Customer Reviews

BOFFO!: How I Learned to Love the Blockbuster and Fear the Bomb

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Peter Bart admits that the book is a grab-bag of essays on blockbuster movies, TV series and stage shows. I found it entertaining enough, but I'm not sure I got much out of it. He basically presents the history of a couple of dozen shows, several of which have already been chronicled in longer, more informative books (Casablanca, I Love Lucy, King Kong, etc.). This book is not unlike a Reader's Digest version of famous show business stories. I did find one item that I think is a mistake. In his "I Love Lucy" chapter, he writes that William Frawley and Lucille Ball hated each other. I've never read that before. I think he meant to write that Vivian Vance and Frawley hated each other.

This is a quirky book about the entertainment business that isn't devoted to one specific category--it covers movies, Broadway, TV shows and pop culture personalities. That makes it somewhat interesting in concept. But in execution the book is a mess.

Peter Bart has an odd writing style, filled with facts but little finesse. He takes ten or twelve pages to cover each subject, ranging from Easy Rider to I Love Lucy to Cats, but rarely provides any new insight into any of the topics covered.

The most interesting chapters are those that involve his personal stories, but even those often fall flat due to the unusual writing style. For the Godfather chapter, he starts out explaining his first-hand work in trying to get the project off the ground when he worked as vice president of production at Paramount. But then instead of doing any actual interviews with those involved with the movie, he MAKES UP what he THINKS they would say today based on his 30 year old recollections of conversations he had back then! It is totally inappropriate from a journalistic standpoint and embarrassing for a man who is the editor of a major entertainment publication.

His Oprah chapter is a complete waste of time and you have to wonder why he included it in the book--he simply found an old biography of the star, quoted liberally from it and then praises the talk show host for her openness in the James Frey false memoir fiasco. The problem is that Bart overlooks that Oprah flip-flopped after Frey's falsehoods were made public and he doesn't hold Winfrey responsible for any of the many negative things she has done, even glossing over lawsuits filed by former Oprah employees.

The author also kisses up to anyone he has a working relationship with--the first chapter alone is filled with praise for Peter Gruber's production of Batman in 1989. But nowhere is it mentioned in the chapter that he and Gruber are partners on a TV show and the two wrote a book together! On the other hand, in the same chapter he slams co-producer Jon Peters, with whom Bart must not have had a relationship.

He also embarrasses himself by looking down his nose at pop culture favorites, such as saying it took over three years for him to lower himself to see Mamma Mia. He comes across as an old guy who doesn't understand what makes something popular entertainment--and proves the point that people who head Hollywood studios (like he used to) are clueless when it comes to knowing what Americans want for entertainment or why. He has no real answers about what makes something a blockbuster.

The book should have been filled with Bart's personal stories and inside interviews with the many industry big-wigs that he is associated with. Instead it is mostly rehashed factual information that is better written about in the books he liberally borrows from (at least the books are credited in the end).

Think of each of these essays as half hour VH1 specials on "The Making of . . ." a series of unexpected and unlikely hits. It seems hard to believe that all of the films, TV shows, plays, and personalities here (CSI, All in the Family, The Godfather, Lord of the Rings, Oprah, Cats, and more) - things that are American media icons - were once turned down, cut back, and, once they were finally allowed to begin, had so many chips stacked against them (organized crime wasn't so sure they wanted anyone making THE GODFATHER), that it's a miracle any of them saw the light of day. Andrew Lloyd Webber was about to pull the plug on CATS a week before it opened. How each of these productions and people eventually made it to the top makes for fascinating reading.

BOFFO! HOW I LEARNED TO LOVE THE BLOCKBUSTER AND FEAR THE BOMB comes from the editor-in-chief of Variety and co-host of AMC's Sunday Morning Shootout, and provides a vivid, experienced look at Hollywood, using nearly thirty hits from film, TV and theatre to examine the making of blockbusters and the lessons they hold for any would-be hit maker. From budget concerns to anticipating changes in audience tastes, BOFFO covers pitfalls as well as successes and is a 'must' for any film director, producer, or Hollywood wannabe.

Diane C. Donovan

California Bookwatch

The book and bookcover had no damage or marks whatsoever and it was shipped before the tailend of the date range. THANKS!!!