Arts and Entertainment Books

Great read on the life and career of actor McGraw. With TCM on cable and the glut of DVD's now in circulation, the accessibility to old movies has never been better. McGraw's viscerally gripping performances have always stood out to me, and after reading this fine book I realize I'm not alone. If you can't afford the book, borrow the jack.

Charles McGraw: Biography of a Film Noir Tough Guy (McFarland) relates the startling life of the memorable character actor against the backdrop of the old Hollywood studio system through anti-trust divestiture and the rise of television into the modern era of filmmaking.

Rode examines McGraw's lengthy acting career that began when he hitchhiked to New York at the height of the Great Depression and landed a key role in the hit play Golden Boy alongside such Group Theatre luminaries as Luther Adler, John Garfield and Elia Kazan.

With his rough hewn profile, stocky build and guttural growl, Rode explains how Charles McGraw's acting ushered in a new post war era of authentic screen toughness. After getting his big break from producer Mark Hellinger in The Killers (1946), McGraw parlayed subsequent roles into a starring contract at RKO in 1950.

Rode writes about the evolution of RKO Studios as the "Capital of Noir" dating back to Citizen Kane (1941), the Val Lewton pictures and other classic films including Crossfire, Out of the Past and Blood on the Moon. Rode explains that the distinctive RKO style was more the result of extraordinarily talented cinematographers, such as Nicholas Musaraca, and RKO craft department experts than any specific directorial auteur.

Rode also details the destruction of RKO Studios as a major filmmaking entity due to the bizarre behavior of Howard Hughes who bought the studio in 1948. Even though Charles McGraw would star in acclaimed second features such as The Threat, Armored Car Robbery and The Narrow Margin, and was hailed as the next Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas, he was forced to vacate his contract in 1952 in order to find work as a freelance actor.

As chronicled by Rode, Charles McGraw's hard-won success during the mid-1950's, appearing in The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1956) and starring in two television series, became dissipated by the actor's nihilistic life-style. McGraw's long-term drinking problem resulted in a life filled with promise gradually morphing into a noir-stained tragedy.

Rode documents McGraw's tumultuous personal life from his earliest days in Ohio, his long term marriage with a Eurasian beauty, being stalked by the FBI for alleged Communist ties, through his cinematic comeback in In Cold Blood to his bizarre death. He writes with great detail and passion about an era of stuntmen, cowboys and other irrepressible characters that lived and worked in Studio City, California when the town had a movie studio, a stoplight, and more than a few bars.

We see Charles McGraw as a superb acting craftsman who was a beloved Damon Runyon character, dubbed as "King Charles", but who was actually an inwardly nervous man whose angst was deliberately obscured by the tall tales, bravado and barroom camaraderie.

Alan K. Rode gives us an intimate biography of a familiar, yet heretofore obscure actor, a wonderful narrative history of Hollywood and an incisive look at the evolution of the film noir style.

By: Tommy Garrett, Editor, Canyon News in Beverly Hills
[...]

Being an historian of Hollywood and films, I am always amazed when I run across a great read, as I recently did with McFarland Publishing's "Charles McGraw: Biography of a Film Noir Tough Guy." It was written by fellow historian of Hollywood and fellow author, Alan K. Rode (though I don't consider myself a writer in this man's league). The foreword was by Jim Steranko. Being an avid reader, I found myself engrossed in a story about a film tough guy that I had enjoyed in my youth. Being a fan of film noir, I cannot remember any actor who was cast so perfectly for this genre. And after reading this book, I cannot think of another author better prepared to write about McGraw.


Photo of Charles McGraw. Courtesy of Alan K. Rode.

My favorite McGraw film was "Blood on the Moon." Rode has a very extensive collection of photographs of the actor, both candid and action packed. I was pleased to see a still of the actor from this film. But reading the book, I found myself mystified by some of the new things that I learned about Charles McGraw. The word "spellbinding" is an appropriate way to describe the style of writing and the way Rode entices the reader to continue chapter after chapter.

McFarland Publishing always puts together great books for the educational oriented reader, but in hatching this story, they are now on a new publishing level. The iconic actor Charles McGraw appeared in over 140 roles on film and television, including the classic noir pictures "The Killers" 1946 and "The Narrow Margin" 1952. The man became an incredible presence on the screen whenever he was cast in a role and worked with some of the most beautiful ladies in Hollywood. McGraw was not a pretty boy, his looks were rugged and grizzled many say, but he was the master of making us feel fear and shock with the bat of an eye.

Author Alan K. Rode chose to emphasize the impact this actor had on the movie industry, especially that of noir. He describes and explains the actor's long career with detail and perfection. The book is exhaustively researched by Rode, who interviewed many surviving friends, intimates, close acquaintances and co-workers. McGraw's tumultuous personal life is detailed with great detail and the extensive biography is hard to put down. And for those who would like to see some previously unpublished film stills and personal photos, this tome is for you.

While reading this book, certain chapters stand out, including Bright Boy Gets a Break, The Other side of the Hill and Single Actor, Needs Work. But every page of this book is incredible in it's depth of research, showcasing Rode's impressive style of writing. Even down to the actor's tragic accidental death, this book never fails to capture the attention of the reader. Rode is able to hit the high and low points of the actor's life and career with such amazing detail, you can envision it as you are reading it. This is a talent few writers have, and Rode employs it at the best points in the book, where he's intentionally trying to get your interest. He held my interest all the way through.

When asked, why he had decided to write about this great star, Rode responded, "Serendipity and timing. After a happenstance meeting with McGraw's last significant other in 2002, we became close friends. Her numerous stories combined with my other research on McGraw, film noir and Old Hollywood struck me as a story I wanted to tell. I started it around my other work and then went to work on it full time in November 2005."

Here's hoping that Alan K. Rode publishes even more books on other lesser known stars of the past who made an enormous impression on film noir fans.

Actually, we called him "Fatty". When I was a kid in the 1950's our small town theater still showed the old westerns on Sat. When we played cowboys one of us would have to be "Fatty". It was usually a neighbor boy named Teddy ,who could have whupped us in real life but didn't mind playing the bad guy and getting beat up in our pretend fist fights. The book is great and well researched. God bless Mr. Copeland for his good work.

Unquestionably, author Bobby J. Copeland has filled in a gap in B-Movie western film scholarship with this sketchy but insightful look at the life of a veteran badman who mixed it up with some of the greats in B-Movie western circles. The biggest problem with Copeland's book is simply the dearth of information about Charlie King. I wasn't around when B-Movie westerns galloped across the silver screen like the shaggy buffalo that once roamed the western plains. Nevertheless, I have been watching these art-ifacts with great interest and Charlie King is one of the unsung cowboy bad guys. If you get around to watching these novelty items from the past, Charlie King throws a long shadow over the B-movie westerns. Copeland's book isn't so much the work of an objective cinematic scholar, but he does answer many questions about the little known life of King. Deplorably, Charlie King emerges as a pathetic figure behind-the-scenes. According to Copeland's research, King was an alcoholic who borrowed money from his friends but rarely repaid them; his wife would accompany him to the studio to pick up his paycheck before he drank it away. As sad as these revelations are to learn about this fabulous character actor, "Charlie King: We Called Him 'Blackie'" stands as a tribute to one of the top heavies in the B-Western business. Copeland's filmography of King is useful; this actor appeared in 300 B-movie westerns. Wherever Charlie King is now, he would be grateful to know that this nifty little tome qualifies as a tribute to a badman. Mind you, this isn't an exercise in scholarship with footnotes galore, but it's the nuggets of information that make it a useful contribution to field of criticism that sorely lacks substance. I doubt that this brief biography can be surpassed and I know that it cannot be overlooked by serious B-Movie western history. Anybody that wants to catch up on the life and times of B-Movie cowboys will get their money's worth out of this unique text.

When you think of great badman in films during the '30s and '40s, hands down the name is "Blackie" alias Charlie King. In fact author Bobby J. Copeland's latest book is titled "Charlie King - We called him "Blackie", comprehensive in depth behind the scenes of the baddest of the badmen. We saw him through the eyes of such heroes as Buster Crabbe, Johnny Mack Brown, Buck Jones, Ken Maynard, Dave O'Brien, Tex Ritter and Bob Steele. Bob Steele and Blackies fight scenes were a joy to watch, classic moves that actually looked so real ~ you could feel the punch in the fifth row where I was sitting.

Copeland takes the reader into the life and times of King through sections ~ Where Are The Ashes?, How Many Times Did Charlie Play "Blackie"?, Some of Charlie's Classic Moments, They Worked with Charlie King, They're Writing About Charlie King, The Fans Speak Up for Charlie, Conclusion, Charles King's Sound Filmography, King's Silent Features, Index of Film Companies, Photo Gallery, About the Author as we salute one of the premiere B-Western badmen.

This book includes so many great photos. Also the truth about Charlie's death...including his death certificate...comments by noted Western Film Historians...remarks by co-workers...writers' opinions of Charlie's acting and his career...Cowboys with whom he worked...studios that employed him...filmography. King also worked in silent films, may have also appeared as an extra in the 1915 film "The Birth of a Nation"...if you have a copy look for Charlie. Charlie King certainly left us with many wonderful memories up there on the big screen. One of the great scene stealers, as he got heavier he looked tougher and more menacing. I would put Charlie King up there with Roy Barcroft and Harry Woods...who is number one, is a toss up. Oh, I'm one of the lucky fans who had my book autographed by the author Bobby J. Copeland, gotta love it!

Total Pages: 112 ~ Empire Publishing Inc #0-944019-40-4 ~ (1/31/2003)

In this remarkable memoir, Gus Lee presents a clear and compassionate picture of his parents, grandparents and their 'clans' set in turbulent times. He brings alive the social, historical, religious and cultural context which informs their actions and reactions making them comprehensible to a reader with a totally different cultural viewpoint. It reads like a multi-generational adventure novel where the characters play parts in or are impacted by major events, from the Taiping rebellion through the British opium trade to the civil wars that raged from the early twentieth century through the brutal Japanese occupation in WWII. It is a wild ride and a great read. Gus presents his forbears and related characters warts and all, but always with great compassion and subtlety. There are no cardboard characters. Readers of his novels, which have a strong autobiographical base, particularly 'China Boy', will know what a hard childhood he endured with a stern and distant father, a mother prone to 'magical' beliefs who died when he was five, and a rigid, vindictive step mother. In this memoir, Gus reveals to us what he subsequently discovered about his parents and he honors them both. Gus's own life has been a testament to using adversity to build strength. He has wasted no time blaming, or scoring points off his parents or using his experiences to excuse failings in his own life. There is no 'poor me' here. His story helped me understand a completely different belief system and cultural perspective. And it was at times moving, at other times funny, but always interesting.

Get ready to give up your weekend because once you pick up this book you won't be able to put it down. Lee's dramatic descriptions cover the conflicts between historical Eastern and Western traditions woven into poignant family events. While his relatives and their antics seem quirky and particular, in fact they resonate with all families facing abrupt changes and adaptation --be they generational or cultural. For those who have read and loved China Boy and Honor and Duty, Chasing Hepburn gives us the pre-story we've all been wondering about.

Get ready to give up your weekend because once you pick up this book you won't be able to put it down. Lee's dramatic descriptions cover the conflicts between historical Eastern and Western traditions woven into poignant family events. While his relatives and their antics seem quirky and particular, in fact they resonate with all families facing abrupt changes and adaptation --be they generational or cultural. For those who have read and loved China Boy and Honor and Duty, Chasing Hepburn gives us the pre-story we've all been wondering about.

Don Cherry is one of our better vocalists: comfortable in the same links as Perry Como, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby and other top-notch performers.

Speaking of links, Don has also served his time as a professional golfer.

This book reflects the real talent and determination of this good ol' boy from Wichita Falls, Texas. Whether you are a fan of his music, his golf-swing ... or both ... you'll enjoy every page.

Lots of attention grabbing references to some of the most popular names in entertainment are found here. Don knew all of them on a first-name basis and presents his various thoughts about them as "smooth-and-easy" as he handles a 9-iron.

Don Cherry deserves a "standing ovation" for this perfectly constructed book.

Super great book. A lot of things happened in professional golf in the 60's and 70's. This book brings a accurate outlook. A great golfer that was over looked by the hughness of Palmer, Nicklaus and Player. Also the fact this great golfer had another profession. I can't think of another great golfer than had another profession where you could make a lot of money from their talent.
Sincerely, Carl Welty

Don Cherry is the guy who has led the life you wish you could have. It's a terrific rags to riches story but with incredible and great stories along his journey. Don Cherry would have to be added to your fantasy list of people you'd like to have dinner with one day.

I highly recommend this book - it's a great read for all ages.

This book is an extraordinarily thorough and well-written account of Ang Lee's career. Anybody interested in the director's work would be fascinated to read it. I highly recommend it.

This scholarly treatise of director Ang Lee by Whitney Crothers Dilley is a thoroughly engaging, in-depth study of this iconic and enigmatic filmmaker. Logically organised and richly researched, The Cinema of Ang Lee shows great insight on the many influences which impacted Mr. Lee's directorial vision: born in Taiwan, to parents who escaped Mainland China following the 1949 Civil War, his cultural identity further diluted when he came to the U.S. at age 23 in his yearning to break free of parental control to pursue his artistic and cinematic dreams.

Ms. Crothers Dilley astutely shows us that Ang Lee's directorial range cannot be confined to a single culture or genre, and while films such as Eat Drink Man Woman, Sense and Sensibility, The Ice Storm, and Hulk appear to be thematically disparate, common threads course throughout his filmography. Globalisation / cultural identity, family ritual, intergenerational conflict, dialogue-free visual metaphors, cultural codes of behavior, and above all the inherent diaspora brought to bear stemming from his personal history bring a unique perspective to each of his films.

Serious students of film as well as casual fans of Ang Lee's body of work will love this book. Take the time to go on a wonderful journey as each film is dissected in order to find, in Ang Lee's words, "'The Juice', the thing that moves people, the thing that is untranslatable by words".

This is must reading for film buffs.

This book is no less than a terrific synopsis of Ang Lee's life and filmmaking motivations plus a thorough review of the common themes that surprisingly link Lee's amazingly diverse films.

Whitney Crothers Dilley's much-anticipated book provides the first in-depth look at one of the most heralded creative film directors still active today. A true auteur, Ang Lee has taken on the challenge of almost all the classic film genres and done them all marvelously.


From his early Taiwanese-themed social comedies through his Chinese/American and American and even British mainstream films to The Hulk (his only commercial failure) to the colossal last two released films, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Brokeback Mountain, no film director has ever generated an oeuvre of such range.


With a new Ang Lee film in yet a new genre coming out later this year (this time a film noir set in 1940's Shanghai), The cinema of Ang Lee ... the other side of the screen is the perfect read for all the relevant background on this astonishing director before seeing it.

Such a strange,obnoxious and fiercely independent man with an unbelievable story that is told in scrupulously researched details, but is as readable as a novel.A BIG piece of the Elvis puzzle and an inside into southern americana circa first half of the twentieth century.
Highly recommended!!

If you're interested in Colonel Thomas Andrew Parker, this is THE book for you. This story took years and many man-hours of exhaustive research to bring to fruition. By now, most Elvis fans are well aware that Parker was an illegal Dutch immigrant by the name of Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk. But until now, relatively little was known of his life in the 'old country.' We learn that a woman was brutally murdered in Parker's hometown in Holland on the very day of his disappearance. Did he commit the dastardly deed and abscond to America? Of course, we'll never know, but it's an interesting theory, nonetheless. It appears that the old boy may have been asexual. If so, this might explain his aversion to being touched. Though Parker earned mega-millions during his lifetime, he left behind a relatively modest estate. Of course, the same can be said of Elvis. Parker's addiction was gambling, while Elvis simply overspent on virtually everything.They were both masters at profligate spending. The Colonel seemed to possess a "Jekyll/Hyde" personality, displaying acts of kindness and generosity to loyalists and cruelty to others. The Eddy Arnold years are very interesting indeed. Parker and Eddy were opposites, and Parker's taste for ostentation sometimes clashed with Eddy's more conservative tastes. The story of Parker moving in with the Arnolds is hilarious. Alanna Nash is a very gifted writer and unless I'm mistaken, this is her third Elvis-related book. "Revelations" is still the best Elvis book I've ever read. I've never had the pleasure of reading the Alan Fortas book, which I believe she ghost-authored, though I hear it's excellent. Her latest book is an intriguing read which I finished in one day. I simply couldn't put it down. The phrasing, the meticulous research and the fascinating enigma that was Tom Parker all come together quite nicely. Buy this book. I promise you'll like it.

The title including the word "Extraordinary" is fully justified. I thought this book would be a "dishing the dirt" epic on Parker but it turns out to be a very well researched lifetime biography of the Colonel's life and not just his involvement with Elvis.

The well told story is of a man who from poor beginnings in Holland was involved in a murder there and forced to flee to the USA at an early age. He then spent his life as an illegal immigrant with that dark secret.

His early struggles with poverty in the 1930s and 1940s including being discharged from the army with mental illness, sets the scene for a man who revitalised his childhood fascination with fairs and carnivals, which were a major circus in the Americas of that period. All the man's later business cunning and marketing skills were learnt in that "carny" environment of deceit, overstatement, advance promotion and getting the cash in any deal as soon as possible to survive. He clearly retained a soft spot for this teaching ground all his life.

His first major music involvement came with country star Eddy Arnold who he fell out with when Arnold found him doing personal side deals. With no real appreciation of music ever, he became aware of the early Elvis and the storm he was creating in the South and took control under an initial contract that fully reflected Parker's approach all his time in managing Elvis of keeping it simple and balanced in his favour.

The view established by the book is that while the Colonel (a title obtained by politial hucksterism and not from his army days) always looked after Number One and was continually doing side deals that personally benefitted him not his client, the usual Elvis fan's view of the Colonel being a parasite is certainly challenged-

- the fan mania developed across 1956 and subsequent years including manipulation of the RCA label and TV was unprecedented and owed a lot to the flair of Parker to do things differently in the face of others historic approach to how to promote pop stars;

- Elvis's enlisting into army service and his "protected" life in Germany plus a controlled keeping in the public eye across those years may owe more to the manipulation of Parker;

- the much derided series of Elvis movies in the 1960s together with their hit singles and dross LPs may in retrospect have actually protected Elvis from live performance and a decline in popularity esp. with the advent of the Beatles plus given his lifelong poor approach to financial matters kept him earning a steady stream of income in that period;

- the return to live performance while driven by Elvis was taken to a new level by Parkers' approach to concert promotion, both in Las Vegas and across the USA.

However, the book does not flinch from the downsides of the man's personality and approach to business, especially his endless paranioa, bullying and control by fear over all those who worked with him; his ensuring limited access and opportunities being shown to Elvis by others (notably his failing to allow his development as an actor in serious roles); his Las Vegas deals fuelled by his increasing addiction to gambling and not Elvis's best interests at the hands of the casinos, and due to his illegal immigrant status his unwillingness to ever allow foreign tours by Elvis which in the later years could have been major revenue earners for him.

The sad conclusion is that Parker given his personality always saw himself as the person in charge and Elvis his instrument and that Elvis's success and earnings were down to the Colonel's skills and negotiations not Elvis's talents. The reality demonstrated endlessly is that Elvis and his family (especially his father) were never going to challenge Parker, given their lack of financial acumen and extravangant spending laid them open to continual manipulation. Parker in turn given his personality was unable to help as Elvis's deline under drugs gathered pace and the inevitable happened.

The post Elvis years show a man who was still driven by the self benefitting deal and his manipulation of the Elvis estate, with the sad endgame as he gambled ceaslessly of a man who earned an estimated $100 million plus from his relationship with Elvis but at death had less than a million dollars in assets.

This is by far the best rock management biography that I have ever read.

Colored Lights: Forty Years of Words and Music, Show Biz, Collaboration, and All That Jazz An absolutely fascinating look into the hearts and minds and working habits of two men who contributed so much to the American Theater over the last half century. Fred Ebb is no longer with us, so we can be truly thankful that he and John Kander collaborated on this book while he was still alive. As a songwriter myself, I always find such memoirs interesting and valuable.

As the song says, start spreading the news -- this memoir in dialogue form by John Kander and Fred Ebb really is a surprising gem. I didn't expect to enjoy a book that is mainly conversation but I went through it in one sitting (on a flight from NY to LA) and didn't want it to end. These two geniuses of musical theater are totally engaging, and their breezy dialogue is often as provocative (and sometimes hilarious) as their best musicals and songs. It's like being in the same room with the two of them and having a chance to eavesdrop on their wry insights into the shows and various personalities they've worked with, including Liza Minnelli, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Lauren Bacall, Bob Fosse, Shirley McLaine, and Anthony Quinn.

The anecdotes in the book, even the dishiest ones, are told with wit and intelligence, and without the usual celebrity tell-all pretensions. Kander and Ebb come across as two very different personalities as collaborators, yet both seem very earthy and wise about life and show business. Anyone who was wowed by Chicago or Cabaret will be delighted by their reminiscences. And there are some surprising revelations, like the fact that their biggest hit, "New York, New York," would never have been written if it hadn't been for Robert Deniro, who they say disapproved of their first version of the song and made them rewrite it for him. I was also surprised by the down-to-earth side of Liza Minnelli that comes across in the Introduction -- not at all like her usual media image. This book is like a little play itself, and what a great way to experience forty years of Broadway history and backstage lore. Definitely, a unique'must read' for theater lovers.

Good for Greg Lawrence for facilitating this oral history ad thinking of the right questions to get these two chatterboxes off and running, to the races! Lawrence wrote an OK biography of Jerome Robbins, and an as told to "by" Gelsey Kirkland which was good, but this book is terrific fun. The only thing is, aren't Kander and Ebb a couple? Or was that something they didn't want to talk about? Maybe they're not, who knew! But discussion of their personal lives is totally not on the menu here. Maybe after they are dead the whole story will come out. They tell some great stories here about working with Bob Fosse, maybe the best sustained account available of the great choreographer's ambitions, dreams, desires, and mania. I like the way that Liza Minnelli and Harold Prince also jump in to give their two cents here and there from the bleachers. It's a technique you often see in journalism, and here it works just fine. Liza is subject #1 of Kander and Ebb's discussions. They are always trying to make her look good, or rather to bring her natural talents to the fore. But in doing so they paint a picture of a talented actress who was thwarted by the commercial failure of THE RINK and therefore never tried to be anything but "just Liza" again, and being "just Liza" is pretty messed up what with having a mother who tried to take over her life in a drunken haze and at least one boyfriend (Martin Scorsese) who attempted to direct a whole show for her (THE ACT) via Moviola. Kander and Ebb also discuss writing for Lauren Bacall and the differences that affected WOMAN OF THE YEAR when Raquel Welch came in and replaced Bacall. It's all very illuminating and will make you laugh out loud as well. Their post mortems for their flops THE RINK and STEEL PIER, which they consider among their best shows, are not convincing, but their account of work with a sour kvetching Frank Sinatra and a controlling Barbra Streisand have the bitter ring of truth. This is not a particularly light-hearted book but I think anyone who's interested in musical theater will get a charge out of it.

I wish there had been more in it about the mysterious ingenue Jill Haworth who, after a strong of movies for Otto Preminger, took the Sally Bowles part in CABARET and got crucified for it--and had a "thing" with Sal Mineo (!!!) -- and then left show business. She is one of the most intriguing personalities of the 1960s and Kander and Ebb mention her only briefly (though very sympathetically).

El alma no desaparece con la ausencia del cuerpo. Las hermosas palabras de Soraya reverberan con la belleza que sólo su corazón es capaz de impregnarle a la vida. Este libro respira su luz, su necesidad de vivir al máximo y su deseo de que el resto del planeta lo hiciera. Su sinceridad es el hilo conductor de cada idea y es esta honestidad la que llega tan dentro a quien lo lee. ¡¡Simplemente, precioso:)!!

This is a tremendously inspiring book about Hispanic-American singer-songwriter Soraya, who lost her life to breast cancer at age 37, in 2006. It's an incredibly inspiring memoir that has broken records for Spanish-language books. It is now available to order in English, with 100 extra pages of memories, filled with pictures and stories told by friends, family and fellow musicians. Through this alternate story we learn things the humble Soraya would not have said: that in the final years of her life she became a world-class humanitarian, and that she was one heck of a musician. Enjoy. Soraya: A Life of Music, A Legacy of Hope

A veces nos quejamos de un simple malestar o porque el dia por una tonteria no nos haya salido bien, pero una vez uno lee este libro, aparte de que cuando empiezas a leerlo no lo puedes dejar, es una gran enseñanza de que las cosas pequeñas que nos enfrentamos cada día son bien insignificantes. Hay que tener mucha fe y valor para pasar por lo que pasó Soraya y a la misma vez continuar viendo la vida de la maner que ella lo hizo. Este libro me enseño a que hay que darle la importancia a las cosas que realmente la tienen y dejarnos de darle importancia a las tonterias que nos pasan dia a dia. Lo recomiendo 100%, si todos actuaramos de la manera que ella lo hizo, poniendo su ejemplo en las cosas que nos toca vivir todos los dias, creo que tendriamos un mundo mejor. Que pena que personas como ella, de tanta fe y tanta perseverancia, tengan que dejarnos, quizas porque de esta manera han cumplido su proposito en la vida y nosotros podamos seguir su ejemplo. Gracias mil por este legado de esperanza.

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 .

I loved this book! I became a little girl again with eyes wide open in awe of my heroes - Roy and Dale. Cheryl is very honest about the fun, the hectic schedules, the grief over the loss of her siblings, her rebellious nature in an innocent way, the strengths and weaknesses of her well-known parents who raised their family well, loved them dearly, lived a honorable life and had a lot of adventures in the way. Where the fans viewed Roy and Dale as super heroes ... Cheryl presents them as parents. I highly recommend this book!

who enriched our lives over five decades.

Cheryl Rogers Barnett has truly written a memoir full of Love, Respect, and Admiration for her late parents, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. She writes of the people they were, before she was born, the circumstances of her adoption - yes, Cheryl was adopted by Roy and his first wife - and growing up in the Rogers-Evans* (Roy's first wife died while Cheryl was still a young pre-adolescent child, Dale lovingly took her on as her own) household. Roy, bless his soul, was in many ways, a real cowboy who eschewed the Hollywood lifestyle and could live in the great outdoors - in fact one of their early homes out at Lake Hughes was in a wooded setting - with rattlesnakes! Knowing that this wouldn't work, Roy moved in closer to Los Angeles, but always made sure that his children were grounded and did not have airs about them.

Barnett writes about her growing-up in the Rogers-Evans household, and in reading it one kind of wishes that too were put of a family that truly lived by the Cowboy Code. Roy and Dale were among the kindest folks one could ever meet, and I sure wish I did. Both Roy and Dale were unfailing kind and considerate to most people they met. It speaks volumes that in the one instance Roy ever got angry at fans was when they chose to want to visit him on the day they were burying Cheryl's little sister, Robin, and only AFTER these uncouth and rude people insisted in visiting him, having no consideration for the grief of the family.

She writes of the wonder horse Trigger, of how George "Gabby" Hayes was as different in real life as he was in the movies. Gabby, bless him, was a trained Shakespearian actor who was more accustomed to wearing tweed suits than a bandana and chaps - still, he too made the roles his very own. There are the Hollywood stories and vignettes of growing up knowing John Wayne and so many other Western heroes and other television and movie celebs, written straightforward, (the reader will never have the feeling that this book is a gossipy read) of Nudie the Famous Rodeo Tailor whom Roy helped to get established in Hollywood, and finally of the last decades when Roy and Dale, seeing how different Hollywood had become (mid-1960s), chose to move out to Apple Valley, and live out their lives there.

Throughout it all, Roy and Dale always gave deep love to the people they knew, and encouraged their children to be the best and fine folks in their own right(after learning she was adopted, Cheryl underwent a quest to learn about her real parents, with Roy and Dale supporting her every way). With the happiness there were the tragedies, first Robin, then the young son who died serving in the U.S. Army, and the adopted daughter from Korea, killed in a senseless road accident. Throughout it all, Roy and Dale's faith in God was never unwavering and was always solid. They lived the true meaning of the Cowboy and Cowgirl Codes.*

*(on their very last record together, Roy, Dale and son Dusty recorded a song written by two great friends of mine, Chris Hillman and Steve Hill entitled: "God's Plan" ...that pretty well sums up the honest and rich meaning of the lives they lived.

A warm memoir of a time when the tinsel Cowboys were so very much real - and real people too, unlike the sad imitation that Hollywood has become these days. Thank you, Cheryl Rogers-Barnett for a heartwarming read, and for signing my Roy Rogers-Dale Evans lunchpail in Wickenburg, Arizona last April.

Cowboy Princess: Life With My Parents Roy Rogers And Dale Evans is Cheryl Rogers-Barnett's true story of growing up as the daughter of "the King of Cowboys" and "the Queen of the West", whose popular exploits on movies and TV captivated the nation. Joy, the gruelling demands of the entertainment industry, the terrible loss of three siblings, and the lively personalities of those who shared their lives with Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, and Cheryl Rogers-Barnett fill this highly readable and personal account. Highly recommended for fans of Roy Rogers and the western movies of yesteryear.