The riveting story of the rivalry between the two most renowned actresses of the nineteenth century: legendary Sarah Bernhardt, whose eccentricity on and off the stage made her the original diva, and mystical Eleonora Duse, who broke all the rules to popularize the natural style of acting we celebrate today.Audiences across Europe and the Americas clamored to see the divine Sarah Bernhardt swoon--and she gave them their money's worth. The world's first superstar, she traveled with a chimpanzee named Darwin and a pet alligator that drank champagne, shamelessly supplementing her income by endorsing everything from aperitifs to beef bouillon, and spreading rumors that she slept in a coffin to better understand the macabre heroines she played. Eleonora Duse shied away from the spotlight. Born to a penniless family of itinerant troubadours, she disappeared into the characters she portrayed--channeling their spirits, she claimed. Her new, empathetic style of acting revolutionized the theater--and earned her the ire of Sarah Bernhardt in what would become the most tumultuous theatrical showdown of the nineteenth century. Bernhardt and Duse seduced each other's lovers, stole one another's favorite playwrights, and took to the world's stages to outperform their rival in her most iconic roles. A scandalous, enormously entertaining history full of high drama and low blows, Playing to the Gods is the perfect "book for all of us who binge-watched Feud" (Daniel de Vise, author of Andy & Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic American TV Show).

Born into a family of vaudevillians, Buster Keaton made his first film appearance in 1917 at the age of 21. By the early 1920s, he had established himself as one of the geniuses of silent cinema with such films as Sherlock, Jr. and The Navigator and his 1925 work, The General, placed at number 18 in the American Film Institute's poll of the 100 greatest features, the highest ranked silent film on the survey. But with the advent of sound in the late 1920s, silent stars like Keaton began to fall out of favor and the great comedian's career began to decline. In The Fall of Buster Keaton, James Neibaur assesses Keaton's work during the talking picture era, especially those made at MGM, Educational, and Columbia studios. While giving some attention to the early part of Keaton's career, Neibaur focuses on Keaton's contract work with the three studios, as well as his subsequent work as a gagman, supporting player, and television pitchman. The book also recounts the resurgence of interest in Keaton's silent work, which resulted in a lifetime achievement Oscar and worldwide recognition before his death in 1966. This fascinating account of an artist's struggle and triumph during the more challenging period of his career will be of interest to anyone wanting to learn about one of film's most influential performers.

Basil Rathbone is synonymous with Sherlock Holmes. He played the Victorian sleuth in the fourteen Fox/Universal films of the 1930s and '40s, as well as on stage and radio. For many people, he is the Holmes. Basil Rathbone grew to hate Sherlock Holmes. The character placed restrictions on his career: before Holmes he was an esteemed theatre actor, appearing in Broadway plays such as The Captive and The Swan, the latter of which became his launchpad to greater stardom. But he never, ever escaped his most famous role. Basil Rathbone was not Sherlock Holmes. In The Curse of Sherlock Holmes, celebrated biographer David Clayton looks at the behind-the-camera life of a remarkable man who deserved so much more than to be relegated to just one role.

As the Kremlin's crackdown on freedom of expression continues to tighten, Russian playwrights and directors are using documentary theatre to create space for the public discussion of injustice in the civic sphere and its connections to the country's twentieth-century past. Witness Onstage traces the history of documentary theatre's rapid growth in twenty-first century Russia and situates the form within the socio-political setting of the Putin years. It argues that through the practice of performing documents, Russian theatre artists are creating a new type of cultural and historical archive that challenges the dominance of state-sponsored media and invites individuals to participate in a collective renegotiation of cultural narratives. -- .

Libraries abound with books on silent film history and numerous biographies on the legendary stars, but what about the thousands and thousands of actors who never obtained legendary status? Film enthusiasts with easy access to silent films today have become interested in those long ago players who supported the star. This necrology is devoted solely to the actors of the Silent Screen. The book includes entries for some 7,500 deceased actors as well as directors, producers, writers, politicians, and sports figures who appeared in silent films. Included are 50 biographical essays on former stars, leading players and comedians who until now have been primarily footnotes in film history. The essays relate the early demise of promising players, how some lived lives as tragic as any they portrayed on the screen and how some lived long lives on the fringes of past glory, totally forgotten. Invaluable to film researchers and enthusiasts who want to know what happened to the actors of the silent screen who made shadows an art form.

Ellen Terry's correspondence was both exuberant and extensive. Her remaining letters provide a fascinating insight into the dynamics of the Victorian theatre, and the difficulties of life for a woman maintaining a successful public persona whilst raising two illegitimate children.

May all beings enjoy 'The Enlightenment.' The Enlightenment and Captain James Cook, The Lono-Cook-Kirk-Regenesis, is a thoroughly informative and a deeply personal read. It is a fictionalized biography that takes place during Britain's 'Age of Enlightenment and Discovery' and it is highly 'truth based, ' integrating the 'first written and compiled' Polynesian facts and mythology that includes the diaries and actual journals of the many men on board Cook's ships. No writer has better put together a more complete compilation of the facts integrated with mythology and told in novel form, giving the reader a bird's eye view of the action. She touches on James Cook and his co-relation with Gene Roddenberry's James T. Kirk and how it inter-relates with her own account of learned spiritual wisdom and her 'mythic writers journey.' She gives a personal account of her journey that was guided by the 'Aumakua' (Hawaiian and British ancestors alike) and Archangel Metatron, to create a feature film script about James Cook that led her on a spiritual pilgrimage where she encountered the truth behind, reincarnation, remanifestation, archetypes and extraterrestrial realities. She then made a trip to Sarnath, India and also discovered a link to Polynesia with the name 'Lono' (or Rono; the name Cook was referred to as when he arrived in Polynesia) and the 'Phurba Diety' in ancient Tibet. Reviews This is an important story that needs to be told and your writing is very good. See to it that the film gets produced. Jagdish P. Sharma, Professor, Department of History, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Charlamagne Tha God, New York Times bestselling author of Black Privilege and always provocative cohost of Power 105.1's The Breakfast Club, reveals his blueprint for breaking free from your fears and anxieties. Being "shook" is more than a rap lyric for Charlamagne, it's his mission to overcome. While it may seem like he's ahead of the game, he is actually plagued by anxieties, such as the fear of losing his roots, the fear of being a bad dad, and the fear of being a terrible husband. In the national bestseller Shook One, Charlamagne chronicles his journey to beat those fears and shows a path that you too can take to overcome the anxieties that may be holding you back. Ironically, Charlamagne's fear of failure-of falling into the life of stagnation or crime that caught up so many of his friends and family in his hometown of Moncks Corner-has been the fuel that has propelled him to success. However, even after achieving national prominence as a radio personality, Charlamagne still found himself paralyzed by anxiety and distrust. Here, in Shook One, he is working through these problems-many of which he traces back to cultural PTSD-with help from mentors, friends, and therapy. Being anxious doesn't serve the same purpose anymore. Through therapy, he's figuring out how to get over the irrational fears that won't take him anywhere positive. Charlamange hopes Shook One can be a call to action: Getting help is your right. His second book "cements the radio personality's stance in making sure he's on the right side of history when it comes to society's growing focus on mental health, while helping remove the negative stigma" (Billboard).

Rose Hobart enjoyed an extensive theatrical career in the 1920s, became a Hollywood leading lady in 1930, and had a second film career as a character player in the late 1930s and 1940s. Born into a family of musicians, she recalls childhood summers in Woodstock, NY, the beginnings of her theatrical career in Chautauqua, and an early and misunderstood friendship with the great Broadway star Eva Le Gallienne, which led to her appearing opposite Noel Coward in The Vortex and starring in the original stage production of Death Takes a Holiday. In 1930, she made her Hollywood screen debut in Frand Borzage's production of Liliom. Rouben Mamoulian selected her to co-star opposite Fredric March in his legendary 1932 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Unhappy in Los Angeles, Miss Hobart returned to New York, but after various misadventures, came back to the screen as a character actress in such films as Tower of London (1939) with Basil Rathbone and Susan and God(1940) with Joan Crawford. During World War II, she toured with the USO in the Aleutians, a difficult but also amusing period. The autobiography is peppered with famous names from Broadway to Hollywood, but it is also a highly personal work, in which Miss Hobart unabashedly discusses her three marriages and her failures. She ends her story with the grim reality of being blacklisted. Rose Hobart is perhaps the only Hollywood star to be immortalized in a modern work of art, an avant-garde short by filmmaker and artist Joseph Cornell, named in her honor and based on footage from the 1931 film East of Borneo. Readers of her autobiography will be as mesmerized by Rose Hobart as was Joseph Cornell more than fifty years ago.

It-girl Betty White delivers a hilarious, slyly profound take on love, life, celebrity, and everything in between.
Drawing from a lifetime of lessons learned, seven-time Emmy winner Betty White's wit and wisdom take center stage as she tackles topics like friendship, romantic love, aging, television, fans, love for animals, and the brave new world of celebrity. "If You Ask Me" mixes her thoughtful observations with humorous stories from a seven- decade career in Hollywood. Longtime fans and new fans alike will relish Betty's candid take on everything from her rumored crush on Robert Redford (true) to her beauty regimen ("I have no idea what color my hair is and I never intend to find out") to the Facebook campaign that helped persuade her to host "Saturday Night Live" despite her having declined the hosting job three times already.
Featuring all-new material, with a focus on the past fifteen years of her life, "If You Ask Me" is funny, sweet, and to the point-just like Betty White.

Tsui Hark, one of China's most famous film artists, is little known outside of Asia even though he has directed, produced, written, or acted in 64 films over the last twenty years, some of which are considered to be classics of modern Asian cinema. This work, the first of its kind about Tsui Hark, begins with a biography of the man and a look at his place in Hong Kong and world cinema, his influences, and his thematic obsessions. Each major film of his career is then reviewed, with thematic comparisons made among them (lesser films are included but receive smaller reviews). Also provided are production details, comments from Tsui Hark himself, box office and awards information, anecdotes, and various other particulars. Also included are a complete listings of Hong Kong locations where information on Tsui Hark can be found, and where his films can be found outside of Hong Kong.

In 1922, an early association of film publicists known as the Western Associated Motion Picture Advertisers (Wampas) hit upon a strategy to call attention to their organization and their industry. The group selected 13 young actresses with potential star power and promoted them heavily as ""Baby"" (meaning junior) Stars. To be selected a Wampas Baby Star soon became a much-sought honor - a ticket to recognition and publicity in those days before the Academy Awards.While a few Baby Stars (Ginger Rogers, Joan Crawford) went on to superstardom and others enjoyed modest success, some failed to shine. Many of the nearly 150 actresses chosen during the program's existence, 1922-1934, are forgotten names today.This book offers full biographical details on every actress selected as a Wampas Baby Star. Each actress' entry traces her career and lists films in which she appeared. A year-by-year section lists each year's stars and alternates. Appendices include lists of rivals and successors to the Wampas Baby program (such as the ""Paramount Protegees""), Wampas ""Drop-Outs,"" presidents of Wampas, and miscellaneous facts about the Wampas Babies (which actress was tallest? Shortest? Oldest at time of selection?). Photographs, a bibliography and an index are included.

Now in paperback, this posthumous work by an American classic was a fitting last book, an instant bestseller, and a huge success! One of the undisputed heavyweight champions of American comedy, with nineteen appearances on the Johnny Carson show, thirteen HBO specials, five Grammys, and a critical Supreme Court battle over censorship under his belt, George Carlin saw it all throughout his extraordinary fifty-year career, and made fun of most of it. Last Words is the story of the man behind some of the most seminal comedy of the last half century, blending his signature acerbic humor with never-before-told stories from his own life, including encounters with a Who's Who of 1970s celebrity-from Lenny Bruce to Hugh Hefner-and the origins of some of his most famous standup routines. Carlin's early conflicts, his long struggle with substance abuse, his turbulent relationships with his family, and his triumphs over catastrophic setbacks all fueled the unique comedic worldview he brought to the stage. From the heights of stardom to the low points few knew about, Last Words is told with the same razor-sharp wit and unblinking honesty that made Carlin one of the best-loved comedians in American history.

Every single artistic endeavor in Stanislavsky's life was achieved in close collaboration with female partners. First, it was his own mother, Elizaveta Alekseyeva, who shaped his personality, and encouraged his exploration of theatre. Then it was his artistic mother, Glikeria Fedotova, who guided him through the ten years of his work. Then Maria Lilina, his wife, who became his best student, and later one of the best actresses of the Art Theatre. It would be impossible to understand Stanislavsky's development as an actor and director without his work with Maria Andreyeva, the "femme fatale" of turn of the century Russian theatre, or Olga Knipper, whom he directed and acted with for forty years. And near the end of his life, when Stanislavsky introduced the method of physical action (metod phizicheskix deistvii), another woman embraced his work, a young actress named Irina Rozanova. Stanislavsky and Female Actors is the exploration of Stanislavsky's artistic and personal relationship with the leading actresses of the Moscow Art Theatre. It seeks to portray their life-long artistic dialogue and offers a new biographical study of the previously unknown spheres of Stanislavsky's life, as well as the lives of the Moscow Art Theatre's principal actresses.

A fascinating exploration and celebration of the life and work of the coolest man in Hollywood, Samuel L. Jackson--from his star-making turns in the films of Spike Lee and Quentin Tarantino to his ubiquitous roles in the Star Wars and Marvel franchises, not to mention the cult favorite Snakes on a Plane. Samuel L. Jackson's embodiment of cool isn't just inspirational--it's important. Bad Motherfucker lays out how his attitude intersects with his identity as a Black man, why being cool matters in the modern world, and how Jackson can guide us through the current cultural moment in which everyone is losing their cool. Edwards details Jackson's fascinating personal history, from stuttering bookworm to gunrunning revolutionary to freebasing addict to A-list movie star. Drawing on original reporting and interviews, the book explores not only the major events of Jackson's life but also his obsessions: golf, kung fu movies, profanity. Bad Motherfucker features a delectable filmography of Jackson's movies--140 and counting!--and also includes new movie posters for many of Jackson's greatest roles, reimagined by dozens of gifted artists and designers. The book provides a must-read road map through the vast territory of his on-screen career and more: a vivid portrait of Samuel L. Jackson's essential self, as well as practical instructions, by example, for how to live and work and be.

Stanislavsky in Focus brilliantly examines the history and actual premises of Stanislavsky's 'System', separating myth from fact with forensic skill. The first edition of this now classic study showed conclusively how the 'System' was gradually transformed into the Method, popularised in the 1950s by Lee Strasberg and the Actor's Studio. It looked at the gap between the original Russian texts and what most English-speaking practitioners still imagine to be Stanislavsky's ideas. This thoroughly revised new edition also delves even deeper into: the mythical depiction of Stanislavsky as a tyrannical director and teacher yoga, the mind-body-spirit continuum and its role in the 'System' how Stanislavsky used subtexts to hide many of his ideas from Soviet censors. The text has been updated to address all of the relevant scholarship, particularly in Russia, since the first edition was published. It also features an expanded glossary on the System's terminology and its historical exercises, as well as more on the political context of Stanislavsky's work, its links with cognitive science, and the System's relation to contemporary developments in actor-training. It will be a vital part of every practitioner's and historian's library.

A top vaudeville comedian for the first quarter of the 20th century, Henry Langdon rose from performing in Midwest traveling shows to headlining at the Palace Theatre in New York City. He would go on to draw comparisons to Chaplin for his work in the classic silent films ""Tramp, Tramp, Tramp"" and ""The Strong Man"", and he is often recognized as one of the 'big four silent comedians' alongside Chaplin, Lloyd and Keaton. Later in his career, Landon also appeared in a great number of talking films, starring or co-starring in almost a hundred of them between 1924 and 1945 and working with several legendary directors, from Frank Capra to Michael Curtiz.This second edition of the only book-length biography of Langdon includes significant new information, including expanded coverage of his early years and more personal details that lend a human side to the Langdon story. The book also includes a comprehensive filmography and several photographs from all phases of Langdon's life and career.

"Clap your hands, rattle your jewelry, and twist and shout for Erin Hosier's Don't Let Me Down....Fierce, catchy, hilarious--like your favorite vinyl punk 45--this bird can sing. A glorious memoir." -- Brando Skyhorse, author of Take This Man This fierce and witty memoir about a father-daughter relationship "is a beautifully written, honest, and often funny account of what it is to grow up as a woman" (Nancy Balbirer, author of A Marriage in Dog Years). Erin Hosier's coming-of-age was full of contradictions. Born into the turbulent 1970s, she was raised in rural Ohio by lapsed hippies who traded 1960s rock 'n' roll for 1950s-era Christian hymns. Her mother's newfound faith was rooted in a desire to manage her husband's mood swings, which could alternately fill the house with music or with violence. With the Beatles providing the soundtrack, Erin grew up adoring her larger than life father, Jack. Together, they bonded over their iconic songs, even as they inspired Erin to question authority--both her father's and others'. Don't Let Me Down is about a brave girl trying to navigate family secrets and tragedies and escape from small-town small-mindedness. With her lyrical and tender writing, Erin "doesn't shy away from the complications and contradictions of love, sharing both the best and the worst of her volatile, vibrant father and detailing--in her singular and often hilarious voice, the difficulty of leaving childhood, home, and the people who loved you first" (Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney, New York Times bestselling author of The Nest).

An Oscar-winning Best Actress for her tour-de-force role in ""Come Back, Little Sheba"", Shirley Booth would ultimately win every major acting award that could be bestowed on an actress. Awarded three Tony Awards, two Emmys, and a Golden Globe, Booth was described by the judges at the Cannes Film Festival as 'The World's Best Actress.' Yet today fans know her best as the warm-hearted, busybody maid of television's ""Hazel"".This, the first biography of the beloved star, provides complete coverage of a career that encompassed theater, film, radio, and television, and co-stars such as Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn. It begins with Shirley's childhood in Brooklyn, and her rebellious decision to become an actress against the wishes of her strict father. Included is complete coverage of her tumultuous marriage to radio comedian Ed Gardner (of ""Duffy's Tavern"" fame), and a second, happier union that ended abruptly with her husband's death of a heart attack. Readers of this exhaustively researched biography will come to know a versatile and gifted star whose career spanned almost 60 years. Appendices provide extensive details of her Broadway, film, radio and television (episode-by-episode) credits.

"When Ben got out of the hospital he said, 'When I fall down and can't pick myself up we'll know it's over. Until then, we rock!'" - Jeff Carlisi Benjamin Orr was the co-founder, co-lead singer, and bassist for the platinum-selling rock band The Cars. Often considered the band's heartthrob, Orr possessed an incredible voice, diverse musical talent, and rare stage presence, all balanced by an enigmatic personality and a relentless determination to reach rock stardom. Selling over 30 million albums worldwide with fifteen Billboard Top 40 hits, The Cars certainly achieved success. Within a decade of the debut album, though, Orr found himself adrift and without a band. Veteran music journalist Joe Milliken draws together interviews with over 120 family members, friends, bandmates, and music associates from Orr's life, as well as many unpublished and never-before-seen photos from private collections, to reveal an intimate portrait of one of classic rock's greatest talents. From Orr's first performances as a house-band musician for the TV show UpBeat through his creation of The Cars with Ric Ocasek to Orr's eventual rebirth with the supergroup Big People, this definitive account of Orr's life is a rollercoaster ride that sheds new light on the history of The Cars. Orr is no longer able to rock with The Cars, but the music he made with them continues to attract new generations of fans. Coinciding with the band's 2018 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, this first-ever biography of Benjamin Orr immortalizes his legacy as a deeply kind-hearted and exceptionally talented musician who would stop at nothing to live his rock and roll dream.

Robert Clary (born Robert Max Widerman in Paris in 1926) is best known for his portrayal of the spirited Corporal Louis Lebeau on the popular television series Hogan's Heroes (on the air from 1965 to 1971 and widely syndicated around the globe). But it is Clary's experiences as a Jew during the Holocaust that infuse his compelling memoir with an honest recognition of life's often horrific reality, a recognition that counters his glittering five-decade career as an actor, singer, and artist and distinguishes this book from those by other entertainers. Clary describes his childhood in Paris, the German occupation in 1940, and his deportation in 1942 at the age of sixteen to the infamous transit camp Drancy. He recounts his nightmarish, two-and-a-half-year incarceration in Nazi concentration camps like Ottmuth, Blechhammer, Gross-Rosen, and Buchenwald. In April 1945, the Allies liberated Clary and other inmates. But the news that his parents, two sisters, two half-sisters, and two nephews had not survived the Nazis' genocidal campaign against the Jews reduced his joy to grief. After the war, Clary made his way to the United States and, against great odds, achieved fame on Broadway and in Hollywood. From the Holocaust to Hogan's Heroes is Robert Clary's extraordinary account of his remarkable life both as a survivor and as an entertainer. Once read, it will not be forgotten.