Entertainment Books

It's fun to flip these pages. You'll see a lot of writing, less of art. There is no story telling or even coherence in this published work. Really cool to own, sometimes you'll get a glimpse of what was going on in his mind.

If you are a fan of Kurt Cobain and or Nirvana, then this book is a MUST read. I've not finished the book just yet, I got it this morning and I am already on page 205, I just can't seem to put it down, and I rarely like to sit and read anything.

This book is simply great. I'm very impressed with its quality and have learned a lot about this iconic figure by reading Kurt's entries. I hope everyone picks up a copy! = )

great product, fast shipping. Shipping package ripped when received. Slight scratches and bending. shipper may want to consider better packing method for shipping but, all in all a good experience!

I can definitely see both sides of the issue of the moral quandary concerning this book. However, I think it's really pathetic that people on both sides are trying to assume what Kurt would or wouldn't want. I don't think that by reading these journals you somehow aren't a true fan of Nirvana just as not reading them somehow makes you a true fan. That's absurd. I will say, though, that in my personal opinion this book is a blatant and disgusting invasion of privacy. I think that it's rather obvious that Courtney Love is lacking scruples with her obviously cavalier attitude about releasing things that probably should have stayed private. I'm sure she will suffer some sort of karmic retribution (if she hasn't already) for doing so.

Regardless, I personally have never read these journals, nor will I ever do so. I'm not trying to be elitist by pretending to have any kind of moral high ground. It's a personal choice. I'm genuinely not interested to see what is in them. I think that the music kind of speaks for itself. That is, after all, why I personally am a fan of Nirvana and of Kurt. I don't think that reading some personal journal entries is going to suddenly give me or anyone insight into his genius or what led to his death. The story surrounding his death is tragic enough without crap like this being commercialized and his overall image being exploited and sold, which is really why he despised being famous to begin with. I think stuff like this is further evidence that far too much attention is being paid to the personal lives of celebrities as opposed to their work. This is precisely why people like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears are famous.

I don't think that by reading these journals anyone is going to be less of a fan or suffer any karmic retribution. I think that will be reserved for the person who allowed it to be released to the public in the first place. Regardless, I can also definitely understand the curiosity that people have and I don't think they should be judged for having a thirst for more information about a very important and brilliant musician.

Vowell's book is definately a clever and witty delivery of truth. Some of it is her own truth through life experience. Even if you don't share her opinions, you understand her point without feeling like you are sacrificing your own. She makes you think, laugh and enjoy yourself with introspection mixed in..well done Vowell!

Writer Sarah Vowell established a following on NPR's "This American Life" in explorations of the byroads of American culture as well as her own life. Many of those pieces appear in TAKE THE CANNOLI in essay form alongside articles that originally appeared in print and online. The collection reveals the growth of the writer, from insightful young talent to a person shedding the edges of youth for a mature perspective on herself and, especially, her relationship as an American with this world. While her most recent work, ASSASSINATION VACATION, has her at the top of her powers, this collection, interesting in itself, shows her getting there.

Vowell begins by peeling back her youth as the liberal daughter of a Second Amendment gunsmith in Oklahoma and Montana; her life in high school band; and finally, growing up under the threat of doom held over her head by her family's Pentacostal religion and the Reagan administration's imagery of the evil empire and nuclear war. She moves onto tours of Frank Sinatra's hometown, Hoboken, New Jersey; Disney World and Celebration, Florida; New York's infamous Chelsea Hotel; Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp; and Goth culture. There a hilarious episode in which the creator of "This American Life," Ira Glass, tries to teach Vowell to drive. The second strongest piece in the collection is the essay from which she takes her title, an account of watching "The Godfather" religiously in college, hanging onto its simple imperatives in defense against the uncertain waves of diverse philosophy that swirl in academe. The strongest piece is the trip she takes with her twin sister Amy tracing the Trail of Tears their Cherokee ancestors were forced to march when President Andrew Jackson banished them from their own property. In that, you see Vowell learning to wrangle the kind of ambiguities that usually stop others in their tracks. I love how she loves America, clear-eyed but without apology.

This collection of essays is often topical and thus some of them are a little dated, or at least ironic given more recent events. I'd really like to sit down with Vowell, to see what she thinks now.

Having read The Partly Cloudy Patriot first, I loved this book because it invited me to learn more about the author and her life. And in that respect, the book is very good--well-written and full of Vowell's characteristic wit. I would not, however, recommend it as a first taste of Sarah Vowell; I think it's funnier and more interesting once you're familiar with her style.

She's a staple of This American Life on Public Radio International, and she's also appeared in GQ, Salon and Request. Her humor and wit are sharp and perceptive. But, let me work from the back cover blurbs.

Essays on American history, pop culture and her own family. Yep. But it's not easy to get me interested in American history or pop culture. A madonna of Americana. Yep, but I'm bored again.

Her writing about her family, early on, was great. Then we got some history that bored me, but I kept going because she is talented. Surface, but talented. Then an essay about the Trail of Tears that really hit home for me, then some amusing stuff. It's not bad, but I don't see myself going back for seconds. I'll keep an eye on whatever else she does.

I became a fan of Sarah Vowell after reading Assassination Vacation, and decided to go back and read her early works. Take the Cannoli: Stories from the New World is very good although a bit short. It's also a bit dated, although that's entirely my fault for taking so long to discover Vowell.

Take the Cannoli is a compilation of short stories that mostly deal with the author's life. She writes of being born in Oklahoma and raised in Montana, her twin sister and her parents, her education and her background (she's part Cherokee), her political beliefs and her interest in history, and especially her travels. Many of them are downright funny, and Vowell has a wicked, self-deprecating wit. The chapter on her trying to alter her appearance to become a "Goth" was a scream! I also enjoyed her escapes as a band geek. In high school, Vowell wasn't exactly your average high school student. "I have intimate knowledge of what it was like to be young and uneasy and outraged under Reagan. My high school was 1980s in miniature--you either belonged or you didn't. And if you didn't, you learned to seek relief where you could find it--and for me, that relief was with other black-clad malcontents who could quote defense-spending statistics even though we were barely passing algebra."

Vowell is at her best when she chronicles her travels and two that I enjoyed were her trip to Disney World and her tracing the Cherokee Trail of Tears. While her reflections on her Disney trip were funny, her take on The Trail of Tears poignant, sad and reflective. But even The Trail of Tears is good for a few chuckles, at Vowell's expense. When traveling on a road near her hometown, she relates that "only I know its topography with the intimacy that comes from leaning over every inch of it, carsick. I can't help but wonder if the grass grows so close to the shoulder because of my personal fertilizer crusade: I was a little Lady Bird Johnson of puke."

I wish that Vowell wrote books a little quicker, but in the meantime, I'll have to content myself with reading her earlier works.

This book has already helped me and I've only had it for 2 weeks. The simple techniques that Seth Riggs uses help to make you sing correctly. This is especially good for singing and speaking.

This book is standard nothing special. Like most books in this genre you don't leave feeling that you and tackle any songs as the exercises are weak or usually lack of them. What I would recommend is `an introduction to singing with style' I came across this book quite by accident on amazon.co.uk and it has helped me a lot. It goes into great depth about how to develop a great singing voice, vocal projection, vocal clarity and this book even tells you what diet to avoid and what food is good for healthy living it's amazing! If you're looking for vocal stamina then this book has it! It is packed with breathing techniqe too so there you have it

This course has done more to improve my voice in a few short months than all of the vocal coaches that I have had put together. It doesn't try to teach you to sing like some one else. It just shows you how to get the most out of whatever you have been gifted with and sound like you at your best. It will also teach you how to be able to keep singing for years to come without damaging your voice. It will make you the best you can be and help you keep that. Buy it and use it! You will be glad you did.

I bought this as a present to my spouse. She loves it so i am happy too. Unfortunately i know very little about this topic, but i'm told it isn't for beginners. Cheers

I do agree that it is way too full of testimonials. But regardless, the method is the best out there and the exercises on the cd are great. The philosophy is that there really is no distinction between the chest and head voice. ( and all good voice teachers know that there are even more changes) It's kind of like an automatic car if you think about it (or even a stick once you know how to drive it and it's just instinct) That there are shifts that take place in your throat but it's none of your concern. The more you think about it, the more prominent they will be and this method teaches you to use your whole range smoothly. People get so caught up in what's "high" and what's "low" but dynamics are what makes the voice interesting to listen to so the smoother the tone, the more flexibility you have. Ahh, I could go on forever.

It's a good guide and as a book, it's a very good lesson.
My best advice as a vocal coach is to find a teacher that teaches exactly the genre you are interested in learning. I was first trained in classical, then jazz, then finally rock and pop. That's where I took off and that's what I teach now. Most of the students that come to me are in rock bands and many have had previous lessons with classical teachers who taught them to sing classically which is really different from singing pop music. For instance, the breathing is VERY different. You don't need nearly as much stored up for pop music.

If you want to sing rock, find a rock singing teacher and preferably one that is familiar with this method of speech level singing as this is the best method out there. And watch out, there are many stubborn teachers out there who will teach you to sing how they sing which will only work if you have the same tone.

Good luck everyone.

This book is a must-have for any fan or person interested in the work of Jean-Luc Godard. It is a comprehensive critical biography detailing the working methods and conditions surrounding each film in Mr. Godard's ouvre. It is a massive and lengthy tome filled with erudition.

I break my rating down as follows:

Skipping the childhood and parental history: 5 Stars (because his childhood and parental history does not interest me... and was already covered in MacCabe's book.)

Late 40's/Early 50's background on French critical theory: 5 Stars (for the Astruc/Bazinian/etc. cinema theory... mixed with Satrean/etc. existentialism... along with a dash of vermouth named Brecht)

The financing/producing of the films and a history of various working methods: 5 Stars (great for any cinephile)

The Karina/Godard relationship: 5 Stars (not enough can ever be said about one of the true goddesses of cinema!)

May 1968: 5 Stars (some exciting stuff that I lived through at the time)

Comprehensively talking about every short, middle and feature-length film or video that has even been publicly seen in a movie theater, on television, or at various screenings: 5 Stars (`nuff said...)

Critical Taste in the analysis of films: 2 Stars

I find this to be Mr. Brody's only failing but his taste is somewhat different than mine in the appreciation of the relative merits of Mr. Godard's individual films. To wit:

Brody speaks much more highly of King Lear than Band of Outsiders. He rates Prenom: Carmen much more highly than the film that immediately preceded it (Passion). He is not much of a fan of Two or Three Things yet raves about A Married Woman. He doesn't have much use for Les Carabiniers. Or British Sounds.

(Huh?)

King Lear over Band of Outsiders? Band of Outsiders was poetic AND fun at the same time. Looks easy but hardly anyone can do it.

Les Carabiniers is a dadaist masterpiece and includes one of the high points of cinema... (and I paraphrase the dialogue...) ... "You mean we get to steal, rape and kill and get away with it?" "Yes." "SIGN US UP!"

(Isn't this as good, if not better, than Bergman's God-is-a-spider-crawling-on-the-wall??) (!!)

I liked Prenom: Carmen very, very much. But I liked Passion very, very, very, very, very, very, very much. I guess I preferred the ecstatic/epiphanal shots of art tableux in Passion to the repeated shots (in Carmen) of Ms. Detmers' pubis.

Mr. Brody can't see the forest for the trees on this one! As Chuck Heston once said when confronted with wooly beasts, "Get away from me you d--n dirty ape!"

(Apologies to Ms. Detmers who more than proved her acting chops/oral skills in Marco Bellocchio's DEVIL IN THE FLESH. A fine lass, she...!) (And I did very much enjoy Carmen as well as her performance... but Passion is a superior work of art.)

The best cup of coffee in the history of the world was Godard's Two or Three Things... and even Hamlet never faced the poetic quandary Godard did when he wondered "Should I speak of Juliette... or the trees?" as an Edenic shot of creation is framed within the 1.66:1 ratio. Or was it 2.35?

And if you've ever worked on a factory line... you'll admire the perfectly chosen perfection of the ear-drone-hammer-industrial-noise soundtrack in British Sounds.

Perhaps Mr. Brody never was an industrial wage-slave or he would have more admiration for the truth in much of what Godard/Gorin expressed in their Vertov films. Sometimes the truth ain't pretty. And sometimes the truth may hurt your ears.

IN SUMMARY, though you may disagree with Mr. Brody on his critical analysis of individual films... (taste in their relative merits may simply be akin to taste in ties)... the reading of his critical biography was sometimes fascinating, and almost always interesting. Well worth each capitalist penny spent!

I had high expectations for this book, afterall, she is a Coppola! And just like her famous family members, she met them. I loved the "time travel" feeling from jumping back and fourth through Eleanor Coppola's diary. What a tremendous person with a tremendous amount to give.

Just finished this extraordinary book. Eleanor comes across as a woman who necessarily wears many hats, putting aside many of her own desires and talents as an artist to satisfy her family's needs first and foremost. Extraordinarily frank and heart wrenching as she wrote about the loss of of her son, Gio, though this book is so much more. At first I found the notes of observation, her writing style, to be hard to grasp, but gradually it was as though she had became a friend with all the details in her many revelations and wonderment. I did enjoy reading and would highly recommend to others who have suffered the pain of loss . . . and, more importantly, endured.

Consider the problem of the wife who has a successful husband and has for decades put him and their family first, and her own aspirations second. It's not a novel problem, but is instead too common to be of much interest: let's just count on the woman to take care of herself and her family and her career as best she can. The situation might, however, be particularly interesting if the family moves in the highest of Hollywood circles, with many family members involved in moviemaking, and with the wife herself a successful filmmaker, artist, and memoirist. In the beginning of _Notes on a Life_ (Nan A. Talese), Eleanor Coppola says, "I am an observer at heart," and this is manifestly true, but she is also a reporter, whether in her movie _Hearts of Darkness_ which is a documentary about the making of _Apocalypse Now_ by her husband Francis Ford Coppola, or in her previous book which was a memoir of the making of that film, or in her other films about her children's films. As fits a memoir from a devoted and dutiful wife and mother, this is a book mostly about her family and about how she has cared for them. It may have all happened in extraordinary circles, but it is delightful to read this candid memoir and realize that for all the working trips to exotic locales, and the house in Napa Valley, and hobnobbing with George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, Eleanor Coppola's marriage and family are a lot like anyone else's. They come with problems, and she works on them, and gets things done, and she quite clearly loves what she and they have managed to accomplish.

An idea follows her all through the decades covered in the diary entries here: "I have an ongoing internal war, a conflict between wanting to be a good wife and mother and also to draw, paint, design, write and shoot videos. I focus on the family and imagine there will be time for my interests, but there rarely is." She does manage to make time for herself, but it isn't easy, and there were times she was deeply depressed. Her book often reflects on how she managed to solve the problem in her own ways, knowing that the problem was never completely solved any more than her children's (or husband's) problems were completely out of her thoughts. She has had to be an itinerant mom at Easter times: "I hid eggs in the hotel room in Trieste during _Godfather II_, in the tropical foliage at our house in Manila during _Apocalypse Now_, in the city park in Tulsa during _The Outsiders_, and in the apartment in NYC during _Cotton Club_." As she looks for her place in all this, it might be that she could come off as a whining overprivileged yuppie, but she maintains an amused tone and is constantly self deprecating. She is happiest when her family is all around her, and Frances seems to be the same way. She always has doubts about how well she is taking care of all of them, but she does love the job. When her daughter Sofia was working on Sofia's movie _Lost in Translation_, Eleanor went to see her in Japan: "As we hugged I could feel her thin arms and shoulders. I was glad I'd brought her a Tupperware container of chocolate chip cookies." There are paths not taken, and she is imaginative enough to wonder about them, but has little reason to regret where her eventual path has taken her.

_Notes_ is indeed excerpts from Coppola's notebook, arranged by general themes, with flashbacks through the decades to an old entry as a memory is triggered. Much of it is sweet, and some is deeply sad. A lot is funny; for a scene in _Dracula_, we are introduced to an unusual assistant on the film who is helping in a scene with Tom Waits: "The bug wrangler was standing nearby. He had several additional tins of maggots and beetles. He occasionally prodded the contents of Tom's plate to make sure they were all moving." There are lots of stars wandering through her life, of course. Note, for instance, Brando, whom she met on the set of _The Godfather_: "It was the first time I really understood what charisma was ... I felt as if I were standing in a special beam of light and he found me utterly fascinating." Through all the book, though, are notes of a creative woman taking (usually) the conventional marital role: "Over the years I stopped whatever it was I was doing to go on location with Francis and the children. I sincerely tried to be a good wife and mother to my family. For a variety of reasons, I haven't created a body of notable work in my life when many around me have, and I haven't yet made peace with that truth." I'd venture to guess that even if she had more exhibits, more documentaries, and more books to her name, she'd still have the artist's hunger to do more. There is also the mom's worry that she wasn't doing more for her children, a worry she is letting go of now that they are not children. Worries aside, "long consistent body of work" aside, _Notes_ is a beautifully written record of a life lived well, with the right priorities of convention assumed and convention shunned.

It is never wise to completely shun a proven method, and it's never wise to shun all alternatives as well. "Book of Alternative Medicine: The New Approach to Using The Best of Natural Therapies and Conventional Medicine" is a scholarly written and researched guidebook to alternative medicine, combining natural therapies and the conventional wisdom of modern science to find solutions when the common method fails alone. A seminal piece that should be read by all who want to keep their health up to snuff, "Book of Alternative Medicine: The New Approach to Using The Best of Natural Therapies and Conventional Medicine" is highly recommended for community library medicine collections.

Mayo Clinic book on alternative medicine should be on everyones book shelf. It contains down to earth information about many simple procedures for good health.

I was very happy with the book. It is in good condiltion, very readable, and came quickly. I wanted to give it as a gift for christmas, and was able to do so.

This really deserves 3 1/2 stars. It is very good for what it includes, but should include a bit more. It mostly emphasizes cardiac health. Much of the information is well documented and available elsewhere.

But it does a very good job in presenting the material and making it understood by many people.

I purchased this book because I have been so happy with PDR for Herbal Medicines, 4th ed. (Physician's Desk Reference (Pdr) for Herbal Medicines). Which is another mainstream book on natural medicine. Unfortunately, this book is nowhere near that quality of research. It is a simplistic, inaccurate, and critically judgmental review of numerous approaches to natural health.

They use a stop light as a visual aide to show you their opinion of that particular item, a red light means not to use the treatment, or use it with a doctor's close supervision. The doctor's close supervision is a constantly reoccurring theme. A yellow light means use with caution, and a green light means it is safe for most people to use.

They give the herb goldenseal a red light. The Herbal PDR states the goldenseal is 90% effective against malignant brain tumors. It is more effective than any chemotherapy available.

Niacin they give a green light, stating that it can effectively reduce cholesterol, but then they go on to say it should only be taken under a doctor's supervision. A medical doctor recently told me that niacin was medicine's "dirty little secret" because everybody knows it is much more effective than any cholesterol lowering drug. But, there's no money to be made in it, so no doctor will tell you about it. Another natural alternative to a prescription for high cholesterol is vitamin C, it is discussed in great detail in Putting It All Together: The New Orthomolecular Nutrition.

It gives magnesium a yellow light and says that it is uncommon for most Americans to be deficient in it. We need 300 mg. of magnesium a day, and most people only get 250 mg. so there is a gradual depletion of our magnesium levels. It is one of the main causes of constipation, it is called for in heart cases, and it greatly reduces the chances of having a mentally retarded baby; the list goes on and on. If you have a health problem, a magnesium deficiency will seriously aggravate it.

When it does give interesting information, it doesn't give you the details to use it. For instance, it says that a study showed that vitamin C, E, beta carotene and zinc showed that it reduced the advancement of macular degeneration. But it doesn't tell you the dosage or even site the study so that you can look it up.

It gives homeopathy a yellow light, and says that there is no research to support its use. There is an immense amount of research supporting the efficacy of homeopathy. One researcher said "Either double blind studies don't work, or homeopathy does." He obviously went into the study believing that homeopathy didn't work. Hence the need for double blind studies, so that the researcher can't influence the outcome.

It says that generic supplements are as effective as brand names, which is simply not true. Quality varies greatly by manufacturer in all things, including herbs and supplements.

If you are educated on the subject of natural health, this book will make you furious because it is so inaccurate and misleading. If you are just getting interested in natural health, I recommend you start with Chemistry of Man (Man Series, Second Edition) instead.

This book was soooooooo funny. I laughed more when I read this than when I read The Funny Thing Is... even though both were great books. If you read this I suggest skipping to the airplane chapter first....it's the funniest part of the book!!!!!

I found this book extremely hard to get through. I love Ellen, and her brand of humor. Why did I dislike the book so much? Well, I finished reading the book yesterday. Except if you can't see the date, then you might think today is yesterday, which it may have well been depending on when you read this review. But if you read the review a year from now, then me saying I read it yesterday will be irrelevant. But if you read this review today, then it can be accurately concluded that it was really truly yesterday that I finished reading the book. Cover to cover. But if you didn't get a copy of the book with a cover on it, you will have no idea what I am talking about. Like if your dog ate it or you happen to buy a book at a bookstore for cheap because it doesn't have a cover on it. And in that case, I hope the bookstore guy sold it at half price, because it would really stink to buy a book without a cover and not know what it is until you get it home.

(get my drift? thats almost the entire book. I love her act in person, but I expected to learn a little bit more about her than I did by reading the book.)

I love Ellen, but this book is soooo boring. All she does is talk in circles and nothing about her life-or her point

Ellen DeGeneres writes in a relaxing style and entertains her readers with cute experiences and expressions, but I cannot recognize a central point she makes. She simply goes through several experiences she has had in her life and tends to be exhibitionist about herself. She makes the reader "tingle" when she describes how she happens to be naked when her mother calls her. I would not want her to be naked on her show, but how about a bikini appearance? That would fit her perfectly.

I enjoyed this book as it was almost the same as listening to Ellen on her daily talk show which I Tivo every day. If you're looking for something intellectual or deep, don't get this one. However, if you want to read something light-hearted and funny like Ellen is, it's a good one!

Bought it as a gift, wife said she found it interesting. Of course it had more meaning because we had been in Saltzburg.

Maria comes alive as a very sincere godly woman. Devoted to her Lord, Family, Friends, and Country. To read this book was to understand a deep trust in your God, a faith beyond imagination. If you enjoyed the movie for the family values and inspiration you may have received, you will enjoy the book that inspired the movie. I will recommend this book to all of my Christian Mommy friends.

Excellent writing--My mother has enjoying reading the book. I have enjoying reading it also.

You will enjoy this true story of the "Sound of Music" family. It is both historical and charming. The family's adventures and trials will keep you turning the pages.

I smile whenever I see this book on my shelf...

Picture a large, creative, talented family seated around a fireplace in the evenings--playing with dolls or whittling--while the mother reads aloud. Later, they sing together...imagine that...a family singing together for fun!

German occupied Austria in 1938...I can only envision what it would have been like. Its intriguing to see it through Maria's eyes. One of my favorite quotes in this book is: "you can't say no three times to Hitler." My second favorite quote is: "The Americans never seemed to ask, "Who are you?" but "How good are you? Let's see."

I've read this book several times, and I always enjoy it!

The book easily flies to the top of the list of books about Marilyn Monroe as one of the finest, most thoughtful, comprehensive, well-written and understanding books written. The photos (many never before published) are an outstanding addition to the book, but it is the detailed, sensitive biography which takes the reader steadily through Marilyn's life which is makes it truly priceless.

Obviously this was a labor of love; Michelle Morgan has done a superb job of capturing an enormous amount of detail into one book. Interviews with folks who knew Marilyn (but who are not 'famous' or have an ulterior motive) distinctly add to the in-depth depiction of this extremely talented woman of so many facets.

Ms. Morgan also does a fine job of stating the basic, well-known facts around Marilyn's untimely depth without forcing any theory upon the reader. It's truly wonderful to read a biography which is just that--the story of a person's life--and not a book which relies on sensationalism to 'sell' it. This book gives a sense of Marilyn as woman, actress, wife, friend and sensitive human being. It brings depth into understanding of her relationships with her three husbands, giving the reader a sense of each of Miss Monroe's marriages.

I highly recommend this book to any long-time or brand-new fan of Marilyn's. You won't be disappointed.

By: Tommy Garrett

What on earth can be written about Marilyn Monroe that has not already been written, rumored or made up? Well, plenty of great new juicy details, researched by a Marilyn Monroe fan, Michelle Morgan. When I first heard of this book, I simply rolled my eyes. I had spent almost a decade representing Monroe's first husband, Jimmie Dougherty, who lived in Maine at the time. Jimmie was a saint, a wonderful old man who really felt like Monroe had been given a bad name by many in Hollywood and the media alike. He wrote his own book, "To Norma Jeane With Love, Jimmie," by Jim Dougherty, as told to L.C. VanSavage, and it was a bestseller and a warm and comforting tome about his short marriage to the underage Norma Jeane. Jimmie always spoke with love and admiration for Monroe and I heard some never before told stories about the screen goddess.




So to my surprise, when I received the latest Monroe book, "Marilyn Monroe: Private and Undisclosed" by Michelle Morgan, I had to read it. Firstly, Michelle Morgan is the founder and President of the UK fan club, the Marilyn Lives Society, established in 1991. The book was published by the distinguished publishing house Carroll and Graf. So I was interested in reading this voluminous book, filled with never before seen photographs of Monroe in various stages of her life and career and figured that I'd at least have to give it a read. How happy I am that I did.

Many of the more than 150 photographs in this new illustrated biography of Monroe have never been published before. Some of the little known images show a different side of the icon - Monroe doing everyday things, laughing, in conversation, in her unguarded moments. Being a star, every moment is scripted and planned, but Monroe is captured in some of the moments in which she never expected to be photographed.

Michelle Morgan was able to interview almost everyone who knew Marilyn - in addition to her Hollywood and New York colleagues - many family members and friends. Drawing on over 50 different interviews, many who were never willing to go on record before, and many from Monroe's orphaned childhood and early years, the details paint a whole different portrait of the woman who will forever be called Hollywood's hottest and most well known sex goddess. A name she may have worked to achieve, but one her studio, 20th Century Fox, perpetrated to make her bankable in an era where actresses were no longer as glamorous as the era before.

This meticulously researched biography brings new insight into the life of one of Hollywood's most beloved and unforgettable stars. Michelle Morgan's easy yet enticing writing style brings forth a plethora of new details, broadening my once small interest in the sex icon. The read made my interest in the star unending and gave me a fascination with the star I never believed possible.

I had always thought of Monroe as one of the most uninteresting and untalented stars of her era, but now I have a whole new respect for the star and what she was able to do with her career while saddled with demons that most of us can never imagine being burdened with. But Morgan, being one of Monroe's biggest fans, is not only interested in the star but brings forth such a monumental picture of the star we really never knew and makes the reader want to know more. That goal is met by her never boring details of the star and yes, details never seen or read before.

A must read for any Hollywood historian and also for any Marilyn Monroe fan of any and all ages.

Miss Morgan is now working on a wonderful new biography on one of the forgotten stars of the `30s, Carole Lombard. Asked about this, Morgan says, "I have a few irons in the fire at the moment, as they say. I am currently researching a biography of film star Carole Lombard, who tragically died in a plane crash in 1942. There hasn't been a thorough and full biography written about her in quite some time, so I would very much like to fill that gap. I am currently looking for anyone who may have any memories of Carole, along with photos, articles, letters or even second-hand memories passed down through the years. If anyone can help me in this regard I'd love to hear from them: [...] They can also visit my website at [...] Along with that I am also looking to have my book turned into a film, so if there are any film producers out there, I'd love to hear from them!" And says in regards to why she chose to write about Marilyn Monroe, "I've been a fan since I was 15 years old - way back in 1985. I discovered Marilyn while I was on holiday with my family and picked up a book about her as a holiday read. I was very lucky as the book I read was `Norma Jean' by Fred Laurence Guiles, which is a classic Marilyn biography. During that holiday I bought several postcards and posters, and my fascination really took off. From then on, I spent all my pocket and babysitting money on books, videos and pictures. Learning about Marilyn became a passion that has never ceased for me." Lucky for us she's such a fan of every star she writes about.

Michelle Morgan did an outstanding job writing this book...it is very informative....and true.She did a lot of work on this and needs to be complimented on how she presented it. I recommend this book for all Marilyn Monroe fans...it's one of the best!!

The author seems focused on being fair and as close to the facts as she could possibly get, without applying the generalizations/assumptions common to mainstream gossip. I noticed no negative/disgraceful comments about Marilyn. The lack thereof is what made reading this book a joy. This is a great book! It covers her life from her childhood to her death and has some great photos you don't see printed everywhere.

Lately I have been on a Marilyn Monroe kick. I have been watching her movies and reading about her life. She was an interesting lady, the first of the modern sex symbols, she posed nude in Playboy and was also an accomplished actress (I still think she deserved an Osar for her performance in The misfits!), she also married and had relationships with many famous and powerful men from DiMaggio to President Kennedy. This book is a well written account of her Marilyn"s life I can Highly recommend. And while it s pitched as an unauthorized biography, I think the author does a great job of presenting Marilyn in a fair and sympathetic manner. Marilyn fans also might want to check out Misfits Country for a fictional look behind the scene of her last movie The Misfits