Video Books

I gave my granddaughter who is an avid "Lucy fan" this book for Christmas and she loved it because it focused on Lucy's movie career.

This book is very well written and has wonderful pictures. The write up about Lucy gives even the biggest fans new insight into her life. It is a great way to find all the movies she was in.

To start off this is a great book and not being much of a reader myself I really love this one. It has great large pictures, hard to find pictures and the words are fairly large in this one also. Not being overly large like a kids reader but being the perfect size! But not only this, it has a lot of informative info aobut all of Lucy's movies that she has appeared in and also a despription of each movie. This is great because if you have never seen any of Lucille Ball's films you will get a thrill out of reading about all of the movies as well as jotting them down and looking online to buy them on DVD. This book has so much more also as well as the biography of Lucille Ball and a whole lot more! This is not a boring book but a nice fun book to read and to also make you want to read as well as some great info about the bright and talented star. The book itself is very large and very well made, as well as being thick. It looks like it costs about $50 it is so big and thick but I bought this through a book store in my local town for $29.99 which on the back of the book is the retail value so Amazon has a GREAT price!

"Lucy at the Movies" by Cindy De La Hoz is a coffee table sized visual treat displaying the varied movie career of America's beloved red headed comedienne. It spans Lucy's 5 decade career in movies. The text is easy to read and gives the full cast and credits of all her movies. It includes the synopis,notes and comments, and even the reviews of each movie. There are many pictures from her movies dispersed throughout the book. Also, to the delight of her many fans, there are numerous behind the scenes and other personal pictures of Lucy and her castmates.
This book is worth every penny and if you're a Lucy fan it belongs in your collection. Buy it. You'll treasure it always.

Great large and loaded coffee table book. The photos are gorgeous! Lucille Ball had a real long career. I am in awe of the volume of work Ball had already experienced before "I Love Lucy". She was no doubt a workaholic. From Chorus girl to extra to supporting role to leading lady!
My all time favorite lady of Hollywood did it all. The author of this affordable book, Cindy De La Hoz deserves an award for putting this mother load of Ball's cinema work. Good job!

Mr Fordin's a great writer with great taste in subject matter. I owned this one first in hardback as "The World of Entertainment". It's so fabulous I bought it again in paperback. One of the best researched and documented film books I know.

ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS!!!!!!

I love to know the behind-the-scenes of the days Gene Kelly made his magic at MGM, so Gene drew me to buying this book. Well, Mr Arthur Freed, if there could be more "bosses" like you today, the workplace would be a much happier place to be. Arthur and his "UNIT" or as I like to call them, "THE CREW" will have you laughing, maybe even crying and definitely astounded, amazed and so very happy that this man was the back bone and the money maker of this fabulous studio of the real movie days. His mind is one that could never be found again in any producer of today. They definitely cracked the mould when they made this man. So, I recommend that you buy this book, and even purchase the movie under the same title. Mr Hugh Fordin has done the most fantastic job on this book. You will feel like you are standing there in every scene that is described..

Hugh Fordin is an expert in his field. His detailed research is clearly evident throughout this work. His love of theater, film and particularly the Hollywood (make that MGM) Musical is revealed in the many interviews he conducted with people involved in every aspect of the productions he writes about.He shares small insights and many heretofore unknown facts about this disappeared genre of movie making. If this isn't a textbook at film schools, it should be. A superb work whose value increases over the years.

I was expecting this to be a straight biography of Arthur Freed with discussions on his films but instead I was pleasantly surprised to see that the entire book is a blow-by-blow account of how the films were made (which to a movie buff is pure heaven) and, as the author says, Freed's movies were his life anyway.

I think it says something that the title of this book is "M.G.M.'s Greatest Musicals", since the truly amazing thing is that one man was more or less responsible for all of them. Great behind-the-scenes stories.

The text of this book is very interesting. It's more of a nuts and bolts of how the movies were put together than a critque of the movies themselves.

However, beware if you are replacing an older edition of this book. This edition is inferior to one that I had years ago. The pictures in this version look like they were photocopied from an earlier version of the book. Many are grainy and washed out. Also, a number of the pictures at the tops of pages are cropped so that tops of some of the heads are cut off. I know this wasn't how earlier versions of this book looked. Although a minor point, in the back of previous editions there was a list of much money each film cost, as well as the domestic and foreign grosses of each film. I found this interesting, and I was sorry to see it missing.

This book is awesome!!(although im biased, my uncle wrote it..

This book totally kicks butt dudes !!!!! Specially if you are a true Ghostbusters fan or should I say Ghosthead !!!!!!!!! It has like a hundred pictures in it !!!!! I recommend this book to all Ghostbusters fans around the WORLD !!!!!!!!!

wo

Imagine yourself back in New York in 1983. It's about 5:30 in the morning. You're a regular pedestrian walking down the street near the New York Public Library. A large crowd of people are gathered there. Equipment such as cameras, lights, and microphones are everywhere. Soon you find yourself standing next to Bill Murray.

You ask, "What's this production?"

Bill says, "Production? This is a madhouse! These cameras are just getting in the way!"

You step back and see odd statues and robots crafted into obscene and terrifying figures. Suddenly, a voice shouts, "Action!" and you're pushed aside while Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd walk into the magnificent library with a huge camera dolly following them.

Finally, you spot a small card table packed with coffee, donuts, and Styrofoam cups. Tired and thirsty, you pour yourself some hot coffee from an electric pot hooked up to a small generator. As soon as you touch the pot, a kid jumps from behind the shadows and screams, "Don't move!"

"I just want a sip of coffee!"

"This is Dan Aykroyd's coffee table. Only he gets anything on it, ya' hear? I'm his assistant!"

"You've got to be kidding!"

The kid whips his arm from the shadow of a tall streetlight and points with a shaking hand, "And that table is Bill Murray's!"

Not willing to argue with this crazed assistant, you begin to walk away from the mass of moviemaking paraphernalia and out of the area. Before leaving, you spot a short, nerdy man sitting at a small card table by some sound equipment. The table is filled with art supplies, and the man works on carefully molding a green goblin the shape of a spud. "I've got to get out of here," you think to yourself as you skip over a roadblock and scuffle back into the reality of non-fiction.

In 1984, the next summer, not knowing what to do with your friends, you go to a movie called GHOSTBUSTERS, for it's been getting a lot of hype in the media and you want to see what the fuss is about. As the first scene comes into focus, you let out an involuntary shout of amazement. That was the New York Public Library! Soon enough, the pieces fall into place. You had witnessed the partial filming of one of the greatest comedy films in history!

After the movie, as you walk into a bookstore to kill time before a party, there in front of you is a large book entitled, "Making Ghostbusters: The Screenplay." Ecstatic, you pass up cab fare to attend your party and buy this magnificent book, pouring over it until dawn. You realize that you're a Ghostbuster fan for life. The book is a possession you cherish, for it's like a souvenir of time you spent unknowingly with some of the greatest moviemakers in film history, not including that overprotective assistant.

The movie GHOSTBUSTERS means a lot to many people. One way to sum up their incredible fondness of the movie is "pure cinema magic." Most first impressions of the movie quantify its resounding quality: the wizardry of the special effects, the amazing cast, and the taught, well-written script. And it's largely a comedy! How many comedies have accumulated such a fan base? It's almost unheard of! How many comedies are enjoyed as thoroughly and extensively fifteen years after their original release? Almost none, I'd bet.

Here, in Making Ghostbusters: The Screenplay, the behind-the-scenes secrets and the complete shooting script are here, but the book is more than that. It's a complete sentimental scrapbook that materializes the movie's greatness and encapsulates its craftsmanship and artistry like a time capsule of moviemaking blood, sweat, tears, and creativity.

What this classic volume needs badly is a reprint, but for now, Amazon.com is probably your only hope. With the magnificent re-release of the movie on DVD, this book in its entirety would be a wonderful companion. So let's get this message out; let this be the manifesto! Hear that? Get those printing presses cranking, and bring back the magic!

Making Ghostbusters contains hundreds of exclusive concept sketches (many by legendary horror artist Bernie Wrightson), details of which scenes were deleted and why, color photos (though not nearly enough), and more. The book is built around an annotated script, with enlightening comments from Harold Ramis, Ivan Reitman, and others from the creative team. Few hit movies have had their creative process so wonderfully documented from genesis to box office--for Ghostheads, it's a must-have.

I have been saying this for a few months: "Memento" is my favorite movie. As soon as I found out that you could buy the screenplay for the movie, I knew that I had to have it. Normally, I wouldn't care to see the screenplay for many movies, but this was a very big exception. I loved the movie so much that I wanted to see how it looked on paper.

A little warning: The script is NOT word for word to the movie. Some parts are different in many ways. The order of events are a little different and a lot of good lines that were in the movie were not included in the screenplay. Is this a bad thing? OF COURSE NOT! In fact, it was a great surprise. This was what the movie was going to eventually lead up to looking like. It was a rough layout of what could happen in what order. Of course, things change when you're filming the movie. Certain scenes are changed or cut out, lines are either trimmed or dramatically changed, and so on. The story in no way is changed and the resolution is still very much the same as the movie. The point is that it's fascinating to see how the script developed into the finished product, which is a masterpiece of a film that should go down as one of the greatest films in history. I loved reading the screenplay, and it makes me admire how the film turned out in the end even more.

Another movie that is included in this wonderful book, a movie you might have never even heard of, is "Following." This script was a little more similar to the movie in most parts than "Memento" was. I also enjoyed reading that part of the book. I have seen the movie before hand, so I kind of knew what I was in for. Again, this screenplay is filled with sharp and witty dialogue and life-shattering consequences that won't appear visible until the shocking conclusion.

Another cool feature of this book is that it includes an interview with Christopher Nolan and one of the stars from "Following." It also includes some photos from both movies and how the idea for "Memento" came about.

Christopher Nolan has a talent when it comes to forcing characters to face severe consequences and ugly truths, as well as coming up with great dialogue that can only be created by a pro. He can also manipulate time and make it confusing for us as well as for his characters. If you have seen the movie or movies, get this book as soon as you can. I recommend that you see them first, then read the book. All in all, this was a terrific read and I look forward into reading it again and again.

I haven't read the "Following" half of this two-screenplays-in-one book yet--that'll have to wait until I manage to find the movie itself--but it's well worth the price just for the "Memento" half, assuming you're a fan of said movie. The slight differences between this screenplay and the finished movie provide one with both a clearer understanding of Nolan's intentions, and an appreciation of what fortuitous circumstances had to come together to result in such a perfect end-product: this brilliant screenplay (which I can sit and read and imagine being performed by utterly unsuitable actors, dream who'd have been the most ill-chosen director), ideal actors and director, fantastically fitting sets and cinematography, music, and so on.

I picked up this book after seeing Memento and while waiting for it to be released on DVD. All I can say is that I enjoyed it just as much as watching the movie. Don't skip over Following to get to it though. It is just as engaging as Memento and you can catch a preview of it on the Memento DVD. Also, don't let the fact that these are screenplays deter you from making this purchase. If you are a true Christopher Nolan fan, this is the book for you.

I thought MEMENTO was good, not great, and pretty much forgot about it right after seeing it. Someone bought me this book a while back and I just got around to reading it.

I have to say, I have a new found respect for Christopher Nolan and will another look at MEMENTO. These are two excellent screenplays that go well beyond experimentation in narrative structure to tell two solid (almost old-school film noir) stories.

I'll start with FOLLOWING, which I've never seen. It's a twisty little number about a would-be writer who likes to follow people. The writer makes the mistake of following a cat burglar one day and gets sucked into his world. The timeline is fractured, but it's a compelling read all the way through, and a great example of no-fat, pure-story screenwriting.

MEMENTO, for anyone who doesn't know, is a story told backwards to mimic the disability of the central protagonist, who is incapable of making new memories. It's a mystery told in reverse, not unlike the structure of OEDIPUS REX (think about it) albeit without patricide or incest. Ultimately what I got out of it by reading it not seeing it is the fun of trying to figure out the story, of using clues to work backwards to causes. Without the extraneous visual information of a film, the naked story on the page seemed to accumulate greater dramatic force. Since it was a while since I saw the movie, I found myself wondering what was going to happen next (i.e. before) -- it was the gripping mystery experience many people had who first acclaimed the film.

Even though the stories aren't told in a linear fashion, for aspiring writers this book is worth looking at for more than structure. This is quality writing. The stories are lean and full of metaphysical implications (in the least pretentious sense). Good stories, well told.

The book also includes an interesting interview about the making of FOLLOWING and a less interesting "piece" about MEMENTO's conception, which is just two juxtaposed paragraphs of Chris and his brother Jonah's conflicting memories (get it?). They are icing on the cake of what has to be one of my favorite recent Faber screenplay releases. 5/5 stars

In a conversation with a friend of mine a while back, he told me he didn't understand why people liked "Memento" so much, he said all the film had was a "gimmick."

To which I replied, "it may be a gimmick, but YOU try writing a script with a gimmick like that."

The "gimmick" is the non-linear progression of the story that Christopher Nolan uses in both of the scripts in this book, "Memento" and "Following." It's an experimental style of storytelling, to be certain, but it's a successful experiment. Both scripts, "Memento" in particular, show events not in the order they happen, but in the order of importance, and it's a brilliant way to tell the story. Nolan's a magnificent screenwriter -- can't wait for his next one.

To begin with, several adjectives to describe this wonderful book: 1.) candid, 2.) inspiring, 3.) poetic, 4.) instructional, 5.) spiritual, 6.) humanitarian, 7.) humorous, 8.) compassionate, 9.) courageous. From what I gather, it took Capra approximately three years to write this book, and what book it is. To be honest, this book is perhaps one of the best pieces of work we might ever have about the legendary director, the course of the twentieth century, and the people who have helped shape the film industry. This book demystifies the often deified directors, actors, moguls that ruled Hollywood during the golden age, reminding us of the universal bonds of humanity that link us all to each other. In many ways, it reads like a Frank Capra movie -- life-affirming to the end. For the younger generation (X'ers and Y'ers) who might question the values of their fathers' generation, this book is a must read. Underline this fact several times because when Capra takes you into his fold and shares his world, it is an experience you won't likely forget. Most history books seem to be written with a detached sense of objectivity from an supposedly impartial historian. The results of such labor is often an uninspiring book that keeps the reader at arm's length from the fascinating history, often boring the reader to no end. No so with Capra's autobiography. Capra reminds the reader that people are still simply people, no matter what generation, no matter which occupation. There are always going to be saints, martyrs, bullies, intellectuals, clowns, idiots in every walk of life. Such an example can be seen when Capra served in World War II and was privy to a touching moment with the great Admiral Nimitz. The old war hero had just come back from seeing three thousand men he had sent off to war -- some of them now without limbs, others without faces, yet all of them saluting him and thanking him from the bottom of their hearts. Nimitz broke down and wept, his shoulders so burdened by the sadness of his men's suffering. Hitting his desk over and over again the Admiral cursed the war with ever fiber in his being. After a brief moment to recompose himself Nimitz thanked Capra for being in the same room... allowing one tortured soul to connect and draw strength from another. Personally, it is easy to find yourself laughing when he laughs and crying when he cries. Like all classic works of literature, this book is so fresh in content, that it inspires the reader to look into his/her own heart and find the beating pulse of humanity and to take pride in the fact that one such as Capra was able to do so much through his films. I look forward to reading this book again and again. And perhaps, others will agree and do likewise.

Frank Capra's superb autobiography provides loads of fascinating information about the film industry during a thriving period, when he was one of filmdom's most popular and successful figures, as well as about the mindset of this intriguing man of accomplishment. What is refreshing, along with his basic candor, is that despite his enormous success he retains a humble and highly humane touch.

Some of the most humorous anecdotes of "Name Above the Title" involve madcap, always colorful Columbia boss Harry Cohn, who took his Gower Street studio from the ranks of "Poverty Row" to the that of a giant. Capra helped significantly with box office smashes such as "It Happened One Night", "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington","Lost Horizon" and "Meet John Doe." It took awhile, but the Capra film which has soared to top spot in the hearts and minds of the public was the 1946 release starring Jimmy Stewart, "It's a Wonderful Life." The star was so enthused about the story that he pitched it personally to Capra after driving over to his house. Capra relates the time that he begged Cohn not to drop a struggling young cartoonist from the Columbia payroll, predicting that he would be sorry. Capra was right as the cartoonist was a young, meek Iowa farm boy named Walt Disney.

One of Capra's great contributions was directing and producing the excellent World War Two documentary series "Why We Fight." He tells about being called into the office of Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, who asked him to undertake the project. "But I've never done a documentary!" a surprised Capra replied. Marshall pointed out that he had never run an army before either, and that the American way during the critical war period was for citizens to learn jobs with which they were previously unfamiliar. Capra saw Marshall's logic and the rest is history.

This autobiography is fascinating enough for the interesting information about Capra's life. What makes it even better is that you are reading the revelations of a good man who did his best to instill positive values into his films, and to help in his distinctive way to make America a better country.

I have read many, many books on Hollywood and auto/biographies in general and this book ranks as one of the best ever. It is a very entertaining book that doubles as a great history of Hollywood through its golden age. Capra interacted with Hollywood's legends and reports in a funny, candid and emotional way his dealings with the likes of Harry Cohn, Sinatra, Disney, Monroe and many more stars of the thirties and forties. Do not think the book is dated: yes, some of the names are meaningless to us today but the perspetive and lessons contained in every single page are timeless. this book tells you better than any others how movies are made or should be made...

I cannot figure out which is more amazing and inspiring: the man, his films, his life or his autobiography.
Every autobiography will pale in comparison after you read this one. Frank's book should come with a
warning that he will open your mind, transform your relationship with films, and ultimatley find a place of permanent endearing love in your heart! Friends don't let friends go into the Light, without reading this book,
as I am sure, it is required reading in Heaven!

Frank's biggest fan, Vaishali, author of "You Are What You Love."

From the opening chapter which describes the incredible saga of how this man (as a young child) and his poor Sicilian family managed to come to America, to the end of his inspiring life and his brilliant career when he suffered cluster headaches so severe he could barely function, but kept his head up, this book captivated me. Capra exemplifies the American Dream, where a poor immigrant can become anything he sets his mind to be. Especially significant is his pure and honest soul. This book is SO inspiring.

This is an incredible book, approaching Nixon's life through the movies he was known to have seen and liked. The result is an overlapping portrait that is both unexpected and insightful--in one chapter he's being likened to Walter Neff from Double Indemnity; in the next he's seen wishing desperately (yet a touch ambivalently) to be John Wayne. I'm entranced--something I never thought I'd say about anything related to Nixon.

There should be equal time for a book about JFK and the movies. JFK appears everywhere in the American cinema, from THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE to PT-109 to THE GREEK TYCOON, not to mention his own real life romances with movie stars like Gene Tierney. His father made a pass at becoming a tycoon during his own affair with silent star Gloria Swanson. It might be, however, as Feeney suggests, that Nixon is a more natural film subject, if only because the shadows are darker when it comes to Nixon, and the contrasts between the light of California and the darkness of Watergate and Cambodia is more shocking.

We knew that Nixon watched a lot of movies while he was President, but it's startling indeed to see him attending several movies a week even when he was "in between jobs." Feeney shows how Nixon and American film grew up at the same time, even though he may be stretching a point to cite De Mille's SQUAW MAN (1913) as the first American full length film, that's simply wrong. You might as well call John Waters' SERIAL MOM the last American movie, since bizarrely enough that was the number one movie at the box office the day Nixon died (April 22, 1994).

I liked Feeney's writing throughout, and the parallels he makes between Nixon's character, and the character of several American film heroes (like the part Jack Lemmon plays in THE APARTMENT) is always clever and rings surprisingly true. There is something, perhaps, about identifying oneself as a member of the moviegoing audience, as Nixon did, that makes you a little more --what, passive? -- than other US politicians.

Mark Feeney's book provides a more intelligent examination of Richard Nixon, the movies and the twentieth century than anyone writing. That he blends them all together in a seamless narrative is just amazing. He is fair minded and, rare for an intellectual, brimming with common sense.

That doesn't mean that I agree with his analysis of Nixon. In particular, there are three substantive events of the Nixon era on which it is easy to disagree with Feeney:
1. Cambodia: Feeney seems to buy the line that Nixon brought about the fall of Cambodia. He should have read less Anthony Summers and more Lewis Sorley. No respectable historian believes Summers, William Shawcross and their ilk anymore. Sorley (no friend of Nixon) shows just how nearly we came to winning. A quick glance at the map should show anyone that once South Vietnam fell, so would Cambodia. Blaming Nixon is just the way the left avoids its responsibility for genocide.
2. Yom Kippur: Feeney treats Nixon's rescue of Israel in a couple of subordinate clauses, but this was one of the great moments of his Presidency and it was Nixon's personal peculiarities that brought it about. The military tried to block him, his advisors were unenthusiastic ("Get off your fat ass and get those planes in the air, Henry," Nixon is quoted as saying) and the left accused Nixon of organizing a coup d'etat. Only Nixon made it happen and saved Israel in the process.
3. Civil Rights: there have only been 5 US Presidents who furthered civil rights (Grant, Harding, Truman, LBJ and Nixon). Interestingly, they all left office at the bottom of the list of Presidential reputations and they all have revisionist cheerleaders, although only Truman has been pulled out of the gutter so far (Grant will be next). Nixon's signal acheivement was to pursue a liberal civil rights program (integrating the schools in the South, affirmative action, etc.) while winning white southerners to the Republicans. This depoliticized civil rights to such an extent that today the most conservative institution in America - the military - is also the least racist.

There is far too much emphasis generally on Nixon's anger and poverty creating the "Nixon Era" of break-ins and wiretaps (Feeney does a better job than most). The "Nixon Era" began in 1931 when Herbert Hoover used Naval Intelligence to break into the office of an unfriendly biographer (see Conflict of Duty by Dorwert). FDR, JFK and LBJ expanded the "Nixon Era" until, about the time Bill Moyers, then LBJ's aide, ordered the FBI to dig up dirt on Republican homosexuals for blackmail purposes, the FBI decided to go freelance, setting up COINTELPRO and assorted other programs without outside knowledge (possibly even without J. Edgar's knowledge). Ironically, it was Nixon's efforts to make the FBI more responsive to elected officials that turned Mark Felt into Deep Throat and brought Nixon down.

Nixon ended the Nixon Era by being so uncharismatic. Just as OJ, Robert Blake and Michael Jackson could get away with their crimes because of their celebrity, FDR and JFK could, too. The growth of government has not been ended but the growth of its shadier bits is firmly under control thanks to Nixon, because when he fell, so did a lot of average people. The rules changed for public servants. "Just following orders" no longer got you a gig on public television the way it did Bill Moyers (just compare the good Charles Colson has done for society with what Moyers, a premature angry old man has failed to do). Bill Clinton's sale of technological secrets to China for private gain was made known by the Director of the FBI, because he knew that if he stonewalled, he would be punished.

And Nixon's contempt for the Ivy League was far healthier than LBJ's awe of them. LBJ had big doubts about Vietnam but yielded to the "Harvards" in his administration who ran the war into the ground. Nixon's contempt for their intellect kept them in line ("Get off your fat ass, Henry"). Nixon may have been angry at Kissinger's attempt to steal credit for his own ideas, but he must have gained a certain satisfaction out of it, too. What better way to prove your superiority than to have a Harvard professor cheat by copying from your exam?

Today, it is obvious that Nixon really won. Richard Ben-Veniste, the golden boy of Watergate, was last seen engineering a crude and sordid coverup of a scandal in which, unlike Watergate, Americans did die, thousands of them. The media now is rated by the public [another irony!] on a par with used car salesmen. Dan Rather, the newsreader who delighted in tormenting Nixon, was forced to resign, proving himself to be both unethical and stupid to boot. And for the first time since 1930, conservatives control all three branches of the government.

It is that last point with which Nixon would not take so much satisfaction. Nixon was the most leftist President we ever had, the "last liberal," Garry Wills called him. "I gave them a sword," Nixon told David Frost. But he didn't give it to the Democrats; he gave it to the right wing of his own party. It was Barry Goldwater and Howard Baker who told Nixon that he had to resign because the rightwing wouldn't stand by him. The right took Nixon's sword and gave us the modern world of Reagan and Bush2 by thrusting it into the belly of liberal Republicanism.

Bill Clinton was a bigger crook than Nixon (beginning with Hillary's shortsales of pharmaceutical stocks as a newly appointed health care czar and ending with a wholesale auction of pardons to any gangster with enough Benjamins). He was also as rightwing as Nixon was leftwing, with his main accomplishment being the shutting down of the SEC, turning Wall Street over to crooks who cost the economy a larger share of the national wealth than was lost in the Great Depression. Clinton gave the leftwing of his party a sword too, but the left, fools that they are, committed hari kiri with it.

Feeney may disagree with the above, but his splendid book shows how we got here nonetheless.

Did Nixon miss his calling? Should he have been a Hollywood film reviewer? Nixon was born near Hollywood, where characters were reshaped and manufactured, in 1913, the same year that Hollywood produced its first film, Cecil B. DeMille's "The Squaw Man." In a time before DVD's and VHS/Betamax (when "R" rating meant Regular, not Restricted (hehe)), he watched 538 films during his 67 months in the Presidency (not counting his Vice Presidency under Eisenhower); he was screening about two 35mm films per week, sitting in a darkened room. But aside telling us that Nixon viewed PATTON three times during the VietNam War and Cambodian incursion (both Patton and Nixon suffered the indignities of serving under Eisenhower), or that he loved the works of John FOrd, and in his last White House years, more classic films were selected for him, the author creates a fascinating portrayal of Nixon and a cultural history of America's hopes and dreams and myths and realities, specifically through the metaphors of some of the following films: THE CONVERSATION (1974, Gene Hackman is filled with guilt and secrets, hidden away); PATTON (1970, war, leadership, and Eisenhower); MISTER ROBERTS (1955, the banality of being an administrator); DARK VICTORY (1939, Reagan plays a playboy as Bette David is dying and George Brent is trying to sure her, contrasting Nixon's ambitions to those of a playboy); and DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944, growing up in Southern California)

I absolutely loved this book! Every chapter is full of insights into Nixon and the movies. Mark Feeney takes five movies Nixon is known to have enjoyed, and wrings out all kinds of fascinating connections between the story line and Nixon's own personality. Not only politics, but culture and sex and money and ambition and pain -- this book teaches amazing lessons on everything that shaped Nixon. Don't miss the sections on Elvis and Nixon as twin icons of un-cool!

My only complaint is that Feeney never brings Humphrey Bogart into the mix. The amazing and authentic "movie diary" at the end of the book makes it clear that Nixon screened both THE CAINE MUTINY and THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE while in the White House. Why didn't Mark Feeney jump on the SCREAMINGLY obvious ties between Nixon and Bogey?

Look at Humphrey Bogart's face -- the mean, kicked around face of Richard Nixon. Look at the unshaved beard, the shifty, beady little eyes. Look at how every man Bogart ever played was a cold, paranoid loner at heart, often with a homicidal streak. It's much easier for me to see Nixon as the vicious small time prospector Fred C. Dobbs (in TREASURE) or as the frightened, incompetent naval officer Philip Queeg (in CAINE) than as the smooth, sexually confident insurance salesman played by Fred MacMurray in DOUBLE INDEMNITY.

Note how Fred C. Dobbs is convinced everyone is after him. Note how he's capable of holding on to sanity -- just barely -- until he finally strikes it rich. The fact of finally having gold is what makes him lose his fragile grip on reality -- just the way Nixon survived years of political exile but cracked up the moment all his dreams were within his grasp. By turning on his buddies in bandit country, Dobbs ensures his own downfall systematically. He commits all the most horrifying acts of betrayal, but in his tortured mind it's always a matter of self-preservation. ("No, not murder, partner, not murder, your mistake! I'm saving my life that you'd be taking from me!")Sound familiar?

And how could Feeney have skipped writing a chapter on Bogart's role as Commander Philip Queeg in THE CAINE MUTINY? Nixon is so obviously Queeg it's like the movie was an eerie prophecy. Queeg is a weak, shifty eyed nervous wreck pathetically masquerading as a heroic military commander. Queeg knows he's not the John Wayne type. And he knows his officers know it. He constantly feels menaced by "disloyal officers" and insists "from the first they were all against me." Queeg routinely lies and cheats in order to avoid taking responsibility for his own ineptness as a commander. ("Take the towline . . . defective equipment . . . nothing more!")Queeg longs to rouse and inspire with his speeches, but his attempts at frank man to man talk are pathetically hollow. ("I kid you not.")THE CAINE MUTINY is the best movie ever made about Watergate.

Humphrey Bogart would have been the most logical choice to play Nixon in a major motion picture. He understood Nixon and acted out his tragedy back when Nixon himself was just a young congressman from California. How did the brilliant Mark Feeney miss the Bogart connection?

Bought this as a present for my husband though i had a look in it and it covers a-z of Sci-Fi flicks. Would recommend to any fan.

This is an outstanding book. Great reference and all that implies. I like Science Fiction and this book is indispensable. Seems to be little known but it is an outstanding reference work.

This really has to be recognised as a monumental reference work. The sheer breadth of material found and reviewed by Hardy is extraordinary. I will be using this book for years to come.

I've had this excellent book for several years, and I still go back to it at least once a month to look something up. There is simply no more complete reference guide to science fiction films available. Think you know science fiction cinema? Prepare to be humbled by the sheer volume of this book. I especially appreciate the reviews of the early, silent films, many of which we will probably never get to see.

Some of the reviews are better thought-out than others. And you may occasionally marvel at how a film you were sure was an all-time classic only gets a mediocre review. But these are minor quibbles for an otherwise excellent volume.

If you're a fan of sci-fi films, you absolutely MUST own this book. Yes, it's pricey, but it also might be the last film reference book you will ever need.

You can spend hours browsing trough this encyclopedia. Of course you will recognize many of the classic. Yet you may be surprised at the multitude of great films that you missed. There are better descriptions and stills than you find in most of the genre magazines.

Contents:

THE EARLY YEARS: Innocent Beginnings (1895-1919)
THE TWENTIES: Dark Visions and Brash Adventure
THE THIRTIES: Mad Scientists and Comic Book Heroes
THE FORTIES: Science Fiction Eclipsed

THE FIFTIES: Science Fiction Reborn
THE SISTIES: Science Fiction Respectable
THE SEVENTIES: Big Budgets and Big Bucks
THE EIGHTIES: Science Fiction Triumphant

I am not going to bore you with the list of my favorites but I challenge you not to fine one of yours.

This book was extremely informative and answers most of the questions you would have about the gaming industry. I'm hoping for a second edition! Definitely purchase this book if you are considering a career in this field.

I bought this for my bf because he was thinking of a video game career, he hasn't done anything with this field yet, but he said the book was good

Are you considering going into the video games industry, but you want to find out more about it before making the decision to make the jump? This book will give you an honest and insightful look at just about every facet of this competitive industry.

Whether your serious or curious about the games industry, you'll enjoy this entertaining read. I wholeheartedly recommend it!

This book gave me more insight about what the Gaming work world is like than all the other research I did my whole life.

This is an essential read for anyone who wants to design electronic games!

As a graduate advisor for gaming students at Westwood College Online, I can not stress enough how important and worthwhile this book is. I recommend this book to every student that I work with because it is full of numerous "wake-up calls" and good ideas for breaking into the industry. Check this book out, it will greatly help you in your career search.

It's hard to find information on Pier Angeli so this book written by Jane Allen is a perfect source. I originally bought this book because I am a huge fan of James Dean and she is mentioned in so many of his biographies. After reading the chapter on him, I felt compelled to find out about what happened to her later on after his death. And it was not happy. I see Anna Maria Pierangeli as a young woman looking for love in all the wrong places and in the wrong people, hoping to recreate the security and comfort she had with her father who had died just as she reached stardom.

She was a misunderstood young woman who wasn't prepared for how big she was getting in the movie industry and who was too trusting, though this was not her fault but mainly part of her nature. She was a kind person who had a good heart and had the best intentions for those she cared about, especially her sons. But too many heartbreaks (the end of her relationship with James Dean, his death), failed marriages to Vic Damone and Armando Travajoli, the physical and mental abuse she endured from lovers she hoped to find companionship with, hoping that it would lead to some sort of happiness in the end.

All of this took over her life, thereby making her believe that she could not find the happiness she longed to have. This biography is very intimate and shows the readers a side of her that she desperately tried to hide away for fear of rejection, rejection that she frequently experienced. A lot is provided about her personal life, the betrayals, the never-ending events of unhappiness, disappointment, etc. It seems that life never really treated her fairly and during the times when it seemed that all was well, they were simply too good to be true and always came to a miserable end. I felt sympathy for her because of what she had to go through, an independent life which she desperately wanted when she was dating James Dean and when she got it, she found that she couldn't harness it herself, especially after James had died. All that she went through led to her untimely death, which was NOT suicide, apart from what fans and/or other biographers claim.

It hurts me to think of all her pain and misery, thinking that Jimmy Dean would have been heartbroken if he was watching over her after his death. It's true, she was a loving person even though at times she turned to alcohol and pills to relieve her of her pain, even if it was only temporary. She believed she could depend only on love to get her through, part of her idealistic life. But in the end, she could not have this. As true to the title of her biography, she did have a fragile life. I could not put the book down and page by page, I felt that I could relate to her, her emotions, her views, and her reasons for her actions which weren't in her best interest, though through no fault of her own but simply her misguidance by those who controlled her and her weakness to stand up for what she wanted, to be a non-conformist (an influence that Jimmy Dean had tried to help her to demonstrate).

After reading that Pier considered Jimmy to be her one true love, you start to think about what could have been between them had fate not intervened, leading up to his unexpected and sudden death. Pier went through many hardships, many that she should not have had to endure. Whether you are a James Dean fan or not, this book is a must-read, you won't be disappointed.

Jane Allen, lets us all know the truth about how much Pier Angeli and James Dean really loved each other. The questionable paternity of one of her children. The shocking papers that were found in James Dean's Porche after his death. The eyewitnesses who saw the lengths each one had gone to to see each other. There has to be a movie made about this relationship that gets deeper into their rocky romance not just their intimate moments in Malibu at the beach house but their long talks. They had so many interests in common not just a loss of a parent which is what everyone who has seen the other television movies about James Dean have found out. Their love for each other was emphatic in every way. I know that they were reunited when she left this world, accidentally, as Jane Allen points out, on September 9th, 1971. This is a great book.

The only thing I have to negatively comment about is Jane Allen's belief that Pier wanted to be envied. Pier wanted to be adored by her fans. She always wanted praise but not envy.

this was a wonderful read, and beautiful written story of the life of the equally beautiful yet flawed pier angeli, i think the title was a bit misleading because i don't think pier was as fragile as the world thought she was, in the book i saw a woman who just didn't really have her piorites right and made bad decisions.the only thing i critize about the book is the book format, it's written as though you are reading a newspaper with very small print.

And I don't say that lightly. This is an incredible book for several reasons.

Information, especially good detailed information on Pier Angeli is quite hard to find and here is a whole book in English, just about Pier.
The book is well researched and is written in a warm , respectful tone towards its subject.
You don't always see that in a biography.
I also enjoyed the format and layout of the book. I thought it was done beautifully.It also had some photos of Pier I'd never seen before.

Most of all I was just grateful for an opportunity to find out more about Pier . And I was happy to see her story sympathetically told.Her story should be much more well known and she is sadly underrated as an actress.
I first heard of Pier because I am a huge fan of James Dean.
But I have became a fan of Pier in her own right.The book touched me deeply. I did not know that Pier had experienced so much unfairness and agony in her life, especially in her final years. I knew she had experienced some rough times throughout her life, but I did not half the things she had been through.I think Jimmy would be saddened to know all the pain that his "Annarella" has suffered.
Pier was a sensitive , fragile, unique woman and I relate to certain aspects of her character such as her oversensitivity and the part of her that never wanted to fully grow up and let go of the innocence and free spirit of childhood very much.
What happened to Pier was a tragedy.I still don't understand why the studios turned their backs on this beautiful , talented actress. That was a huge mistake because it cheated both Pier and her fans out of all the terrific work she was capable of doing.
If the major studios hadn't unfairly turned their backs on her , she would have had the lasting quality career she deserved.Her life would have probably have been different and she might even be alive today.Who knows?
I don't mean to make this book seem all negative because its not.Pier's story is a heartbreaking one thats for sure, but the book also celebrates the good things in her life-her beauty, her love and loyalty to family, her love for her children, her talent, her once luminous career.And the book also presents proof that Pier DID NOT commit suicide as is so wildly reported and believed.
I would recommend this book to any fans of Piers, any fan of classic Hollywood , its personalities and its darkside,and also to fans of James Dean. There is a chapter about her relationship with him and several mentions about him in the book.

My only possible complaint about the book is sometimes I feel the Author tried to insert her own speculations as to what Pier was thinking and feeling at certain moments, when nobody not even her family or friends could know that unless Pier came out and explicity told them, but I suppose thats common practice in a biography.
But it don't feel it takes away any from the high quality of the book.

Information on Pier Angeli is hard to find; I'm so glad I found this book! Pier's story is wonderfully told - I simply could not put this book down. I highly recommend it!

I have been watching the development of processing and the processing community for a few years but until now haven't explored it much.
I create live visuals for musical performances - mostly within the chiptunes music scene (people using game console hardware to create new music). Originally I did all of my work with PureData, GEM and other libraries but then decided to move to performing with handhelds, writing code for the GP2X and Gameboy Advance (because unlike newer machines, the GBA has video out).

For an upcoming project, I decided that I wanted to create a web "playable" version of the software that I have created for the gp2x (where the visuals react to the joystick, button presses, etc) - enter Processing!
I decided that Processing would be the best tool for this job because it is easy to deliver on the web, has functions for interactivity (key presses, mouse actions, etc), and is open source which is important to me.

After looking at the Processing.org website, I decided that while there is a good reference there, a book might be nice. I was pleased to find the book "Processing: A Programming Handbook for Visual Designers and Artists" written by the creators of Processing, Casey Reas and Ben Fry and thought that no matter how useful it would be, it was good to support the developers of the project.

The pleasant surprise was that book is great!
I was expecting something like an extended reference book but it is much more than that. For one, this is a book that teaches programming concepts regardless of the language used to implement them. Although I have previous programming experience, I know that I could give this book to someone with no previous experience and they would be able to follow along and not only learn Processing, but learn programming. Sure, you can learn programming by reading C (or name your favorite language here) tutorials, writing text to the screen, reading and writing to files, etc. but ... I think that for some people it's much more exciting and motivating to see cool things happen, shapes moving, colors changing, etc. when they type in commands, learn about functions, conditionals, objects and so on. This book does that.

Another interesting thing about the book is that periodically there are interviews with visual artists who create with software - and not all with processing but with various types of software. I liked these and could imagine seeing more (or just new ones) in future editions of the book or online. I'll admit that I only use open source software so I am biased, but could imagine seeing more mention of Pd (Pure Data) as alternative to Max/Jitter.

[...]

Overall, the book is very well written and enjoyable to read even when you aren't in front of a computer (I read much while traveling) - the authors make reference to many pioneers of computing, visualization, motion graphics, film, etc. and I had fun looking up those whose works I wasn't familiar with. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in creating visuals with computers.

Este libro es un compendio básico de las herramientas de procesing, lo interesante de este texto es que las herramientas vienen contextualizadas con entrevistas o ejemplos de trabajos realizados por artistas.Recomiendo este libro a aquellos que se estén iniciando en la programación con fines artísticos.

Marcos Chilet.
Diseño, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

As a high school physics teacher with a lot of advanced students, I've been trying to work a bit of computer programming into the course over the last few years. I always wanted to do graphics programming with the students in order to help them visualize and simulate systems, because the pictures produced are a lot prettier and more rewarding than just the formulas on their own, but the languages I tried were just too difficult to teach from scratch in the time we had. Processing seems to be just what I'm looking for: it's free so the kids can download it themselves, and it really doesn't take much to produce stunning graphics. Now I would NOT recommend the book to someone with no programming experience at all - the emphasis of the book is clearly (and rightly) on how to get up to speed making images, not on what a variable is. That said, this book is a terrific resource for me; anyone with a basic programming course under their belt ought to have no trouble making sense of Processing's syntax, and the power of the language is phenomenal. The authors have done a fine job of both explaining the use of the Processing language, and showing off what it can do with all the examples. Processing is letting me do what I always wanted to do with a computer - make stunning graphics from mathematical information - at a level high school students can understand. If you are at all interested in Processing, download the free software and go here next.

Processing is a great language for anybody who wants to create graphical applications or visualizations without messing with complex graphics libraries. This is the definitive reference to the language, with much more detail than you get from the web documentation. It'll help you get up and running writing visual apps in no time.

This is a great book on that new Java-based language designed with the visual arts in mind - Processing. Tons of essays, examples, tutorials, and interviews are in the book to convey a proof of concept of the language as well as instruction on how to program with it. The writing style - for you Java programmers out there - reminds me of a cross between "Core Java" and "Head First Java". The book uses Core Java's "assume nothing" approach with instructions and code examples for all facets explained and combines that with interviews that are something like what you see in the "Head First" series of books from O'Reilly. Although the emphasis is on the visual arts, of course, there is coverage of the parts of Processing that makes it a complete language - networking, printing, object orientation, interfacing, and language extensions. Highly recommended for anyone interested in using this new language.

Note that this new language is not just getting the attention of computer artists. It is of use in electronics projects as seen in the book Making Things Talk: Practical Methods for Connecting Physical Objects and in the art of information presentation for business purposes in Visualizing Data. The following is the table of contents for this book:

Processing... 1
Using Processing 9
Structure 1: Code Elements 17
Shape 1: Coordinates, Primitives 23
Data 1: Variables 37
Math 1: Arithmetic, Functions 43
Control 1: Decisions 51
Control 2: Repetition 61
Shape 2: Vertices 69
Math 2: Curves 79
Color 1: Color by Numbers 85
Image 1: Display, Tint 12
Data 2: Text 101
Data 3: Conversion, Objects 105
Typography 1: Display 111
Math 3: Trigonometry 117
Math 4: Random 127
Transform 1: Translate, Matrices 133
Transform 2: Rotate, Scale 137
Development 1: Sketching, Techniques 145
Synthesis 1: Form and Code 149
Interviews 1: Print 155
Structure 2: Continuous 173
Structure 3: Functions 181
Shape 3: Parameters, Recursion 197
Input 1: Mouse I 205
Drawing 1: Static Forms 217
Input 2: Keyboard 223
Input 3: Events 229
Input 4: Mouse II 237
Input 5: Time, Date 245
Development 2: Iteration, Debugging 251
Synthesis 2: Input and Response 255
Interviews 2: Software, Web 261
Motion 1: Lines, Curves 279
Motion 2: Machine, Organism 291
Data 4: Arrays 301
Image 2: Animation 315
Image 3: Pixels 321
Typography 2: Motion 327
Typography 3: Response 333
Color 2: Components 337
Image 4: Filter, Blend, Copy, Mask 347
Image 5: Image Processing 355
Output 1: Images 367
Synthesis 3: Motion and Arrays 371
Interviews 3: Animation, Video 377
Structure 4: Objects 395
Drawing 2: Kinetic Forms 413
Output 2: File Export 421
Input 6: File Import 427
Input 7: Interface 435
Structure 5: Objects II 453
Simulate 1: Biology 461
Simulate 2: Physics 477
Synthesis 4: Structure, Interface 495
Interviews 4: Performance, Installation 501
Extension 1: Continuing... 519
Extension 2: 3D 525
Extension 3: Vision 547
Extension 4: Network 563
Extension 5: Sound 579
Extension 6: Print 603
Extension 7: Mobile 617
Extension 8: Electronics 633
Appendixes 661
Related Media 693
Glossary 699
Code Index 703
Index 705