Entertainment Books

This is a book version of the scrips from the first season of The Tudors. It seemed like a bit of a waste to me since I already read the script version to write it a bit differently. I was hoping it would be a bit different, but it was also a good reminder of what happened the first season.

A fan of the series, this novelization recaptured and fleshed out what I'd enjoyed so much on the screen. A must-have for any fan of The Tudors show, or anyone who has a love and fascination for this time in history! It is very well written, with a genuine depth and emotion so important in making the story and the characters come alive. I anxiously await the second series and the accompanying novelization!

I read this book in less than a week it wasa great refresher of season one. I can not wait for season 2 to start and the second book!

I am a huge fan of Showtime's "The Tudors" so wondered just how closely the book would follow the script. As I read along, I could visualize perfectly the different scenes from the show. I could hear the characters voices during the different scenes. It has renewed my excitement for the 2nd season to start!

Can't wait for the next book to come out!

Thank you Amazon.com, for once again providing perfect professional service. The delivery, packaging and substance of my order was spot on! I enjoyed reading about the Fantastic Batista! How candid and open-hearted this look inside the man behind the Animal! To Dave Bautista, I enjoyed getting to know you through your words and pictures. I am your ardent fan...Be Loved and Be Blessed.....Love Tam of Birmingham, Alabama

He is the greatest wrestler. I think he's awesome. The book is really interesting. Great reading!!

Excellent book.. Very easy to read.
A bit of language used.. but this gives it that personal touch... so, you really get to know what Batista was going through and how he felt.

If you want a story of how a bouncer turns his life around for his family to become one of the best Champions the WWE has ever seen, then this is definately the book for you.

Great story... Can't say a bad thing about it.
Well Done Dave!!

My son read this book and told me I would like it. My first thought was, no thanks, I really do not want to read another meat head jock athlete book. So it sat on my desk for about a month. Then I picked it up and thumbed thru the pictures and noticed the books format is not chapters per se, but micro segments. So I read a few and few more and then in a couple of days I finished the book before I knew it!

Batista Unleashed is so much more then a jocks story, it is the story of a Dude that was big time down and out and did not know how to get out of it. He shows his heart and falls on his sword many times during this book when he could have easily avoided it. He put himself out there and I believe it paid off in a truly excellent book to read. I was amazed at his true openness in this book.

I was a come and go wrestling fan. My brother loves wrestling and then my son started, so to spend time with him, I started watching Raw and having my 13 year old teaching me about the biz. I tell you I have become a fan and now after reading this I have a deep appreciation for the folks that go out and lay it on the line for our enjoyment night after night.

I highly recommend this book to fans of wrestling or folks that just want to read a humble success story of a poor cast out kid to success.

When I first heard that former World Champion and WWE wrestler, Dave Batista was penning his own autobiography, "way too soon" ran through my mind. The book, "Batista Unleashed" only covers the first five years of his WWE career, right through his feud with Undertaker shortly after Wrestlemania 23. It didn't seem like a whole a lot of history to cover, and I thought the book would be a failure like previous wrestlers who released their autobiographies early in their career like Bill Goldberg and The Rock.

I couldn't have been more wrong. Of all the wrestler biographies I have read thus far, no one has had such an eventful childhood as Batista. His accounts of growing up in the rough part of Washington D.C. leaves plenty of interesting first hand experiences. Batista's childhood troubles, growing up in a divorced family, dropping out of high school, having his own kid at an early age, his doomed marriage, and a ton of other shenanigans combined to have me hooked throughout the entire first half of the book.

When it comes to Batista's wrestling career, Dave doesn't pull any punches and tells it like it is. He admits how he struggled in his early years learning how to wrestle while coping with his asthma, and his frustrations with management not teaching him anything else other than to be a big, powerful brute. Dave doesn't hide much either, as he tells the ugly truth about his enemies, and gives praise to people he still wish were in the company. It was quite fascinating reading about how he grew to learn the business and how he was taught so much while part of the faction, Evolution with Triple H, Ric Flair and Randy Orton.

That all led to Batista transitioning from a supporting role to becoming a main event star by winning his first World Championship at Wrestlemania 21. Dave explains how tough it was behind the scenes to become accepted as a top draw, and how it became tougher when he got drafted to the Smackdown brand and had to deal with leading a new locker room.

This all culminates for one entertaining read. I am surprised this didn't turn out to be the quick cash-in book like I so dreadfully thought it would be. I wasn't that big of a Batista fan like before this book, but I had a whole new respect for him coming out of it. If wrestling biographies are your thing, than I highly recommend not to skip over Batista Unleashed.

Batista Unleashed

This is one book I have anticipated for a long time. As an advisory, in the 1990s I authored a book about WLS deejays so am familiar with some of the people and stories - but Clark Weber has gone above and beyond with his book full of memories of his radio career (the rock years).
The pictures are terrific - the Supremes, Beatles, Monkees, Dick Clark, broadcast studio shots, music surveys . . . they're all here.
Weber is a good storyteller, often giving you the details of an anecdote before telling you who it is about. Most of the time it is a behind the scenes glance at someone famous whose path he crossed.
An added bonus to this book is a nearly 30 minute CD, narrated by Mother Weber's Oldest Son himself, featuring those catchy WLS and WCFL jingles as well as airchecks from a number of deejays (along with a classic "Animal Stories" tale with Uncle Lar and Little Snot Nosed Tommy).
Fans of the radio heydays of the Sixties (especially Chicago radio) who spent time glued to their transistors, will love this book and rip through it in one sitting like I did.

Highly recommend this book, the author will make you feel like you right next to Bob, and also give you an overview as if you're 'following' along, looking over or riding, right on Bob's shoulders. It has definetly made me understand Bob and humanity better... highly recommend this book

The book came lightening fast and was in brand new condition. I would recommend this seller and would definitely purchase from them again.

Okay, I read all of the book and learned a lot more about Bob than had preciously known, but I was disappointed by the lack of details on the making of the music. I was hoping for more details about the inspiration for a lot of Bob's music and this book did not have it.

I am currently reading "Exodous the Making & Meaning of Bob Marley & The Wailer's Album of the Century." This book goes into a lot more detail if you want to learn more about the music. I would recommend it over this book.

Still "Catch a Fire" is a good read if you want all the details of Bob's life.

I was very disappointed with this book. After reading it, I have a pretty good idea of what Marley's childhood was like, a hazy picture of his adult life but no understanding at all of how a poor man from a third-world country was able to popularize a genre of music that was almost universally disdained, or considered a novelty, in the world outside of Jamaica in 1973.

I would have expected more discussion of his music; specifically how he and Chris Blackwell adjusted the arrangement of Marley's reggae songs to appeal to a broader audience, as well as how Marley's music evolved over time. I know from watching VH1's "Classic Albums", that process was critical to Marley's success but I don't even get an inkling of that in this book.

Instead the book has way too much on Marley's childhood (140 pages into it, we have only followed Marley up to the age of 14!). This book also has too many vague, cryptic references to conspiracy theories about the CIA, Ronald Reagan, the Jamaican government, etc.

On the bright side, the book does a good job of describing the superstititious world of poor Jamaica, full of demons and ghosts, etc., which helps explain the popularity of Rastafarianism.

The book title is also the name of the 1973 debut album on Island records for Bob Marley and The Wailers that brought the lyrics and sounds of reggae to an international audience.

Originally published two years after Marley's death from cancer, the biography remains a great read due to the exhaustive research by author Timothy White.

White had interviewed Marley from 1975-1981 and projects the development & growth musically, spirtually and politically in his life. White also interviewed musicians, friends, family members, music industry executives and poltical leaders, along with the typical research - newspaper articles and other media outlets - and not-so-typical - CIA documents concerning Marley.

There are also sections on Jamaican history & politics, the history of reggae & Rastafarianism and how White did his research.

Marley projected a militant spiritualism in his music that will remain timeless. Catch a Fire gives the reader an understanding and appreciation on why Marley's message means as much today as it did so many years ago.

I received this book along with two others (one of which is titled "Smart Globalization" and I posted a review of that book on Amazon as well). Most of the reviewers share the same perspective on this book as me, so I'll keep this review short. Take a look at my rating. This book is entertaining and not boring. There you go. Buy it. It's worth your money. Trust me, I'd tell you if a book sucked or not.

Hi, full disclosure here -- I've also written about this space in several books and reports including the National Assn of Broadcasters MULTIMEDIA 2000 -- HOLLYWOODUSA section I wrote in 1994 and scores of articles for Film & Video Magazine, BUSINESS 2.0 and ad/entertainment trade pubs including HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, digitrends.net and imediaconnection.com where I still write about emerging entertainment platforms. But onto this book. Also I don't thing I've met either of the authors Al or Patricia FYI. Al's a professor of NYU and Patricia is the exec editor of Entertanment Managament magazine which I've never seen -- I'm sure it's good. (Couldn't find a link online) Anyway -- 12 chapters covering such topics as 1) Marketing basics 2) People & players 3) Movies 4) Network TV/Syndicatio/Radio 5) Cable and Satellite & PPV 6) Publishing 7) Music 8)Sports 9) Travel & tourism 10) LBE & experiential branding. I'm writing this the week that NBC decides to advertise on Youtube.com for it's fall shows. And I look in this index and only see about 5 pages for Internet. So take that with a grain of salt...I do LOVE that they include Sports, Travel & Tourism and one of my favorites LBE (location based entertainment & what they call experiential branding). They define the 4C's of Entertainment Marketing as 1) content 2) conduit 3) consumption and 4 convergence....In the new economy many of us believe that the 4C's that matter are a) connectivity, b) community c) commerce and d) content. As one of my pals says -- if you don't put butts in the seats it doesn't matter how cool the convergence is :)) COMMERCE COMMERCE -- making money while you sleep -- either advertising or sponsorship are crucial in the new arena of entertainment marketing. This book gives a great profile of Barry Diller who I believe is one of the old economy gurus who really GOT and GETS the new economy. Eisner and Ovitz are also mentioned-- neither are players anymore and I doubt whether many people want to follow Ovitz path...Disappointed to only see 2 pages on Sponsorship when it is SOOO big -- think NASCAR -- think PIXAR's CARS -- zillions of sponsors Only two pages on merchandising -- which I have to really disagree with -- since Jurassic Park -- most of the major films have made more money with merchandise-- T shirts/licensing etc than with their content! THE INDEX IS GREAT -- the book belongs on your shelf even if it's a bit dated-- good way to see how the world changed between 2002 and 2006 -- 4 years WOW -- now ESPN is on 12 platforms -- ranging from mobile to Internet to Broadband to Satelillite, PPV etc. And of course the rise of social networking -- Myspace.com and Youtube.com are changing how marketing is done daily. Xspace is what many people here in Hollywood call Myspace's promo of X-Men --really awesome promo.

This is a great compendium providing both breadth - film, cable TV, publishing, music, etc. are covered - with perspective since the narration works in recent and long-past history. In the movie section that was of particular interest to me, there was theory and also practical information such as some films aren't shown to press reviewers in advance, which is a sure sign the studio has little confidence in the appeal of these films. Etc. By the way, I'm author of "Marketing to Moviegoers" from Focal Press that covers once slice of "Marketing Revolution's" broad turf.

This book mirrors the way Al teaches - colorful stories with rich insights into the industry. The book is a must read for anyone interested in the fabulous world of Media and Entertainment. It makes for an easy and fun read; most importantly when you are done, you actually remember what you read!
Al has had an illustrious career that he passionately and enthusiastically shares with his students. Now the rest of the world is privy to his wisdom. Read it, you won't be disappointed.

The eBook format is a HUGE disappointment. You cannot print anything or extract anything. What a waste. Now I have to buy the hardback, too. . .

DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS eBook FORMAT!!!! It is like throwing good money after bad.

Well my review might not be fair, he received this and the game same day, so the book did not get read right away! Book turned out to be important, a good reference guide. I would buy again, just so I do not have to hear him whine, instead I can tell him to read the book.

I bought this for my son who absolutely loves it. Helpful walk through is very informative and the section dealing with the Pokemon themselves is quite fun. If you're stuck in Diamond or Pearl this guide will be a big help. Most, but not all of your questions will be answered in this guide.

This book was received in just a few days and in very good shape. We are very satisfied.

Just a word of advice for those seeking to get a Complete 428+8 Pokedex out of this guide: you won't find it here. After reading the reviews on both the Nintendo and Prima 'game guides, I thought I would share something with you. I went and bought the actual Prima Pokedex, which is a FULL and COMPLETE pokedex, giving every Pokemon you can possibly think of, from Charmander to Mew to Lugia to Cresslia. And, what's more, it even gives you an 'after game' guide for when you finally beat the Elite Four.

It even has list, from the battle moves Pokemon can learn, to what types of moves you should use on certain Pokemon. So, just to warn you before you spend your money on this thinking you are getting a Pokedex, check Amazon for the 'Prima Official Pokedex' (it should have a small box in the upper right corner of the picture that says Vol. 2) and get that: don't waste your money on this one if you don't want the complete walk-through, and to be left high and dry after you 'beat' the game.

It covers up to battles with Elite 4 and Champion. There is a lot more to explore and catch after that. One could say that the game becomes more interesting after beating the champion. Get a lot more information from online guides. Search for "pokemon diamond faq" using google.

For the part it covers, the guide is reasonably well organized and helpful.

Yes, sure, like everyone else over the age of 30 I, too, subliminally believe that Alan Alda really *is* Hawkeye Pierce. And I love watching him get down on the asphalt to sniff the exhaust from an electric car on Scientific American Frontiers. But, really? He's not much more than a competent writer, and at least in this book, he doesn't really have anything to say.

Just in case you haven't picked it up from the other reviews, the bulk of this book is a lot of commencement speeches that Alda has given over the years, in which he tried to give crowds of 20-somethings the benefit of his insights into happiness and personal responsibility. These speeches may have been appropriate to the time and audience for which they were originally intended, but reproducing them in a book is pretty pretentious, particularly given that his advice isn't anything that we haven't already heard. Are platitudes about working hard, making time for our families, practicing some kind of social activism, and accepting happiness as it comes to us more valuable because they're uttered by Alan Alda?

Here's a quick rule of thumb for those contemplating a memoir: if you don't have something truly unique to say, stick to telling interesting stories about your life. This would have been a much better book if Alda had just told the anecdotes he uses as padding between the speeches, although even those are often self-serving (we were actors! protesting! in the 70s! you should be more like we were!). Sadly, I find that I like Alan Alda a lot less after having read this book.

Alda's down to earth brief sketch of his life and career was very enjoyable reading. After reading it I thought that Alda turned out to be a fascinating person in spite of being raised by a not with it mother and distant father. He gave some good ideas on how to live with his recalling of the graduation speaches he was asked to give along the way.

I reserve a one star review for books I just can't force myself to finish. And this book is one of those. This is a collection of commencement speaches Mr. Alda has given over his career as well as some stories that give background to them. If you love to sit through commencement speaches, this is the book for you. I have better things to do with my time. Sorry Alan.

Just a short note about Alan Alda's newest book; it's average. I adore Alan Alda and wish I could write something more glowing about this book, but it truly is a collection of speeches he has written and delivered along the way. Yes, you do get an occasional insight into his life, (and, that is the best part of the book) but it is only by way of introduction to an essay or speech he wants to lay out for you. As well, the speeches become redundant and somewhat conflicting as you get deeper into the book. I found myself thinking, "Oh, no, not another commencement address!" Just be prepared not to expect too much and you won't be disappointed. I still adore him...

Well,
Alan Alda obviously loves himself. Nothing wrong with that. What we have here though, is a book that one would have thought was intended for his readers benefit, at least in part. Instead, we have huge doses of pretentious, self-serving and gooshy drivel served up by Alan about himself for all to see how award winning, financially successful, talented, charming, pseudo-intellectual and well-loved by all and well-thought-of by all he thinks he is (and how he successfully worked through his challenging middle class upbringing - yawn). Modesty? You must be kidding! He name drops unmercifully (Peter Jennings washed his dishes and his face was better known than Lincoln's due to his television series). He was asked to speak at many prestigious universities, occasionally by Nobel prize winners, no less. And he then reads his speeches and eulogies to us! Geez! A reason for the book, perhaps? - new mileage for old pretentious material (and it might sell!)- never mind that such material was only intended for its original audience. Where is your integrity, Alan? I couldn't finish it. This book may have some knowledge or wisdom that we humble readers might find provocative, humorous or even practical. I couldn't find it though, and, in my humble opinion, you are much better off using your heartbeats elsewhere. There are much better ways to be educated, amused and entertained. This book was a gift to me and I'm sorry that good money was spent for it - I couldn't even finish it. This book is even in audio form, read by, you guessed it, Alan himself.
Now that would be torture...

Both Phil Gordon's little "green & blue" books I've purchased and given as gifts. Myself and family members have benefited and improved as players after reading these. They are practical and easy to understand and implement. I highly recommend these as must read or additions to any level poker player from beginner to advanced players.

When learning something like poker I like my information straight foreword, not with a lot of embellishment. While studying each hand I had to remind myself what I was trying to learn that particular hand without being distracted by the anecdotes.

I'm sure many students will find this makes the learning more interesting but my goal when studying poker is to improve my game with the least amount of effort.

About a quarter of the way into this book I asked myself how would I be better served? Should I continue with Little Blue or would I get more out of re-reading books I had already studied like Harrington Vol I or Little Green.

About 5 problems into Harrington Vol I...there was my answer. Goodbye Little Blue.

Bottom line...maybe this is a great book but if your learning style is similar to mine...take a pass.

I bought this book after having read Phil Gordons Green Book on poker. Do not waste your money. While the Green Book has valuable information that WILL improve your game, the Blue Book is a bad sequel and provides very little useful information as it is only a diary of previous hands played by Phil in numerous situations. You will learn more from watching Poker After Dark and visually watching how hands are played out by professionals.

What really upset me about this book, was a hand that is described starting on page 73 and runs for 8 pages only to be told if you want to know the outcome of the hand to go to Phil Gordons website. I payed $22.00 for information in this book, not to be told to go to a website for the rest of the story.

Phil Gordon's three book set rivals Harringtons' as the best poker books on the market. This one in particular goes through several hands and strategies as well as warnings on getting trapped or lazy whilst playing.

The Black and Green books are also great, in fact the green book might even be better than this one, but they are both must haves for someone that wants to improve their game.

If you have basic poker knowledge (read the Phil Gordon's Green book) then this is a great follow-up. Even if you didn't read the Green book, you'll learn something reading this book. It's an easy read, entertaining, and has some good info. For a casual player who wants to get better but doesn't want to get too involved in poker theory, there's no beating Phil Gordon's Green and Blue book. For a serious player, it's still a good read if not a bit fluffy, like Phil Gordon himself. READ IT!

If your a guy that reads Maxim, GQ, Esquire, FHM magazine, watches or reads James Bond...buy this book! I heard this author promoting his book on Maxim Radio Sirius 108. I bought the book later that night and did not put it down for two days straight!
Not since I bought Sammy the Bull Gravano's book "Underboss" which was about John Gotti, have I been so engrossed in a book. At night I did not want to fall asleep cause I wanted to keep reading.
This book gives real light into real celebs and also into the real life of the author. Their is no preaching, no major down and out story, just a great read on a guy that lived a great life surrounded by the worlds top models and celebs.
This book is not just a kiss and tell about how he hooked up and had sex with model after model. He addresses that though in perfect vision. It is a book on philosophy searching for love and finding meaning to life...This is my first book review ever. I am that passionate about the book!
If your a guy who is into the art of living, then read this book!

I read this book in just two sittings because I could not put it down! The book is written very well and is incredibly entertaining. I really, really enjoyed it.

The surprise of this book is that, in addition to the fun and exciting stories from his life as a "supermodel," it discusses Mr. Hulse's journey through life in a way that everyone can relate. He openly and poignantly discusses how his life, like everyone's, has involved success, tragedy and many unexpected twists and turns. In the end, the book makes you realize what life is truly about -- friends, family and, hopefully, finding inner peace and true happiness. The ending of the book could not have been any better, and brought a huge smile across my face.

Mr. Hulse is truly an "everyman" -- who just happens to be Ivy-league educated, played professional basketball and is a "supermodel" who has had a life in the fashion world with incredible women, including his wife, that can only be described as amazing. For those of us who have not yet had those life-experiences, luckily we get to read about them.

I highly recommend this book. It has something for everyone, and is a very interesting and fun read. Of course, as the cover of the book gives a hint, the photographs are truly stunning and will blow you away. They clearly show why Mr. Hulse is widely regarded as the first and one of the top supermodels of all time!

I love this book. I've been devouring fashion magazines since I was 8 years old and Bruce's face, to me, personifies the strong, male model superstar. At first I wouldn't feel the desire to pursue more information about how fabulous it is to be so sought after but that's the point of my review.

Sometimes things can't be helped. You're born a certain way on the outside which gives you an edge in pursuing the things you're supposed to want. Bruce's book is interesting to me because of how he illustrates a life that is enviable on the outside but often unbalanced and tumultuous on the inside. It's a highly unusual situation for a male model to be so recognized and celebrated. That type of fame is almost always saved for the ladies who don't need a last name. A student at Cornell, raised with sand and salt water in his hair, where his grandest pursuit was to live a natural and spiritual state of being. Enter the fashion world which has little respect for either. Staying true to oneself in a climate that continuously challenges this pursuit, is an interesting topic to me. There's more than meets the eye to this book which a welcome benefit to any reader.

Don't get me wrong, there's also plenty of juicy tales that make this book a fun and easy read. I read it in a weekend and was left with wanting even more stories about the supermodels who I had worshiped as a kid. I love this era of fashion. I was thoroughly interested in the personal stories and entertained by the glamorous tales.

A great weekend read. I highly recommend it.

Bruce Hulse is one of those faces that you will always remember. He has graced the pages of nearly every high fashion magazine all around the globe. This book gives us a glimpse inside the life of a male super-model and what it was like amongst all the glitteratti. I enjoyed reading it and think you will too!

This book is an amazingly creative concept.

A SATIRE about a model writing a book! Brilliant idea! From the introduction through the quotes on the back cover, a hilarious giant goof, as if The Onion or National Lampoon had published a book purported to be by a male model about how awesome it is to be a male model; a sort of literary "Right Said Fred". The book is banal, without style or voice, with scenes that go nowhere, and dialogue as vapid as what we've always assumed the modeling world to be.

The title itself is pure genius. Playing off the "sex, drugs and rock and roll" mantra, "Sex, Love, and Fashion" leaves an exquisite emptiness on the palate, made more bland by the "Memoirs of a Male Model", evoking "Memoirs of a Geisha", minus the geisha.

And to be soberly informed that the author is "one of the top ten male models in the world"! Heavens to Betsy! What greater imprimatur of authenticity does one need?!!!

I tip my hat to the author. His talent is nascent but promising. Satire is a most difficult genre, and I look forward to his sophomore effort.