Hollywood Rat Race (Paperback)

~ Ed Wood Jr. (Author) "You became a typist for an insurance company!..." (more)
Key Phrases: angora sweater, Los Angeles, Bela Lugosi, Sunset Boulevard (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Advice on achieving silver-screen immortality from an unlikely source, this kitschy and catty portrait of Tinseltown isn't likely to win any new fans for Wood, the writer, director and producer of what is generally agreed to be the worst movie ever made, Plan 9 from Outer Space. Wood offers tips on how to be discovered in Hollywood (you won't, stay at home); how to achieve stardom (become a character actor the likes of Jonathan Hale, Jane Darnell, Addison Richards and a seemingly endless list of other Hollywood nobodies of the 1950s); how to elude the casting couch (or at least, how to distinguish, and sleep with, legitimate producers rather than "phonies"); and how to comport oneself in debtor's court. This somewhat entertaining glimpse of Hollywood's sleazy side won't disillusion those who think of Wood as an inept writerAhis work is filled with mindless clich?s ("You're only as good as your last picture!")Aand numerous, even obsessive, references to fluffy white angora sweaters (true to Tim Burton's recent portrayal). The irony of Wood's authorship of this manual (unpublished until this printing) during the 1960s, one of the bleaker times in his career, will be apparent to all readersAas will Wood's understandable bitterness as he spews out unending invective against the "phonies" who take advantage of young, angora sweater-wearing talent. While this brief book isn't quite bad enough to rank with Woods's most distinctive creations, dedicated fans will find it a howler.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

The King of the Really Bad Movies reveals the secrets of his, well, successsomewhat inadvertently. Wood is best known as the writer, director, and producer of such instant trash-can liners as Bride of the Monster, That Sinister Urge, Plan 9 from Outer Space, and the never-to-be-forgotten (or forgiven) Glen or Glenda? (a.k.a. ``I Changed My Sex''). The subject of an affectionate Tim Burton film that bore his name, Wood was nothing if not persistent in his desire to crack the walls of the Hollywood palace. In this previously unpublished effort, he outlines for all would-be actors and actresses the pitfalls that await them when they go west in search of the cinematic El Dorado. And it is truly a worm's-eye view. Wood manages the singular feat of simultaneously depicting the film industry as a kind of hard-earned nirvana and a cesspool of greasy-handed lechers, quick-buck artists, and con men. He does so in a tortured prose that will be familiar to anyone who has seen one of his films, littered with solecisms, bordering on a kind of hysterical incoherence. (``They never error in their delivery of lines. . . .''; ``But the guy had such a dynamic veneer. . . .,'' to offer two choice examples.) If there is a finite supply of exclamation marks in the world, this book will deplete it. As a period piece that includes advice on cheap hotels at which to stay, it has a certain stupid charm. But if you weren't suffering from ``irony fatigue'' before, the publication of this curiosity will send you over the edge. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press; 1st Paper, 1st Printing edition (January 5, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156858119X
• ISBN-13: 978-1568581194
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #126,861 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Probably the best book you'll ever read, May 16, 2000

By A Customer

It seems too good to be true-Ed Wood actually wrote a book on how to make it in Hollywood!It would be funny if it weren't so sad.Actually,Ed has some good advice on what to do once you get to tinseltown.He wrote the book in the 60's,but much of his advice still holds up.If you are an Ed Wood fan,you MUST read this book.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ed Wood: Bad Director, but Highly Amusing Writer, January 11, 2002

By	Bryan A. (Hoosier Heartland) - See all my reviews

Ed Wood is famous as "the world's worst director." That title was never true, because his movies were always interesting even on a shoestring budget. In this book, the Great Man offers his [intentionally] hilarious advice for those aspiring to Hollywood. "Stay home," he insists. "You can be a devoted actor or actress there as well as any place."

All of his favorite fetishes are here in this book as he explores the [1960s version of] seedy Hollywood. He manages to mention "angora sweaters" nearly a dozen times throughout the book. Mr. Wood warns starlets that there isn't any film in that screen test camera. He explains how to seem like a bigshot while living a dive apartment-- have all your meetings downstairs at the complex's POOL. He brags that all of his movies got RELEASED [wow]-- unlike some other cheapie
directors. He even explains how to live for FREE in Hollywood [sleep in the park-- but don't forget blankets].

Chapter Ten: How to Make a Cheap Picture and Fail. "This is the easiest chapter of all to write,"-- Ed's implied admission that maybe he isn't the Hollywood BigWig he pretends to be.

Ed wrote his books as a stream of consciousness-- and it shows. But "Hollywood Rat Race" is like having a great three hour conversion with someone who's seen it all... and can still laugh about it!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ED WOOD "Beyond Reason", March 25, 2006

By	Frank Austan "javieracosta" (Philadelphia, PA, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Hollywood Rat Race (Paperback)

My introduction to film maker Edward D. Wood,Jr., came one Saturday afternoon in 1996 while visiting our local movie rental store with my daughter. By happen-chance,I purchased 'Ed Wood' starring Johnny Depp, a bio epic of Wood's best remembered films made between 1952 and 1962. While watching this movie I was captivated by the passion and persistence Wood exuded as an autuer, facing many hard times in trying to 'make-it' in Hollywood. His book 'Hollywood Rat Race' captures the essence of this experience and what it takes to become an "indie film-maker' before the word became vogue. A nicely written narrative for an aspiring autuer who wishes to get a glimpse of what it takes to make a movie. Wood is an anti-heroe [Orsen Wells a heroe] who gains the sympathy of the reader because of his tireless effort in documenting his vision in such film classics as, 'Glen or Glenda,1953', 'Jail Bait,1954', 'Bride of the Monster,1955', 'The Violent Years, 1956', "Plan 9 From Outer Space, 1957,'The Night of the Gouls,1958','Sinister Urge,1960 and 'Orgy of the Dead,1962'. A remarkable body work for a writer, director and producer on a micro-film-budget who is endearingly remembered as the "Worst film-maker of all time." As a fan, I toast this book and to the life and times of Mr. Wood, "It's beyond reason".

Frank Austan, LRCP