Little Miss Dynamite: The Life and Times of Brenda Lee

Book Description

In this candid autobiography, Lee recounts her astonishingly dramatic life, filled with early poverty, tragic deaths, a nonexistent childhood, a controlling manager, young elopement, illnesses, barely averted financial disaster, and one of show businesss most durable marriages. Brendas life has touched some of the most legendary names in the annals of entertainment, from Elvis Presley to Elton John. Its a tumultuous life, sprinkled with humour, heartache, and hope. And yet, the real story here is that she is in many ways an everywoman.

Customer Reviews:

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Brenda............2007-03-12

As the book cover clearly states, "Little Miss Dynamite" is about "the life and times of Brenda Lee". That it is, in fullest detail. And a certain amount of details are absolutely required since Brenda has had such a long, versatile and varied career. According to Billboard, BL had 29 Rock n' Roll chart songs from 1960-1967 and 19 Country hits from 1957-1985. None are listed as crossover hits, meaning this girl was truly and uniquely versatile. Age-wise, her chart success spans ages 13(!) to 41. Her touring life is far broader. She has fans around the world and may still be performing today. This reviewer clearly remembers Brenda on the late, lamented "American Bandstand" and the old "Dick Clark Show" on Saturday nights on ABC. Give yourself 10 points if you remember the sponsor! Her songs are easy to rate, but this written effort is far more difficult. BL met a lot of folks along the way, some decidedly more savory than others. She has been hurt by dishonest agents and cheated of royalties by record companies. She is no stranger to reinventing herself or picking herself up after a nasty professional fall. A girl obviously has to watch her back in the music world. Happily, her family life remained intact through it all. If there is a problem with LMD, it lies in the sheer heft of songs recorded, folks of all stripes encountered, friends gained, friends lost, concerts worked, grueling tours endured, back stabbings, betrayals, family pleasures, celebrities (lots!) and tidbits, tidbits and more tidbits. It's all a little wearying. The best solution here would have been for that proverbial stern, no nonsense editor with a sharp blue pencil to chop a solid 50 pages from the text. But those types don't exist anymore -and one of the co-authors is Brenda's daughter! How does one tell Mom she went overboard? Besides the length, LMD suffers from a constant upbeat, optimistic tone! Is BL REALLY such an optimist after what she has been through? For a rating, this reviewer is giving this hard working girl a break and rating LMD 4 stars, perhaps based on those "Bandstand" appearances when he was in the 7th grade. The best way to appreciate Brenda is not to read about her but to listen. Amazon has an ample selection of her alums. Especially recommended is "The Brenda Lee Story" which ably covers BLs wonderful rock years on Decca records. Listen to "Fool # 1" and become a Brenda convert.

The Story of a Child Prodigy..........2007-01-19

The cliché 'better late than never' holds much substance with me -- an avid reader and reviewer, and music lover -- as in my finally reading a book that has sat in boxes during residential moves, then sat on my bookshelves... until now. (The book was published in 2002 and it is now 2007!)

An energetic ball of fire... From the time she was a babe in a crib, Brenda Lee identified with music on the radio; by age two she was powerfully singing the lyrics -- all in tune and rhythm, without voice nor music lessons. By age six she was a TV regular; the family breadwinner by age ten; a national recording artist by age eleven; by twelve -- the youngest headliner to entertain Las Vegas audiences; rock 'n roll by fifteen, and largest-selling female performer by twenty-one. Red Foley, of TV's 'The Ozark Jubilee', became a friend and promoter, and she earned the moniker 'Little Miss Dynamite', making top recordings one after the other. It was the time of singles, of which Brenda Lee holds the largest hit numbers of all female recording artists. She writes of her agents, especially Dub Allbritten, who became a guardian on the road and off, and a father figure. Brenda refers to him as 'the Professor Higgins to my Eliza Doolittle'. When he said 'Jump', she'd say 'How High?'

She was entered into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, was a four-time Grammy Award contender, presented The Governors Award for Lifetime Achievement (Georgia), performed in the Legendary Ladies of Rock 'n Roll (a highly successful video taped at the Latin Quarter), named Nashville's Ambassador of Goodwill, among many other well-earned titles, with a vast, and I mean vaaaaaast... collection of songs....'Jambalaya', 'Sweet Nothin's', 'I'm Sorry', 'Johnny One Time', 'I Want to Be Wanted', 'Rock the Bop', 'One Step at a Time', 'Rockin' around the Christmas Tree', 'The Cowgirl and the Dandy' 'From Levi's to Calvin Klein Jeans'..... and so much more.... Loved by all and mentor to many, Brenda Lee writes of many recognizable names -- performers, and lyricists, along with a plenitude of songs and recordings. Brenda was/is popular in Italy, Holland, Japan, Sweden, Australia, United Kingdom, Turkey, Spain, and Russia -- to name a few, plus she sang and recorded in foreign languages phonetically, while learning fluent Japanese. In 1979, the report was fifty-six countries noted. She was adept as Jimmy Durante mimic; and one night after her show, he appeared behind stage, asked her to show the mimic routine, then presented her with his well-many times-many-years-worn hat. (She admits to immediately putting that treasure under glass.)

Brenda Lee writes of performers before her, during her, and after her appearance in the public eye. There's Grace Slick, Tanya Tucker, Patsy Cline, Janis Joplin, Elton John, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Kris Kristofferson, Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, Otis Redding, Sophie Tucker, Judy Garland, the Beatles, Tammy Wynette, George Jones, and those are 'just the tip of the iceberg'. Readers will recognize names from 'back then' to 'now'. She was born Brenda Mae Tarpley into Georgian poverty; her 'own backyard' became Nashville in her late twenties, a fall, and rise again. Married in her upper teens to Ronnie Shacklett, a boy she saw at a concert sitting on the other side, and he was so cute she sent him a note. Just like the person herself, Brenda Lee's biography is warm, sensitive, upbeat, even when there were lows. The book contains her written words, plus insertions -- quotes of other artists, friends, et al. The media called her 'Nashville's Song Magnet' with a vast arena of fans, followers, and friends.

With wit, and wisdom this tremendous talent writes, "When I'm done with a show, I look like I've played a football game. Ronnie says I glow. I say it's sweat. I would have done better in a performance video than trying to act in one. That never was my thing." I finally read Brenda Lee's book 'after all these years'; and she is one lady who has been and always will be in my heart! ..

Other recommendations: Tanya Tucker's NICKEL DREAMS: MY LIFE; JOHNNY CASH, THE SONGS edited by Don Cusic; CASH by Johnny Cash; and Gladys Knight's BETWEEN EACH LINE OF PAIN AND GLORY - MY LIFE STORY

little miss dynamite.......2007-01-18

The book itself is in very good shape. I have only read a quarter of the book at this time. I am a big fan of Brenda Lee, but find the book a little repetitive. I'm sure I will read the entire book in time, but I can only ready small portions at a time or I get bored.

Okay, but not a great book.......2006-12-13

Typical autobiography. There was some selective memory loss in this book, as I've read things in other books about Brenda that she omitted in this book. If you're a big Brenda Lee fan, read the book and you're probably enjoy it. If you not or are too busy, you won't miss anything.

Just misses the mark.......2005-07-25

This is a strange hybrid of a biography and an autobiography. There are a lot of quotes from other people about Brenda Lee, something you'd expect to find in a biography. You will certainly learn the basic facts of her early life, family, and career, but just the facts. Occasionally Lee does offer some personal insight or observation, but they are rare. Unfortunately, too much of the filler in this book is about the pop and music culture of the 1950s and 1960s with Brenda Lee only playing a part in it. I got the vague impression that Lee was kept so busy and preoccupied with her career during her formative years that she really doesn't remember it herself (she has two co-writers of her "autobiography"). To her loyal fans, Miss Lee can do no wrong, as evidenced by the gushing reviews they give her here; I like her music too but I don't think she had enough personal material to warrant an "autobiography."

Miss Julie and Other Plays (Oxford World's Classics)

Average customer rating:

sexual passion and social position
preferable for annotations, but a few minor problems

Miss Julie and Other Plays (Oxford World's Classics)
August Strindberg , and Michael Robinson
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0192833170

Book Description

The Father; A Dream Play; Miss Julie; The Ghost Sonata; The Dance of Death `Ibsen can sit serenely in his Doll's House,' Sean O'Casey remarked, `while Strindberg is battling with his heaven and his hell.' Strindberg was one of the most extreme, and ultimately the most influential theatrical innovators of the late nineteenth century. The five plays translated here are those on which Strindberg's international reputation as a dramatist principally rests and this edition embraces his crucial transition from Naturalism to Modernism, from his two finest achievements as a psychological realist, The Father and Miss Julie, to the three plays in which he redefined the possibilities of European drama following his return to the theatre in 1898. Michael Robinson's highly performable translations are based on the authoritative texts of the new edition of Strindberg's collected works in Sweden and include the Preface to Miss Julie, Strindberg's manifesto of theatrical naturalism. Introduction Textual Note Bibliography Chronology Explanatory Notes

Customer Reviews:

sexual passion and social position.......2004-07-11

I don't care that much for Strindberg's other plays, but I love "Miss Julie." This is one of my favorite plays, a very gripping and powerful drama about a male servant and his employer's spoiled daughter who plays games with him. She's all too aware of her superiority over him in this wealthy household and she loves to rub it in his face. However, her upper-class boredom leads her to spend time with the servant chatting away and killing time, and she doesn't realize that by interacting with him in such a casual and personal way, she's bringing herself more and more down to his social level. She feels trapped in her idle life of money and privilege, and he feels trapped in his badly paid lowly job. But she envies his freedom. Each has the exact opposite of what the other has, and each wants what the other has. Also, there is one other ingredient--they are both attracted to each other in this conflict between sexual passion and social position. This play was coldly received when it first came out in 1888 for its startling modernity. The antagonistic love-hate relationship it shows between the man and woman is refreshingly modern even today.

David Rehak
author of "Love and Madness"

preferable for annotations, but a few minor problems.......2003-06-01

I read The Father and the first part of Miss Julie in the University of California translation and then the rest of the plays in this one, and as far as I can tell neither seems more awkward than the other--but the Oxford translation holds the major advantage in that it contains copious notes on the many obscure literary and sociocultural references throughout the plays. I noticed that in at least some sections in the UC version the obscurities are ironed out (the English translation for "biblia pauperum" is incorporated into the text, and in The Father a reference to a book by an 18th century author unknown outside Sweden, unnecessary to the action, becomes "a book"), but there are many other cases where it is simply passed over without a mention. Granted, if you are buying a copy or multiple copies of the plays in order to perform them, it is unlikely that the references will be useful, but for those interested in a critical reading of them, the Oxford edition will undoubtedly be favorable. It is also mentioned that this edition draws off of the most recent versions of the original works being published as a set in Sweden, but since I have no knowledge of Swedish and there are no examples in either edition of the translation in progress, I can't really comment on that.

A minor point with the Oxford edition is that it seems very sloppily assembled at times, which is a bit surprising given the usual quality level in this series. For instance, the page-formatting was done inaccurately, so that whenever a parenthesis for a stage direction falls at the end of a line, it is cut off--and this occurs all throughout the book, not a crucial problem by any means, but just an unsettling indication of carelessness. There are also several spelling errors in the plays, and a couple misquotations in the annotations. Once again, these are not crucial flaws, but a little sloppiness can make the reader wonder what else was neglected which may have slipped past his awareness.

Overall, despite the flaws, this is the edition of Strindberg's major plays to have for a reader who is interested in not only performing but also studying the works.

Book Description

July 1945. A country house in England. Celebrations for the British Labour Party's election victory are in full swing.

The lady of the house, Miss Julie, descends into the servants' kitchen to seek out John, her father's chaffeur. A passionate midsummer night turns to tragedy as they test the limits of their new freedom.

Marber's After Miss Julie, a version of Strindberg's Miss Julie, received its world stage premiere at the Donmar Warehouse, London in November 2003.

Average customer rating:

Classism and sexism combined
"When gentry try to act common they become common."
Julia Gulia
Spiral
Mistress and servant

Miss Julie (Methuen Student Editions)
August Strindberg
Manufacturer: A&C Black
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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A Doll's House (Dover Thrift Editions)
Ghosts
The Wild Duck (Drama Classics)
The Cherry Orchard (Dover Thrift Editions)
Hedda Gabler (Dover Thrift Editions)

ASIN: 0413775828

Book Description

August Strindberg's masterpiece portrayal of the conflict between sexual passion and social position. Contains the full text, commentary, notes for students, a chronology of the author's life, and context of the play.

Customer Reviews:

Classism and sexism combined.......2007-03-06

How can this be a great "modern" playwright when
the views and themes of this major play have a better part
for the 17th century than the 20th?
I thought about it and if it was produced in San Francisco
even with it's respect for the arts, on merits
the play would be jeered.
Woody Allen thought that Strindberg hated women,
but I think he just lacked any understanding of them.

"When gentry try to act common they become common.".......2006-09-23

While keeping faith with August Strindberg's original intent, French's take on this classic repartee emphasizes the arguments used by the main characters in a subtle twisting of gender vs. class. There are three main characters: Miss Julie, daughter of a count; Jean, the count's manservant; and Kristin, the cook, who provides a dispassionate social commentary to the exchanges between Miss Julie and Jean, her rigid morality and sense of place indisputable.

From the start, Miss Julie, although from a superior class to the servants, is described by them as "emotionally unstable", her actions on Midsummer's Eve "inappropriate". Although she enjoys the distinction of her position, Miss Julie's power is tempered by the fact that she is female and given to behavior that simply is not perceived the same way as a male in a patriarchal society. In that sense, Miss Julie is destined to be the loser in any confrontation, regardless of the fact that Jean, her seducer, is a servant.

In a class-based world, the servants live strictly proscribed lives, their own hierarchy governed by acceptable and unacceptable mores. Jean is acutely aware of this state of affairs; although he is the culprit, giving into his male nature and taking advantage of Miss Julie's confusion and inexperience, it is she who suffers, she who is akin to a baby bird fallen from the nest with no instinct for survival.

Running the gamut of emotions, from desire to jealousy to dominance, Jean's behavior is all the more shocking for his blasé manipulation of the situation. Having had his satisfaction, he toys with his victim before falling back into the more comfortable role of manservant. It is Miss Julie who will be harshly judged by society, including the servant class who observes her activities with relish. This shocking social commentary exposes the fallacies of class and gender, acted out between two people who can bridge neither, their very humanity rendered irrelevant. Luan Gaines/2006.

Julia Gulia.......2006-07-29

This play was pretty entertaining all the way through. There's a bit of anti-woman propaganda in there, but everyone knows August Strindberg wasn't a big fan of women. Looking past that, the dialogue is great and the story is pretty interesting. These characters are actually three-dimensional and have a depth of feelings that would be great to see on stage. A good actor could really create an awesome piece with this play. Definitely recommend it as a quick read and there's a few monologues in there. A 20-25 year old woman could do a Miss Julie monologue, and a 25-35 year old man could do a Jean monologue. Check it out.

Spiral.......2004-01-23

Strindberg's classic play follows the downward spiral of an aristocratic young woman whose break-up with her fiancé is quite the talk of the estate. Miss Julie pursues her father's valet, and seduces him, without thought for the repercussions. Unfortunately for Julie, these consequences must be faced. Controversial at its debut, "Miss Julie" also was highly original in form and structure, and while its subject matter isn't as shocking today, the palpable drama does resonate.

Mistress and servant.......2002-10-03

"Miss Julie," by August Strindberg, is a play with three speaking parts: Miss Julie, a nobleman's daughter; Jean, a young valet; and Christine, a cook in the household. The Dover Thrift Edition version is translated by Edwin Bjorkman. A brief introductory note states that the play first appeared as a printed text in 1888, a year before its first staging.

The play's title character is bold and flirtatious; her behavior, unsurprisingly, leads to controversy. "Miss Julie" is a fascinating glimpse at a society that is rigidly ordered around class stratification, gender roles, and sexual conduct; the play looks at the consequences when people resist this rigid order. The play has some really startling, thought-provoking dialogue.

Book Description

Frank McGuinness presents scintillating new versions of two of August Strindberg's plays -- one a major work, the other less well known. Miss Julie is Strindberg's examination of power, sex, and class, set on a midsummer's eve in a nobleman's house and focusing on the shifting relationship between Miss Julie, the daughter of the house, and Jean, her father's manservant. The Stronger is a short play that explores the complex range of emotions felt by Madame X when she encounters Mademoiselle Y, her husband's former mistress, at a fashionable cafe. Calling Mademoiselle Y worn out and evil, Madame X says that the triumph of her marriage proves she is the stronger of the two -- even though these words ring hollow, as she attempts to deceive only herself.

Average customer rating:

Miss Julie and Other Plays
August Strindberg
Manufacturer: Boni and Liveright
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000KGC8LS

Patrick Marber Plays 1: Dealer's Choice / After Miss Julie/ Closer

Average customer rating:

A Must Read!
I love "Closer"
Excellent Buy
Defiantly worth it's price

Patrick Marber Plays 1: Dealer's Choice / After Miss Julie/ Closer

Manufacturer: A&C Black
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0413774279

Book Description

This first collection of plays by a major young British playwright includes the landmark Closer, which won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Foreign Play in 1999. Also here is his acclaimed Dealer's Choice, his treatment of the demons that drive compulsive gamblers, and After Miss Julie, his ingenious update of Strindberg's classic play.

Patrick Marber has written extensively for television and radio in the UK. His plays have won numerous awards.

Customer Reviews:

A Must Read!.......2006-08-04

I must admit I didn't know this play existed until the movie came out. The script does not dissapoint. For those of you that are into intense character development and gritty language - this is for you. Would be great to have for scene work, it includes scenes for 2 men, 2 women, 1 man and 1 woman. No great monologues throughout the entire book though.

I love "Closer".......2006-02-17

I have not yet read the other two plays, and I bought this book so I could do just that. However, "Closer" is so captivating to me and so satisfying in its complexity that I feel ok about giving the whole a 5 star rating even before I've read the others. This writer's ability to express the emotional depth of a variety of characters in one play and reveal how they all influence and are influenced by one another makes this a very stimulating read. The movie was wonderful as well. I don't think I like one over the other.

Excellent Buy.......2005-09-09

To be perfectly honest, I bought this book to read "Closer", after having seen the movie, which I loved. It was really intriguing to see a movie based on a play, as an avid theatre-goer. You can tell that the movie was based on a stage production, just because it relies almost entirely on text, as opposed to the other production elements. There are almost no blank spaces of silence in this movie! But that's not why I'm here...the play was every bit as raw and filthy as the movie. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Marbers other plays, Dealer's Choice and After Miss Julie, were of equal quality, and offered something surprisingly different from his other text (a rarity in today's theatre world). I do suggest reading the book front to back, to get a grasp of his style...the text is so readable (even for people who tend to read only prose).

Dealer's Choice - This play follows several men who meet up to play poker every once in awhile. What should be a simple game between them holds such higher relevance, which we learn as the play progresses. As another reviewer posted before, Marber has mastered time flow with this piece. The characters are believable, and play off of each other with such ease.

After Miss Julie - Being a youngun who hasn't even read the original "Miss Julie", I has reservations that I might not understand the characters or storyline at all in this one. I was proven wrong, of course, as this story of passion and greed jumps off the page and brings you right into the scene. The text is really vivid with this, and carries such an elegant theme to it, which makes the fall of this elegance so much more brutal and fun to read. I love the play on societal differences that this plot brings out, the dominant and the submissive. Very engaging.

Closer - The character work in this is brilliant, as well as the pace. Marber has such remarkable ease with the character interactions, given such a complex and fast moving storyline. There is nothing unneccessary, but it moves along slowly enough for you to grasp every image, and idea. A couple of scenes that were excluded from the movie were a nice surprise, as well as a plot twist at the end that was only suggested in the movie, if that. Never before have I read a scene in a play and felt as though I should read it aloud. Doing so gave me shivers. Brilliant for actors looking for ruthless, energetic text that rolls off the tongue. Though the characters fall is shatttering and devastating, the play is beautiful and satisfying in the end.

Overall, I completely recommend this text, for people just getting into playreading, or avid readers. Can't wait to see more of what Marber can bring to the table.

Defiantly worth it's price.......2005-01-07

The Book it's self is of average quality. Nothing special about the binding, I don't think it could last more than 5 years with normal use.

Patrick Marber is a novice play right but one with so much natural talent he seems like a seasoned pro at times. Dealer's choice has never been on my hit list but I have admired his rendition of Miss Julie in his After Miss Julie. Closer is the crown jewel of this collection. Witty and honest portray of how people choice to mess up their relationships. The book is in chronological order, going for his first play Dealers Choice to After Miss Julie then ending with Closer. If you read the book straight through you can see his writing style mature from dealer's choice and eventually peak in Closer. The intro and forward are nothing to brag about and might as well not be included. If you're looking to get this book cause you saw the movie version of closer then I recommend it. The movie is almost a exact replica of the play with just a few location changes and some scenes deleted. The character Alice isn't so sympathetic in the play but just as vulnerable and endearing.

The material speaks for itself really. Patrick Marber is a brilliant playwright and I look forward to any future material he produces.

Plays One: The Father, Miss Julie, The Ghost Sonata (Methuen World Dramatists Series)

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Plays One: The Father, Miss Julie, The Ghost Sonata (Methuen World Dramatists Series)
August Strindberg
Manufacturer: Methuen Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0413521605

Average customer rating:

August Strindbergs Miss Julie ; A Study
Nandita Sinha
Manufacturer: Asia Book Club
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 817851026X

Babybug, Vol. 3 No. 6 (From the publishers of Ladybug, Volume 3,Number 6)

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Babybug, Vol. 3 No. 6 (From the publishers of Ladybug, Volume 3,Number 6)
Clara Vulliamy , Julie Peterson , Sheryl Ann Crawford , "Miss Jackie" Silberg , Janis E. Schmoll , and Barbara Ann DePaoli
Manufacturer: Carus Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IZU58Y

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