Customer Reviews

I Could Have Sung All Night: My Story

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"I Could Have Sung All Night" by Marni Nixon is a wonderful, enjoyable autobiography of her life. Marni Nixon has dubbed singers Audrey Hepburn (My Fair Lady), Deborah Kerr (The King and I), and to my surprise Natalie Wood (West Side Story). Growing up with these movie musicals I knew about Marni Nixon's dubbing in "My Fair Lady", but when reading the chapter on "West Side Story" regarding the dubbing for Natalie Wood, I was surprised. When watching West Side Story, I really thought it was Natalie Wood doing her own singing!
Marni Nixon tells wonderful stories about her travels in Israel with Liberace, her stint with Victor Borge, and many other anecdotes.
The book is a fun and entertaining read, and I could not put it down. Thank you Marni Nixon!

Marni Nixon's was one of those famous people who fascinated me from the moment I heard her story of being the vocal "ghost" in three of Hollywood's most remarkable musicals. Her's is a story I was waiting to hear, and with this great book, it was worth the wait.

For anyone interested in musicals, Hollywood or performing, Ms. Nixon's wonderful book will be a boon. From her personal stories about Hollywood to her journey from singer to remarkable actress, the book is a wonderful read.

Her story would make one of the most fascinating movie musicals ever. Part "Singing in the Rain" and part Hollywood Grimm's fairy tale, I want to see this story made into a movie musical. Anyone out there listening?

Bravo to Ms. Nixon! Thank you for sharing your amazing story. I was completely enthralled as well as inspired.

Great walk through the 20th century. This woman's life arc hits all of the pioneering moments in musical entertainment from the great depression to present day. The back stories in Hollywood are a particular good read. At last there's a face and story to all of the great songs I've listened to over the years.

About 2/3 of this book is fascinating--the other 1/3 is dull and has too much personal information. Most of it you can hardly put it down--Marni Nixon describes her part in dubbing some of the greatest film musicals of the 50s and 60s. BUT the other 1/3 of the book (mostly the last part of the book--after she no longer dubs films regularly) is filled with her self-confessed affairs that detract from her professionalism.

It's a great book for anyone who loves movie musicals and Hollywood history. She started in movies as a child and has great behind-the-scenes stories of old Hollywood. Her descriptions of dubbing for Kerr, Hepburn and Wood are well-detailed and worth getting the book. But once she details "My Fair Lady" (and even her work on "Mary Poppins"!), the only other thing worth reading is her short time with "The Sound of Music." After that it would be best to put the book away and enjoy the memories of this sparkling star--instead of reading on about her cheating, her ignoring her kids and her search for significance. She certainly has a story to tell but she doesn't appear to understand that the fame she looked for is diminished by her exposing all of her off-stage problems.

Enjoyed this book so much.It was fun to read about all the colleagues she had worked with during her career. A very pleasant read.

This is a wonderful memoir of a wonderful and fair lady, who has led a rich and meaningful life. It is breezily written and full of fabulous insider Hollywood stories, especially the three chapters devoted to dubbing the actress leads in THE KING AND I, WEST SIDE STORY and MY FAIR LADY.

However, it is riddled with factual errors. Ms. Nixon thanks her editor, Meryl Greenblatt, in the Foreword. Ms. Greenblatt would have been fired on the spot by any responsible publishing house once the book had been published, for the easily corroborated factual errors she let pass her by, many common knowledge to anyone interested in films.

These are "some" I caught:

Page 22 - photo caption identifies one Constance Purdy, who Ms. Nixon names an Oscar winner - this actress was never nominated for, nor could she have won an Oscar.

Page 42 - Wagner's DIE MEISTERSINGER has three acts, not four.

Page 86 - Fox did not acquire rights to all four R&H works in the mid-fifties. They acquired the rights to THE KING AND I and CAROUSEL, mainly because they already owned the dramatic rights to the original works (the book, ANNA AND THE KING OF SIAM, and the play, LILIOM) and all adaptations. R&H could not have brought these works to the screen without Fox being involved. R&H produced OKLAHOMA! and SOUTH PACIFIC under their own company banner, Magna. The first was distributed by RKO and the second by Fox. Rodgers, after Hammerstein's death, negotiated a contract by which Fox later acquired all rights to these two productions.

Page 89 - The correct lyric to HELLO, YOUNG LOVERS is: "and the sky was streaked with white," not "streaked with light."

Page 94 - WE KISS IN A SHADOW was not cut from THE KING AND I. I HAVE DREAMED was cut. In fact the only number filmed and cut was SHALL I TELL YOU WHAT I THINK OF YOU? Both I HAVE DREAMED and MY LORD AND MASTER were never intended to be included in the film. Rodgers insisted they be recorded for the lp to reflect a nearly complete score, regardless of what was used in the final cut of the film.

Page 97 - THE KING AND I was not released in stereo until a 1960 remix of all of Capital's three R&H film scores.

Page 110 - It is doubtful Ms. Nixon could have recorded all the works of these composers unless she were a symphony orchestra - perhaps she means vocal or choral works by these composers.

Page 140 - No Ascot scene exists in the original PYGMALION play, nor in the 1938 film version, so it could not have been improved upon.

Page 144 - WEST SIDE STORY was released in 1961, not 1960.

Page 159 - Ms. Nixon neglects to mention Anna Lee's most memorable role in HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY.

Page 238 - Lana Turner never appeared in BACK STREET. It was filmed thrice with Irene Dunne, Margaret Sullavan and Susan Hayward.

Page 267 - Norma Desmond quote erroneous. It was in response to the use of the word "comeback." "I hate that word. It's a return."

I'm sure there are more that I didn't catch. I do not blame Ms. Nixon's faulty memory - it is the job of the editor to check every fact that an author puts forward. This editor is lousy.

If you can get over these gross errors, the book is a brisk and chatty read through the end of the golden age of film musicals - very enjoyable and hurrah to Ms. Nixon for sharing her life with us.

Definitely not for the faint of heart, shall-we-say. This is one of the "rawest" autobiographies available, that shatters every veneer that is associated with the epoch in which Marni did the work she is most known for.

What is only a singing voice to most people becomes more than a singer or an actress or a teacher - it becomes a flesh-and-blood human being who spills her guts and engages you in a psychological journey that will eclipse any Russian play. You will be as charmed as you will be shocked. The protagonist of Marni's story is a character that I think actresses will love to sink their teeth into, when they adapt this book into a play or a musical or a film one day - except that the character is A REAL PERSON.

You've already heard her. You've probably even seen her. Now is the time for you to actually *FEEL* her, here in her book.

Furthermore, this book makes the bygone golden eras of both the screen and the stage instantly accessible to the modern reader. It is just as much a piece of history as it is the story of a woman who was NEVER AFRAID to BE a woman!

This marvelous memoir by the great movie "ghost" voice of Deborah Kerr (King & I),Audrey Hepburn (Fair Lady), and Natalie Wood (West Side Story) is a great read for anyone even remotely interested in vocal music, the theater, and the back-stage doings of Broadway and Hollywood. Gifted with absolute pitch, Ms. Nixon's bright soprano was heard in many phases of vocal music, from movies and Broadway to hyper-modern classical repertoire and full opera roles. She also had the ability to do any type of speech accent and to perfectly copy the vocal timbre of the person she was "ghosting." Sadly, she would remain virtually unknown to a large majority of the general public. Perhaps this autobiography will help rectify that situation.

The book takes one through her childood involvement in music as a violinist and chorister from a musical family; her entry and climb in professional music circles; and her later battles to receive credit and remuneration for her movie "ghosting" work. It also deals with the problems that the music business poses for marriage and everyday life, and documents her two courageous battles with breast cancer.

I would have liked to have at least a selective discography of her own work in the classical and show-tune fields, but one can't have everything.

All told, a very enjoyable work. Highly recommended for musicians and music fans.

Marni Nixon's biography is really interesting. She's done more 'ghost' singing than you know about and is humble through out the entire thing.She's one hell of a performer as well as telling a story you'd like to know about.

I had long known about Ms. Nixon's film work, dubbing for Deborah Kerr, Natalie Wood and Audrey Hepburn, but this memoir filled in a lot of gaps. I really enjoyed it.