No comments about King Lehr.

5 comments about Elvis In Texas: The Undiscovered King 1954-1958.

1. Scotty Moore, Elvis' original guitar player and manager, told me he thought he had already seen every photo from that era until he saw this book. That's why I bought it. The snapshots in this book are great, but the writing is so full of itself, it's frustrating to read. I find the photos helpful as a visual reference when reading other books on Elvis' early years.



2. Scotty Moore, Elvis' original guitar player and manager, recently said he thought he had seen every photo from that era until he saw this book. That's why I bought it. The photos, mostly performance snapshots, are great. Unfortunately the text is not. At best the writing gets in the way, and at worst it is just plain wrong (which Scotty warned me about). Still, this rare glimpse of one of the greatest American bands merits its recommendation.



3. I bought this book because I'm writing Faron Young's biography and needed information on dates Faron and Elvis worked together. Lori Torrance lost my respect in the very first paragraph of the book, with her statement, "Country music twanged on the radio, Hank Williams crying in his cornflakes again." A few pages later, she says, "At that time, easy listening and my-dog-has-fleas country music monopolized the mass music market." The research was useful but the flippant writing was a turn-off.



4. This a very nice book. There are some great pictures in here. I own a lot of Elvis books and there are some pictures in here I haven't seen before. The text is a bit gossipy but okay. It's not an in depth study of the King but good coffee table fodder. According to this, he really did sow his wild oats in Texas - I wonder how many little Elvi are going about?

   It's interesting to see Elvis the boy at the beginning, looking full of life and looking to the future and then look at pictures of him toward the end. Was all the success worth it? Perhaps not.




5. This is a really neat book for anyone who is crazy about Elvis and wants to know his roots. Also, for anyone living in East Texas where these events took place.

No comments about Clark Gable - The King of Hollywood (Biography).

2 comments about Hollywood Unlisted.

1. This book is captivating from the begining to the end. I did jump around a bit except for the last chapter. It was quite riveting. Not all the stories are fun and games so be ready for quite a thrill ride. I've never read such a book before. I've also never laughed out loud as many times as I did reading some of the lighter stories. The shocking stories are very well written. You feel as though you are there. I highly recommend this book. It is for adults, so, be forewarned. Pat



2. -HOLLYWOOD UNLISTED-
   
   For all of the twenty-eight plus years that I have worked for a large telephone company as an outside "Services Technician", when we employees would regularly meet after work would always seem to gravitate to the outlandish and crazy stories that either someone has heard about, or actually had experienced on the job. Before our "bull sessions" would end, someone would always say, "Hey, someone should write a book about all these wild things that people have encountered on the job!" We all would stare blankly at one another, nod our heads in agreement, finish our drinks, and go home.
   
   A couple of years ago a number of us were going through our same predictable story sharing routine when someone said, "Hey, I heard that someone did write a book about their wild experiences in the telephone company, I heard them on a radio talk show."
   
   When pressed for the name of the author, or the book title, the person said, "I just don't remember."
   
   This whole process would repeat itself many times to me over the next two years, with someone remembering that someone had written a book about the telephone company, but could not ever remember any other information.
   Thus, I began my quest to find this elusive author with nothing more than my sense of determination, and strong urge to have a laugh at the telephone company's expense.
   
   To make a long story short. After a great deal of searching, I finally did find this book, which was titled "Hollywood Unlisted", and it's author "Kim Fahey", and all I can say is that it was more than worth the wait to find this hilarious epitome of insanity.
   
   To say that this is one of the weirdest, craziest, books that I have ever read would be a severe understatement.
   
   If anyone was better equipped to write a tell all book about his thirty years working for a large corporate telephone company it is "Kim Fahey", who, I believe, probably has never had a "normal" day in his entire life.
   
   If I could take the wildest stories that I have ever heard from everyone who has ever worked for my telephone company, and had just written them down, I couldn't even begin to scratch the surface of the anecdotes contained in "Hollywood Unlisted."
   What's really amazing is that these are not other people's stories; these are the true stories which actually happened to the book's author "Kim Fahey."
   
   I can honestly tell you that everything that I know from my personal experience about the telephone company rings true, (pun intended), and I truly believe that all of the experiences that "Mr. Fahey" has documented in his book to be 100% true.
   
   Not only would I recommend this book to anyone who has ever worked in the telecommunications business, I would highly recommend this book to anyone likes to laugh at the absurdities, and craziness of working in today's corporate environment.
   Did I hear someone mention the comic strip "Dilbert"?
   
   This book is not for the prudish, you must like reading about things which are unusual, and rarely if ever could be considered as routine.
   
   To sum up my little book review, I shall give you the "Fahey Creed" that is written on the inside cover of this book, and should that prove to be motivation enough for you to purchase this book, I can only say, "You are now in extreme danger of laughing yourself silly." YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
   
   FAHEY CREED:
   
   If you let me talk, I'm not going to work!
   
   If I'm talking, I'm not working!
   
   I do a lot of talking!

No comments about The Last Human Cannonball: And Other Small Journeys in Search of Great Men.

5 comments about Speedbumps: Flooring It Through Hollywood.

1. Having seen many of Teri's movies I found her point of view very interesting. In retrospect she has really worked with some of Hollywood's heavy hitters. This was a very lighthearted look back on her career with funny stories about a wide range of a variety of celebrities. What suprised me most was her honesty about her insecurities about being an actress and how MS plays a role in all of this. Overall a very enjoyable read.



2. A very interesting life. Full of fun and hard work. She is tackling her disease with gusto, the way she has always aproached life.



3. Teri Garr is the type of person who you wish you knew personally. She is so down to earth in a celebrity world that is full of over prententious egos. I have enjoyed her movie roles and the interchanges that she had with David Letterman on his show were classic. The book is an entertaining look into life that demonstrated her tenaciousness to get what she wanted while keeping a wonderful sense of humor. She takes those two qualities with her as she fights multiple sclerosis. We all should have her attitude regarding the challenges that we face in life.



4. I have always enjoyed Teri Garr as an actress and thought her book would be enjoyable. But it went far beyond that! She is fabulous. I can only imagine knowing her "in-person" and what a blast she must be to have as a friend. She has a similar attitude toward MS that I would like to say I took toward cancer and she is quite a hero. Ms. Garr deserves to live a long, rich, happy and healthy life! Please enjoy the book!!!!!



5. What a great read. Teri has a quirky, sarcastic wit that comes through brilliantly in this book. I just wish it was longer.

5 comments about The Unsinkable Heather Mills: The Unauthorized Biography of the Great Pretender.

1. I read this book's promotion in one of Cindy Adams' columns this past November. I read the "book" was going to be an expose of that vile woman, Heather Mills. Imagine my surprise when "it" arrived and I started reading the drivel. What it is, folks (and make no mistake about it) is a Paid in Full manuscript for money received. Heather Mills used her husband's money to finance a whitewash of her sorry life. She used his money to make her appear as another Mother Theresa. I have never thrown away a book in my life. Let this be the first to smell the inside of my garbage container!



2. I wouldn't be surprised if she penned this book herself for the money. She'll do just about anything for the money, including giving our beloved Paul such heartache and worry that we may lose him sooner than we would have otherwise. For that I shall absolutely NEVER be swayed by anything she has to say. She's a liar, and doesn't seem to get it that no matter what she would have to say about Paul, it doesn't matter one ioda. She doesn't understand just how immensely he is just purely loved by the world that he's made to be a happier place for being in it.



3. To be honest, I had no idea who Heather Mills was before "Dancing with the Stars." And even then, she was just the skinny blonde girl with a prosthetic leg. Now I know who she is and, although I may not agree with every choice she's made for herself in life, I'm glad this book was published.
   
   Some reviewers on this site are upset that Heather Mills' biography isn't full of the same digs at her character that the Sun tabloid ran about her in England: hooker, liar, porn star....
   
   Well, this book is much better than that, showing the full 360 of Heather's long and winding road (to borrow a phrase.)
   
   Having read numerous biographies of the Beatles (AND their lovers, including Miss Pattie Boyd) "The Unsinkable Heather Mills" was a natural addition to my library.
   
   Informative--and interesting!--this book is perfect for anyone who is a fan of Paul McCartney or just a fan of pop culture in general. Buy it-- you won't be disappointed!



4. If this is 'unauthorized' Mr.Simpson is the best researcher and ghost-writer since Andrew Morton. Or and this explanation makes more sense and closer to the truth-this was written with an all too real [ and no doubt unnerving ] awareness that Mills is the most litigious, infamous person the public and press have seen in a very long time. Mills had a hard life growing up. A horrific accident at age 25. That she overcame all this is admirable. That she sees fit to exacerbate the truth or even justify a lot of unsavory things - stealing from a jewelry store where she worked; 'Love Manual'photos; 'parties' at The Dorchester, etc.-in her life that've recently came back to haunt her. She shows a lack of empathy and the complete absence of a moral compass. It's chilling at best. Give Neil Simpson credit: he did the best he could in that particular area but had very little to work with. The shoplifting, stealing are blamed on someone else. Sells the stolen jewelry then she's befuddled of "why didn't anyone ask why someone this young was doing with this much jewelry?" Mills makes it sound as though she were an apple cheeked 15 yr.old. Actually, this is probably the closest in the book she comes to admitting she felt bad about what happened. That it very nearly put the store owner out of business: wreaked havoc within his store: with other longtime employees and the subsequent fall-out from it is not gone into at any length. In almost everything else, she's allegedly blameless. Being a kept woman by a married man while in Paris; running off with a ski-instructor in the former Yugoslavia while married to Alfie Karmal-all in the name of the greater good one could allege. Money can't buy her ENOUGH 'things.' She is even QUOTED as saying she learned early on, money was power. No duh. Love makes the world go 'round but money is the gravitational pull keeping it on its' axis. There have been plenty of women born, raised in difficult circumstances who know that. Women who made something of themselves without using their bodies in 'Love Photos,' drinking watered down champagne, getting paid for it. The book sings one too many hallelujah choruses about her " excellent, professional abilities as a terrific business woman " over and over. Then again allegedly appealing to the lowest common denominator, perhaps not ENOUGH choruses were sung.



5. This really isn't an objective look at Miss Mill's life. It's more of a defense of her life and the author seems bent on painting her in the most positive light. I'm aware that Heather Mills has been an advocate for many hurting people. I'm also aware that she often seems about ready to explode.

3 comments about James Dean: Rebel With A Cause (Indiana Biography) (Indiana Biography Series).

1. Wes Gehring is capable of writing a good biography, as he did for Red Skelton, but this book adds nothing to the James Dean oeuvre. Most disappointing of all is the author's ill-conceived attempt to deny that James Dean was gay or bisexual. Gehring goes to frankly ridiculous lengths to deny the now-well-known fact that Dean was not heterosexual. When the author refuses to recognize such a central, basic fact of a person, how can he write a useful, believable biography of him?
   
   Readers seeking a biography of James Dean would be better served by books such as "James Dean" by George Perry, which has been authorized by the Dean family. The definitive biography of Dean has yet to be written, I believe, but in the meantime, the George Perry book is fine. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" is also worth a look, though those who refuse to believe that anyone they like is gay will no doubt close their hearts and minds to that one. Some pointless, unfounded prejudices die hard in some people, it seems.
   
   James Dean remains an important cultural icon worldwide, and it is my hope that a better biography will be written one day. Since he died so young, this is a difficult project. But you can definitely by-pass the Wes Gehring attempt.



2. "James Dean: Rebel With A Cause" is about the life of James Dean. It starts off with the day he died in a car accident at the age of 24 and then rewinds back to the day he was born. It goes through his Indiana roots and his time in California, from his Broadway debut to his star-making role. We knew him as Cal Trask, a unloved son in "East of East", Jim Stark, an angst-ridden teen in "Rebel Without A Cause", and Jett Rink, the contemporary cowboy in "Giant". I liked the book becuase I like learning about new people. The only thing I didn't like was that there were a lot of words I didn't understand. But that didn't stop it from being a good book about an amazing actor.



3. Wes Gehring's 'Rebel With a Cause' bio on James Dean is a tastefully designed little book which initially gives the impression of a serious, well-sourced and in-depth study of the actor's life. However, looks are decieving, and while it does have its good points and a very attractive package, many of Gehring's conclusions are heavily biased and woefully uninformed. I bought this dignified, intellectual- looking book at Fairmount, Indiana's Rebel, Rebel shop, but was not able to read the jacket flap notes due to it being shrink wrapped. Later, I was able to meet Gehring and his wife on the front lawn of the Fairmount Historical Museum as they were in the middle of a book signing session. A nice, soft-spoken man, Gehring graciously unwrapped my book, signed it and enthusiastically answered my query regarding how his bio is different from all previous books on Dean. His reply was the same as what I would later encounter at length in the book: that being his central thesis of James Dean being a highly calculating and ambitious actor who cleverly "posed as the angst- ridden adolescent and played it to the hilt". And that's only the beginning of Gehring's frantic, right- wing deluge of conservative rationalizing as he tries to systematically debunk all previous biographers who've written about Jimmy being a troubled and moody rebel. Gehring gets carried away with his use of phrases like "angst- ridden" and "troubled, tortured youth", his worst remark being the crowing Eureka- type declaration of what he believes is a much needed "moratorium on all things angst- ridden in future literature on Dean!" Generally, this treatment of Dean's life reads like a highly agendized and conservative take that shrinks in horror and indignation from all the realities of Jimmy's short, tumultuous life. The basic conclusion I had after reading this book was: ALL THESE PREVIOUS BOOKS ON DEAN CAN"T BE WRONG, and that, unfortunately, is what Gehring is asking us to believe. Although extememly well sourced and researched, it appears that this aspect only served to give the book crediblity and to flesh out the back pages with an appearance of dogged, fair research. Another terribly misinformed gaff in the text is Gehring's dismissal of a central thesis of Val Holley's excellent Dean bio, James Dean: The Biography; that being Holley falling back on "simple sentimentality" what with his conclusion that Dean's career accomplishments were brought about because of, not in spite of, his emotional and psychological disposition. Gehring could not be more wrong. The self destructive artist is a well documented phenomenon, and Dean was one. There is FAR too much evidence and solid, first hand anecdotes, across numerous reliable sources, that vividly illustrates that James Dean WAS, without question, an immensely wounded and reckless person with ALL manner of unrest inside. What is odd and perplexing about Gehring's take on Dean is how he tries to take some issues to the very edge of what is accurate, such as his condemnation of the callous Winton Dean, but then backs away with a polite "everybody has their reasons", regarding Winton's sending young Jimmy back to Indiana in the wake of his mother's untimely death. Far too much credence is given to Dizzy Sheridan's spurious "memoir" of her life with Dean, a historian's nightmare as to chronology and imagined conversations/scenarios. And how Gehring can know that Dean "savored" the humiliating setbacks at UCLA is beyond this reader. Again, there's too much evidence to the contrary that Dean was nowhere near that technically minded or somehow removed emotionally from the immediate day-to-day sufferings and deprivations of his early days. I don't know how any author with a clear view of the whole subject can actually structure a whole book around such flimsy theories; case in point would be Gehring's latching onto the anecdote pertaining to Dean's friend Karen Sharpe, which implies that Jimmy was a calculating poseur.
   Gehring makes a mountain out of a mole hill with this single anecdote. That's to say nothing of the staggering amount of material found in his book that was clearly lifted from Holley's 'far superior '95 book; in some cases it is properly credited, but in others it's not. One of the few people that Dean was close to in Indiana was the elusive school teacher, Bette McPherson,but she is omitted from Gehring's white bread, conservative tale, while the close relationship with the Rev. James DeWeerd is neatly and annoyingly tidied up. Just because The Rev. lived with his aged mother and served on the school board doesn't mean he could not have been gay and sexually predatory with teenage boys in Fairmount, including Dean. Gehring rightfully dismisses Paul Alexander's outrageously sensationalized nonsense of a bio, but he does nothing to explain why the Jack Rupp quote about DeWeerd's homosexuality is a "misleading embellishment". However, Gehring IS right on target about Dean being essentially spoiled by his small town successes and by the big- hearted Winslows. He was, indeed, the 'big fish in a small pond'. Also, it cannot be questioned that Jimmy was better off returning to Indiana in the wake of his mother's death; with an indifferent, distant father like Winton, what choice did the rest of the family have? In the end, Gehring's strange, good-looking, biased tome is worth having, but ONLY for the serious Dean student who wants to take in the WHOLE picture and scope of James Dean literature. Beyond that Wes Gehring presents yet another 11th hour ploy by the family, (whether they were directly involved or not), and the conservative right of Dean circles, to clean up and "sanitize" Dean's story. If you're serious, approach with caution, because this is the other side of the coin from Alexander and Hyams. There is worthwhile stuff and worthLESS stuff between these covers. Paul Waters

5 comments about Andrew Carnegie and the Rise of Big Business (2nd Edition).

1. I was required to read Andrew Carnegie and the Rise of Big Business for my history class. Not only did were we requiered to read this dry biography, but we then had to write a 5-7 page paper on what we thought the themes of the book were. However, the book is so bogged down with numbers and informatin about how he did EVERYTHING in excessive detail, that it is hard to focus on the reading yet alone find the themes within it.
   I have no doubt that Andrew Carnegie was a great man and accomplished some great feats, but who cares EXACTLY how he did it and what the exact numbers were? I think the book would have been a much better read if Harold Livesay, the author, had simlpy told the story of Carnegies life. All the statistics were overkill.
   In addition to continually beating an already dead horse, Livesay went into more depth than neccessary with the details of how Andrew did things. A simple explanation of a series of events would have been sufficiant. I think more people would be able to read and even enjoy Andrew Carnegie's life story had the author left out all the fluff.



2. I was required to read this book for my history class. It was probably the most boring book that I have ever read. Every time I started to read it I would fall asleep. I tried to read a chapter each day, but I ended up reading a page or two then passing out. The book goes too far into specifics and numbers in certain areas of his life which takes away from the story. This made the book almost unbearable to read. If you are having trouble sleeping at night then you should go out and buy this book, but if you are looking for a good read, think again.



3. Andrew Carnegie was such a boring book, especially if you hate history. I couldn't get interested in it. It went too much in depth with numbers and statistics. Those things took away from what,I think, the author was trying to get the readers to understand.
   Every time I read it I would lose interest right away!! One paragraph and I was gone. I would even fall asleep when reading it!!! I had to re-read sections multiple times because I couldn't even tell you what I was reading. It went in one ear and out the other. I had to make sure I understood it though because I had to write a 5 page paper on it for my history class.



4. "Andrew Carnegie: and the Rise of Big Business" was the worst book I have ever read. I went into reading it with an open mind, and after the first chapter I wanted to pull my hair out it was so boring.
   First off, the book took place in a time period where I wasn't even born. My parents weren't even born yet. It has to do with a subject that I don't even know about.
   Second, the author dragged on and on about numbers and business partners and business investments. He was using words that were not in my vocabulary.
   Finally, the plot and main ideas of the book were so slow. They jumped around and I didn't know what business we were talking about, or which business partner was involved. They talked about money and finances.



5. I too had to read this horrible waste of a tree for my history class - i thought it was and intresting story the whole rags to riches thing but i never finished a single chapter because i didnt have the will power to push through the dryness of this book, most often i even fell asleep. livesay may have acuratley described the rise of andrew carnegie but this book is crap - only a true history nut would find any enjoyment in the book, and thats pushing it

No comments about Deny, Deny, Deny: The Rise and Fall of Colin Thatcher (Second Edition).