Television Books

I discovered this book after the Auntie Mame duo and I couldn't stop laughing. It was an excellent combination of pseudo-memoir and wacky photographs that fit and enhanced the tale of Belle Poitrine (look up the French) perfectly. Her rise and decline was so familiar based on the autobioraphies of that time but with much more absurdity and hilarity. It seemed pretty outré even given the greater censorship strictures of that day.
A wonderful read.

My God - I don't even know where to begin on how great this book is - pure hilarity from start to finish. If you are familiar with the work of Patrick Dennis, than you're in for a real treat. If his writings are new to you, well, you're in for a crash course.

Written with perfect, tongue-in-cheek camp humor, the autobiography of Belle Poitrine is the perfect send-up of the best Hollywood autobiographies - hysterically self-absorbed, condescending and - best of all - full of absolutely hysterical photographs by the great Cris Alexander. Belle's rise to fame from her childhood black sheep status, mid-life trials and tribulations, countless marriages (most often ending in widowhood) and more are all represented - once you're under the spell of her life story, the book is impossible to put down. And, please, do not rush to find out the ending - it's utterly priceless, and worth the wait, but to get the full, hilarious effect, you have to read everything leading up to it.

Read at your own risk - if you do, you'll surely be telling everyone you know about it - the humor is most contagious, and you'll be compelled to share. Enjoy!!!

When it comes to the "classics" of gay/camp literature, I always seem to find myself behind the curve. My friends can praise and recommend a camp classic year after year and I just can't muster enough enthusiasm to read it. In fact, it wasn't until the early 1990s that I finally read the entire TALES OF THE CITY oeuvre - blasphemy in gay circles, and considerably beyond the heyday of 28 Barbary Lane. I guess I just need to come to the gay classics in my own time and can't be lead to them by other people's tributes, no matter how emphatic. Anyway, it was just yesterday that I finally read LITTLE ME by Patrick Dennis (circa 1961- making the book only slightly older than me): this, despite the fact that this novel was re-released and embraced by a third generation of gay men as recently as 1989. And I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it, laughing out loud on nearly every page - all the while asking myself why I didn't read this one sooner. Maybe then I could have appreciated and participated in some of the jokes and one-liners that were all the rage among my circle of friends back in the late 80s and early 90s. This is my punishment, I guess, for always feeling like I have to boycott the latest gay trend. On the bright side, reading LITTLE ME now has given me an opportunity to remember my old friends from that bitter-sweet period in gay history - many of whom are no longer with us. And finally, I can laugh along with them, even if only in spirit. For others out there like me who have not yet picked up a copy of LITTLE ME ... if you don't want to read it for yourself, read this one for your friends! And for the newest generation of gay/camp devotees, read this one together with YOUR circle of friends ... you'll be glad you did.

Belle Poitrine... literally the beautiful bust, but in reality the big bust. The biggest bust of all time.

Is it tongue in cheek? Did it happen?? Did it happen just that way?? Or has time, booze and a "happy outlook" altered the history of the most ridiculous success story ever told? I'll never tell, but intent historian that I am, I constantly read and reread this irreverant tale of trickery, chicanery and outright unapologetic greed. And I mean that in the best possible way!!!!

Humble beginnings, fortuitous marriage after marriage, brides in black and a crackjack whip smart brain that thank goodness was used for the good of mankind. Belle tells you girls how to spin assets into stocks, bonds and real estate. The Suze Orman of her time. It's a bit of The Women, a smidge of Auntie Mame, a heaping dose of Lorelei Lee without the heart of gold all undressed with pictures to chronicle the life and times of the greatest legend in her own mind. Lemonade without sugar!!!!

Keep it by your bed. It's my favorite bedtime story. Pull it out time after time and open it anywhere once you've read it through. The sheer ridiculousness of it all makes it one of the best reads as told by one of our best creators of giggles, belly laughs and overt hyucks and guffaws. Mame Dennis without proper restraint(s).

So Campy, so Fabulous, so hilarious. Could also be titled "memoirs of a woman who wanted to be a drag queen".
I had seen the stage play of the same name and laughed to the point of near incontinence. The book brings all of the memories back into the present state of mind. Thankyou so much for the pictures too.

This is an extremely thorough, even-handed and well-written bio. The author's approach is intelligent and his research and references are extensive.

One learns that Brooks began as an upper middle class wildchild from the plains who determined early to be a great dancer. She had talent and determination. But Fate along with timing made it possible for her to escape Kansas for New York City at the tender age of 15 (!) to train with a premiere dance company. She seems never to have gotten past being that wildchild and was, at 17, dismissed from the troupe for unacceptable behavior. Soon she was a dancer on Broadway, including a stint with the Ziegfeld Follies. Next stop, the movies!

Being admittedly "selfish and stubborn" as well as volatile, Brooks tore through New York, Paris, London, Hollywood, Berlin and back, living it up and burning bridges all around. By age 25 she was finished in terms of ever becoming a movie star or great dancer. She eventually disappeared into a gin bottle, was reduced to dance instruction, retail sales and finally "love for sale."

This is all fascinating enough, but her late-in-life resurrection as a rediscovered silent era "icon" (based mostly on films made in Europe in the late 20's) and as a newly minted writer is the surprising twist toward the end of an otherwise bleak life story.

Her work in Pabst's "Pandora's Box" ought to provide Brooks all the immortality any actress could desire. She is spectacular as Lulu and deserves every accolade. She was a beauty, but there were other beauties of her era who achieved greater stardom - Joan Crawford, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Jean Harlow. Her "black helmet" hairstyle was well suited to her looks, but it's more likely that Colleen Moore actually popularized the look, having been a superstar of the 20's (which Brooks wasn't)and the iconic "flapper." As for her skill as a writer (with reference to "Lulu in Hollywood"), I find Brooks interesting, insightful and even poetic, but there is an underlying note of bitterness that undermines any claim of objectivity. And, considering her decades of gin guzzling, I question her ability to be very accurate 40-50 years after the fact. For me, the mystique and power of Louise Brooks comes down to her performance in "Pandora's Box," her primary and glorious claim to fame.

Read "Louise Brooks" by Barry Paris and form your own conclusions. Don't miss "Pandora's Box." The Criterion Collection DVD boxed set includes Kenneth Tynan's 1979 profile, the TCM production, "Looking for Lulu," a 1970's interview with Brooks and other extras.

This book is an expansive overview of the life of Louise Brooks and also of the early days of the movie industry. Very throughly researched, it gives a nuanced look and the beautiful, brilliant and maddeningly self-destructive icon. It also is a wonderful history of the entertainment world in the 1920's and the personalities who populated that world. A must-read from fans of Louise Brooks.

Several books have been written about Louise Brooks, but this book is probably the most concise and most thorough of them all. The book starts off with Louise's birth and it describes all the people that helped to make Louise so interesting and famous. There are many black-and-white photos of Louise, from the time she started in show-biz (at age 4) to Louise in her later years, just before her death.

Since Louise Brooks had such a fascinating life, it is not a surprise that this book is so long. Each Chapter basically covers a chunk of her life, and each Chapter describes (in detail) the characters that encountered & shaped Louise, and also all the Theatre and Movie productions that Louise was involved in.

I have not yet read this entire book, but just glancing through it when it arrived I would find that I have just read twenty pages or so whenever I openned it up. I can't wait until I read it cover to cover.

This is what a biography should be: insightful, understanding, offering a measured & complex view of its beloved subject. And what a subject Barry Paris has in Louise Brooks! Her beauty, her intelligence, her compelling charisma all shine in these pages, giving us a multi-faceted view of this ravishing star. For someone who had never heard of Louise Brooks, this biography will send him or her in eager pursuit of her all-too-few films & her own writing -- and both are of the very highest standard.

It's clear that Brooks never did anything without wanting to give her all, to make true art out of it, a work of beauty & meaning that would stand the test of time. And the same could be said of this superb biography. While Paris clearly adores Brooks (and with good reason), he never succumbs to blind hagiography. Nor does he stumble in the opposite direction of pathography. His purpose is to explore the life of a fascinating woman, and to present it to the reader as thoroughly & lucidly as possible. He succeeds on every level. Louise Brooks emerges from these pages as both a flesh & blood woman, and as the dazzling, mysterious icon she became to countless admirers.

In short, the best book on Louise Brooks you'll ever find, most highly recommended!

This is the definite cluetrain (doc searls et al)for broadcasTV news. Much the same way cluetrain sparked a marketing revolution, this does the same for broadcast journalism.
I first meet the author when she was interning for Florida Today in Cocca Beach.
Every point she makes in this book is vaild. The take on "fox fair and balanced" tells me she won't be on the O'Reilly factor anytime soon.
I found only one sort of error. FYI> Matt Lauer does have a broadcast journalism background on the local level. He came out of the same environment that former NBC correspondent and current talk show host (WBUR Boston) Robin Young did, PM Magazine at WJAR TV 10 in Providence Rhode Island. That's the only small flaw I could find in the book.
The suits at CNN don't want you to read the book. They are not happy campers and with good reason. The hollywood suits trashed the network big time, and with than came the opening for Fox news to fill. Rick Kaplan is currently doing the same thing for MSNBC that he did for CNN take it down the pike.
It's a fast read but once you start you wont' want to stop.

Finally---an insider with enough intestinal fortitude to call a sham a sham!!! One can just imagine the 6 o'clock news being primmed, powdered and perfumed with just enough tear (or smile) to make it palatibly entertaining. Ms. Anderson, with her years of experience and credibility, still believes that the American citizenry is due the news, the whole news, and nothing but the news. Reserve the spin and "holy cows" for the baseball commentators! If the media execs remain stoically entrenched in the annals of the entertainment world, then let them be reminded of the old radio classic, Dragnet, where the byline was...."the facts, Ma'am, just the facts".

Bonnie Anderson's book has brought to the light of day what I have felt has been a problem with the media for some time. Many of the newscasts are more concerned with form, not substance; how they look and not what they say. Her book is a very good read and pulls no punches in pointing out the way many in the media are more concerned with entertainment than hard news coverage. Her description of this type of coverage as "Infotainment" is right on point.

News Flash brings to the reader another big problem influencing news coverage which is how mega mergers are affecting the coverage that is being presented to the viewing public. Unfortunately the impact is not good and these large conglomerates are proving the old adage "bigger is not always better" to be very true.

From her experience at CNN as a reporter, managing director of a news division and Vice President of Recruitment and Training, Anderson offers the reader a unique perspective as to what goes on inside a large news organization. She provides an in depth look at what takes place behind closed doors when it comes to hiring, firing and staffing in today's media corporations and much of what she reveals should be quite disturbing to the viewing public. This book provides some very interesting statistics about the media and its management which I am sure most of us were never aware of.

While Anderson points out numerous things that are wrong with today's TV media and its management, she also brings out the good that the true journalist can and should do. At the end of the book she offers her thoughts on what the media can do to provide the viewing public with quality news coverage. She should be commended for taking a stand and bringing to our attention the problems and proposing solutions to get TV journalism back to the quality we need and deserve.

In light of Anderson's criticism of the TV networks and cable news channels, it will be interesting to see if any of the media will afford her the same opportunity to present her views as they did when Bernard Goldberg published his book on bias in the media. If they do not, shame on the media, again.

News Flash appears as a rising meteor against a field of weakening stars. Ms. Anderson's book takes the reader through the shenanigans of the TV news broadcasters in their unadulterated striving for place and profits while leaving behind journalistic investigation and integrity. Her words turn out to be an exciting journey of personal experience and incisive exposure.
As a long time news journalist Ms. Anderson sets a fair bar for news organization to reach. Her experiences and reporting often show just how good news organization can function. The same intimacy exposes the petty, inexcusable machinations of networks in journalistic decline.
Ms. Anderson's news flashes exposes the perfidy of CNN's executive wing in its Tailwind scandal, the staging of news as presented by NBC's Dateline story on General Motors in 1992 and the apparent homophobia of Roger Mudd given his attitude toward AIDS victims. But indeed, Ms Anderson is not a muckraker. On the contrary, hers is to excite the industry to better, to reset the standard of TV journalism. She gives as examples her own series on drought and famine in Africa bringing a change in American policy on humanitarian aid, or of CNN's initiative in covering the return of twenty-four U.S. Navy spy plane crewmen held in China. While these could be considered scoops, her admiration for her industry is best held by her words on the, "spectacular breaking news coverage of the 9/11 attacks."
Ms. Anderson words border on the requirement for broadcast journalism to return to its traditional values and to assure the public a clear and unbiased presentation of the news. Ms. Anderson carries the fight to those in the industry already sullying news broadcasts as entertainment and who have diluted their own professionalism for money, position, or simply hubris.

From her insiders view of the whole industry, Bonnie
Anderson delivers a searing indictment of our corrupt,
sensationalistic television news. She lays out fact
by fact, and name by name, just how, why, and most
importantly who is to blame for this once esteemed
institution's downward slide into the very muck it
used to deplore. For years, Noam Chomsky's theories
about the corruption of the news media have grown less
alarmist and eerily more prescient as the
infotainment age reaches its belligerent maturity.
But while Chomsky was lecturing about it, Ms. Anderson
was out in the field living it. She recounts, with a
journalist's eye for detail, all that went astray
within our large media conglomerates. The cast of
characters are all to familiar, Browkaw, Jennings,
Schwarzenegger, Striesand, O.J., Clinton, Leo,
Lewinsky, and Lettermen, as Ms. Anderson makes a
compelling case for the media's distortion from a
revered source of accurate information to an
increasingly grotesque and obvious fountain of
entertainment. "If it bleeds it leads" is the mantra
of newsrooms of our day, and may truth and rational
perspective be damned. Everything of value is
jettisoned in light of shocking and sensational video
footage about any subject, no matter how irrelevant
and trivial. No one will hear about the latest civil war in
Africa when every second of news time is dedicated to
footage of a shark attack in Florida, human interest
stories, a surfing cat, or another excessive
Hollywood wedding.

I HAVE BEEN A BIG FAN OF OLTL FOR 25 YEARS. THIS BOOK IS EVERYTHING I COULD WANT IN COVERING MY FAVORITE SOAP OPERA. THE INTERVIEWS, PHOTOS, RESEARCH DONE MR. WARNER IS OUTSTANDING. IT BROUGHT BACK SOME GREAT MEMORIES FROM THE PAST 25 YEARS. ALL FANS OF ONE LIFE TO LIVE AND SOAPS SHOULD OWN THIS GREAT PIECE OF WORK. A WONDERFUL BOOK DEDICATED TO A WONDERFUL SHOW THAT FILLED MANY OF MY AFTERNOONS. A MUST READ.

I heard ABC WILL cancel ONE LIFE TO LIVE as of JULY 16. The press of daytime soap operas is not telling viewers and put the information about it in the Magazines. Write to ABC DAYTIME in New York please!

The other 2 reviews were right about ABC daytime canceling ONE LIFE TO LIVE in July 16,1999!,to make room for a new soap opera, PACIFIC CITY.Please right to ABC DAYTIME about this, they aren't going to tell the public 'til OLTL is cancelled. Don't let this happen, like what happened to NBC SOAP ANOTHER WORLD. Write to ABC DAYTIME about this, why?

This book has all that any fan of 'One Life To Live' would want. You can relive the storylines through all of the recaps. The book features listings of every character to ever appear on the show, along with many pictures of past and present greats from the show. It is definitely a nostalgic trip down memory lane.
The book did a wonderful job of cramming 30 years into something that is totally enjoyable. I really can't think of anything that was missed.

This book is a wonderful historical memoir of one of the most daring and well-written shows on daytime.

Not only does it chronicle the show's rich history, it includes wonderfully bright and vivid color photos of many of the most-loved actors/actresses/characters that have been on the show.

I highly recommend this book to all fans of OLTL!

One of my all time favorite films. The screenplay does a great job of highlighting what exactly made this film so great. For you writers out there, observe the subtle humor and motions toward emotion in the simplest of phrases. An instant classic, and great companion to the Criterion Collection DVD.

Happily, this is an original script/shooting script, not the final filmed version so there are plenty of scenes and lines included here that did not appear in the movie. After reading I have a new appreciation for the subtle, nearly flawless directing and acting in this amazing film. Buy it!

I dare use the word "quirky," because that usually means "esoteric and/or pedantic." But "Rushmore" manages to be quirky while still being entertaining and heartful. There is real emotional impact in this film, as sharp and hurtful as first love lost. Yet, it remains a brilliant comedy with enough "moments" to make repeated viewings worthwhile. The book only serves as a fond memory of the film, much as the soundtrack. See the movie first, then buy the book to cherish the experience again.

Rushmore, both the script and the movie, are instant classics. The buzz generated is still modest compared to the actual impact. Very fulfilling read. Sic transit gloria.

I identified with the characters in the movie. I know one person wrote an intelligent review saying that the movie seemed too surreal, but in my opinion, though I admit the situation had a surreal feel to it, the characters were extremely realistic. I loved Margaret Yang and the way she was so caught up in success that she lied for a project that was almost bought by NASA.

If you don't like anything else, you have to at least admit that Rushmore is one of the funniest things you have seen or read.

This is a good book to overview the special effects for making movies. It includes history and technics for almost everything but not details. However it is impossible to include details in a book so readers need to find out the details from other resources. Overall this is a good book for gaining knowledge in special effects.

I got the book for my boyfriend. He loved it.The book has a lot of interesting and useful information even if you are just a movie-lover, not a movie-maker

Special Effects is THE BEST book you could wish for on the subject. I have a shelf full of old, an mostly inaccurate books about special effects, but with this new book I could throw the rest away. Also, don't bother with magazines like Cinefex anymore, which are very dry and heavy going. this book is a pleasure to read and has interviews with everyone who is important in the business. There are hundreds of cool photos as well which makes it very good value. Anyone who works in special effects, or is just interested in the movies should read this book. Congratulations to the author Mr Rickitt who has condensed 100 years of movie magic into a single lavish book. Dont take my word for it - BUY IT!

Yes there is great history and education in here, but the mass of photographs tells a truly beautiful tale. The artists illustrated here are for the most part the true pioneers of creating magic on film. Going into a project with truly no proven technique must have been terrifying and adrenaline pumping. Our techniques have greatly improved but since the advent of fully cg fx, the pioneering aspect is minimal. It is very well written but I can't call it a page turner since I spent so much time staring at the pictures. Great for fans and professionals alike.

I'm a film studies tutor and reccommend this title to all of my students. Why has the publisher/author allowed it to go out of print? This is the best book ever written on special/visual effects and one of the best introductions to film making and film technology generally. PLEASE REPRINT THIS BOOK and ideally, make a softback edition at a price my kids can better afford. THANKS!

Based on the same-titled movie released in 2001, Mel Odom's novelization of the Angelina Jolie flick is top-notch, enveloping every quality that made the archaeologist one of the most popular icons of the video game franchise.
Lara Croft observes the first third of a complete planet alignment - an event that happens once every five thousand years - through the high-tech telescope at her home, Croft Manor. Little did she know, only hours later, she would become an integral part in protecting the alignment's omnipotent power from ill-intended hands.

Through her deceased father's gift of a planetary clock, she travels from one exotic location to another to locate the pieces of the power's medium, a triangle emblazoned with the All-Seeing Eye, the Masonic symbol of omniscience. But an internal desire to see her father again brings her motives to locate the triangle halves into question. If she finds the pieces, will she use the power it contains for herself? Or will she snatch the godly control away from her foes and bury its abilities for another five thousand years?

Odom's literary portrayal is accurate and engrossing, detailing the emotional impact of each event and discovery, someting that may be lacked in the film version. Rather than drooling over Angelina Jolie, Raider fans can envision the described settings and locales in the book with relative ease, with every exotic touch in place. There are only very slight changes in the book, such as Croft enemy (or perhaps not) Alex West's naked romp from the shower to the bedroom in response to mysteriously lurking shadows (provided by Croft, of course); that differs from the movie's ending locale of the dining room and its strategically placed dining table.

But the story proceeds with the same heart-pounding action and romantic passion that's found in the box-office seller. Though short, it makes the reader feel as though they are in Croft's military-booted shoes, even as much as the video games do.

- T.C. Robson

Long ago a meteor fell onto Earth with a magical, metallic form within it. Witnessing its power, it was forged into the (thought of) holy form of a triangle and a temple was formed to protect it. A city grew around the temple, The People of the Light were there. During an invasion, the nine planets aligned and the power of the Triangle was shown. Realizing no mortal should possess such power, the High Priest ordered it cut into two smaller triangles. One stayed at the temple. The other was hidden at the end of the Earth. However, the Craftsman who cut the Triangle in half secretly made a highly advanced device. It could serve as a guide to find the hidden piece, and preserve the Triangle's powers for future generations. It was a magic clock.

Lady Lara Croft was much like her father had been. Beginning with a clock he had hidden for her to find someday and tales he had told her as a child, she must set out to save the world. The Illuminati, a secret group of powerful people, were out to find the two triangle pieces before the planets aligned (which happened only once every 5,000 years). At her side was Mr. Hillary, her butler, and Bryce, her technician. Two tombs must be entered and survived or the world would belong to Manfred Powell.

***** I made that brief as possible, but left out much to do it. Even though the movie, as of now, has not been released, I can already tell that the book gives much more insight to Lara and the adventure in which she finds herself. However, many scenes have the potential to be much more vivid and exciting on the big screens! I found it to be a wonderful book! I plan to be in the theater, with a huge group of friends, on its first night out! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

This book is great. It is just like the movie, only with a little more dialouge. There are even parts before Lara's dad died telling how he tried to stop the evil. The deleted scenes only able to watch on the DVD are in this book, and I thought that was great! The action level seems a little less than the movie. The book seems to just speed by the action and to the point. I didn't really like that factor. If you liked the movie, read the novel, it is GREAT!

Very good in fact. It adds alot to the movie. More fleshed out characters and such. It's only 6 bucks, so what do you have to ose? Another plus is the 8 pages of pictures featuring the amazingly beautiful Angelina Jolie.

This book was just.. WOW!! It was way better then the movie, b/c the movie can only put a certain amount of scenes, but the book you get it all! i loved all the stuff between lara and alex, if you are a lara/alex fan this book is definatly for you!!

If you are in a group of hardcore U2 fans, and you say, "the U2 bible" or "the Pimm book", they will all know which book you mean. For collectors, bootleggers, and general fans, this is THE book. While Pimm has sadly passed away, well known U2 insider Caroline Von B. has taken over and kept this tradition alive. This is the U2 book that the U2 crew take on the road. Need I say more?

This is the ultimate compendium for the true U2 fan. Not only does it document every single show they've ever played but it gives a lot of background and behind the scenes info on the albums. When I found out this updated version of the book was coming out I got excited and now that I've received it I was not disappointed!

This is the updated version. The first book that came out covered U2 from their earliest stages up through to the beginnings of the Popmart tour. This one carries us through the Popmart tour right through to the end of the Elevation tour. Pretty much every U2 show ever played is covered to some extent, whether it's just with a setlist or a lengthy review. Each tour has a page or so dedicated to an overview and then each show is detailed to some extent. If you're just a fan of the band you'll get a kick out of many of the shows details (the pizza order/delivery from 1992 being fantastic). If you're a collector of shows this book is to U2 fans what Deadbase or those Tapers Compendium books are to Grateful Dead fans. It's either a lot of fun to read or a rich source of information. Just a blast.

On a side note most of the book is written by Pimm Jal de la Parra. I'm not sure if it says it anywhere but apparently he had passed away during the creation of this updated version. A few people had gotten together to finish it off for him. They most certainly did him proud.

Hands-down the best book for collectors, fans, completists and trivia buffs. Compiled from thousands of sources by devoted but objective fans, this book is a good read, reference book and very interesting look inside each tour. As a long time collector, I have always heard that if a setlist exists in this book, there is a recording of that show, somewhere in the world.

This book is hard to put down! Every U2 gig is detailed from setlists to attendance. Lots of photographs, some that have never been seen before. I love it!

Au unforgettable journey through the century written by one of the most open-minded and talented jazz journalist of our time! A MUST and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED READING!!!

The main reason I read this book is because I have become a Billie Holiday fan in the last 2 years and up till now not a true lover of jazz. This book caught my attention when I did a search for books on Billie. There was about 6 to 7 pages on her but I never imagined how long this book would be! Not a bad thing though. I know it took me a long time to read as it is SO detailed and thorough. It was truly an education for me and I have a much greater apprecation for jazz! Gary Giddens is an exceptional author and is obviously a veteran writer and really knows his stuff! A truly well written book. Highly recommended for lovers of jazz and those of us who are just beginning to have a love for it!

The source of Coltrane's 'Impressions' was (Morton) Gould's "Pavanne" and not Ravel's "Pavane Pour Une Infante Defunte" Giddins, however, confuses them on page 484. (After all, what's a pavane among friends?)

As someone who has spent a career reviewing documents and spreadsheets, I have a simple philosophy: if there is one error, I assume that there are others. This cost Gary a star.

Gary Giddins was only a name to me until Ken Burns's JAZZ series aired on PBS in early 2001. While I appreciated all the commentators in that remarkable series, it was the observations of Giddins that I began to eagerly anticipate night after night. He made me SEE music that I knew and loved but whose structure and complexity I had often been unable to grasp. Despite some jazz appreciation classes in college and haphazard collecting of old jazz records over the years, I had not gotten much past the "I know what I like" phase. His passion for music I was less familiar with led me on some rewarding treasure hunts.

I bought "Visions of Jazz" shortly after the conclusion of the Burns miniseries. I devoured it. I have turned to it time and again in the intervening years. Many critics overanalyze their subjects to the point where they suck the life out of the very thing they're attempting to illuminate. Giddins does not have that problem. His prose sings and swings with the elan of his beloved Sarah Vaughan.

Giddins's re-examination of the music of Ellington and Armstrong may seem at first blush to be superfluous; you may think you know all there is to know on that subject. But he proves that even the most accessible jazz figures and their music evolve from and operate within a such a complex idiom that periodic re-evaluation is necessary, and, if approached with respect for both the subject and the reader -- which Giddins has above all else -- it is most welcome indeed.

There are chapters in "Visions of Jazz" about musicians with whom I was completely unfamiliar. But I took a chance and read them, and wound up buying some Matthew Shipp recordings. It's that kind of book. You can take out as much as you put in.

As much as I appreciate Giddins's bone-deep love of jazz, his scholarship and wry humor, I also respect him for his fearlessness in making a case for, say, the inscrutable Cecil Taylor. But I am probably a big fan of someone who leaves Gary Giddins cold, and that's OK. The jazz tent is big enough for us all.

Why not 5 stars? The only "perfect" thing in jazz is Ellington's "Just a-Sittin' and a-Rockin."

To the previous reviewer: Mr Giddens was RIGHT. Coltrane's Impressions was based on BOTH pieces of music.

This is without question the only book that tells it like it was, all the stories, what really went on between the band members, and plenty of surprises that you never would have imagined. Written in part by Pete Townsend, Richard Barnes was with the band from the get go. This book clarifies fact from fiction, and we all know how much has been written about this band, this book is all fact, so no nonsense here, no made up Keith Moon stories. You get to know the Who for who they really were as four individuals, and you will be quite surprised to find out about the power struggles, for they were much more complicated than most people imagined. Read This Book!!!

Very comprehensive. Lots of photos, very good history. It did come out a while ago so doesn't have anything about Entwistle's death. But it's a great history of the Who!

The definitive book to have on The Who. Loaded & re-loaded with amazing photographs & anecdotes from a friend of the band who isn't afraid to point out the bad in addition to the good.

I bought this book on its original release back in the 1980's; the updated section to review the years 1983-96 is most welcome. Hopefully, Richard Barnes will release yet another edition that takes into account the years 1997 to the present.

If you're a Who junkie, this book is a must. If you're a new fan, this volume is a fantastic primer into the history of the greatest band there ever was.

This book is an excellent resource for all fans of the classic rock band, The Who. Telling the band's story from their earliest days, the reader will find plenty of detail, interviews, and wonderful photographs to enhance this "amazing journey". The author takes a relatively unbiased stance, leaving out personal opinion in favor of simply stating "the facts".

If you are a fan of The Who, this is certainly a book that deserves a place in your library.

This book is really a great overview of the WHO's career. Starting out when the band started to meet as teenagers and spannig all the way to a few years after Keith's death, this book covers every single recording the WHO did.

Aside from just following the WHO through their career, this book is also jam-packed with those crazy Keith Moon anecdotes and interesting picures.

I really enjoyed this book, and enjoyed seein what one of my favorite bands was really like. I would definately recommend it to anyone who loves the WHO.