Otto Preminger (1905-1986), whose Hollywood career spanned the 1930s through the 1970s, is popularly remembered for the acclaimed films he directed, among which are the classic film noir Laura, the social-realist melodrama The Man with the Golden Arm, the CinemaScope musical Carmen Jones, and the riveting courtroom drama Anatomy of a Murder. As a screen actor, he forged an indelible impression as a sadistic Nazi in Billy Wilder's Stalag 17 and as the diabolical Mr. Freeze in television's Batman. He is remembered, too, for drastically transforming Hollywood's industrial practices. With Exodus, Preminger broke the Hollywood blacklist, controversially granting screen credit to Dalton Trumbo, one of the exiled "Hollywood Ten." Preminger, a committed liberal, consistently shattered Hollywood's conventions. He routinely tackled socially progressive yet risque subject matter, pressing the Production Code's limits of permissibility. He mounted Black-cast musicals at a period of intense racial unrest. And he embraced a string of other taboo topics-heroin addiction, rape, incest, homosexuality-that established his reputation as a trailblazer of adult-centered storytelling, an enemy of Hollywood puritanism, and a crusader against censorship. Otto Preminger: Interviews compiles nineteen interviews from across Preminger's career, providing fascinating insights into the methods and mindset of a wildly polarizing filmmaker. With remarkable candor, Preminger discusses his filmmaking practices, his distinctive film style, his battles against censorship and the Hollywood blacklist, his clashes with film critics, and his turbulent relationships with a host of well-known stars, from Marilyn Monroe and Frank Sinatra to Jane Fonda and John Wayne.

In 2003, an independent film called The Room - starring and written, produced, and directed by a mysteriously wealthy social misfit named Tommy Wiseau - made its disastrous debut in Los Angeles. Described by one reviewer as 'like getting stabbed in the head', the $6 million film earned a grand total of $1,800 at the box office and closed after two weeks. Over a decade later, The Room is an international cult phenomenon, whose legions of fans attend screenings featuring costumes, audience rituals, merchandising and thousands of plastic spoons. In The Disaster Artist, Greg Sestero, Tommy's costar, recounts the film's bizarre journey to infamy, explaining how the movie's many nonsensical scenes and bits of dialogue came to be and unraveling the mystery of Tommy Wiseau himself. But more than just a riotously funny story about cinematic hubris, The Disaster Artist is an honest and warm testament to friendship.

An access-all-areas book marking the 25th anniversary of the era-defining Oasis concerts at Knebworth, with stunning images taken by acclaimed music photographer Jill Furmanovsky - including contributions from Noel Gallagher and Alan McGee, and hundreds of never-before-seen pictures *** "A wonderful document of the last great gathering of the pre-internet age. No camera phones, no social media, just a band and its fans as one" - NOEL GALLAGHER On 10th and 11th August 1996, Oasis played the concerts that would define them, a band at the height of their powers playing to over 250,000 people. Twenty-five years on, this is the inside story of those nights, told through the breathtaking photographs of Jill Furmanovsky, granted unprecedented access to Oasis throughout that summer. Also includes newly obtained first-hand accounts from the people who were there - including Noel Gallagher and Alan McGee - in text by award-winning author Daniel Rachel. From relaxed rehearsals and warm-up concerts to Knebworth itself - backstage, onstage, flying high above the site - many of the stunning photographs in this book have never been seen anywhere before. This the definitive account of two nights that a generation will never forget.

The long and prolific career of Steven Soderbergh (b. 1963) defies easy categorization. From his breakout beginnings in 1989 with sex, lies, and videotape to 2013, when he retired from big-screen movie-making to focus on other pursuits including television, the director's output resembles nothing less than an elaborate experiment. Soderbergh's Hollywood vehicles such as the Ocean's Eleven movies, Contagion and Magic Mike appear just as risky and outside-the-box as low-budget exercises such as Schizopolis, Bubble, and The Girlfriend Experience. This updated edition details key career moments: his creative crisis surrounding his fourth film, The Underneath; his rejuvenation with the ultra-low-budget free-style Schizopolis; the mainstream achievements Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the Ocean's Eleven films; and his continuing dedication to pushing his craft forward with films as diverse as conspiracy thrillers, sexy dramas, and biopics on Che Guevara and Liberace. Spanning twenty-five years, these conversations reveal Soderbergh to be as self-effacing and lighthearted in his later more established years as he was when just beginning to make movies. He comes across as a man undaunted by the glitz and power of Hollywood, remaining, above all, a truly independent filmmaker unafraid to get his hands dirty and pick up the camera himself.

'I adored this book. It's so Geena and so inspiring and such a wonderful read' Emma Thompson A Times Film and Theatre Book of the Year 2022 From two-time Academy Award winner and screen icon Geena Davis, Dying of Politeness is the candid, surprising tale of her journey from her epically polite childhood to the roles that put her in the spotlight and gave her the strength to become a powerhouse in Hollywood. At three years old, Geena announced she was going to be in movies. Now, with a slew of iconic roles and awards under her belt, she has surpassed her childhood dream, but her journey has been one of fits and starts, with a pothole or two along the way. In this hilarious memoir, Geena regales us with tales of a career playing everything from an amnesiac assassin to the parent of a rodent in Stuart Little; a soap star in her underwear to a housewife turned road warrior in Thelma & Louise; a baseball phenomenon in A League of Their Own to the first female President of the United States in Commander in Chief, and more. She is frank about her eccentric childhood; her many relationships, including her spontaneous Las Vegas wedding to Jeff Goldblum; her archery exploits which led her to the Olympic trials; and how she became a tireless advocate for women and girls, founding her own institute which engages film and TV creators to better represent women and actors from diverse backgrounds. Dying of Politeness is a touching account of one woman's journey to fight for herself, and ultimately fighting for women all around the globe.

"A knockout of a biography." -- Newsweek A silent-film star. A woman who played children, wide-eyed and gamine, skipping about in frills and long curls. That's how most people remember Mary Pickford. In reality, Pickford was a towering figure in movie history, central to the evolution of film acting and the development of the Hollywood motion picture industry. Born in Toronto in 1892, Pickford began acting as a child. She switched from stage to film at seventeen, joining D.W. Griffith's Biograph Company, and became almost unimaginably popular. This allowed her to dictate the terms of her contracts -- power she seized and consolidated. She developed her own production company at Adolph Zukor's Famous Players, and in 1919 she co-founded United Artists (along with Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, and her husband, Douglas Fairbanks), taking not only creative control but also direction of the marketing and distribution of her films. Eight years in the making, this definitive biography brings Pickford to life as a complex knot of contradictions and establishes her as a groundbreaking genius, casting new light on one of the most influential and least understood artists in the history of popular culture. Eileen Whitfield recreates Pickford's life in meticulously researched detail, from her trying days in turn-of-the-century Toronto through her reign as mistress of Pickfair, the legendary Beverly Hills estate at which she and Fairbanks entertained the world's elite, to her sadly moving demise. Along the way, Whitfield explores the intricate psychology that tied Pickford to her mother throughout her life and analyzes Pickford's brilliant innovations in the art of film acting, her profound influence on the movie business, and her role in the history of fame: once the best known woman in the world, she was the object of a mass adoration that prefigured today's cult of celebrity.

Stanislavski: The Basics is an engaging introduction to the life, thought and impact of Konstantin Stanislavski. Regarded by many as a great innovator of twentieth century theatre, this book examines Stanislavski's:

life and the context of his writings

major works in English translation

ideas in practical contexts

impact on modern theatre

With further reading throughout, a glossary of terms and a comprehensive chronology, this text makes the ideas and theories of Stanislavski available to an undergraduate audience.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements A Note to Readers 1. Stanislavski’s Life and Context 2. An Actor’s Work: Basic Training 3. An Actor’s Work: Analysis of the Play 4. An Actor’s work: Consolidation and spontaneity 5. An Actor’s work: Embodiment of the role 6. Stanislavski’s Legacy and Influence Chronology Glossary Bibliography Appendix 1: Synopsis of and extract from Tennessee Williams (2009) The Glass Menagerie, London: Penguin,Characters and Scene One pp xv-9 lines 1- 136 Appendix 2: Synopsis of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Certain Private Conversations in Two Acts and a Requiem

The icon and legend at last tells his story his way - without the boring bits Paul Hogan first appeared on Australia's screens in 1971 as a 'tap-dancing knife thrower' on TV talent show New Faces. The then father of four and Sydney Harbour Bridge rigger from Granville did it as a dare, but when the network's switchboard lit up, he was invited back. So popular was he with viewers, Hogan became a regular on Mike Willesee's A Current Affair. The rest, as they say, is history. In collaboration with his business partner and best friend, John Cornell (who played his sidekick, Strop), 'Hoges' went on to become Australia's favourite TV comedian. His hugely popular comedy shows and appearances in unforgettable and ground-breaking ads for cigarettes, beer and tourism, came to personify Australia and Australians here and overseas, helping to change the perception of who we are as people and as a nation. Then, in 1986, Crocodile Dundee, the movie he conceived, co-wrote and starred in, became an international smash hit and earned its star a Golden Globe Award, as well as Oscar and BAFTA nominations. Despite the fact that Hoges claimed to have retired, many more successful movies followed. Yet even as his star rose ever higher, he always expected someone to grab him by the arm and say, 'What are you doing here? You're just a bloody rigger!' The Tap-Dancing Knife Thrower is a funny and candid account of the astonishing life of this 'lucky bastard', as Hoges describes himself. Full of stories never previously shared, and recounted in the comedian's inimitable, funny and self-deprecating style, The Tap-Dancing Knife Thrower is Paul Hogan's story told his way - 'without the boring bits'.

Peter Sallis is known to millions as Norman Clegg in the classic BBC series Last of the Summer Wine, and to millions more - whether they realise it or not - as the voice of Wallace in the Oscar-winning Wallace and Gromit. Peter was to raise the curtain on richly diverse in the most unlikely of circumstances; as an amateur actor whilst serving on the RAF groundcrew during World War 2. A scholarship to train at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts followed, and it was from these humble beginnings that Peter would go on to become one of Britain's best loved actors.

Is classical Hollywood stardom the last word on film stars? How do film stars function in non-Hollywood contexts, such as Bollywood, East Asia and Latin America, and what new developments has screen stardom undergone in recent years, both in Hollywood and elsewhere? Gathering together the most important new research on star studies, with case studies of stars from many different cultures, this diverse and dynamic collection looks at film stardom from new angles, challenging the received wisdom on the subject and raising important questions about image, performance, bodies, voices and fans in cultures across the globe. From Hollywood to Bollywood, from China to Spain, and from Poland to Mexico, this collection revisits the definitions and origins of star studies, and points the way forward to new ways of approaching the field.

Doug Stanhope is one of the most critically acclaimed and stridently unrepentant comedians of his generation. What will surprise some is that he owes so much of his dark and sometimes uncomfortably honest sense of humor to his mother, Bonnie. It was the cartoons in her Hustler magazine issues that molded the beginnings of his comedic journey, long before he was old enough to know what to do with the actual pornography. It was Bonnie who recited Monty Python sketches with him, introduced him to Richard Pryor, and rescued him from a psychologist when he brought that brand of humor to school. And it was Bonnie who took him along to all of her AA meetings, where Doug undoubtedly found inspiration for his own storytelling. Digging Up Mother follows Doug's absurd, chaotic, and often obscene life as it intersects with that of his best friend, biggest fan, and love of his life--his mother. And it all starts with her death--one of the most memorable and amazing farewells you will ever read.

Not only is Al Pacino known as 'one of the greatest actors in all of film history', he is also considered 'one of Hollywood's most notorious bachelors' (imdb.com) as well as being one of the most enigmatic and private celebrities in the world. For the first time, AL PACINO offers a deeply personal and revealing window into everything from his growing up in the South Bronx, where he shared three rooms with nine people, to his fabled studies with Charles Laughton and Lee Strasberg, his father's absence, his mother's early death, and how he bounced through a series of odd jobs until his first paid role at the age of 26. He reveals his childhood dream of becoming a professional baseball player, describes his first drink at 13, and admits his once ate Valium like popcorn at the Academy Awards. Though he has been involved with women like Diane Keaton and Beverly D'Angelo, the mother of his three children, he has never married and here reveals why, and how his feelings have changed. Through it all, he has delivered some of the most seminal performances in film and theatre history and worked with most of its biggest stars. He was nominated for seven Academy Awards before winning Best Actor Oscar for Scent of a Woman. AL PACINO is an intensely personal look at a creative genius at the peak of his powers who, after all these years, still longs to learn more about his art. And for now, it's a close to a memoir as we are likely to get.

The culmination of more than thirty years of research, Olympians of the Sawdust Circle is an attempt to identify every major and minor player in the American circus world of the nineteenth century. This A-Z guide lists: surname, given name, dates of birth and death (if known), type of entertainment (and function) with which the individual was associated, and the companies and dates by whom the person was employed. Every researcher and library interested in American circus history will need this seminal guide. An absolutely astonishing piece of scholarship.

'Darkly comic, beautifully written and full of surprises' Daily Mail 'Really funny. David is a great writer' Paula Hawkins, Good Housekeeping 'A riotously good novel, witty and earnest, brimming with sharply drawn characters and creeping suspense. David Thewlis is a fabulous writer' Anna Bailey, Sunday Times bestselling author of Tall Bones 'A deliciously smart, hilarious human drama with the pace and intrigue of a gripping thriller. One of the year's most memorable novels' B P Walter, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Dinner Guest Celebrated director Jack Drake can't get through his latest film (his most personal yet) without his wife Martha's support. The only problem is, she's dead... When Jack sees Betty Dean - actress, mother, trainwreck - playing the part of a crazed nun on stage in an indie production of The Devils, he is struck dumb by her resemblance to Martha. Desperate to find a way to complete his masterpiece, he hires her to go and stay in his house in France and resuscitate Martha in the role of 'loving spouse'. But as Betty spends her days roaming the large, sunlit rooms of Jack's mansion - filled to the brim with odd treasures and the occasional crucifix - and her evenings playing the part of Martha over scripted video calls with Jack, she finds her method acting taking her to increasingly dark places. And as Martha comes back to life, she carries with her the truth about her suicide - and the secret she guarded until the end. A darkly funny novel set between a London film set and a villa in the south of France. A mix of Vertigo and Jonathan Coe, written by a master storyteller. PRAISE FOR DAVID THEWLIS'S FICTION 'David Thewlis has written an extraordinarily good novel, which is not only brilliant in its own right, but stands proudly beside his work as an actor, no mean boast' Billy Connolly 'Hilarious and horror-filled' Francesca Segal, Observer 'A fine study in character disintegration... Very funny' David Baddiel, The Times 'Exquisitely written with a warm heart and a wry wit... Stunning' Elle 'Queasily entertaining' Financial Times 'A sharp ear for dialogue and a scabrously satiric prose style' Daily Mail 'Laugh-out-loud, darkly intelligent' Publishers Weekly 'This is far more than an actor's vanity project: Thewlis has talent' Kirkus

'Besides the deliciously well executed fake-dating, How to Fake it in Hollywood delivers a raw, character-driven and heart-touching read. I absolutely loved it' ELENA ARMAS A talented Hollywood starlet and a reclusive A-lister enter into a fake relationship . . . and discover that their feelings might be more than a PR stunt in this sexy chemistry-filled debut for fans of Beach Read and The Unhoneymooners. Early readers can't get enough! 'Super fun, spicy and has a core of overwhelming love. The banter is amazing, characters are brilliant and the ending is EVERYTHING!! (I cried)' reader review 'I'm giving this book all of the stars. I can't believe that this is Ava Wilder's debut novel, it's really something' reader review 'Ava Wilder has a fantastic voice with just the right doses of humour and gravitas to get you onside with the characters' reader review 'A film-star worthy five-star read . . . it has everything you need, drama, passion, romance and some next level gut wrenching emotion wringing scenes . . . I simply adored this story' reader review ................................ Grey Brooks is on a mission to save her career now that her long-running TV show is over. With the role of a lifetime on the line, she's desperate enough to agree to her publicist's scheme: fake a love affair with a disgraced Hollywood heartthrob, who just happens to also need the publicity boost. Ethan Atkins just wants to be left alone. Between his high-profile divorce, his struggles with drinking, and his grief over the death of his longtime creative partner and best friend, he's slowly let himself fade into the background. But if he ever wants to produce the last movie he and his partner wrote together, Ethan needs to clean up his reputation and step back into the spotlight. A juicy affair with a gorgeous actress might be just the ticket, even if it's the last thing he wants to do. With their plan working perfectly, the sizzling chemistry between Grey and Ethan soon starts to feel like more than just an act. But in this ruthless industry, are they both too used to faking it to open themselves up to the real thing? ................................ 'This empathetic, sexy, utterly radiant book has my whole heart . . . How to Fake it in Hollywood is the real deal' RACHEL LYNN SOLOMON 'The banter and sexual tension . . . is fire-emoji immaculate' LILLIE VALE 'A fresh, witty, high-emotion story with compelling characters and stylish backdrops . . . The perfect novel for fans of modern, smart romance' SARAH HAYWOOD

Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi (b. 1960) is as famous for his remarkable films as for his courageous defiance of Iran's state censorship. Panahi achieved international recognition with his feature film debut, The White Balloon, the first Iranian film to receive an award at the Cannes Film Festival. His subsequent films-The Mirror, The Circle, and Offside-continue to receive acclaim throughout the world, yet they remain largely unseen in his own country due to years of conflict with the Iranian government. In spite of multiple arrests, a brief imprisonment, and a ban on making movies and giving interviews, Panahi speaks openly and passionately in this unique, invaluable collection of twenty-five interviews, open letters, and his own court statement, in which he makes a compelling case for artistic freedom and humanism. Many of these documents have been translated from Persian and appear in English for the first time, including an interview done exclusively for this volume. In sparkling, lively interviews, Panahi reveals his influences, politics, and filmmaking practices. He explains the challenges he faces while working within (and often around) Iran's heavily restricted film industry, providing the reader a unique vantage point from which to consider Iranian cinema and society.

The New York Times number one bestseller from the Saturday Night Live and Parks and Recreation star. In Amy Poehler's highly anticipated memoir, Yes Please, she offers up a big juicy stew of personal stories, funny bits on sex and love and friendship and parenthood and real life advice (some useful, some not so much). Powered by Amy's charming and hilarious, biting yet wise voice, Yes Please is a book full of words to live by.

Volume 1 makes available for the first time in English thirty-nine scenarios and two treatments. Each text is preceded by an introduction, providing an essential frame of reference to make these writings entirely accessible to the reader. While nearly all these texts belong to the post-war period, including the stories for major post-war classics, there are also seven pre-war raccontini, the narrative source of Zavattini's Modernist magical realism, several fictional interviews and faux reportage, tinged with irony aimed at Hollywood, complemented by several pre-war scenarios. The book also features scenarios for Luchino Visconti's Bellissima, Alessandro Blasetti's First Communion, De Sica's The Roof and texts encompassing Zavattini's ethnographic vision, from the redactions of Italia mia, interviews for Un paese, illustrated with Paul Strand's photographs, to the scenarios for investigative documentaries, including Why?, The Mysteries of Rome, The Guinea Pig, the Free Newsreel Revolution, and the lucid Before, During After, tackling Aldo Moro's assassination by the Red Brigades. The book includes Zavattini's last word on cinema and society, the testamentary satire La veritaaaa (1982), written, directed and acted by Zavattini himself. Each text is preceded by an introduction, providing an essential frame of reference to make these writings entirely accessible to the reader. Volume 2 brings to the fore Zavattini's ever-evolving internal dialogue between diary writer, screenwriter, narrative writer, and political activist. Essential to trace the origin of Zavattini's ideas on cinema and understand his theorization of Neo-realism is the inclusion of a selection of the filmmaker's pre-war writings. Most of the book provides a substantial anthology of texts translated from Neorealismo ecc. (1979), comprising Zavattini's major essays, conference papers, unpublished production papers, interviews, and vital excerpts from his correspondence and published cinematic diary. Through translation and detailed cultural and contextual commentary, translator and editor David Brancaleone traces not only Zavattini's theory of the screen, but also his experimentation in new film practices, including the flash-film (film lampo), the inquiry film (film inchiesta), cinema as encounter (cinema d'incontro), the diary film (film diario), the confessional film (film-confessione), and the grass-roots community film (cinema insieme or cinema di tanti per tanti). Each text is preceded by an introduction, providing an essential frame of reference to make these writings entirely accessible to the reader.

From the filth and the fury to the elegant extravaganza, 'Peter Gravelle', the many named photographer, has remained in the shadows of punk rock, low culture and high fashion, deflecting attention while steadily producing an epic body of iconic work. The Death of Photography is a tour de force, a high end art book showcasing forty years of the best punk, fashion and portraiture of Gravelle's career. Heavily stylised images are woven together with Gravelle's own fascinating recollections from a live lived in technicolour.

Come along backstage and peek inside the spectacular and sometimes scandalous world of musical theatre. See the world's most-loved musical productions come to life in this lavishly illustrated book! This show-stopping reference book includes: - A chronological structure that makes the book work as a history of musicals - Includes a 20-page reference section with key details on over 100 additional musicals - Neat timelines summarise the plot, characters, and songs for 20 top musicals From The Wizard of Oz and The Sound of Music to Mamma Mia and Les Miserables, fall in love all over again with the songs, stories, characters, creators, and legendary stars from every era of musical theatre. Take a journey through the years and immerse yourself in the behind-the-scenes world of musical theatre! From the dance halls and vaudeville to the silver screen and sensational Broadway shows, this go-to musical guide has all the glitter and glamour of the West End. It's Showtime! Delve into profiles of successful creators such as Andrew Lloyd Webber and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Packed with profiles of musical icons and fun infographics that summarise the plot, characters and songs, Musicals: The Definitive Visual Guide is the perfect way to embrace your inner "theatre geek". With a foreword by Elaine Paige, this updated edition gives greater coverage on the smash-hit Hamilton and includes mention of new and popular stage and movie musicals. It's a must-have or the ultimate gift for musical theatre fans. Complete the Series: If you enjoyed this illustrated celebration of musicals, look out for more titles in this series from DK. Uncover the most mesmerising moments in ballet history in Ballet: The Definitive Illustrated Story.