Other books that might interest you

• 

  Story of My Misfortunes The (or:...

  Pierre Abelard

  • 1
  • 0
  • 0

  Autobiographies from remote historical periods can be especially fascinating.Modes of self-presentation vary greatly across the centuries, as of course doesthe very concept of Self. 
   
  Peter Abelard, the medieval philosopher and composer, here gives a concisebut vivid survey of his notoriously calamitous life. The work is couched in theform of a letter to an afflicted friend. Abelard's abrasively competitive, oftenarrogant personality emerges at once in the brief Foreword, where he informs hiscorrespondent: "(I)n comparing your sorrows with mine, you may discover thatyours are in truth nought.. and so shall you come to bear them the more easily."(Summary by Martin Geeson)

  Show book

• 

  The Real Animal House - The...

  Chris Miller

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  The creator of Animal House at last tells the real story of the fraternity that inspired the iconic film-a story far more outrageous (and funny!) than any movie could ever capture. Animal House, the film adaptation of stories Chris Miller published in National Lampoon about his experiences at a Dartmouth fraternity, is among the most beloved and successful comedies of all time. In fact, its portrayal of college party life is still imitated on campuses across the country—toga party, anyone?  
   
  Now, nearly 30 years after the movie hit theaters, there are no taboos left, and Chris Miller can finally answer the fans who all want to know one thing: Was it really like that? The answer: Yes-but much, much more out of control! Here, for the first time, are the real stories of Alpha Delta Phi. Like the one about the frat brother who entertained the house by lighting his hair on fire-not the hair on his head, however. Or about the pledge who trick-or-treated around campus in a very revealing jack-o-lantern costume. Or about initiation night when a frozen hot dog became very painful for two rushes.  
   
  Wild and hilarious, The Real Animal House is a must-read for any fan of the film and anyone who remembers their college days as a blur of great parties and solid friendship. 
   
  "I couldn't put it down. I make this self-indicting admission with all due trepidation, but there it is. For better or worse, this an utterly hilarious book."—New York Times 
   
  "A boozy holler of a book, with a great soundtrack."—Kirkus

  Show book

• 

  Kiss Me Like A Stranger - My...

  Gene Wilder

  • 0
  • 1
  • 0

  Told in his own words, a very personal story from the star of many beloved and classic comedies, including Young Frankenstein, The Producers, and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate FactoryGene Wilder is one of the great comic actors who defined the 1970s and 1980s in movies. From his work with Woody Allen, to the rich group of movies he made with Mel Brooks, to his partnership on screen with Richard Pryor, Wilder's performances are still discussed and celebrated today. KISS ME LIKE A STRANGER is an intimate glimpse of the man behind the image on the screen.  In this book, Wilder talks about everything from his experiences in psychoanalysis to why he got into comedy—his first goal was to be a Shakespearean actor—to how a midwestern childhood with a sick mother changed him. He writes about the creative process on stage and on screen, and divulges moments from life on the sets of some of the most iconic movies of our time. He also opens up about his search for love and his marriages, including his marriage to comedienne Gilda Radner. But the core of KISS ME LIKE A STRANGER is an actor's search for truth and a thoughtful analysis of why the choices he made—some of them so serendipitous they were practically accidental—changed the course of his life.

  Show book

• 

  The Chief Justiceship of William...

  Jonathan Lurie

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  A study of the Supreme Court tenure of the only US president to serve as chief justice provides a unique perspective on 1920s America. In this book, Jonathan Lurie offers a comprehensive examination of the Supreme Court tenure of the only person to have held the offices of president of the United States and chief justice of the United States Supreme Court. William Howard Taft joined the Court during the Jazz Age and the era of prohibition, a period of disillusion and retreat from the idealism reflected during Woodrow Wilson’s presidency. Lurie considers how conservative trends at this time were reflected in key decisions of Taft’s court. Although Taft was considered an undistinguished chief executive, such a characterization cannot be applied to his tenure as chief justice. Lurie demonstrates that Taft’s leadership on this tribunal, matched by his productive relations with Congress, in effect created the modern Supreme Court. Furthermore he draws on the unpublished letters Taft wrote to his three children, Robert, Helen, and Charles, generally once a week. His missives contain an intriguing mixture of family news, insights concerning contemporaneous political issues, and occasional commentary on his fellow justices and cases under consideration. Lurie structures his study in parallel with the eight full terms in which Taft occupied the center seat, examining key decisions while avoiding legal jargon wherever possible. The high point of Taft’s chief justiceship was the period from 1921 to 1925. The second part of his tenure was marked by slow decline as his health worsened with each passing year. By 1930 he was forced to resign, and his death soon followed. In an epilogue Lurie explains why Taft is still regarded as an outstanding chief justice—if not a great jurist—and why this distinction is important. “Conflicts from the early twentieth century endure, and Lurie gives us old and new perspectives from which to understand a living Constitution.” —Journal of American History

  Show book

• 

  Deadly Triangle - "Famous...

  Susan Goldenberg

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  "The 1935 murder of architect Francis Mawson Rattenbury, world famous for his design of the iconic Parliament Buildings and Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia, and the arrest and lurid trial of his thirty years younger second wife, Alma, and the family chauffeur, George Percy Stoner, her lover, who was half her age, riveted people. Debate continues even today as to which one of them really was responsible. Francis and Alma had moved to Bournemouth, England, when Victoria had ostracized them for their scandalous, flagrant affair while Francis was married to his first wife. Their life in Bournemouth was tangled. Francis became lush and impotent. Sex-starved, Alma seduced George, previously a virgin. They conducted their affair in her upstairs bedroom with her and Francis’s six-year-old son in a nearby bed, “sleeping” she said, and the near-deaf Francis, apparently unaware, downstairs in his armchair in a drunken stupor. The lovers were tried together at the historic high-profile Old Bailey Criminal Court in London, U.K., resulting in intense public interest and massive, frenzied media coverage. The trial sparked widespread debate over sexual mores and social strata distinctions."

  Show book

• 

  You Do Not Know The Beatles -...

  Geoffrey Giuliano, Neil Innes,...

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  Once again internationally acclaimed, best-selling biographer Geoffrey Giuliano tears back the decades-old veil of myth and unquestioning hero worship surrounding the Beatles’ turbulent lives and present the frank, often heart-wrenching tale of four young men from Liverpool thrust upon the world stage and into the stratosphere of untouchable super-stardom. Utilizing a wealth of unpublished personal correspondence, never-before-heard taped conversations, obscure studio and home recordings, lost songs and the forgotten diaries the group left behind at the Maharishi’s ashram in 1968, here is the last word on the Beatles' astounding life and times. For the first time, family members, friends, and colleagues speak out exclusively on the often oppressive constraints of global Beatlemania and the life-changing effect it had on the Boys. 
   
  Geoffrey Giuliano is a prominent Beatles biographer and historian who has dedicated his life to unraveling the intricate tapestry of the legendary band's history. With an impressive body of work spanning numerous books, documentaries, and interviews, Giuliano has delved deep into the lives and dynamics of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. His meticulous research and extensive interactions with those close to the Beatles have allowed him to offer unique insights into the band's formation, rise to stardom, and eventual dissolution. Despite controversy and criticism surrounding some of his claims, Giuliano's contributions to Beatles scholarship have undeniably enriched the understanding of their enduring impact on music and culture.

  Show book