|
Books > Biography > Film, television, music, theatre
An illuminating study of the life and work of Gyoergy Ligeti, one
of the best-loved and most original composers of our time. For 50
years Gyoergy Ligeti has pursued a boldly independent and
uncompromising course, yet his music is widely loved and admired.
Ever since Stanley Kubrick's (unsanctioned) use of his music on the
soundtrack of 2001: A Space Odyssey, interest in Ligeti has
extended far beyond the classical domain. He is the only living
composer whose complete output, including juvenilia, is being
systematically issued on CD. Published to coincide with the
composer's eightieth birthday, Richard Steinitz's compelling new
book is both an illuminating study of the music and its associative
ideas - drawn from literature, theatre, the visual arts, fractal
mathematics, ethnic cultures and other maverick composers - and of
Ligeti the man. Ligeti has confided in Steinitz a mass of
previously unknown biographical information. The result is an
astonishing account of his early upbringing in Romania, of his
terrifying yet surreal experiences in the war, and of his
difficulties attempting to forge an identity as a young composer
under repressive censorship in Communist Hungary, before his
dramatic escape to the West in 1956. The story continues via
Ligeti's association with the Western avant-garde and his
increasingly masterful sequence of highly individual compositions,
which Steinitz brings vividly to life through informative
commentaries as well as through the composer's own words.
From an actor and director who got his start as a Brat Pack
member, an emotionally poignant memoir, perfect for fans of
Patti Smith's Just Kids and Rob Lowe's Stories I Only Tell My Friends.
The inspiration for the Hulu documentary.
Everyone knows Andrew McCarthy from his iconic movie roles in Pretty in
Pink, St. Elmo's Fire, Weekend at Bernie's, and Less than Zero. A
member of the legendary Hollywood Brat Pack (including Rob Lowe, Molly
Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, and Demi Moore), his filmography has come to
represent both a genre of film and an era of pop culture.
In Brat, McCarthy focuses on that singular moment in time. The result
is a revealing look at coming of age in a maelstrom, reckoning with
conflicted ambition, innocence, addiction, and masculinity. 1980s New
York City is brought to vivid life in these pages, from scoring loose
joints in Washington Square Park to skipping school in favor of the
dark revival houses of the Village–where he fell in love with the
movies that would change his life.
Filled with personal revelations of innocence lost to heady days in
Hollywood with John Hughes and an iconic cast of characters, Brat is a
surprising and intimate story of an outsider caught up in a most
unwitting success.
Two-time Peabody Award-winning writer and producer Ira Rosen
reveals the intimate, untold stories of his decades at America's
most iconic news show. It's a 60 Minutesstory on 60 Minutes itself.
When producer Ira Rosen walked into the 60 Minutes offices in June
1980, he knew he was about to enter television history. His career
catapulted him to the heights of TV journalism, breaking some of
the most important stories in TV news. But behind the scenes was a
war room of clashing producers, anchors, and the most formidable 60
Minutes figure: legendary correspondent Mike Wallace. Based on
decades of access and experience, Ira Rosen takes readers behind
closed doors to offer an incisive look at the show that invented TV
investigative journalism. With surprising humor, charm, and an eye
for colorful detail, Rosen delivers an authoritative account of the
unforgettable personalities that battled for prestige, credit, and
the desire to scoop everyone else in the game. As one of Mike
Wallace's top producers, Rosen reveals the interview secrets that
made Wallace's work legendary, and the flaring temper that made him
infamous. Later, as senior producer of ABC News Primetime Live and
20/20, Rosen exposes the competitive environment among famous
colleagues like Diane Sawyer and Barbara Walters, and the power
plays between correspondents Chris Wallace, Anderson Cooper, and
Chris Cuomo. A master class in how TV news is made, Rosen shows
readers how 60 Minutes puts together a story when sources are
explosive, unreliable, and even dangerous. From unearthing shocking
revelations from inside the Trump White House, to an outrageous
proposition from Ghislaine Maxwell, to interviewing gangsters Joe
Bonanno and John Gotti, Jr., Ira Rosen was behind the scenes of
some of 60 Minutes' most sensational stories. Highly entertaining,
dishy, and unforgettable, Ticking Clock is a never-before-told
account of the most successful news show in American history.
"Martin Bailey has written some of the most interesting books on
Vincent's life in France, where he produced his greatest work" -
Johan van Gogh, grandson of Theo, the artist's brother Studio of
the South tells the story of Van Gogh's stay in Arles, when his
powers were at their height. For Van Gogh, the south of France was
an exciting new land, bursting with life. He walked into the hills
inspired by the landscapes, and painted harvest scenes in the heat
of summer. He visited a fishing village where he saw the
Mediterranean for the first time, energetically capturing it in
paint. He painted portraits of friends and locals, and flower still
life paintings, culminating in the now iconic Sunflowers. He rented
the Yellow House, and gradually did it up, calling it 'an artist's
house', inviting Paul Gauguin to join him there. This encounter was
to have a profound impact on both of the artists. They painted side
by side, their collaboration coming to a dramatic end a few months
later. The difficulties Van Gogh faced led to his eventual decision
to retreat to the asylum at Saint-Remy. Based on extensive original
research, the book reveals discoveries that throw new light on the
legendary artist and give a definitive account of his fifteen
months in Provence, including his time at the Yellow House, his
collaboration with Gauguin and its tragic and shocking ending.
Pursuing a dream instilled by early David Attenborough television adventures, a young man from the industrial northwest of England is advised at school to become a veterinary surgeon as a first step towards a career working with wild animals in Africa.
His misgivings about the values and justification of domestic veterinary practice are contrasted with a passion for wilderness and wildlife conservation. Early experiences in the vivid Uganda of Idi Amin are juxtaposed with life in a grey Pennines veterinary practice.
Eventually arriving as a veterinary officer in newly independent Botswana he finds adventure with wild animals as a veterinarian and later as an ecologist, survey pilot, game capture operator and even a safari hunter, becoming a passionate conservationist... all while starting the first veterinary practice in the country.
|
|