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Out With the Stars: Hollywood Nightlife in the Golden Era
Jim Heimann
Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0896595722 |
Customer Reviews:
A Real Treasure!.......2004-06-27
This is one of those books I can't recommend highly enough if you love old Hollywood or the flamboyant architecture and graphic design of Hollywood in the 20's - 50's. I picked it up on a cut-out table in New York about 10 years ago and have come to appreciate it as one of the best books in my library - in fact it's one of those books that is always getting borrowed from friends who are graphic designers or work at ad agencies looking for inspiration.
Jim Heimann deserves much praise for assembling what is obviously a huge labor of love with lots of great photos and illustrations that you will never see anywhere else - everything from cocktail napkins and matchbooks to beautiful interior photography and paparazzi pics of the stars at play.
Also I'd like to disagree with the review - I actually found the writing in the book to be pretty engaging. It's fairly straightforward and to the point., luckily since there is a lot of history to cover.
Anyway it's an amazing book that I would highly recommend.
Book Description
Slavoj Zizek, dubbed by the Village Voice "the giant of Ljubljana," is back with a new edition of his seriously entertaining book on film, psychoanalysis (and life). His inimitable blend of philosophical and social theory, Lacanian analysis, and outrageous humor are here made to show how Hollywood movies can explain psychoanalysis-and vice versa. Why does the phallus appear? Why is woman a symptom of man? Why are there always two fathers? These typical Zizek questions are explained by means of such films as Marnie and The Man Who Knew Too Much.
Customer Reviews:
the point?.......2004-07-17
"I cannot weigh in an estimation of the value of this book. Surely, it is not as profoundly useful or clear as Zizek's political and philosophical thriller, Ticklish Subject. Yet, the application of Zizek's critical arsenal to Hollywood without the baggage of Politics and History, makes room for exposition through, sad to say, a universal and more immediate medium." Here's a statement that completely misses not only the point but the importance of Zizek. Ofcourse, in an era of achedemics and 'intellectual'-types complacently spiteful to popular culture as the anti-shakespeare (christ?), this isn't surprising.
elevator music piped upwind.......2003-03-28
Clarity of language and argument one finds, some feel, rarely in current theoretical writing or in psychoanalytic writing. Here Zizek has structured his book so that nearly every idea gets two chances to impress the reader. I would agree with one of the reviews on this site of another of Zizek's books, that the author writes more clearly and persuasively about politics than about culture. However, this book presents a pleasing mixture (as most of Zizek's books do) of the cultural, political, philosophical, and Lacanian munch.
Each chapter sets out to answer a question posed by the chapter heading (e.g., Why is Reality Always Multiple?). First Zizek approaches a solution or description of the problem as it appears in Hollywood films. These Zizek treats as texts or case studies. Whatever your opinion of the merits of psychoanalytic description for general use, the discussion of the films makes marvellously amusing reading. As demanding for this reader as the steep range of theoretical vocabulary employed is the ample library of films from which Zizek draws his examples. Many of which films I'd never seen. The second section of each chapter recasts the first approach through film in the language, theory and realm of analysis, theory and philosophy.
I cannot weigh in an estimation of the value of this book. Surely, it is not as profoundly useful or clear as Zizek's political and philosophical thriller, Ticklish Subject. Yet, the application of Zizek's critical arsenal to Hollywood without the baggage of Politics and History, makes room for exposition through, sad to say, a universal and more immediate medium.
very clear stuff.......1999-04-02
If you know anything about Hegel and Lacan, Zizek is actually a quite clear expositor of Lacan. Looking awry is particularly clear, lucid to the point of simplification in his account of Lacan, but what can you expect when your proof-test is Hitchcock and HOllywood movies. Most academic books consist of (dead author) and (contemporary theorist), and if the text at hand simply serves to validate the theory, why drag out heavy reading when Hitchcock will do? If the theory is correct, it encompasses both Shakespeare and anything oj simpson ever appeared in, so not to use both would only be a sign of stuffiness. Zizek has the virtue of being easy to read and not taking himself too seriously, and begins every chapter with a quote from Lenin or Stalin, as if Stalin was the last philosopher. It's not a parody, but if Kojeve (Lacan) is right, that every philosophy is just a repetition of one moment of the Hegelian spirit, then Zizek's jeu d'esprit is an honest accomodation to what's happening now.
Lacanian theory and the movies.......1998-05-01
This book is impossible, complicated, and confusing. Good luck to anyone who tries to figure it out. Zizek careens through film history, haphazardly - and sometimes carefully - appropriating examples in order to make various 'post-modern' and Lacanian points. It almost seems like parody, but ... it's not.
Book Description
Two of Hollywood's major players come together to share their insights and anecdotes about the art and business of filmmaking in the twenty-first century. Inspired by the graduate course that they have taught at the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television, Shoot Out is animated by observations from more than three decades in Hollywood.
As Peter Bart and Peter Guber follow the path from the "eureka" of the original idea until the denouement of its appearance on late-night television, the driving force behind the narrative is the ever-present "shoot out"-the standoffs and confrontations, entanglements and dilemmas as writers, directors, producers, stars, and agents vie to put forward their own-often conflicting-agendas in the search for the Holy Grail. From the rise and fall of the studio system to the emergence of stars as entrepreneurs to the dynamic role of the independents, Shoot Out draws on a vision of the future as well as the repeated and often unheeded lessons of the past.
Customer Reviews:
Quick Read, but Short on Content - I Expected Better!.......2004-08-03
I'm a big fan of Peter Bart's books and column in Variety, and Peter Guber certainly has a load of top-tier credentials. I'd really hoped for an insightful commentary on the current state of the movie business - but this isn't it. "Shoot Out" reads like a dozen other entry-level memoirs by bigtime moguls. There's nary an original comment, and (as other reviewers here have noted) too many war stories. "Final Cut" by Steven Bach gives you the story on "Heaven's Gate" far better than Guber and Bart (and they acknowledge as much); Sidney Lumet's book on making movies gives you a far better insight into the director's world and - above all - Frank Rose's magisterial "The Agency: William Morris and the Hidden History of Hollywood" tells the story of the rise of the agencies in far greater detail, with much more insight than do Guber and Bart.
I really had high hopes for this one, but it was a waste of time. Rose's book - and, of course, "Adventures in the Screen Trade" by William Goldman (again, acknowledged repeatedly by Guber and Bart) are essential reading. This sure isn't.
Solid yet careless in detail.......2003-01-04
An intriguing book but one that is in definite need of a date checker. You would think that Peter Guber would know what year Midnight Express (his own production) won the Golden Globe (1978, not 1974). The ten other errors regarding release dates, etc. do not lessen the educational value, but do lend a careless feel to the read.
So Disappointing.......2002-12-12
As a fervent admirer of Peter Bart's previous books, The Gross and Who Killed Hollywood, I was extremely disappointed with this one. I feel he sold out by flacking for Peter Guber, whose exploits were richly detailed in the book "Hit and Run". There's really nothing new in here, and you'd be well advised to avoid it.
Entertaining, but far from a "how to" guide........2002-09-20
Shoot Out, although entertaining in it's own right, is not what it represents itself to be. It presents no insight or strategy about how to get a film made. The authors simply recount amusing stories drawn from their own experiences. If you're just looking for entertainment, this might fit the bill. However, if you're an aspiring filmmaker looking for an insider's view of how to deal with the movie making process and the various egos involved, then steer clear.
Blather.......2002-08-23
I was looking for a book that explained exactly how a movie gets made. This book was mostly full of blather with some inside stories about movies the principals were involved with. Not worth the time.
Book Description
This book is a wild ride on the Hollywood highway of fame. A young man named Freddie is plucked from obscurity and groomed to be the host of a new entertainment TV show. But the show's producers and Freddie both learn that altering the package doesn't change the contents inside. During all of this, Freddie is also trying to sort out his love life. It's all good until an incident at the company picnic...
Customer Reviews:
Dear "a reader".......2006-07-02
I believe "a reader" must be Mr. Johnson himself, or a friend. If not, please sit down with "The Bell Jar," "Madame Bovary," or even "Elmo Gets Toilet Trained," and read some writing that is superior to this.
TOTALLY SELF-IMPORTANT.......2005-07-25
From the title, I thought this was going to be a really sordid and slick novel. WRONG!!...pure tripe....hackneyed, self-indulgent...and unsatisfying. The end is totally off the wall and unlikely. DON'T BOTHER.
Basically Unsatisfied With Hollywood.......2004-04-01
After reading the promotional material for this novel, as well as the jacket's brief biography of the author, I could not wait to get this book home for a good dishy read. Unfortunately, I was disappointed and aggravated with the material. I was disappointed because the protagonist was spineless and horrendously gullible. Freddie, our hero, starts off as a secure gay man, proud to be out. It is hard to believe that someone with so much self esteem could allow himself to be so completely bamboozled and re-closeted by his new employers. I could accept Freddie as inexperienced and green, but not for the entire year of his employment. If he's been around the block enough times to hold his own with Broadway Divas and Drag Queens, then he should have seen his situation at his new job in television for what it was, and acted appropriately. It is difficult to muster much sympathy for such a total cry baby. I was aggravated because I can not recall ever having read a published manuscript with so many TYPOS. Did any one proof this book before or after it hit the printers? I for one find the overabundance of mistakes with the printed text to be very disconcerting. On a positive note, I think the author shows great potential. The plot was well balanced and the supporting cast was amusing. I hope with his next offering, Mr. Johnson will provide his readers with a stronger more self assured lead character, someone who is not only openly gay, but someone who is not willing to be pushed around because he is.
Absolute Self-Important CRAP.......2003-08-15
Extremely verbose and pretentious. Mr. Johnson should give up trying to impress us with his vocabulary or better yet give up writing completely.
It rates one star only because Amazon won't allow negative numbers.
Don't waste your money girls!
An outstanding, realistic read. Very enjoyable........2003-08-05
I enjoyed "In and out in Hollywood". I just finished reading it and I really appreciated the detail, humor, and heart. This novel was excellent. I could not put it down. I read about 4-6 novels each month, and especially enjoy novels with gay themes (although not exclusively). The detailed stories about working in Hollywood television were excellent, and especially for me (I spent 9 years on the business side at the corporate headquarters of a major entertainment company here in Los Angeles), very poignant. The characters were fascinating, although I am wanting for more character development...I feel I did not really get to know as much as I would have liked from Freddie, and less from some of the others in the novel. I really am anticipating the follow up novel.
Book Description
Presents to the reader a deeper understanding of what exactly the development process is all about.
Customer Reviews:
Good behind-the-scenes look.......2007-08-13
As a writer who has yet to sell a script, I've been told snippets of the information in this book by my agent and manager, but I never had the whole picture of what happens when my script leaves my hands. It was both sobering and comforting to get what sounds like a very accurate description. I also see now what I did--both right and wrong--the time a script of mine, a romantic comedy, went out and didn't sell but got me meetings. There is a useful diagram of the Hollywood food chain, descriptions of the different players and what makes each tick, and on a bonus creative note, a seemingly simplistic but ultimately quite useful template for finding and fleshing out new story ideas. I have a lot of books about scrrenwriting, but none explains the business as well as this one. It was also an entertaining read. Thanks Rona!
Lisa Rothstein
www.yourwriterforhire.com
A guide to what happens to one's screenplay or novel when it is submitted to a studio or production company.......2005-12-06
Titled after the most common rejection line listed by studio executives, "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" is a no-nonsense guide to what happens to one's screenplay or novel when it is submitted to a studio or production company, and how to maximize one's odds of getting picked up. Written by a pair of industry insiders who have developed and sold screenplays for fifteen years, as well as teaching feature film development classes at UCLA for the past seven years, "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" covers important details to polish in one's writing, the art of pitching, crossing into television and cable movies, and much more. The refreshingly blunt honesty of "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" makes it as entertaining for readers of all backgrounds as it is vital for anyone looking to make a name or career for themselves in the screenplay industry. Highly recommended.
A guide to what happens to one's screenplay or novel when it is submitted to a studio or production company.......2005-12-06
Titled after the most common rejection line listed by studio executives, "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" is a no-nonsense guide to what happens to one's screenplay or novel when it is submitted to a studio or production company, and how to maximize one's odds of getting picked up. Written by a pair of industry insiders who have developed and sold screenplays for fifteen years, as well as teaching feature film development classes at UCLA for the past seven years, "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" covers important details to polish in one's writing, the art of pitching, crossing into television and cable movies, and much more. The refreshingly blunt honesty of "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" makes it as entertaining for readers of all backgrounds as it is vital for anyone looking to make a name or career for themselves in the screenplay industry. Highly recommended.
A Cautionary Tale.......2005-09-27
Yes, screenwriters have a word that comes right after "development": hell. Why does my script bear no resemblance to what I wrote? How did it go down the rabbit hole never to be seen again?
I've read many books on film, but none has gone deeper into the belly of the beast than this.
The fact is, script development is an integral part of a billion-dollar business. It is the difference between a film that rakes in a fortune all over the world and another that goes straight to DVD.
No actor, no director can survive a bad script. The film audience can smell it before it's out of the can.
"I Liked It, Didn't Love It": a six-word death warrant and a warning to writers and producers. Do a lot of development on your own before your work goes into development.
Rona Edwards and Monica Skerbelis are pros, insiders, and they use language as well as any script writer. This is not just a cautionary tale for writers. It is a deep look into an industry that fascinates us all with its power and magic.
AbsoluteWrite.com book reviewer Marie Jones states:.......2005-08-11
"I Liked It, Didn't Love It: Screenplay Development From the Inside Out"
Rona Edwards and Monika Skerbelis
Lone Eagle Publishing Company, 2005
ISBN 1580650627
HIGHLY RECOMMEND
Whether your goal is to become a development executive, producer, director or screenwriter, knowing the inside scoop on how a script becomes a movie can make your career journey a much smoother one. "Development Hell" actually doesn't seem so hellish when you understand the reasons why a particular script succeeds, or fails, and how many varied factors contribute to the final product that is seen on the big screen.
That is why "I Liked It, Didn't Love It" is such a priceless book for any aspiring moviemaker or executive. Authors Rona Edwards and Monika Skerbelis have years and years of experience between them in the trenches of script development, and they share everything they know, and then some, in this must-have book that will no doubt help to open doors for those with enough drive and talent.
From the vast and various ways ideas are found and developed to the actual route a script takes from writer to agent to production company to studio, every step of development is explained, with plenty of examples of real films and inside stories that shed even more light on the somewhat mysterious process of the business of getting a movie made. The book is written for those interested in becoming development executives or story analysts, and offers tons of how-to on learning what to look for in a script, how coverage is done, where to find entry level opportunities, and what will be expected of you once you get your foot in the door. Having said that, as a writer, I found this book to be chock full of information that anyone even thinking about writing a script must know. Think about it. What better way for screenwriters to understand what Hollywood is buying then to get inside the heads of those who pick and choose the scripts that get developed in the first place?
The authors, both of whom have developed and sold screenplays for the past 15 years, really break down the entire process so much so that any intimidating factors melt in the light of knowledge, empowering writers and development executives-in-the-making with the kind of background info that can take years off their quest for success. By showing how it is done in the "real" world of production companies and studios, the outsider gets one giant step closer to being on the inside, where the action is. Now that's not to say developing a script from page to screen will be a piece of cake, but with books like this, it won't be quite as hellish when you understand why "they do the things they do."
Book Description
A proud, distinguished German emigre director named Dieter Seife has had to content himself cranking out B-movies for Superior Pictures, until finally, Superiors founder, Arthur Lustig, gives Seife the opportunity to prove himself on a larger-budget picture titled The Big Betrayal. Its also a break for a young actor on the rise, Harley Hayden, whos been signed to star. Seife is unhappy with the casting of Hayden and aware of Seifes displeasure, Hayden takes the defensive step of hiring a disgraced LA cop named Roarke to look into Seifes background and see whether Siefe may be hiding something. Out There in the Dark brings to life the corrupt side of wartime Hollywood.
Customer Reviews:
Out There in the Dark.......2007-04-03
The review I read for this book was quite positive, and since I am a fan of "old Hollywood," I ordered the book. It was most disappointing. Not very well written, cardboard characters, dull plot, tended to ramble. I did finish it, but felt it was a waste of time and money.
Must review later.......2007-03-19
I haven't started the book yet. I am taking it to read on my trip to new york
Recommended.......2006-08-01
I bought this book on a whim and didn't regret it. Strick pinpoints a particular time and place and puts you right smack in the middle of it. I found it a quick, enjoyable read, but engrossing all the way through. For fans of "Old Hollywood" the name dropping of figures of the era is fun (love the titles of the movies starring Harley Hayden!) and the atmosphere is vividly re-created. What's next on the horizon, Mr. Strick?
Outstanding Novel of Hollywood.......2006-05-29
It doesn't seem to me that in 1940 the private eye might be speculating on which luscious movie star was causing Harley Hayden to cheat on his girlfriend--"But who? Rita, Greta, Ingrid, Lana?" Of these names only Greta Garbo was a great star in 1940--and would a savvy eye like Roarke seriously suspect her of having a back street affair with a man? The other names seem of a later date, say 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, when all had achieved superstardom. (Each had made movies by 1940 of course, but none were yet at Garbo's level.) Outside of that one little error I congratulate Wesley Strick on having everything right, the most difficult thing of all.
I shouldn't say that, because he has done something incomparably different, he has selected a pair of humans who seem between them to balance out between them, like the scales of Scorpio, all that is good and bad in Hollywood. We might compare his allegory to the famous Hollywood novel by Christopher Isherwood, PRATER VIOLET, and I think we would say the laurels go to Strick. I wasn't one hundred percent convinced by the implacable anti-Semitism of the detective, Roarke, which doesn't go any place and just provides for innumerable scornful and offensive putdowns of Hollywood Jews. And yet perhaps the storytelling needed him as a fulcrum from which we get to view the mysterious boy actor, Harley Hayden, and the tragic German director-meister Deiter Seife. Beyond the fireworks of the plot, we see in miniature the ways in which the escapees from the Third Reich who made their way to Los Angeles in the 1930s changed the movie capital forever, providing, if not a moral corrective as has sometimes been assumed, but a cracked lens that skewed all vision into a personal, ethical darkness--an aesthetic choice Strick seems to understand beautifully. This novel is so much better than the scripts Strick has written for Hollywood (FINAL ANALYSIS, WOLF, THE SAINT) one feels that maybe he went there as a spy--a chiel among them. OUT THERE IN THE DARK feels like one of the books we'll be reading in 100 years.
1942 vs 2006.......2006-04-10
On the surface, "Out There in the Dark," Wesley Strick's debut novel, is a well-written, concisely researched, mystery novel that is sure to delight fans of 1940 Hollywood drama. As a result of the subject matter, some readers may want to compare Wesley's book to works by Chandler, but this is somewhat unfair (albeit flattering); Mr. Strick's contemporary, fresh, straightforward writing style enhances the storyline with its clean approach to everyday language. Additionally, and most importantly, strip away the references to the 1940's and here lies a treatise on today's "glorious" world of Tinsel Town.
Book Description
Rapacious dykes, self-loathing closet cases, hustlers, ambiguous sophisticates, and sadomasochistic rich kids: most of what America thought it knew about gay people it learned at the movies. A fresh and revelatory look at sexuality in the Great Age of movie making, Screened Out shows how much gay and lesbian lives have shaped the Big Screen. Spanning popular American cinema from the 1900s until today, distinguished film historian Richard Barrios presents a rich, compulsively readable analysis of how Hollywood has used and depicted gays and the mixed signals it has given us: Marlene in a top hat, Cary Grant in a negligee, a pansy cowboy in The Dude Wrangler. Such iconoclastic images, Barrios argues, send powerful messages about tragedy and obsession, but also about freedom and compassion, even empowerment.
Mining studio records, scripts, drafts (including cut scenes), censor notes, reviews, and recollections of viewers, Barrios paints our fullest picture yet of how gays and lesbians were portrayed by the dream factory, warning that we shouldn't congratulate ourselves quite so much on the progress movies - and the real world -- have made since Stonewall.
Captivating, myth-breaking, and funny, Screened Out is for all film aficionados and for anyone who has sat in a dark movie theater and drawn strength and a sense of identity from what they saw on screen, no matter how fleeting or coded.
Customer Reviews:
Screened Out - revealing and a great read........2007-01-14
This literate, well written and fascinating history of the subtle and not so subtle portrayals of the gay and lesbian sensibility in Hollywood films, is comprehensive and endlessly informative and perceptive. Anyone with the slightest interest in film subtext and the wryly subversive nature which filmmakers can exhibit in their work (often under the radar of the studio brass) will find Richard Barrios a terrfic guide thorough the minefield of how Hollywood made pictures. From Clifton Webb to Marlene Dietrich, from antiques like "The Broadway Melody" to instant relics like "The Boys in the Band," the examples offered will stimulate the interest to reinvestigate many old film titles, and subsequently enrich the experience of watching them with a new perspective.
Screen out the world, and read!.......2003-08-14
For those interested in cinematic homosexuality, this book is simply a must-have! Composed with a liberal touch of arch lingua franca, the volume is toned and textured with as many gossipy asides, innuendos, and double entendres as the films discussed. The subject is dealt a much lighter hand than Vito Russo allotted its predecessor, The Celluloid Closet. Richard Barrios is utterly tickled pink at his discoveries, where Russo often seems to chafe. Even those familiar with the torturous course of outre theater will detect tidbits previously unperceived, and those not in-the-know will probably be astonished at pre-Production Code permissiveness regarding the depiction of fey/butch images. More remarkable is the under-the-radar, Code-busting bomblettes that went unsensed by the censors--and were subsequently reviled (or reveled in) by trade reviewers. A tad too much quill is sharpened criticizing fluffy, Day-class sixties comedies, when such goose down is found in every film era. (At least the author can be commended for not reading too much into Calamity Jane--or any other feature, for that matter. After all, a lesbian cult movie does not a lesbian movie make!) Barrios could also have refrained from the occasional canard regarding sexual orientation origins and Biblical history. Overall, though, this substantial book sticks solidly to the subject, examining numerous films (including shorts and cartoons) and their interrelationship with the political establishment and popular culture. Included are over 50 crisp photos and several vignette-bios. The prose has a fabulous flow that makes for a thoroughly enjoyable read and should hold the attention of anyone interested in the screen/society circle.
Product Description
My agent and I snuck onto the studio lot, then headed over to the tiny man-made lagoon where the Gilligans Island beach scenes were filmed, hoping to run into someone whod read my script. As we wandered through the maze of soundstages, Ray pulled out a fat cigar and lit it, trying desperately not to inhale because he didnt smoke. Whats that for? I asked. Its a prop, he gasped in my direction. It makes me look like a big deal. Ray then blew a thick cloud of smoke, gagging on his own exhaust. He was starting to turn green. Im not sure this is such a good idea, I confessed. What if someone finds out were not supposed to here? Ray chuckled. Dont you have faith in me, kid? I didnt. Sure I do, I lied. Ray suddenly stopped and leaned over to throw up. After a few heaves, he thrust his cigar at me. Here -- take it -- damn things making me sick! Hold it for me until we see someone important! 'MY SO-CALLED CAREER IN HOLLYWOOD' may just be the most brutally honest book about Hollywood ever written. E. Klass delivers a scathing, unflinching behind-the-scenes look at show business that is both hysterically funny and tragically sad. This book is mandatory reading for anyone who thinks Hollywood is all glitz and glamour!
Customer Reviews:
Fact or fiction?.......2006-05-23
This book is a fun, easy, very fast read. I could not put it down. But I am left wondering if it is true or not. As he readily indicates in the story, he is a habitual liar. He lies in order to try to make a buck. So, is his story truth or more lies? Who knows?
The book is billed as an insider's view, the true story, etc. But this guy failed. In fact, his character has very few morals whatsoever. So I wonder what the real insider view is, perhaps as written from someone with a bit more character and who did not fail.
If true, I feel sorry for the author because he obviously did not have much common sense and was repeatedly taken in by an individual he thought was his agent. If false, I feel sorry for all the people who will read it an believe it to be true.
A Great Read!.......2006-04-05
I bought this book because of the clever title, hoping the inside would be just as good, and I certainly wasn't disappointed. My So-Called Career In Hollywood is the true story of a struggling, on-the-fringe writer who tried to become rich and famous in show business. He came very close many times. The resulting book, which recounts his adventures on the set of some of the most famous TV shows in history (Lost In Space, The Partridge Family, Land Of The Giants, Happy Days, etc) is both very funny and tragically sad. A victim of the cruel and unforgiving Hollywood system, Ellery Klass spent most of his life "on the verge" of making it big, the brass ring always mere inches out of reach. Anyone who wants to work in Hollywood needs to read this sobering account of what it's really like behind the studio walls.
I loved this book.
Love it!.......2005-12-22
I love this book. I could not put it down. It is an honest and funny story about the author's experience writing for T.V. shows and about the stars he has met through the years. If you are looking for a, can't put down book, buy this one. You will not be disappointed. This book will not be re-sold by me. It will go into my bookcase to be re-read in the future. I do hope E. Klass writes another one as he still has more stories to tell and I would love to hear them.
Customer Reviews:
Out Of Control.......2007-07-22
ISBN 0671663267 - As a penny book, destined for the landfill, I read Out Of Control only because it was there. I didn't have high expectations - I'm not a football fan and never heard of Henderson. It turned out to be better than I expected, but not great, leaving me oddly disappointed.
Henderson, poor kid from a family that is poor in more than one way, finds football. Football will save and destroy him, but he doesn't know that in the beginning. As the first pick of the Cowboys, Henderson expects recognition and applause and when that goes to number 2 - a white guy - Henderson states over and over that it's clearly racism. Then (on page 259) he writes "I knew about black pride but I felt that anyone who claimed that he'd been blocked by racism was just a poor soul himself." This is one of the two worst examples of contradictory storytelling; the other is the downward spiral that drugs takes him on. The covers, front and back, mention how many bad things happened to him because of his drug addiction, but Henderson spends a majority of the book somehow bragging about the drugs - hardly a warning to others. Henderson goes into some detail (not graphic) about orgies, and the number of women he has in bed at one time, all thanks to the drugs. At the same time, the reader is supposed to believe that drugs are bad. The message is somewhat muddied.
In the end Henderson is difficult to like. He seems to take far less responsibility than he should and blames others, the Cowboys in particular, for things that make him sound paranoid. When he is nearly put on waivers, he retires. They try to work it out, but he refuses. Then he discovers that by retiring, he has given control to the Cowboys and says "I am convinced that that's why they set it all up." clearly not "owning" the fact that HE quit, and HE refused to work it out. Like his rants that his signing wasn't celebrated because he's black, his paranoia makes him a remarkably unappealing, unsympathetic character.
I know that the main story is supposed to be the drugs and his recovery from them, but the truth is that little of the book is given to that. The book begins, as it should, in his childhood and covers his pre-NFL years before the Cowboys and drugs come along. The largest portion is about the years of addiction, partying, etc. Henderson makes sure to be clear about his sexual relationship with anyone famous, again giving it a bragging tone. By the time he starts his slide into poverty and unemployment, it seems certain that the only reason he's written the book is to make some money - his career is over, he's lost everything - not to make sure the rest of the world learns from his mistakes. In fact, 7 women in bed with one guy might just be enough incentive to make some guys think drugs sound like a great idea.
By now, Henderson's written another book, In Control. He's spent years talking to others and has given back far more than he was ever given. For that reason alone, I have hope that the second book is better. This one, though, kinda average tabloid-y junk, but right from the horse's mouth.
A GREAT READ.......2006-10-14
THIS IS THE STORY OF THOMAS HENDERSON FORMER NFL PLAYER FOR THE DALLAS COWBOYS. THOMAS TAKES US THROUGH HIS LIFE AS AN NFL STAR TO HIS ADDICTION AND RECOVERY FROM DRUGS AND ALCOHOL. HIS STORY IS TRULY SCARY, BIZARRE, AND TOTALLY RIVOTING. THOMAS LIVED THE HIGH LIFE IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE. HE SPEND MONEY LIKE WATER, HAD TONS OF WOMEN, TONS OF DRUGS AND ALCOHOL. HIS COCAINE BECAME A WAY OF LIFE, FROM THE MOMENT HE AWAKENED EACH DAY, HE WOULD START STUFFING HIS NOSE WITH IT. AT ONE TIME HE WAS USING PAIN KILLERS, COCAINE, MARIJUANA, QUALUDES AND ALCOHOL AND STILL WAS A VERY PRODUCTIVE PLAYER. HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH TOM LANDRY AND HIS FORMER WIFE IMAN, ARE ALSO HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS HARD TO PUT DOWN BOOK. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS FOR ALL PEOPLE IN RECOVERY AND ALL FOOTBALL FANS WHO REMEMBER HOLLYWOOD IN HIS FINEST HOURS AS A DALLAS COWBOY. A POWERFUL STORY.
Great Book.......2004-06-08
This book is a must read for any football fan. I shared it with friends and family before losing it and re bought to read again. Just as good 2nd time around.Helped some friends and self deal w/ drugs. Highly recommend.
Ball Four on steroids.......2002-07-22
Henderson's Out of Control is one of the most revealing and honest books I've yet to read that documents the world of big-time NFL football, or any sport for that matter. It packs a heck of a punch by basically chronicling in great detail, the partying and good times that were had by the 1970s Dallas Cowboys. The drugs, booze, women and carousing are all here in abundance. Of course Henderson's athletic life is the focal point, however I found the behind the scenes stuff enthralling and worth the price of the book alone. Much in the tradition of Bouton's Ball Four, Out of Control takes it to another level.
The usefulness of Out of Control is its brutal honesty and fly on the wall glimpse into big time sports. Anyone who's played any level of competitive football will find Out of Control to be a magnificent read you won't be able to put down. I devoured the whole thing in two days. Henderson's assertion of covert racism regarding just who would start at linebacker was also interesting and made for great reading.
The NFL's Public Relations department won't be sponsoring Henderson's book signing tour anytime soon.
The Dark Side of Sports Fame.......2001-11-10
As sports biographies go, this is a very good one. I have some memories of Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson's football days but obviously never knew what was going on behind the scenes. The pattern for his abuses were set young in his life and not necessarily as a result of his fame in the NFL. Hats off to Henderson for not pulling any punches or blaming anyone for his drug problems but himself. He admitted his faults and didn't come off too preachy about his downfalls either. A most enjoyable read if you find a copy of it.
Average customer rating:
- Everything you ever wanted to know about LA houses but were afraid to ask
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Exterior Decoration: Hollywood's Inside-Out Houses (California Architecture and Architects)
John Chase
Manufacturer: Hennessey & Ingalls
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In the Pink: Dorothy Draper--America's Most Fabulous Decorator
ASIN: 0912158883 |
Book Description
The popular language of status-conscious architecture is explored in this account of the notorious do-it-yourself remodels clustered on the fringe of Beverly Hills in West Hollywood. These former stucco bungalows have been transformed by their owners into distinctive visual statements. As if they were stage sets, the exteriors of these houses have been treated as interiors, with urns and finials placed on rooftops like bibelots on a mantel, and windows and panels of trellis arranged as though they were pictures on a wall. The result is a lively architectural vernacular, well documented with "before and after" photos, interviews, and construction details.
Customer Reviews:
Everything you ever wanted to know about LA houses but were afraid to ask.......2007-03-08
This is without a doubt my favorite book about Los Angeles. John Chase captures the what and the why of Los Angeles residential architecture. For all of those who believe you can't and don't walk in Los Angeles, head over to West Hollywood with this book in hand and spend an afternonn WALKING and seeing some truly wonderful and fun houses!
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