Arts and Entertainment Books

This book uncovers the complexities of one of the greatest artists who ever lived, and reveals how human he was. The warm and conversational style with which it is written is so befitting to its subject, and it makes the reader feel as if they've spent many hours with a good friend. Thank you, Mr. Allen, for bringing such a legend alive for fans like me!

This book uncovers the complexities of one of the greatest artists who ever lived, and reveals how human he was. The warm and conversational style with which it is written is so befitting to its subject, and it makes the reader feel as if they've spent many hours with a good friend. Thank you, Mr. Allen, for bringing such a legend alive for fans like me!

This is a fantastic book for any fans of the greatest actor who ever lived. It is thick, informative and contains loads of photos. I would recommend it whole-heartedly, but then again, it is the only English biography of the man with the wicked eyes currently in print!

I was very impressed with the book and amazed how accurate the information presented was,A must readfor any of my fathers fans.Thank-you Mr. Allen a marvelous job.

This book was fabulous. The author certainly knows his subject matter. I am looking forward to a film version of this book.

Contessa is the most touching book I have ever read. I was unable to put it down until i had finished it. I had gotton so emersed in the story that after I had finished it, it took another week to get over it. It affected me more than anything I had ever read before. This book gave me hope for my life! Her story is one of such success, in career and mainly in friendships. This is a truly wonderful story of overcoming extreme hatred and surviving through anything. Read it. It may open or change your mind, or at least allow you to understand!

I thought CONTESSA was sheer magic. I couldn't put it down. If there ever were a book where you dared not stop reading, CONTESSA is it. I was vividly entertained and in the process learned a lot more than in many sociology, psychology and history courses I've taken. This book is a MUST read!

I found Contessa to be a most entertaining book. It was difficult to put down because I became truly interested in the lives of Contessa and her friends. The book also paints a vivid portrait of pre Castro and present day Cuba.I think the book provides the perfect vehicle for a screen play and should be seriously considered by some Hollywood producer.

I had to buy this book for a class I am taking, and it has proven very helpful and useful.

John Huntington's book is the THE reference tool in our lighting shop for show control. It has everything you need for the different control languages, in clear and concise formats.It is a must on every theatre technician's bookshelf

John Huntington's new book, Control Systems for Live Entertainment, is one of the most useful and informative books available for anyone interested in theatre technology. The book covers such technologies as MIDI, DMX512, MediaLink, MIDI Show Control, and others.

A well dog-eared copy of the first edition has been in my tool kit / computer kit for the last couple of years. I have found it a valuable resource. It has helped me on-site more than once. The second edition is more comprehensive and organized. Kudos to John in publishing a great resource fit for the student and experienced professional.

George Tucker- Show Control Engineer- Scharff Wesiberg NYC

Was hard to find, same interviewer that worked with Al Pacino on his book. Great intro and good conversations.

The interview that this book is based on was conducted before Brando filmed "Superman" but I can't imagine that Brando has changed much since. Grobel shows his skills as an interviewer by originally agreeing to only talk about the Native American cause with Brando but eventually teasing out anecdotes about acting, sex, stalkers, Brando's upbringing and much more. Grobel does not try to outsmart Brando, even while he is trying to sneak in forbidden acting/movie questions. He faces his subject head-on and when Brando chooses to speak about his hated profession, he is extremely entertaining. He shows Brando as a very complicated man who is hard to dislike - even if you don't agree with his politics, you come away from the book thinking that Brando is a charming, intelligent, thoughtful and super-talented individual who deserves all the praise for his acting skills. This interview could be considered his greatest performance - it comes from the same honesty that he invested his early screen and stage characters with.

I could not put the book, "Conversations With Brando," down once I began reading it. As a Marlon Brando devotee, I was so very pleased to open the book and find that the largest part of the book is composed of Marlon Brando's own words. I could have listened to this man talk all day long, every day of every week. And, in this book, he is at his incredible best -interesting, intelligent, witty, sensitive, idealistic, real, wise, inspirational, poignant, reflective, philosophical, poetic; humanitarian. I love his eccentric ways and I respect his principles of character - standing up for the causes of the voiceless in the world. I appreciate that he bowed to no one when the convictions of his heart and his conscience were at stake.

Most of all, when Marlon's children were in trouble, he made the kinds of sacrifices and suffered in ways that only a father whose children are his whole heart would have done.

What a beautiful man Marlon was and what an exemplary, praiseworthy piece of work Lawrence Grobel has done with "Conversations With Brando."

This expanded on the PLAYBOY interview it's adapted from. Brando is a good storyteller, and tells some good stories in here. Grobel does preface the interview with phone call transcripts of him talking to Brando, and his secretary. And I know someone close to Brando, and some in the Brando camp felt some annoyance that Grobel taped the phone conversations without saying they were being taped. A bit presumptuous. But an interesting interview nonetheless.

this was in great condition and my daughter loved it would work with this seller again

First of all, my favorite person EVER is Corbin Bleu. I mean,he has mad skills! This book is my favorite! When I was on his website, I realized that Corbin Bleu: Up Close, had come out without me knowing. I had been waiting FOREVER to buy this book! I rated it a 5. Do the same. Corbin loves us all.

If you haven't heard of Corbin Bleu, I'm guessing you're either older than 132, or you've been living in a cave high up in the Rocky Mountains, where satellite reception isn't all that great. For those few human beings who don't know who Corbin is, I recommend picking up a copy of CORBIN BLEU: UP CLOSE, which will give you all the pertinent facts.

I first saw Corbin, a 17-year old actor, on the Discovery Kids show Flight 29 Down, Vol. 1. Although I didn't follow the show every week, I was always impressed by the acting and storyline. In a nutshell, it's a lot like the television show Lost - The Complete First Season, but for the teen and pre-teen set. Not long after that, though, I saw Corbin in High School Musical (Encore Edition), which, without a doubt, is one of my favorite movies.

What I didn't know about Corbin, though, was that I'd also seen him in a number of big-screen movies, without even knowing it! Corbin had parts in Mystery Men, Galaxy Quest, and Catch That Kid, all of which I've seen. In the case of Galaxy Quest, I've probably seen it way too many times!

Whether a die-hard Corbin fan or someone who is just discovering this talented teen actor for the first time, CORBIN BLEU: UP CLOSE is a great resource. Filled with pictures from Corbin's family photo album, shots from the different television and movie sets he's been on, and candid snapshots, you'll be happy to see how this actor has grown. The book also contains a rather detailed biography, how Corbin started out in modeling and commercials, and about his shift to television and movie acting.

If you're interested in learning more about this very talented actor, you won't go wrong by picking up a copy of this reference guide. We also get a peek into Corbin's upcoming projects, which include High School Musical 2, the Disney Channel original movie Jump In!, a music CD, and college.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

I love this book i learned so much about him and the pictures are nice to .

This is one of the best books I have read on filmmaking in quite a while. It's doesn't dive into technicalities, which is good on some occasions, but "Dakota Epic" is more of a hands-on experience book. It's a good read from the point of view of an extra, and it's not too personalized, that it gets boring. And the illustrations in the book capture the feel of what is being read to tee. This is a great book about the making of a great film, and why the heart of that film didn't come from its big star and director, but from the native Dakota blood involved in its making. Great job!
-G. M. Collias

I liked this book so much that I ordered another one for my son, Mark Tapio Kines, who makes indie movies. It's a riotous look at a re-enactor who had to dress the part of a southern soldier at the start of this movie, then change his uniform and represent the North toward the end of the movie. The attitudes of the soldiers on the "other side" created a riot, as seen through Bill Markley's eyes. The set designers in the movie wanted the scene to look autumnal so they painted the leaves on the trees orange and gold. However, the soldiers had to be absolutely authentic. It's a nice comment on Hollywood at its best.

Bill Markley sheds light on many behind the scenes action that takes place in the filming of a major movie. His highly descriptive account of his days as a reenactor makes one feel as if one were actually on set. He also explains some of the tricks that were used to film the scenes, making them look highly authentic. The author tells of the boredom from long hours on the set and what cast and crew do to entertain themselves while waiting for their call. There are fantastic sketches by another reenactor, Jim Hatzell, which illustrate the book. The sketches were also done while on set.
Markley shares what it was like to meet and work with a famous actor, something most everyone dreams of but never gets the opportunity. The odds of a "Dakota" boy being cast in a Hollywood epic were one in a million, so dream your dream with "Dakota Epic!"

Enhanced with black and white illustrations by Jim Hatzell, Dakota Epic: Experiences Of A Reenactor During The Filming Of Dances With Wolves is Bill Markley's fascinating, first-hand, personal account of what went on behind the scenes of the award-winning 1990 movie Dances With Wolves. This is the revealing viewpoint of a hard-working extra who kept a journal during the filming of what was to become an acclaimed and successful major Hollywood movie. Sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant, always fascinating, Dakota Epic is a superb, up-close scrutiny of the trials, tribulations, and successes of a great move and highly recommended reading for film buffs, aspiring actors, and anyone who sat in a darkened theatre and got completely caught up in the Kevin Costner's award-winning epic film.

Daws Butler was the best of the best, right up there with Mel Blanc and Paul Frees. I am prejudiced as he was a friend of mine (My name appears twice in this book, grossly mispelled both times.), but he was the greatest. When he died, it took over 30 actors to replace him. This book, written by a friend and student of Daws, while hardly literary, is a well-researched labor of love, and a fine tribute to one of the nicest men ever to be the very best at what he did. If you loved Beany, or Huckleberry Hound, or Yogi Bear, Captain Crunch, or the classic Stan Freberg recordings, you'll find the story of the man behind the voices to be a terrific read. If you weren't privelged to know Daws, this book is as close as you can come now to a visit with this kind, wise man.

This book is much in the same pattern as design as Ben Ohmart's other books. I have he Paul Frees book and i have this one...Daws Butler became a part of my psyche somewhere in the 1980's. I was reading voice credits on cartoons on a USA Network series called "Cartoon Express". They aired a series called "Yogi's Treasure Hunt" as well as "Yogi's Space Race". Daws Butler's name was coming up. Later on i was in K-Mart reading voice credits on the back of cartoon home videos. I found a video of "The Jetsons meet the Flintstones". I read Daws Butler's name on there, too! I also found the names of Don Messick and Mel Blanc, too...all three top voice actor's. While Mel Blanc IS the most famous because of his work in theatrical cartoons and the fact that Mel's voice was on radio {over 30 years associated with the Jack Benny radio and TV shows!}...but while Mel Blanc had the more familiar name, Daws Butler was busy creating a large group of character voices for made-for-TV cartoons and in some cases, TV commercials. This book by Ben Ohmart tells the Daws Butler story...there are even passages and personal letters written by Daws sprinkled throughout the book. There was a PBS documentary about Daws that aired in the 1980's. It was called "Voice Magician". I have that video and it is amazing to watch Daws go from one character to the next. This book is a more expanded and comprehensive spin on that PBS show. Not many people realize that Daws Butler's voice graced the cartoons from the mid '40s through the mid '80s! They will learn all about Daws and his strong work ethic and his style of voice acting. For Daws, doing a "voice" required practice and training. He believed that voice actor's must play the part physically as well as vocally. This meant, Daws would become bouncy while doing the dialogue for SNAGGLEPUSS. He felt it helped him do a better vocal. YOGI BEAR, for example, Daws would stand with his shoulders rared back and bellow the words into the microphone. For HUCKLEBERRY HOUND, Daws would say that he would just think slow and talk slow and add in a southern accent BUT it must be the correct southern accent. A North Carolina southern sounds different from a Kentucky southern...or a Georgia southern. Known for his teaching, he opened up a voice actor work-shop and used his acting methods and beliefs to teach people the art of voice acting. The pictures in this book show Daws at various stages of his career. Stan Freberg is also talked about in this book...he and Daws were a team during the late '40s through the late '50s with a string of comedy singles AND a children's TV show "TIME FOR BEANY". Daws also narrated MANY cartoons for Tex Avery on MGM. At MGM, he and Don Messick became friends and both of them would later become the sound of Hanna-Barbera during the early years of made-for-TV cartoons, 1957-1967. On page 112, we see Daws in character as SNAGGLEPUSS. The look on his face almost makes one think he's saying: "Heaven's to Murgatroyd!". That picture is a good example of Daws physically getting into the character as well as vocally speaking the role. The SNAGGLEPUSS section talks about Bert Lahr...that's the actor whose voice Daws used as an inspiration for SNAGGLEPUSS. On page 93 we see Daws in the recording studio with Captiol Records exectives. Also in the picture are June Foray and Stan Freberg. Daws is standing beside June...Freberg is looking up into the ceiling...Foray is the only female in the picture and so she isn't hard to spot! On page 102 we see Daws in the studio with Don Messick and Doug Young. Young was the voice of DOGGIE DADDY and DING-A-LING to Daws Butler's AUGIE DOGGIE and HOKEY WOLF respectively. Don Messick was typically playing supporting roles and walk-on's during these two cartoon segments. As with the Paul Frees book, Ohmart lists nearly everything Daws was a part of during his long career. Daws only had ONE recurring theatrical cartoon character...the French speaking wolf LOOPY De LOOP, a nice wolf who was always getting into trouble because of what he was: a wolf! People would see Loopy as a wolf and automatically assume Loopy was dangerous and once again, Loopy would be running for his life! Hahaha. All the radio appearances are noted...all the characters...all the vinyl children's albums are listed...this, along with the Paul Frees book, are essential reading for voice actor fans or those wanting to read about the legends of voice acting!! I hope Ben Ohmart one day writes a book about two more voice giants: Mel Blanc and Don Messick.

He's not as well known as Mel Blanc, but should be. Daws Butler was the voice of Yogi Bear, Huck Hound, Elroy Jetson, Mr.
Jinx, Quick Draw McGraw (and don't you fer-get it!) and Snagglepuss in the classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons. He also
worked with the legendary Stan Freberg (from "Time For
Beany" to his radio shows and records). Toward the end of
his life, he served as mentor to the likes of Nancy Cartwright
(voice of Bart Simpson) and Dr. Demento's co-hort Whimsical
Will.

This is an enjoyable read for fans of cartoons and old time
radio. Ohmart and Beliacqua show us the man behind the voices, both at work and at home. Heavens to Murgatroyd!

Alright, I have to admit that I thoroughly under-appreciated this guy... but now I've got it right, thanks to the authors of this book. All I thought of Daws Butler was "great voice guy". Wrong! The title sets you straight right off. Here's a man that defined the term "actor" and delivered not voices but "characters". You can take a look at the pictures of the cartoon characters on the cover to which he gave life but that's only a small sampling. In fact there was more going on between Daws ears than you'd find at a NASA launch

Who would enjoy this book? Any obsessive thinking person into puppetry, early television, imaginative, brilliant and clever writing, satire, cartoon animation, radio drama and comedy and a host of other topics I just can't think of right now.

Rather than try to describe what the authors presented so well, let me just say here was a guy I wish I could have met. Not just for his talent but for his character.

Read the book; it's as close as you'll get to a uniquely facinating and wonderful man.

Dixie Dictionary I found the book very useful to refresh my vocabulary for Southern speech. Being born in the south I should understand most of what is being said, however, I've worked in California for over twenty-five years and just returned home to find that I haven't a clue as to what people are telling me. I'm a shamed face southern boy who has to learn to talk Southern all over again. Now it's easy thanks to The Dixie Dictionary. It really is a funny informative book also a great tool for writers who need Southern speech in their stories.

It's smaller in trim size than I thought it would be but handy and useful none the less. It's formatted like a dicitonary but it doesn't give background origins of the words/sayings. Almost as if you are a foreigner heading to the South and need a quick translation guide. For deeper meanings of the words you would need to go the internet.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this dictionary. This is probably the richest collection of Southern words in print. It is true that there are few etymologies provided and the entries are all concise. However, I would much rather have the work as it stands as opposed to having only half the number of entries with a detailed analysis. In fact many of the most interesting entries (i.e. those petaining to untranslateable concepts) do have a longer explanation. There are many entries contained here which cannot be found in Robert Hendrickson's "Whistlin' Dixie". On the other hand, there are a few entries Hendrickson uses that cannot be found here. Hendrickson also provides a more detailed descritpion of each entry and perhaps has slightly more toponymous expressions. If you are in doubt as to which dictionary to buy then, if you really love this dialect of American English, I strongly recommend that you buy BOTH. The two important works on Southern speech complement the other and are both reasonably priced.
First of all, I would like to say that "The Dixie Dictionary" is extremely rich in folklore entries. For instance, there are fascinating terms like 'belling' (a wedding custom), 'dumb cake' (a cake made in silence and used for fortune telling) and 'infare' (a feast the day after the wedding). There are literally dozens of unique words pertaining to various kinds of legendary monsters such as the 'Bingbuffer', the 'clew bird' and the 'galoopus' etc. There are also words connected with folk healing like 'chamber lye', 'nanny tea' and 'fasting spittle' as well as call words used to command animals (e.g. 'coo-sheep/coon-nan' and 'sukee' , etc.). Folk expressions concerning the weather and seasons are also represented in entries like 'blackberry winter' and 'dogwood winter' etc.
There are also many terms taken from the Civil War like 'copperhead' (a Northerner/Yankee who sympathised with the South. There are many nicknames e.g. 'Rackensack' (someone from Arkansaw) and a 'Cracker' (someone either from Georgia or Florida) etc. in addition to toponymous phrases like the 'Carolina robin' (smoked herring), 'Charsleston eagle' (buzzard) and 'Arkansas toothpick' (bowie knife) etc.
Another category of terms which reflects the devout history of the people is the religious terminology like 'amen corner', 'pound' (party for a new preacher), 'toadstool churches' (which grow up as a result of revivals) and 'pokeweed religion' etc. There are also countless terms associated with tobacco, moonshine/whiskey and games like marbles. Several entries do not constitute distinct words as such but rather dialect variants/different pronunciation e.g. 'ovair' (over there), 'leben' (eleven) and 'zactly' (exactly). Talking of the last word 'zactly', dialectologists, will be interested to encounter certain similarities with some West Country British dialects (which often use 'z' in place of 's'). For instance, in the Cornish dialect (many terms of which are derived from an ancient language akin to Welsh not English) I recognised the following entries : 'ashcat', 'cap'n', 'kilt', 'emmet' (meaning ant - in West Cornwall it is 'muryan' yet 'emmet is used in E.Cornwall and in Devon), 'furmety' and 'rassle' etc. This leads me to postulate that Cornish miners may well have settled in some places in the South.If any fellow-readers would like to purchase a Cornish dialect dictionary then search on this site (there are good dictionaries available by Jago, Phillipps and Ivey). If they are not available in Amazon.com then try the Amazon.uk branch. As you can probably detect from my review, I found this work most interesting. It is an important contribution to the culture of the South and to dialectology.

Compiled and edited by southern journalist Thomas W. Howard, The Dixie Dictionary: An Introduction To The Southern Language is a fun, enjoyable, and useful glossary of terms unique to American Southern English dialects. From "all vine and no 'taters" (a phrase to describe someone who is all talk and no action) to "whistle-pig" (groundhog), The Dixie Dictionary is packed from cover to cover with wry, flavorful phrases that most northerners have likely never heard of. Highly recommended for writers looking to pen southern-style dialogue, as well as anyone planning to visit or move to the South, or who just wants to have a good time paging through some truly unique and eyebrow-raising expressions, The Dixie Dictionary is a welcome contribution to personal and academic Language Studies reference collections.

If you want to know what really happened with Dudley Moore from the late 80's until his death, you've got to read this! Too many people believe tabloids and make their judgments from what they read in the newsstands. Read this and weep. I did.

Dudley Moore was an actor, a comedian, and the husband to a perfectionist wife: he left a promising career in jazz piano to become a comedian, then an actor - and his personal life was fraught with illness and trials. Prior fans of Moore who are familiar with him through a single facet of his acting or comedy career will welcome an opportunity to get to know him better in Dudley Moore: An Intimate Portrait, by an author who was a music columnist, pianist, and performer along with Moore.

Intimate Portrait offers a personal account of Dudley Moore's struggle with illness. The author's first hand account provides a touching portrait of a person who simultaneously experienced fear and hope, courage and defeat, yet never gave up. It was moving and clearly a close friends final tribute to her best friend. I would highly recommend it.

This is a book you will really look forward to reading, especially if you have had the chance to see one or more of Dudley Moore's movies ---from the everyman dreams of "10" to the wacky conductor of "Foul Play." Also to see him on stage or hear his talented piano playing.
I wanted to laugh again, and again at Dudley, the comic.
But the author, fellow musician Rena Fruchter, carefully weaves in the pain and suffering in this short man's too-short life:
"The tragedy is that Dudley Moore had so much left to do, to give, when his life was taken from him at the age of 66," she writes.
And an extra dimension for an author and even for a friend--Dudley spent the last five years of his life with Fruchter and her family. She held his hands when he died in March, 2002, with some of his own music playing in the background.
But Fruchter is able to give us a balanced portrait of this complex man, his four wives and ups and downs along the way.
I kept wanting more of the sheer joy of Dudley, which fellow comic Eric Idle touches on in the Foreward --where he thanks Dudley, or "Dud" as he calls him, "for just being you."
It is often written that one has to suffer a lot to be truly funny. Dudley followed that path. We thank him for all the laughter and music, and are glad to read in this excellent work that toward the end Dudley learned to accept himself and found strength and awareness...and also peace.
We miss you Dudley and thank you Rena for preserving so much of the man and his life in this book.

It's obvious that Patrick Lacy has done extensive research for this book from the minute you open it. The book is presented in Question and Answer format and deals with many issues about Elvis' life that have been misrepresented in various Elvis books. The author then arrives at a logical conclusion on what really happened, based on his research.
This is an excellent book for any true Elvis fan.

This is the book I wished I had purchased several books ago! Author Patrick Lacy has done painstaking research surrounding the last days - and death - of Elvis Presley. His sleuthing and subsequent documentation of various events plaguing both fans and interested observers alike are carefully laid down on paper. Without ego or arrogance, Lacy allows the reader to make up his or her mind by presenting as much detailed evidence as possible with as much coherence as possible. Elvis himself would have been proud. Definitely a book not to be without.

I will say that I fell for the "Is Elvis Alive" craz when it began in the late 1980s but after doing research, there's no way that Elvis is alive and he's not coming back. After reading this book, it did get me curious again to the possiblity of Elvis being alive but I know better. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and reading Patrick's opinions and the book, to me, is very well written and researched.

This book is a great resource. The author will ask a question and answer it by citing information from various sources. By contrast and comparison, Lacy than draws a conclusion. Whether you agree with the author's conclusion or not, the format for this book allows the reader the opportunity to examine information and come to an objective conclusion.