Audition: A Memoir (Hardcover)

by Barbara Walters (Author)
Key Phrases: milliondollar baby, sixtythree cents, rentcontrolled apartment, New York, The View, White House (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From The Washington Post

Reviewed by Kathleen Matthews

Breaking news: Barbara Walters wears fake eyelashes, is afraid to drive, gave up her black married lover to save her career (while his went down the tubes).

These and other true confessions provide the tabloid interest through 600 pages of the network diva's new memoir, Audition. But it's her heartfelt candor that lifts this book above mere titillation. Finally we learn why Walters is so relentless. It's a question I've often pondered watching her on television after beginning my own TV news career 30 years ago. In this engaging and chatty look back at a life largely lived in public view, Walters provides the answer.

As Walters explains it, relentlessness is what comes from a nomadic youth spent following her father's roller-coaster show business career from Boston to New York and Miami. Lou Walters's night club, the Latin Quarter, made him a Broadway legend, but he died in a Florida nursing home, leaving his wife and developmentally disabled adult daughter to be supported by Barbara, who was a single mom. Seeing her own career through the lens of show business, living "just one bad review from closing," Walters admits she always feared her hard-fought success would be taken away. Hence, for all her stellar achievements, we understand her compulsion to prove herself in a never-ending audition.

But blended with this personal drama is a delightful tale of the golden age of television, including the stomach-churning contract negotiations and network rivalries. Through 50-plus chapters, you feel as though you've enjoyed a year of weekly lunches with Walters at Café des Artistes, the famed New York hangout for ABC stars. She regales you with juicy behind-the-scenes details of the celebrities she's interviewed, mixed in with stories of her own trials and tribulations. In the end, you envy her a little less and admire her more.

There are moments when you're tempted to groan -- she has a sycophantic weakness for royalty and at times writes about herself as she would about the Hollywood celebs she relentlessly profiles -- but she quickly corrects course with unexpected candor that is completely disarming. When I opened the chapter "Special Men in My Life," I was tempted to say, "Spare me, please." But, honestly, who can resist hearing what it was like to have "a long and rocky affair" with the elegant, married African American senator Edward Brooke or date the future Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan ("a very nice dancer") and John Warner, the Southern senator once married to Elizabeth Taylor?

By the time you finish reading Audition, Walters has won you over, and you suspect she might be pleasantly surprised, like Sally Field winning her Oscar: "You like me. . . . You like me!"

What you don't expect, after watching Walters's sometimes cloying interview style and well-crafted TV personality for so many years, is her self-reflection and self-effacement. You also don't expect such breezy and clear writing. If Walters really wrote this memoir -- and I suspect she did -- I'm impressed.

Her career began in the 1950s, when she worked behind the scenes at the NBC TV affiliate in New York. She met other people who eventually became media legends: ABC News chief Roone Arledge, CBS's Andy Rooney and New York Times columnist Bill Safire. We watch Walters's ascent from glorified tea pourer to "Today Show" co-host. Recalling relentless public criticism from the critics and her male colleagues, she notes with a chuckle an early Newsweek review of her interviewing style as "dumdum bullets swaddled in angora."

More hurtful was the critique from legendary "60 Minutes" producer Don Hewitt, who once told her, "You don't have the right looks. And besides, you don't pronounce your r's right." Walters's speech impediment was immortalized in 1976 on "Saturday Night Live" when Gilda Radner proclaimed, "Hewwo! This is Baba Wawa." What really stung was not Radner's caricature, but Time magazine noting that Walters was being paid $100 for each minute of her "weadily wecognizable delivewy" as the million-dollar co-anchor of ABC News. (She admits to trouble with her r's but not her l's and says she went to a speech specialist early in her career but couldn't shed the remnants of what she describes as a Boston accent.) As for Radner's impersonation, Walters admits it was dead-on and she was glad to have a chance to compliment the comedian later.

Her years on the "Today Show" with Hugh Downs and Joe Garagiola were among her best in television. But what followed was perhaps her worst. NBC management paired her with Frank McGee and dictated that she jump in only on the fourth question for big news interviews after he'd asked the first three. Soured, she left to become the first woman network news co-anchor for ABC, but this provided little relief as she faced the big chill from co-anchor Harry Reasoner. She eventually found her oasis in the "Barbara Walters Specials" and later "20/20" where her tenacity to score the big interview was rewarded. Always the overachiever, she created her own TV show, "The View," and, now in her 70s, she continues her Academy Award and "10 Most Fascinating People" specials.

The best part of Audition is that Walters takes us with her on all the big interviews. It's a bit like walking through her office or New York apartment and hearing the stories behind the photos (many included here) that showcase her with the biggest names from the past 50 years of politics and entertainment: Judy Garland, Princess Grace, the Shah of Iran, Golda Meir, Richard Nixon, Fidel Castro, Anwar Sadat, Menachem Begin, the Dalai Lama, Cher. She shares the struggle of getting a good interview with Warren Beatty and Mel Gibson. She admits her regret that she never interviewed Jackie Kennedy, Princess Di, Queen Elizabeth or the current and past popes.

Perhaps so many years of prying into the personal lives of others and probing for vulnerabilities compel Walters to pull away the scabs of the insults and injuries she's endured. Quite matter-of-factly, she re-lives the heartbreak of three unsuccessful marriages. More poignantly, she recalls the disappointments of several failed pregnancies and the ecstasy of adopting Jackie, whom she named after her disabled sister. "The Hardest Chapter to Write" describes her daughter's rebellious teen years, when Jackie was derailed by drug use and ran away from home. Walters shares these confidences with the blessing of her now happy adult daughter to "give hope to other parents who are struggling with their own adolescents' hard-to-understand emotions and rebellion." For someone who lived her life on television, sharing these most painful years, "which, in truth," she says, "I would rather not remember," is perhaps the best therapy.

This, we now understand, is what Walters means when she tells aspiring young people that if they want to pursue a career like hers, "Then you have to take the whole package." I must admit, I was one of those young women who cheekily wrote Walters a letter asking for advice after college. I also rejected her well-known admonition that women "can't have it all -- a great marriage, successful career, and well-adjusted children -- at least not at the same time." In Audition, Walters shows us the challenges she faced as a trailblazing, mostly single, working mom. But she also inspires and entertains us with a life of accomplishment.

Rose Kennedy once told her in an interview, "I know not age or weariness of defeat," which aptly captures Walters's own sentiments as she faces retirement. And that leads me to my last question: After writing this book, has Walters done her last audition? Somehow, I think not.

Copyright 2008, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Audition might seem an odd title for this long-awaited autobiography. After all, who is more established in the public’s mind than the iconic Walters? But  that’s what is so terrific about this book. Walters really does let readers see what’s behind her TV persona, and in many ways, what she reveals is an insecure woman whose life has been one audtion after another. The daughter of a night-club impresario and a mother who wanted a more stable life, Walters moved a lot, ever the new kid. But the greatest influence on her young life was her mildly retarded sister, who evoked in Walters both love and guilt. Her family’s ups and downs led her to believe that one day she would be financially responsible for them, and that eventually happened. But as Walters makes clear, this insecurity is also what propelled her forward; her strong work ethic and some good timing also helped to shape her amazing career. However, all that success came at a price. It affected her marriages and her daughter, and it engendered amazing hostility from male colleagues unwilling to give this pioneer a break. For readers of a certain age, much of the pleasure of the book comes in remembering along with Walters: her star interviews, her trip to the Bay of Pigs with Castro, her talks with kings, queens, and presidents. Then there’s dish on what really happened behind the scenes at The View. A smart, funny, fascinating book in which Walters captures possibly her most elusive subject: herself. --Ilene Cooper

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 624 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; First Edition edition (May 6, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 030726646X
• ISBN-13: 978-0307266460
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.7 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (254 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,280 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

166 of 186 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Extraordinary Life and Book, May 6, 2008

By	Norma Lehmeierhartie (New York, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

At nine o'clock this morning, I arrived at Barnes and Noble, picked up Audition and sat down to read with a cup of coffee. I read for hours, bought the book and continued reading at home.

At over 600 pages, this book cannot be read in a day. However, I have read enough to report that the book is magnificent; extremely well- written, very pleasurable to read and absolutely fascinating.

Thankfully, there is also a detailed index. I found myself eying the index and flipping through to certain sections. I enjoyed reading about Walters' experience with the application form and other details at my alma mater, Sarah Lawrence College.

Open this book and on the inside jacket is a listing of the hundreds (thousands?) of people who Barbara Walters has interviewed and knows. It's pretty staggering, actually.

Born September 25, 1929, Barbara Walters has led an extraordinary life. Walters was first known as a TV morning news anchor and became the first female evening news anchor and many of us know her as the interviewer who can make anyone cry. Walters has spent decades reporting the news and interviewing, extracting juicy details and information out of world leaders, celebrities, heads of state and other VIP's.

In Audition, we get to learn about Walter's personal and professional life and her relationships with many of the most famous people in the world.

In the prologue, Walters states: "It feels to me that my life has been one long audition--an attempt to make a difference and to be accepted."

I was quite moved by her introduction and her feelings about her mentally challenged older sister, Jackie. Walters credits her sister as being the strongest influence in her life and credits her for teaching Walters about compassion and understanding--the traits that have made her such an outstanding interviewer.

"I've guarded my sister's privacy for years." Walters writes. "And although she was the central force in my life, she was part of the package that I'm about to unwrap on these pages."

Walter's warmth and compassion comes through in this book and you come to care very deeply about her. She writes in a conversational tone and the book is very enjoyable to read.

One statement Walters makes I found strange, however; she writes: "I was then, and still am, attracted to men who are smart and powerful. I'm not sure why. I think it's because I'd always hoped there would be a strong, successful man to take care of me so I wouldn't have to take care of myself."

Really? Or is it simply that like seeks like--why would Walters seek a stupid and weak partner?

In spite of that statement, I see hope and inspiration in this book especially for young women and girls, because it shows that a woman can be highly intelligent, tough and successful and still be a woman.

From the author of the award winning book, Harmonious Environment: Beautify, Detoxify and Energize Your Life, Your Home and Your Planet.

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Barbara Walters - Earth Mother of the Universe, May 8, 2008

By	Author "johnnybrooklyn" (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews

I always wondered why Barbara Walters had a slightly unfocused look at the beginning of some of her broadcasts. She confesses that when she is nervous, she takes one puff of a cigarette just offstage, and (being a non-smoker) immediately feels slightly dizzy but relaxed. This is exactly the look I am thinking of -- eager but slightly unfocused for a moment, batting her eyelashes exactly twice.

It's the nicotine!

Miss Walters has produced a long and satisfying memoir which will become the beach read of the Summer. Early on, she boasts slightly of her skills as an editor. It's clear she has applied them to this book as well. Barbara Walters has produced a finely-lubricated engine of a narrative that keeps us moving rather swiftly through her early years and subsequent superstar status.

I imagine the book could easily have topped 1,000 pages had she not applied her skilled eye in chopping it down. Still, when Miss Walters writes about some of her more interesting interviews, Truman Capote for example, you almost wish she would go into more detail. There is a sense she is holding back for brevity.

However, there are so many incredible anecdotes -- one featuring Robert F. Kennedy and a Mynah bird had me howling -- and they are from such impressive individuals, you admire her even more for taking out what must have been some humdingers.

I don't want to give any of them away because they're too good. I bought this book on the day of its release and I am not disappointed.

I like Barbara Walters' tenacity and ambition, even if she feels her rise to the top was fueled somewhat by an anxious insecurity, a neverending audition. In fact, she's auditioning for us here. Her memoir is designed to be comprehensive and readable and it succeeds on both counts.

Some people define "Class" in an individual as warmth, empathy, intelligence, humor and diplomacy. You sense these people have a solid moral core. They may, in fact, make you feel slightly inferior in some areas, but of course would never let you know it, nor would they even feel it themselves. Barbara Walters is the type of woman who overtips and wouldn't be caught dead harrassing a waiter.

We haven't kept her on top all these years for nothing.

Get the book.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For me, the best parts are those about her personal life, her daughter, her sister, etc. , May 17, 2008

By	K. Corn "reviewer" (Indianapolis,, IN United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

I had very mixed reactions after reading this book. The personal sections, the ones dealing with her daughter, father and other aspects of life OFF screen were very engaging.

I can remember Barbara Walters from the days when she was a very young reporter or television journalist, the distinctive speech that was parodied on Saturday Night Live, the Barbara "Wah Wah" jokes and all the rest.

As a young female watching all that occur in a time when women's roles were changing, I often cringed when I saw her on television. It was like watching and FEELING a cultural paradigm - and I think this book reflects that as well.

Although Walters maintained a fairly professional facade throughout her career, I'm sure plenty of what happened to her, on air and off, stung. So to judge her too harshly would be wrong.

However, I DO think there are parts of this book which are too braggy, perhaps unintentionally so, perhaps even defensively so. The woman is used to attention, to a certain degree of power and to having fought her way from being scorned by male co-anchors to winning respect. That deserves note.

Still, it wasn't all the list of Firsts and Great Interviews that Walters writes about that actually touched and engaged me. Instead, it was her honesty about her personal, behind the scenes life. I recall seeing a show she did on adoptive parents and her own interview and the revelations of her adopted daughter. There were struggles between the two and even estrangement for a time. Also, Barbara had a sister with mental challenges and there was that as well as times when she had to put her career first and marriage and even her daughter second. There was a cost for that and I didn't feel Walter shied away from being honest about the realities.

Love her, hate her or feel indifferent towards her...the woman took on a tough job at a tough time for women who aspired to be on television as something other than stereotypes. I do think she seems to fawn a bit too much over some celebs in interviews but with others she surprises them and gets them to open up.


Finally, I'm always eager to know what keeps people like Barbara Walters to push on when others fall by the wayside. The answer? Insecurity and some fear. She is not unlike Larry King in that regard, a man who once had money and lost it all while in Miami and has seemed relentless since then. She is not unlike Sarah Jessica Parker, a woman who grew up on welfare and worries about every cent she spends (not that Walters and Parker are the same in every way but...) I think great insecurity often leads to great success and the unceasing drive to succeed.

Her revelations about her father, the danger of impoverishment and the responsibilities placed on Walter's shoulders were new to me. These parts of the book were particularly engaging.

I enjoyed this book far more than I thought I would but felt it was an uneven ride but worth the trip.