Arts and Entertainment Books

I absolutely loved the series, but this book really just confirms it. This is the first day I got it and I already read half. I'm very impressed. I was reading in front of my boyfriend and his friend and they heard me laughing. My response was "this is halarious." (reading shanes botwins part) Hmmm. My boyfriends friends response was "I didn't know reading was fun." LOSER! In the Weeds is fun!

My very first buy on Amazon and, still, one of my best purchases ever. If you love the show, this book should be part of your collection 'cause it's the ultimate guide to Weeds characters. Highly recommended.

The interviews are awesome--you really feel like you're getting behind the scenes of one of the best shows on TV. And the character breakdowns make you want to watch the first 2 seasons all over again! If you love the show, you have to get this book. And if you've ever wanted to start watching the show, this book is a good primer.

I was so excited to see that there's a book about my favorite TV show, and even more excited to see that it's as smart, thoughtful and funny as the show itself. Companion guides can sometimes be formulaic and boring, but this one brings a fresh and intelligent perspective to one of the best written (directed and acted) shows on cable today. If you aren't already a fan of the show (what's wrong with you???), this book will draw you in for sure!

Toward the end of his 1971 conversation with Richard Meryman, easily the best interview in this collection, Bergman says that "to make a film is to try to open up the roof--so we can breathe" (p. 112). This is as good a one-line characterization of Bergman's project as I know. Bergman's films defy easy analysis, sometimes because they're poorly conceived, as Bergman himself admits (he thinks, for example, that "Through a Glass Darkly" is a prime example), sometimes because even Bergman in retrospect isn't quite sure what he was trying to do, but sometimes because there's simply a great deal of depth to them. How, for example, to collapse the message of loneliness, despair, human nature, and hope conveyed in "The Silence" into a couple of sentences? But what Bergman at his best does succeed in doing is expanding us, opening up the roofs of our worldviews, inviting us--sometimes forcing us--to breathe in an atmosphere that's crisp and thin and heady.

Readers who pick up Raphael Shargel's collection of Bergman interviews in the hope that the master will explain what his films are about will be disappointed. Bergman tells us that he wants to elicit emotional experiences first and cerebral ones second in his films; that dreams have influenced his scripts and his director's eye; that he works best when his days are rigorously scheduled; that he thinks a film is "selected reality" (p. 106), which reminds me of Tarkovksy's beautiful characterization of film-making as "sculpting time"; that he thinks a certain "childishness"--a naivete, an openness to experience--is essential for good art. But what Bergman doesn't do, appropriately enough, is tell us how to interpret his films. So in many ways, his intervews are as mysterious as his artworks.

The interviews collected by Shargel vary in quality. As I've mentioned, Richard Meryman's is the best of the lot, closely followed by A. Alvarez's. The "Playboy" interview conducted by Cynthia Grenier is worse than worthless, and seems intent on focusing on little else than sex in "The Silence" (the interview was conducted shortly after the film's American debut). There are numerous typos in the text. "Feeling" is consistently spelled "felling," for example, and at one point Bergman is referred to as the "15 year old creator of 'The Silence'"! The only other book I've read by the University of Mississippi Press was also poorly proofed. Strange that an academic press is so careless in its copyediting.

Shargel's collection is a decent starting point for readers new to Bergman, but better ones include Bergman's memoirs, The Magic Lantern (2007) and Images (1995). Jesse Kalin's The Films of Ingmar Bergman (2003) is highly recommended for serious students.

This collection of interviews with Ingmar Bergman gives the reader almost a definitive view of not only the great director's vision, but of his constantly evolving artistry. As a teacher, I found the discussions of individual films invaluable.

No film critic could have approached Bergman with such passionate understanding and insight as Raphael Shargel. Following his film reviews in The New Leader for years, I am not surprised by his far reaching ability to grasp a life's work as he does his movies, always interested in their impact on society and us as individuals as well as the history that produced them in our time. When you get to it, your understanding of Bergman and appreciation for the value of interviews across a lifetime will be as rich as this book's index.

I'm a big fan of Bergman, and I was thrilled to see these interviews come back into print. They tell you so much about Bergman's life, films, and his personal opinions. Organized chronologically, this book reveals a development of Bergman both as an artist and as a person. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about Bergman's genius or film in general. The introduction offers terrific insight into the mind of an artist.

Bob Eubanks, best known as host of various versions of the classic game show "The Newlywed Game", playing daily at 9 am on GSN, wrote his memoirs in 2002 titled "It's in the Book, Bob!"

In this book that is a must for game show junkies everywhere, Bob Eubanks tells his own version of his own story from birth, high school, college, radio, concert promotion, and eventually, television.

Each copy is signed by Bob Eubanks himself.

So, in the words of Bob Eubanks, purchase this book. Thanks for playing!

I recently bought this book on this website, adn being the fan of The Newlywed Game that i am, I liked it quite a bit. I thought he was a little bit long winded in one particular chapter, but that is how it goes sometimes. I was disappointed in how little he told about his personal life. He never mentions how he meets his two wives, or when hemarried or anything. I thohgt some of the episodes from the ABC run are still in tact although not been aired in several years. I always say about game shows is that you can't mess with the original-having Paul Rodrigez and Gary Kroger as hosts was a big mistake in my opinion.

This book was a really amazing read. I personally had no idea that Bob Eubanks was anything other than a gameshow host from the 70s. But if you read his book, you'll find that he was not only a well-known host but an instrumental part of many famous muscians lives, including the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard and Stevie Wonder. He also talks about many other funny anecdotes that happened between he and Cary Grant, the Rolling Stones, and the guy that Bob Eubanks is apparently always being mistaken for--The Price is Right's Bob Barker. (He also devotes a whole chapter to his troubles with Michael Moore and a chance to hear about the other side of what happened with "Roger and Me.") If you enjoy reading biographies and are interested in rock 'n' roll, television and celebrities, then you'll really enjoy this book.

What about Bob (Eubanks)?

October 3, 2004

BY PAIGE WISER SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

THIS WEEK'S ARGUMENT: That Bob Eubanks is a pop culture god.

I admit that I requested a review copy of Bob Eubanks' new autobiography for one reason: I wanted to read the inside scoop on the dirtier episodes of "The Newlywed Game."

But now I am ashamed. As I've learned from It's in the Book, Bob! (Benbella, $24.95), one game show does not a man's career make.

I had no idea that Eubanks was instrumental in bringing the Beatles to L.A., or that he founded the first public relations firm for rock groups. He's bad-mouthed Barry Manilow, stood up to Elton John and had a mysterious falling out with Dolly Parton. By the end of the book, I pictured Eubanks as a musical Zelig.

And yet Eubanks has suffered a whopping inferiority complex. He writes, "I couldn't shake the feeling that my life's work could be capsulized as a guy who pushed young couples to answer suggestive questions about their personal lives for the price of a toaster."

In short, he hates ignorant people like me.

So I'd like to remedy the situation, and give some of you a crash course in all things Bob:

*As an L.A. deejay in the '60s, his station attracted groupies. Eubanks writes: "Dick Biondi, who came on board in 1963 to do 9 to midnight, asked me years later if I remembered a long-haired guy who was a lot older than the rest of the kids and used to sit on the steps and hold court." Eubanks didn't remember him. "'His name,' Dick told me, 'was Charlie ... Charlie Manson.'"

*Eubanks used to hang out with Sonny Bono, pre-Cher.

*Eubanks suggested to Brian Wilson's manager-father that the Beach Boys change their name. (The suggestion was ignored.)

*Eubanks guest-starred on the "Ozzie & Harriet" TV series as a bicycle shop owner. Coincidentally, the role was offered just as Ricky Nelson had a new record coming out that Ozzie wanted played on Eubanks' station.

*Eubanks swore by hair stylist Jay Sebring, who pioneered the use of hairspray on men. Sebring was later murdered with Sharon Tate by Charles Manson's gang.

*As a concert promoter, Eubanks made about $1,000 on the Beatles' first concert at the Hollywood Bowl. He'd wised up by the time the Beatles came back to town in 1966 for a concert at Dodgers Stadium. For that event, Eubanks made "a decent profit," but estimates that each of the Beatles made less than $4,000 for the gig. They stopped touring almost immediately thereafter.

*Eubanks once caught Keith Moon smuggling an underage girl backstage in a bass drum case.

*At his first meeting with Merle Haggard, the country star's cigarette ignited the crotch of Eubanks' black-and-white herringbone slacks. His leg was singed, but it didn't discourage Eubanks from going on the road with Haggard for years.

*When he auditioned for zany producer Chuck Barris, Eubanks thought that "The Newlywed Game" was "the dumbest idea for a show I'd ever heard." And those confessions of Barris' dangerous mind? "I will also say that if he was a CIA assassin, then I'm Mary Poppins."

*He was featured in Michael Moore's movie "Roger & Me," and, like many, doesn't have anything nice to say about the filmmaker. Moore interviewed Eubanks in Flint, Mich., for what he was told would be a local TV news story. Eubanks assumed the cameras were off at one point, and told two tasteless jokes. They, of course, made it into the film. Eubanks says that he swore to friends that if he ever happened upon Moore in a men's room, "I would rearrange his dentition." But he's over it now. Really.

*Eubanks was hired for Jessica Simpson's variety show, with an initial offer of $800 that he negotiated up to $7,500. His bit was cut.

That, my friends, is a full life in the entertainment industry.

You're still curious about the dirt, though, aren't you? If you persist in wanting the answer to the "Newlywed" question "Where's the strangest, most unusual place the two of you have ever made whoopee?" -- you'll find it on page 365.

For years, Eubanks told people the infamous episode (where a woman described a part of her body rather than an actual place) never happened -- until someone showed him the clip and proved him wrong. He says that he simply didn't remember it.

And who can blame him?

Sid Bernstein is nobody who would be called shy. His bold and confident approach to the music industry made him one of the most successful and historical legends among characters whose sheer presence could eclispe even superstars. Naturally, the book reads like Bernstein's personality: it's straightforward, New York-brassy, and honest. His personal, behind-the-scene accounts of the English invasion and its two major acts -- The Beatles and The Rolling Stones -- are worth the price of the book alone. But there's more to be learned about the evolution of the music biz from first-person advice than almost anywhere else. Best of all, it's a very quick read.

As a reporter for a weekly newspaper in Hudson County, I was able to interview Sid twice -- once for a profile in anticipation of his visit to the Beatlefest in Secaucus and later when he worked with a local promoter for a benefit. For both stories, this book helped bring out details of his life and his passions I would have missed, and helped me ask the right questions. It is a fun book about a special man, and for me, the book enlightened me about the details behind some of the more historic events of my life, such as what really happened when the Beatles came to America in 1964. This was a trip down memory lane. Thank you Sid.

This book is a MUST read! The impact of the Beatles on our society is immeasurable.

Sid Bernstein promoted the biggest stars in show biz to the heights of their careers. But is was Sid who put his own career on the line and brought the Beatles to America. Sid Bernstein changed the course of society!

An amazing story! "It's Sid Bernstein Calling!" is the book you should be reading right now!

"It's Sid Bernstein Calling" might seem to be one, long show business success story, but it's not.

It's way better. It's many entertaining show business success stories in the life of one man.

"It's Sid Bernstein Calling" is a well-written story of the many and varied successes of a kid from the Bronx, who took his chances and managed the biggest acts in show business.

Bernstein was the first guy to sense that The Beatles were going to hit it big; he organized the world's first modern rock concert (The Beatles, Shea Stadium, August 1965) and his tireless promotion of superstar artists is a textbook in real world show biz promotion.

The book is well written, a pleasure to read. Arthur Aaron's well-researched writing tells Sid Bernstein's story and never gets in the way of dealing with Bernstein's experiences, personal life and work ethics. The ups and downs are all there. Bernstein holds nothing back. It's a real story about the real thing.

Read it for such great ancedotes as how a piano got him to promote Abba, how he helped Tony Bennett sell out Carnegie Hall, helped promote The Young Rascals and the dozens of other superstars who have benefited from his golden touch.

Sid Bernstein is a rarity today - an honest, trusthworty and hardworking musical and theatrical promoter. A must read if you want to know about show business and treating people with class and respect.

This volume of articles and tidbits about the great Jackie Chan is definitely worth a read if not great. There are many fine insights into the man and the legend Jackie Chan, and indeed a lot of interesting photographs, which makes it so much the more enjoyable.

The format of the book, however, does not really agree with me. I don't like the article form, it seems cheap and mean. In my opinion it would have been better to write a uniform, coherent text based on the interviews and articles instead. The information is still there, it just seems a bit disorganized (which it really is not, it just seems that way).

It is still highly recommendable for all the information in there. Sure to please any fan.

This book is awesome! John Little's interview with Jackie Chan is worth the price alone. The photographs are the best, particularly the one of Jackie climbing a flag pole that looks like it has to be 50 feet off the ground! I learned so much about Jackie Chan, his martial arts training, his fitness methods and his personal philosophy. Having read all the other books on Jackie, I can easily say that this is - by far - the best! A must for everyone who loves his stunts or have been awed by his physical talent in martial art.

I loved this book. Anyone into the arts will love this book to. Its great and i personally like Jackie Chan.

This book is a fabulous read. I couldn't put it down until I finished it. It is not a narrative, but rather a compiled series of interviews between the author(s) and Jackie Chan that have taken place over the past ten years or so. The chapters are split up into sections on his childhood, martial arts training, philosophy, health and fitness, career and film making, stunt coordinating etc. Each chapter has an introduction and then goes straight into an indepth interview with Jackie Chan himself! There is a small overview at the beginning of the book on his life (a mini "My Life in Action"!) and at the end a filmography and a chapter containing what the author considers are Jackie's ten best stunts in a short paragraph format. There is a treasure trove of pictures from Jackie's films (all black and white unfortunately), many not before seen. I consider this book belongs on the shelf with Jackie's autobiography as it is contains personal insights and comments from "The Man" himself. My respect for Jackie Chan, already high after reading "My Life in Action", has risen even higher. The man is phenomenal and makes the so-called "Hollywood Stars" shine rather pale in comparison. If the many who dismiss Jackie as "just an action actor" could only read this book, how their eyes would be opened! Highly recommended - a must read!

Jazz, America's music, is an improvisational art. In Bittersweet Blues Marsalis and Vigeland do a lot do educate the reader just how this works. Not just on the bandstand but also on the road and in the life of jazz' leading spokesman. The book helps you see how musicians must comminucate, must hold each other with respect, must listen with an ear for creativity and must withhold judgement.

The book alternates between Vigeland's discussion of the events in life of Marsalis' Septet and Wynton's discussions of what it means to be a jazz musician. This interplay is what gives the book it's beautiful tone and variety. In a sense, you see the two authors improvising around each other's styles. What amazed me the most was the pace of Marsalis' life and the breadth of his associations. I enjoyed learning more about the creative process behind some of my favorite music as well.

I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in road stories, jazz or how artists create the ir art.

Picked up Marsalis + Vigeland's work and just couldn't put it down! From descriptions of events, to understanding the personal struggles of band members, Jazz in the bittersweet blues of life fully expresses the goings on of the Wynton Marsalis Septet. Above all, I found Marsalis's commentaries on life, love, and music striking chords within my soul, and left me pleading for more.

Jazz in the Bittersweet Blues of Life is a chronicle of one artist's ten year journey as he shares his gift and talent with the world. Marsalis' words, which appear in italics throughout the book are both profound and poetic. As you read, you can hear him speak, but most of all you feel the passion he has for his craft. He poses the question early in the book when explaining that everyone is an artist, "...how do you want to make me feel with your art, and what insights do you have that distinguish your ideas from someone else's?" A rhetorical question for every artist.

You get a sense of the daily experiences of Wynton and the other musicians in the Septet, from composing on the road, to the daily pick-up basketball games, to the lectures in schools across the country to the musicians ironing their clothing before each performance. It is a demanding, yet rewarding life. Throughout the book (and his travels) Marsalis not only meets and encourages young musicians, but he keeps in contact with them through periodic phone calls, updating himself on their growth as musicians. Some of the young musicians he met early in his career became members of the septet.

Jazz in the Bittersweet Blues of Life, has shaped me as both an artist and author. I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Marsalis at Book Expo America. He is as personable, down-to-earth and charming as he appears in this book.

You can't just say those words without putting music to the most famous road anthem by Willie Nelson. That's what this book is about: life on the road with jazz musicians.

Co-author Carl Vigeland was invited to travel the country and Europe with jazz superstar Wynton Marsalis and his band.

This is about the music of jazz, the blues and the road. Vigeland and Marsalis make numerous references to the book's title "Jazz In The Bittersweet Blues of Life. Vigeland covers personal observations of life with its rigors of the road, the overwhelming passion to produce quality performances. You don't get too much of the personal life of Marsalis, he shares little about his two older boys living in New York.

Brother Branford splits for a rock band
We also get very little info on tenor saxophone Branford Marsalis along with member Kenny Kirkland who left the band in the early 80's to play with rock superstar Sting. Branford also did a short stint as band leader for Jay Leno's "Tonight Show." In the book, we DON'T' get a clear understanding about the departure of his brother Branford and member Kenny Kirkland. Little is known here about Branford's departure, only mentioned here is "that others have thought that it may have been hurtful to have your brother leave for a rock musician." This book doesn't discuss that a rift was occurring and the finality was the departure. But I believe now, all is well with the brothers.

Marsalis, on the other hand, shares keen insight into the world of jazz, his composition style, and rhythm including his relationship with the trumpet. About the trumpet, he says "you can never force the trumpet, you got to baby it, treat it gently, coax it. It's always there when you need a high note, or something very loud. If you don't handle up on it, it won't respect you"

He teaches us about playing the songs and how the members produce an evening's show. We learn about his amiable personality and he exudes the passion to please his audience.

Observations from the Jazz man
Just from this book alone, we get the impression that Wynton Marsalis is cool and collected, caring of young children, family man and friend. His insights into life are fascinating. Of people who hang out at bars, discos, etc., he says are the unhappiest and lonliest blankety blanks in the whole world. He says, "If you want to be happy, go inside. Inside yourself, inside the people you love, inside your art. Inside seems much lonlier than outside, don't be fooled, you go far enough, it's always warm and good."

But most of all, Wynton gives us an idea how he works, how he composes; it's incredible. It may be no surprise that he is also an accredited author with his books by "Marsalis on Music" and "Sweet Swing Blues on the Road." Wonderful read....MzRizz

It's a superb book, very nice photos, most of them i have never seen before. The thing that i notice in the pictures, is that John never smiled in this book (apart from the cover and other two pictures, i think), he look's old, small, sad or maybe depresed. I have the Instamatic Karma too, and it's other John that appears on this book, he looks alive, happy and reflexive. In the end, it's a must buy for any Lennon fans.

Thanks.

This book is simply wonderful. It has some of the most intimate and beautiful pictures of John and Yoko ever published. A must have for any Lennon fan!

John and Yoko: A New York Love Story contains a collection of photographs by photographer Allan Tannenbaum of the long lasting romance between John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Many of the photos may have been seen by the public, and several have not been published before. Tannenbaum shows John and Yoko in their most intimate moments, which were shot at New York's Sperone Westwater Gallery and Central Park; the concluding photographs do not need too much description and show fans paying tribute to John as well Yoko posing in the same spot where John and she had walked days before. And by looking at the photographs, one can see it was yet another end to an era.

The most interesting part about the book is its beautiful layout. With the turn of the first page one can see what they are in store for. The pages are comprised of a variety of size photos from proofs to blown-up portraits of John and Yoko in glorious b/w and color, which capture their candidness as a couple and individually; Tannenbaum and book designer Barbara Genetin do a great job displaying the images.

Overall, this is a highly recommended book for John and Yoko fans or photography aficionados. With its over-sized coffee table book format, this may make a nice addition to anyone's book collection.

Allen Tannenbaum's book "John And Yoko: A New York Love Story" is a candid photo album of John and Yoko at work and play in and around New York City. Tannenbaum is granted amazing access to the couples lives. The photos are beautiful and give one a sense of intimacy of John and Yoko's life together. The overall effect of the book is to remind us of the tragic lost of John Lennon for Yoko, Sean, and the rest of us.

If Ernest Hemingway had made movies, they would have looked something like John Huston's. The passion, intelligence, and joie de vivre of Huston's films are reflected in this set of articulate interviews. Pour yourself a good drink, and listen as one of Hollywood's best raconteurs spins yarn after yarn in this splendid volume of a valuable series.

Ably edited by independent scholar and freelance writer Robert Long, John Huston: Interviews is an informative and insightful compilation of interviews with the late John Huston (which took place from 1952 to 1985) in which he personally comments on his life and projects as an acclaimed filmmaker. Among the movies that are surveyed within this context are The Maltese Falcon, Key Largo, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The African Queen, The Night of the Iguana, Prizzi's Honor, and The Dead. The observations range from his approach to directing; the influence of painting upon his camera work, and his association with stellar actors, to his beginnings in Hollywood as a screenwriter, and the influences of James Joyce and Ernest Hemingway upon his movies. Replete with numerous anecdotes about writers, directors, and actors with whom he collaborated, we are presented with a body of work and a filmmaker's life that will be immensely appreciated by students of his work and a man whose personal life was as prodigious as his professional career.

This is a terrific book. It consists of interviews with John Huston from 1952-85. Not only does the reader find out about Huston's ideas on filmmaking and get some inside info on the making of classic films, but he will find out about the breadth of Huston's interests, which extended beyond filmmaking to art and philosophy. Here, truly, was an intelligent man.

The most interesting thing to me about Huston was that he started in the classic studio age and survived its downfall to make films that were fresh, interesting and important even in the Eighties. These interviews show Huston's mental flexibility. He admires "McCabe and Mrs. Miller," "Rocky," and "Taxi Driver." Huston is also quite frank about his own films. I will never be tempted to see "Roots of Heaven" or "Barbarian and the Geisha." I have to see "Moby Dick," which he considered one of his films that never got its due.

I was sorry when this book ended.

Ably edited by independent scholar and freelance writer Robert Long, John Huston: Interviews is an informative and insightful compilation of interviews with the late John Huston (which took place from 1952 to 1985) in which he personally comments on his life and projects as an acclaimed filmmaker. Among the movies that are surveyed within this context are The Maltese Falcon, Key Largo, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The African Queen, The Night of the Iguana, Prizzi's Honor, and The Dead. The observations range from his approach to directing; the influence of painting upon his camera work, and his association with stellar actors, to his beginnings in Hollywood as a screenwriter, and the influences of James Joyce and Ernest Hemingway upon his movies. Replete with numerous anecdotes about writers, directors, and actors with whom he collaborated, we are presented with a body of work and a filmmaker's life that will be immensely appreciated by students of his work and a man whose personal life was as prodigious as his professional career. John Huston: Interviews is also available in paperback ..., [price]

I only had the opportunity to see one play at the original Circle In The Square Theater in the Village but we were charter subscribers when they moved uptown. I remember seeing Irene Pappas in "Medea" and James Earl Jones in "The Iceman Cometh" to name just a few. Four times a year we'd take the train into Manhattan to be engaged by some of the best talent in the theater world performing classics we knew and others we didn't.

Like the prior reviewer, I found this book fascination but - to me - the real bonus was the DVD that is included in the back of the book. Taken from a series produced for use in schools in 1975 - for the 25th Anniversary of the CITS - the 90 minute presentation consists of five segments of both interviews with Ted Mann and some celebrated actors (Dustin Hoffman, George C. Scott, Colleen Dewhurst, Paul Rudd, James Earl Jones, and Vanessa Redgrave) as well as brief scenes from plays these artists performed on the CITS stage. The interviews ask about how each actor started and more specifically about their years on the stage. The print is acceptable and - during the interview with Mann there is an annoying red "bleed" beside his face.

Long before James Lipton started his "In Side The Actor's Studio" show this document was recorded. It is as fascinating as anything Lipton ever did (without the fawning over his guests). If you need further encouragement to get this book, let the DVD convince you.

Steve Ramm
"Anything Phonographic"

This book was well written and includes many significant and intimate stories about the start of the American theatre and Eugene O'Neill. There are many short and interesting stories about the acting giants in American theatre. Did you know that Director Jose Quintero met Ted Mann in Woodstock, and that is where the revival of O'Neill plays began?

This is such a wonderful book in the way it reviews a spectacular time in history. Some legendary actors got their start at the Circle in the Square such as Dustin Hoffman, George C. Scott, Al Pacino and many more. This theatre has been the behind the American theatre as we know it and this book tells the stories of the Circle in the Square and Theodore Mann, a driving force.

I haven't worked out yet exactly how old Theodore Mann must be, but he must be one of the oldest people I have ever read an autobiography by.

Nearly everyone he knows from the glory days of the Circle in the Square is dead, so he must feel pretty much free to give his own version of the events that changed American theater and the reputation of Eugene O'Neill. Teddy Mann (or as George C Scott habitually called him, "Teedy,") was there and laid the groundwork, right at a time when O'Neill was a drug on the market and his last Broadway play, THE ICEMAN COMETH, had been a notable flop. Mann and his friend Jose Quintero stepped up, met Carlotta Monterey, fielded all the flak from naysayers, and put on triumphant productions of ICEMAN (with Jason Robards) and other O'Neill plays. Eventually they talked Carlotta (the widow O'Neill) into giving them the rights to stage US premieres for several of O'Neill's then unpublished plays, including LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, HUGHIE, and MORE STATELY MANSIONS.

Theodore Mann saved the day when Florence Eldridge, creating the important role of Mary Tyrone, fell sick on the eve of the opening. He enlisted the famous Dr. Feelgood, Max Jacobson, to step in with an enormous suitcase filled with syringes and soon brought her up to fighting speed. He's filled with great stories like that about half-forgotten people. Why, there was even another Paul Rudd, not the actor of today, but another one back in the 1970s, whom Mann discovered. What's up with that? The two Paul Rudds look crazy different from another, and I have to say, the present day one is far better looking. He also describes the love affair between Amy Irving and Rex Harrison in piquant terms, I'd like to see a whole docudrama about the interaction between ingenue and old man.

Despite continual rumors, Teedy and Quintero were never lovers, just friends from Woodstock. Indeed Theodore Mann's theater is pretty much a straight theater, with plenty of couples and lots of children. He discovered both Rip Torn and Geraldine Page and gave early work to trailblazers like Dustin Hoffman and Vanessa Redgrave. The Circle in the Square had a long history of reviving forgotten plays and renewing interest in dormant careers, like George C. Scott's 1983 production of Noel Coward's PRESENT LAUGHTER, which showed the world that the man who played General Patton could also play Garry Essendine.

Richard Hayes's book on Kate Smith is a must read for anyone who remembers the great lady, one of the finest entertainers of the 20th Century.
The book is a mixture of chronological events, anecdotes, and a retrospect, all told lovingly by someone who had the distinct privilege of personally knowing her.

This book should grace the shelves of all theater and music school libraries. Students of today's music field could profit by Kate's wisdom, as someone who continually captivated audiences from radio through television.

It's amazing how many years after her passing Kate Smith remains an American icon, with her voice still daily heard on radio, her recordings still available in the stores. This wonderful book, which deserves major-league publishing, tells the whole story of this strong, determined and extremely bright woman. Besides being a totally natural and exemplary singer she was an executive, a producer and a sports team owner. She also was a prominent national commentator. Kate sang elegantly and beautifully but she was never a sentimental type who cooed sweet nothings. She was incredibly well-informed, distinctly verbal and spoke her mind. No wonder America loved her. She stood for common sense, independence and strong ethics and morality. She lived life to the fullest. Her weight, always an issue with the critics but never an issue with her, never kept her from doing anything, including dressing gorgeously (especially in the later years). When rock and roll came in she didn't run but joined in and forged a whole new career on T.V. shows like Cher's (where she did a Beatles medley with Cher and Tina Turner) and Tony Orlando's. Her later concerts gathered her numerous hits into a medley and otherwise addressed new music--the Beatles, Michel LeGrande and so on. Kate was kind to her fans beyond what most artists are willing to do--friendly and accessible but, true to form, clearheaded. She didn't need adulation; she knew just who she was. This is a splendid book, well worth the price, and oh how it recreates an inimitable era in American entertainment right on the mark!

If you love show-business, this is a definitive and highly readable book about one of the greatest stars of the twentieth century--Miss Kate Smith. Nostalgic, historical, exciting, and wonderful, Richard Hayes has really captured the essence of "The Songbird of the South."

Hayes, a longtime personal friend of Miss Smith, has tapped into a mother-lode of personal recollections from hundreds of celebrities, friends, co-workers and fans to create a full picture of this important American. A veritable joy-ride through the world of entertainment as we now know it, Hayes chronicles Miss Smith's fifty year career from vaudeville to radio (where she was the medium's greatest star) through recordings and concerts and then television (where Kate was a female pioneer). Nostalgia buffs will tear through the pages of this book in a delicious frenzy!

Hayes exhaustively produces a discography that is archival in every sense. He captures Kate's spirit with a confidant familiarity and paints an honest picture of this well-proportioned country girl who reigned supreme as "America's First Lady of Song" throughout most of this century. This book is a real treat!

I approached this book with the purpose of obtaining enough information to facilitate a performance characterization of Miss Smith for a theatrical endeavor. I was to portray her in a concert setting, imitating her vocally and physically. What I found, to my delight, was a fond but honest look into the life of one of our most cherished national treasures. A look beyond the stage and into the heart, Mr.Hayes painstakingly entices us with detailed program dialogue, amusing anecdotes, personal moments shared with Kate, and private moments of personal pain she endured. I came away surprised, delighted, and absorbed in the life and career of Miss Kate Smith. It is a "must read" for any fan.