching porn, such as - to satisfy one's curiosity (and to expand one's horizons), as education, as entertainment before (or during) sex, or quite simply - to get off! On this last point, Violet offers a lot of encouragement particularly to women - to allow themselves to masturbate while watching porn - which, for men, is only second nature (like breathing)! Lastly, for couples, this tome does review the sensitive issue of how to view porn with a partner - especially when one partner is reluctant. (Luckily, my husband has never had this problem!)

Violet also reassures us - that it's not always necessary to attempt (in one's own bed) everything we might see in porn - and that it's ok for certain types of action to remain in the realm of `fantasy.' In fact, one of porn's strongest roles - is to dimensionalize (add realism) to our sexual fantasies. So even if your boyfriend watches some of the raunchiest porn imaginable - that doesn't require you to try it (or even admit to liking it, even if you do) - so long as he's able to separate fantasy from reality (which most men are surprisingly able to do.)

Probably the most useful sections of the book deals with the types of porn available, such as - feature films, educational videos, all-sex videos (all sex, no plot), to name just a few - as well as my favorite, girl/girl -- which is sometimes called lesbian videos, even though most of the performers are not true lesbians. So if you're unsure of what to watch, this book can add structure to the sometimes bewildering array of porn that's available.

On the downside, this book was published in 2003 -- just a few years ago - but a long time, unfortunately, in porn years! As a result, most of the movie titles it recommends - which make up about 2/3rds of the book - may be difficult, if not impossible, to find today (unless one looks in the classics or marked-down sections). Fortunately, some of the directors, studios, and series listed -- may still be around in some later incarnation.

There's also very little mention of one of the hottest new genres - gonzo -- in which the director interacts (verbally) with the actors -- which saves cost, since there's no script and no rehearsing - but results in some of the hottest, most spontaneous action you'll ever see on screen.

For the experienced porn watcher, this book also seriously dates itself by pointing out that the most prevalent and brazen type of (male) climax available at the time - were facials (an ejaculation served across a woman's face) - which are as useless and degrading back then as they are today! (Ladies, honestly, how often have you asked your lover to do this for you? If you're like me - how about NEVER!) Let's get real!

Fortunately, achieving a climax within a woman's body (on screen) is much more accepted and commonplace in porn today - which makes the action more realistic, more romantic - and much more emotionally satisfying to watch! (It's about time!)

As another nit, the book sadly has only a brief chapter on lesbian and girl/girl videos, which is a shame. And it mixes them with bi-videos (where the men do it with both men and women) which have an entirely different audience and a much more limited appeal.

Luckily, the author, Violet Blue, has a new book coming out, `The Smart Girls Guide to Porn,' which sounds well targeted - since its women who will probably seek out this type of info, especially in a book!

As a happily married (bisexual) female, here are my suggestions for what I'd like to see included in her new book - which this present edition was sorely lacking:

There are now genres of porn - which explore the lovingness of every orifice (such as oral and anal) - and the creative after-climax uses for a man's output (such as swallowing, swapping, and cream pies which is the oozing of ejaculant out of the orifice where it was deposited, plus other combinations of the above).

The natural eroticism of girl/girl should be more strongly highlighted - especially for women. In my own experiences, I've yet to meet a girl who doesn't like to watch two cute babes making love to each other. And I've also found that a woman's enjoyment of porn will increase tremendously - after she discovers girl/girl, which only makes sense since porn is about women - and women have always had an appreciation for the beauty of the fairer sex. (Said differently, it's harder to believe that porn exploits women, and to restrict one's own enjoyment - when pretty girls can now be an object of desire - for both men and women!)

Needless to say, a section of the book should be added to reassure MEN - that watching girl/girl videos will NOT turn their girlfriends or wives into lesbians! (Take it from me -- they won't!) Unfortunately, the most common reason I've found to explain why some women DON'T watch girl-only videos - is because their men don't (yet) approve. Fortunately, that attitude is quickly changing.

I didn't say this earlier, but back in 2003 - it was also taboo to mix boy/girl and girl/girl action - in the same scene. The thinking was (and still is) that guys will be turned off. But one of my favorite type of videos today is girl/girl/boy threesomes, where the girls are free to make love to each other early on (usually in the segment's opening) - and later all throughout the scene - even after their guy has joined in, which is pretty heady stuff!

As further expansion, the nastiest and most romantic of these girl/girl/boy threesome titles are probably more easily recognized under the `swapping' genre where the girls do just that orally with their lover's output - which, for me, is a great heterosexual reassurance - which allows the intimacy of the girl/girl action to go even higher! (As a watch-out, these videos are probably better suited to the more advanced porn watcher - but they are items which I suggest quite often - to my girlfriends who really enjoy porn!)

In conclusion, Violet Blue's `Ultimate Guide to Adult Videos' offers some timeless advice to overcome one's hesitation when it comes to watching porn. The plethora of videos it recommends, though - are hopelessly out-of-date! Fortunately, porn just keeps getting better and better - for both men and women! Enjoy.

As an avid horror fan, I must say Vincent Price is the long-standing king of horror. When I think of horror movies, he immediately comes to mind. Finally, a book that specializes in the work of a true master who truly loved his work. Having recently purchased this, I look forward to mulling through its contents and watching the many films of "The Master of the Macabre." Long live Vincent Price!!!

True fans of Vincent Price don't really care whether or not we're watching something badly made like SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN or some auteur-approved masterpiece like TOMB OF LIGEIA. As long as Vincent Price is in it, hamming it up and acting all others right off the screen we are in hog heaven. It's a strange, fervid fraternity and way back when someone started calling us The Price Club and the name just stuck.

Denis Meikle has given us a book that clears up some of the myths surrounding Price's career, but he seems determined to create a new one, based somewhat on Victoria's great book. His thesis is that the McCarthy hearings and the "graylist" of which Price was the victim made him scared that he would never work again, so that afterwards, from the mid 1950s on, he consented to appear in any piece of schlock if the "price was right." Again and again he evinces this theory to explain, for example, why VP appeared as "Egghead" on TV's BATMAN. Price himself often stated that he wanted money to but more modern art with, but Meikle discounts this simple explanation.

I am the proud owner of a signed copy of Price's awesome book THE ART IN MY LIFE and I think that he indeed loved art and that he wasn't just "running scared" from the HUAC police.

But everyone deserves a forum for their views and Meikle makes a good case for his.

Vincent Price came into horror films by way of the studio system. His body of work is amazing, and he showed a fine sense of comedic timing in His Kind of Woman, with Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell, playing an OTT hammy actor. Later this tough for droll comedy would show in two gems - The Raven and The Comedy of Terrors. However, he really gathered attention in 1952 with House of Wax. After that wonderful performance, it was non stop fun all the way.

Many of his films were for William Castle or Roger Corman, and often considered Drive-In fodder - such as The Fly, The Bat, House on Haunted Hill. It was the series of Poe movies that firmly linked the word horror to Price - and I think it was a term he enjoyed completely. At the time the Corman-Price-Poe series of movies - The Pit and The Pendulum (with Scream Queen Barbara Steele), House of Usher, Tomb of Ligeia, Masque of the Red Death, Haunted Palace (which was really Lovecraft not Poe, but what the hey...) were often dismissed. But looking back, you will see finely crafted horror films that are still a pleasure to what now, with many of Price's wonderful performances.

Even later, he continued to seek out this same spotlight with the campy Theatre of Blood and the Dr. Phibes duo of films or the more serious Cry of the Banshee and Conqueror Worm (one of his most underrated performances).

He scared us with a gentle boo, mesmerising with that voice, thrilled us with the wondrous menacing laugh, enchanted us with his devilish twinkle in his eye...he entertained us cooking fish in his dishwasher on Johnny Carson.

His legacy lives and this is wonderful tribute to the master! Loaded with pictures, it is a must for Price fans.

When I was a kid way, way back in the late sixties to the early
seventies I never failed to catch a great Price film on the late night Creature Features. This book is hard to put down.
Dennis Meikle does'nt white wash the Master of Menace, nor present him in any unfavorable light. All of Price's successes
and failings are told here in a very respectful manner. As a
matter of fact there were some parts of Price's life I did'nt want to know. This is the story of a great actor the likes of whom we will never ever see again. Well illustrated. A really
excellent book.

I just finished reading this excellent book on Vincent Price. It concentrates just on his work in the horror film genre which is primarly what he is remembered for. Denis Meikle follows Vincent's career chronologically film by film, giving details of the production as well as what was going on in Price's life at the time. While this is not an exhaustive work on this wonderful actor, it makes a great companion piece to his daughter's book "Vincent Price: A Daughter's Biography" which covers his personal life and Lucy Chase Williams' excellent "The Complete Films of Vincent Price" which covers all his film output. All together, these tell the story of one of the last true renaissance men. Recommended.

Probably the only work available that pairs a film scholar/interviewer with the masters of the screen. Obviously a must for any film enthusiast.

VOICES FROM THE SET is a MUST READ for all film historians, film students and cinephiles. Macklin gains amazing insight into the working lives of such screen legends as The Duke, Altman, Beatty and Peckinpah, all captured in rare form. This is an excellent read.

When teaching film and television in Los Angeles, I had the luxury of having top industry professionals visit my classes. This is simply not possible at universities distant from the major centers of production. However, with Tony Macklin's unique and special tome, I can have many of the all-time greats "visit" my class anywhere. VOICES FROM THE SET will be required reading for all future "Masters of American Cinema" courses I teach-- anywhere...ever.

Voices From the Set is Tony Macklin's collection of interviews from the magazine he edited, the Film Heritage series. Exploring an underappreciated era in film, the early to mid 1970s, Macklin gathered interviews with directors, actors, producers, writers, even film critics who blazened a trail for independent cinema between the twilight years of the studio system and the birth of the blockbuster. The book is meant to be savored one interview at a time, and should give you a great list of films to rent if you're not familiar with them. In his introduction, Macklin calls this particular group of interviews "precious cameos that gain more value as time passes." His discussions include several maverick filmmakers still influential today, such as Martin Scorsese, Robert Altman, Sam Peckinpah and Warren Beatty. Voices also captures the essence of legendary directors and actors Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hawks, Charlton Heston and Macklin's favorite, John Wayne. Macklin artfully probes below the surface and discusses the artists' feelings and visions, not just dry facts and dates. In the Scorsese interview, Macklin asks him for his opinion on "the new Hollywood" during the early to mid '70s. Scorsese talks at length about this group of influential filmmakers graduating from universities, himself numbering amoung them. He succinctly sums up the era and the reason for reading this book: "They [the old Hollywood] took it as a job...we come in from a whole different level...The old day is dying out, and there is a new Hollywood..."

Tony Macklin's collection of interviews, Voices from the Set, provides us remarkable reflections by some of Hollywood's greats--reflections of a Hollywood balanced at the crossroads of its artistic Golden Age and the modern-day blockbuster. Macklin's interviews with such influential film greats as Hitchcock, Altman, Scorsese, Heston, Hawks, Peckinpah, Wayne, and Beatty give us a fresh look at many of old Hollywood's most powerful, while providing us a peek at some of new Hollywood's up-and-comers.

Macklin, in skillfully eliciting responses that are compelling, honest, and human, allows us to witness a side of Hollywood that is rarely seen. Voices from the Set's subjects are willing to talk to Macklin, and Macklin is willing to give us the full transcripts of his interviews. No sound bite answers here. Macklin asks the tough, thought-provoking questions and we are rewarded with direct, insightful answers.

Both fans and students of film will not be disappointed in this book. Virtually every interview in Voices will sing to you.

Ed Watz' thoroughly researched and well-written book on the films of Wheeler and Woolsey deserves the highest praise. He approaches their career by examining their work on a film-by-film basis, providing very complete cast and credit information, production history, as well as biographical information on the two comedians. The book also includes a nice forward by their frequent co-star Dorothy Lee, who worked with the team since the 20s. Lee, who died in 1999, shares many memories of working with the comedians, and gives valuable insight into the making of these films.

Highly recommended for students and fans of stage and screen comedy.

This "sleeper" book, which I picked up because of my curiosity about the subjects (they are appearing regularly on the Turner Classic Movies station) is a revelation. Positively one of the best researched and entertaining books about a comedy team from the movies' golden age, the 1930s. To watch Wheeler & Woolsey is to understand what vaudeville-type comedy is (was) all about. Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey have been overlooked in favor of teams like the Marx Bros. or the 3 Stooges. This book corrects that oversight. It is also a highly readable accounts of Hollywood politics behind the scenes at some of the major studios. If you're a fan of vintage movie comedy, get this book.

Wheeler and Woolsey were second to Laurel and Hardy in the heart's of movie going audiences of the 1930's. Since then, however, their star has faded and their acomplishments have been relegated to footnote status in the history of the golden age of comedy. Thanks to Edward Watz, Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey are alive and kicking again in a definitive history of the lovable pair and their films. Exhaustingly researched and lovingly executed, the book chronicles the career ups and downs of the most unjustifiably forgotten comedians in the history of show business. Personal biographies are included, as well as detailed accounts of all of their features and short subjects. Long time leading lady Dorothy Lee lends her first hand account of the way things happend with a refreshingly candid foreward. She also shares her memories of each of the films that she participated in with a fascinating view that only an insider could relate. The later years are chronicled in the final chapter, featuring accounts of Bert Wheeler's career after the untimely death of his partner. All in all, this book ranks along side the superlative Laurel and Hardy, The Magic Behind The Movies, and Abbott and Costello in Hollywood, as one of the most enjoyable and informative demonstration's of film history as can be expected. If you love film comedy, you should not be without this book.

I love this book! To my knowledge, the only book around about Wheeler and Whoolsey. It made me eager to see more of their films. The author did a great job of research, which couldn't have been easy considering how long ago these comedians were active.

Ed Watz's book 'Wheeler & Woolsey' is a superb film history of a great and sadly forgotten movie comedy team. This volume evokes the golden days of both Vaudeville and Hollywood, as we follow the rise and sad fall of Wheeler & Woolsey. Mr. Watz also sets straight the historical record in that the boys were second only to the great Laurel & Hardy in the 1930's and certainly ahead of their rivals the Marx Bros., the Ritz Bros., and the Three Stooges! Readers of this book will want to go out and see the films of Wheeler & Woolsey. Watz's book is a lost treasure.

This is a fairly pedestrian novelization of the movie by Robin Hardy and Anthony Schaffer. If you have seen the movie, it won't really enhance the experience much. There are a few lines which give some insight into Detective Howie's character but its nothing you can't extrapolate from Edward Woodward's performance in the film. If you are, as I am, a devoted fan of the film, you will want to have this as a memento - but don't expect it to reveal anything profound about the film.

Robin Hardy and Anthony Sheffer, The Wicker Man (Crown, 1978)

The emergence of a rabid cult following for the film version of The Wicker Man prompted the publication of the novel on which it was based. And a good thing, too. As fine as the film is, the book has its own special charm.

If you've been living in a cave the past thirty years, the plot of The Wicker Man goes as follows: Neil Howie, a Scots police Sergeant and fine upstanding Christian fellow, receives an anonymous letter saying that a girl has gone missing on Summerisle, a small island only barely under Scot protection, thirty-eight miles west of the last of the Outer Hebrides. Howie goes out to investigate, and finds that, while all the inhabitants of the island are seemingly quite forthcoming with what they know (save the none of them acknowledge the missing girl so much as exists), Howie is torn between his desire to see the case through and his offense at the various heathen goings-on on the decidedly non-Christian island.

The movie does an absolutely lovely job in detailing the various conflicting emotions of Neil Howie throughout, and in this it lies faithfully close to the book. Where the book does the movie one better is in the expanded opening (even the opening to the 104-minute version of the film, rarely seen, leaves quite a bit unanswered about the whole mess) and allowing us to get inside Howie's head for a few of the harder-to-understand decisions he makes over the course of his time on Summerisle. The downside of it all is that the same strengths one can get from a book opens up its weaknesses, and while The Wicker Man does handle sudden emotional changes with a more deft hand than most novels of its ilk, there are still some embarrassingly jarring ones (from offense to affability in an instant simply isn't convincing, no matter how you dress it up it still looks like an ogre). Still, it's obvious Hardy spent a lot of time thinking and plotting this one out before coming up with a final draft, and what finally got released is a pleasure. This is not at all easy to find these days, but whether you've seen the film or not, this is definitely one to pick up. **** ½

Based on the marvelous film of the same title, this book is a must for those who've seen the movie, whether the long or short version. Beyond filling in the gaps of the background and true personality of Sergeant Howie, it is, quite simply, a great read! Rather than a novelization of exact dialogue and events, this gives a more complete picture of Howie and Summerisle, why he feels so adamant about his Christianity and the need to mission to the "poor pagans." Unfortunately out of print in the US (I purchased my copy used), it was available from Amazon UK last time I checked.

I won't bore you with details since someone has essentially given you most of the plot. The film as well as the book adaption are absolutely brilliant, a believable Horror story hasn't been done better before or since. Get ready for the American film remake/reimagining starring Nicholas Cage/aka The Wooden Indian, The man who acts the same, sounds the same(monotone) in everything he's ever made and it will probably have a rap or hiphop soundtrack even though it takes place on an island off the coast of Scotland, EEWWWWW!...God! I dread it. This is almost guaranteed to suck s#!t out of a Horses A$$!!, read the book or see the classic original movie before the new one spoils it for you.

The book makes for enjoyable, easy reading. I've never seen the movie, so I cannot comment on its resemblance to it. The plot is interesting and moves fluidly. The books only weak points are its somewhat lackluster prose and the main character's self-righteousness, which becomes nauseous at times. Also, I wish the author would've delved a bit deeper into the pagan rites. Overall, its a good read.

This book is both a fantasy and romance.I loved reading about the 1940's. What an interesting time in American history! In this book we get to travel back in time with the main character and meet his true love. We go on a roller coaster ride with him on a quest that brings him romance,heartache and redemption. This book has a whimsical outlook on love,written with humour and wit. I highly recommend this read for those who want to escape to another time and find romance along the way.

I have heard that writing a novel is like being on roller skates. You go partly where you want to go and partly where the darn thing takes you. I agree with that. I've also heard that a lot of authors come to think of their books as their children. I agree with that also.
Writing this novel 'Will I Ever Know' and now well into the sequel 'Lost in the Spell, I can relate to both comments. You get an idea, run with it when all of a sudden the characters take over and begin to write things you never dreamed of. I tried to write a book that would appeal to a reader like me. I like suspense, a romance, some comedy,cliffhangers, something to keep me turning the pages. A combination of film-noir and screwball comedy. I think 'Will I Ever Know' has elements of both of these.
I've given 'Will I Ever Know' 5 stars in all humility. Well I had to give it something or this wouldn't get published. I'm proud of my child! I make no apologies.
The genesis of this project started in May of 2006. I heard Katherine McPhee sing 'Someone to Watch Over Me' on American Idol. It was stunning! One of my favorite old songs and she gave a terrific performance. My wife has built up a collection of classic songs by classic singers and wanting to compare Katherine with some of them, I asked my wife if she could dig some of them out for comparison listening. After hearing 5 or 6 of them Katherine was looking pretty good. Then I came to Frances Langford. Frances Langford? A singer? My only recollection of Frances was as a comedienne starring with Don Ameche in an early sit-com, 'The Bickersons' Frances was brilliant but Blanche Bickerson a singer? Well this would be good for a laugh at least. (Shows you how much I knew)I put the CD on and was totally blown away! This gal could really SING! I mean S I N G! I wound up listening to the entire CD. The songs I knew, the songs I didn't know all done to perfection. I had never heard anything like it. I did my research on Frances and discovered all about her wonderful singing career. Featured vocalist on Bob Hope's radio show. Guest star on numerous radio shows. Movie star with 30 movies to her credit, most in starring roles. Queen of thousands of GI's, touring endlessly with Bob Hope entertaining the troops. 6 other wonderful CD's filled with her glorious voice. What happened to her? Well the music scene changed in the 50's. Something called Rock N' Roll replaced Swing. Frances divorced hubby Jon Hall and married Ralph Evinrude, heir to the Evinrude outboard motor company. Frances unofficially retired in the mid 50's, moved back to her native Florida, opened up a very successful restaurant and lived a long happy life. She died in 2005 at age 92 with no regrets. She was by all accounts a very happy lady. I had come to love and revere this charming woman and was disappointed that she has become largely forgotten today. How can you forget that Voice? Or that indescribable beauty? I began collecting photo's from her heyday in the 40's, then expanded to photos from the 30's and early 50's. I bought all of her movies I could find, relying on Turner Classic Movies for the rest. Her movies in addition to the great music show her to be an adorable warm sincere actress that captures your heart every time. What could I do to get Frances the recognition and her rightful place in musical history? I thought about writing a biography but that would mean years of research with resources I didn't have. How about a novel? While watching her 1936 movie 'Palm Springs' and listening to her sing the song 'Will I Ever Know' the idea hit me. In that song she sings the words, "the moment that I see him I will know him, no matter how impossible it seems. I know just what he'll do, I know just what he'll say, we have met before in dreams." That stunning rendition and the dreamy far away look in her eyes made me think of time travel. Having Frances haunted by those words and dreaming of a man running to her but fading out before she sees his face. While in the present day a man discovers her singing that song and just knows she was singing about him...in 1936. This man, Chad Henson, longs to meet her but how? She'd be in her nineties and dead to boot. He gets a job with a crazy professor working on a time machine. The professor is reluctant to send Chad back in time for fear he might change something that would cause the Cosmos to go into Chaos. One day alone in the time machine room, Chad sends himelf back in time to 1945 where Frances is filming Chad's favorite movie, 'The Bamboo Blond' What happens I leave to you, dear reader, to find out!
I've labeled this a 'fantasy time-travel, romance novel. Although, upon further review, I find it's mainly a romance novel. The love that Frances and Chad have for each other is the type of love that I think even the most jaded of us long for. A love so powerful it is all consuming. A few find it. Most of us long for it. A love that nothing can conquer, not money problems, a carful of kids, success or failure with our jobs. A love that nothing can diminish.
Lets look at these characters. On the one hand you have Frances Langford. She was 32 years old in 1945. Incredibly beautiful, talented, extremely popular, married to a good guy, Hollywood Hunk, Jon Hall. What could she see in an average guy, 34 year old Chad Henson? A lifelong under achiever, toiling in a menial sales position and being let go when his store merges with another chain. Married after a series of bad relationdhips and divorced. The answer simply is I don't know...such is the power of love! As Frances says in the book "I looked deep in his eyes and I knew, I really knew!" Who can explain...Love?
Since you've read this far, why not take the next step and check out some of Frances CD's and movies available here on Amazon? A good place to start is the CD 'Sweetheart of Song' It has only 10 songs but it also boasts the best audio quality with all of the material taken from broadcasts to the GI's during WWII. It also features many of the songs that are in the book. The song 'Will I Ever Know' can be found on the CD 'Serenade' and is also in the movie 'Palm Springs' Then I hope you'll check out 'Will I Ever Know' the book and get caught up in this wonderful romance. At the end I hope you will be eagerly awaiting the next installment.
I wrote this in the hopes it might be of interest to anyone curious about 'Will I Ever Know' and Frances Langford and help you gain some insight into what it's all about.

Will I Ever Know is a well written delightful read. Chad Henson is a young man struggling with his daily life until he happens to hear a song by Frances Langford. He is convinced she is singing the song for him and soon becomes a man possessed. He wants more than anything to go back in time to meet this girl of his dreams. This whole idea seems impossible until he meets Professor Ernst von Schlaban and his time machine.

The description of the professor and his laboratory are magnificent. He can easily be pictured rushing around his untidy lab in his little white coat with hair standing on end. You are drawn into the story rooting for Chad as he sends himself back in time to the 1940's to meet Frances who happens to be haunted by the same song and looking for the man of her dreams. The lovers have very little time together because all the while poor Chad is getting bounced around from place to place as the mad professor tries to bring him back to present day.

Chad grows a lot in the story and manages to be resourceful enough to get by fairly well knowing he could be swept away any minute to a different time and place but hoping it is back to his original destination. You find yourself wondering which decade or century he will end up in next as the professor goes though his paperwork and turns the dials on the time machine.

As an added bonus you are taken behind the scenes and into the daily life of Frances Langford. Charles Henry does an excellent job of describing her rehearsals with Bob Hope and the parties she attends for celebrities as well as her personal life and friends. Everything moves along quickly and will keep you turning the pages to see what happens next. I felt like I was right there in the story with everyone.

This book is filled with emotion as the characters laugh and cry and sometimes things go awry. The reader is left wondering if Chad will be able to find Frances again in the 1940's and stay with her or if this will turn the cosmos into chaos as the professor warns.

This is a must read. I am looking forward to the continuation of this story in the next book.

Charles Henry spins and weaves this story from the beginning and you are captured immediately. I have not read a book like this in a long time that requires me to complete the book as soon as possible. I really enjoyed this book!

His main charactor, Chad Henson, becomes so real to you that you want him to have his romance with the dead Francis Lanford and you want it to happen now. This is a story in time travel and I like how he combines the historical information with the current history. All of you movie star buffs will enjoy this also and I would make it a must read. I feel most certainly, that this will not be the last book that you will see from Mr. Henry.

I want to thank the author immensely for sending me this fabulous work that kept me engaged on a train ride from Baltimore to New York. The book had me so enthralled that I was at my destination before I realized I had left my starting point.

The story has some overtones of a Richard Mattheson novel (Somewhere in Time) as Chad Henson (his name is similar to the author's) becomes infatuated with a recently deceased movie star named Frances Langford. Frances' magical voice is what does the trick for Chad. Through means kind of out of Jerry Lewis type movie, Chad is able to travel to the past and meet Frances, first as an elderly woman and then her more younger self. Chad is convinced that Frances was always searching for her perfect mate when she sang Will I Ever Know and that Chad himself is that perfect mate.

The author goes on to perfectly capture the mood of the 1940's and its many Hollywood icons. Telling any more about the book would be a spoiler but I hope the Mr. Henry will let me know when the next installment of the story will be ready because I can't wait for it to come out!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Wow, i never even knew who Jean Gabin was, but this book was written in such clarity and liveliness that i am inspired and interested in learning more about him.

a wonderful delight for movie buffs!

Exhaustively researched, exceptionally informative, incredibly entertaining...

If one is even casually acquainted with the films of Jean Gabin (and if you haven't seen "La Grande Illusion," it should be at the top of your Netflix queue), this is a must-read.

This book is exhaustive and incredibly entertaining. It suggests to me that a course on Gabin would make an excellent addition to film school curriculum because of the depth, breath and sheer entertainment value of so much of his work. I really enjoyed this book. I valued Gabin as an actor in some of my favorite films before reading it but now I really understand him as a man. Good work, Mr. Zigman.

Jean Gabin: World's Coolest Movie Star written by Charles Zigman is one of those one-of-a-kind books that everyone should have to reference. Mr. Charles Zigman skillfully reviews, comments, digests and provides little known facts about this amazing French film star, his life and his movies. The writing is compelling, strong and rich. This fast paced book should grace every coffee table in America, Europe & Asia.

The Greatest Movie Star of all time... outside the English speaking world - "World's Coolest Movie Star: The Complete 95 Films(and Legend) of Jean Gabin" is a look at one of the best film actors the world has ever known which spanned nearly fifty years, and a war hero, husband, father, and farmer on top of all that. Covering his life and career in completion, author Charles Zigman introduces him to the English speaking world, where he holds quite the cult following, as best as he can, and leaves no detail to the reader's imagination. "World's Coolest Movie Star: The Complete 95 Films (and Legend) of Jean Gabin" is a must for any serious collection dedicated to film and cinema.