Customer Reviews

John Holmes, a Life Measured in Inches

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Well, I finished reading "Inches" yesterday and want to say that this is a VERY good, in depth,well researched biography of John Holmes that takes the reader from Holmes's child hood in Pataskala Ohio to his death from AIDS in California 43 years later .

The amount of detail in the stories told by various people who knew him over the course of his life was very extensive with a lot more additional information on Holmes in front of the camera and also his private life, than any of the video documentaries on his life that I have seen over the past few years.

My own main thrust of interest about Holmes since I was a young 18 year old in Southern California when the WONDERLAND killings happened in 1981, has been this crime and also the double life that Holmes had led in the years previous to this. I have read just about everything pertaining to the WONDERLAND murders, and seen every documentary made, but there were many things in "Inches" that have never been included in previous projects on his life....MANY things.

One of the things that really does stand out in the book in my own opinion are the stories that Sean Amerson told. This guy really loved John a lot growing up and I think that while everyone missed him when he passed,Sean may have been the one who missed him most of all.

Great book Jennifer and Jill! If this could have been any better, I don't know how.

After having watched Boogie Nights and Wonderland I really wanted to read a biography about John Holmes and was disappointed that there wasn't one available. Then low and behold one appears on Amazon.com! I immediately picked it up and was extremely impressed.

It is written as an oral history so the authors weaved John's life story around long quotes from the people who actually knew John. I prefer that over those biographers who just make up all kinds of stuff about their subject and never say where they got the information from.

This book gives you John's complete story starting with his childhood and ending with his death of AIDS. It presents John in a fair light never descending into tabloid territory with its coverage of his many negative deeds but also not shying away from talking about them. After reading this bio I got the impression that John was a deeply flawed man but also had a very big heart. It gave me a much better idea of who John was than either movie.

The book also includes lots of rare photos of John along with some of the essential classics. It also has a very in-depth movie review section in case you feel like checking out some of his work after you read the book.

This book is perfect for any Holmes fan as it includes lots of new stories and is also the perfect (and only) place to start if you are just getting into the Holmes scene and want to find out the true story of The King.

John Holmes, the face of 1970s hardcore movies, is the subject of this incredible in depth biography which examines not only the man's career but his personal life before, during, and after his life was tragically cut short due to HIV.
Compiling new and old interviews with his family, friends, co-stars, and directors, John Holmes - A Life Measured in Inches is the crucial work for anyone interested in either Holmes or the American sex industry in the 1970s.
Authors Jill Nelson and Jennifer Sugar never over-editorialize their subject and instead allow all of their interviewees to speak freely. What's more is that the book neither serves as a complimentary piece or a condemnation of Holmes, his career, or his personal life but rather tries to make all sides of every issue heard allowing the reader to interpret Holmes life on their own.
Written almost as a back and forth dialogue between the various interview subjects and the authors own comments, the book is a compelling read which draws its audience in.
What's more is the authors have included a full filmography and partial looporgaphy as well as over 50 detailed reviews of features Holmes appeared in. Additionally, there are two photo sets.
Anyone with even the slightest interest in 70s hardcore or Holmes, the man must check this out.

I knew allot about John Holmes and his life before I read Inches but found this book to contain many storys I didnt know about John. A good read if you grew up in the era of John and the Sex Drugs and Rock and Roll seventies or if your just interested in what the hell happened to a normal all american guy with an extra large member. Its really sad if you think about it.

An interesting read so far. BEWARE though, I bought this for my Kindle and the letters are like ant size, and it won't allow you to enlarge the print. Unlike the other Kindle user here, I have the pictures.. it's just the print is so tiny, it makes it hard on the eyes!

"Inches" is truly a landmark in the history of adult cinema. In the future, it will be impossible for an author to write about John Holmes without referring to Jennifer Sugar and Jill C. Nelson's fabulous book. Extensive interviews with friends and family, as well as quotes from Holmes himself paint a colorful picture of the man. While it is difficult to draw lines between the man and the myth, "Inches" comes as close to stripping away the mystery of Holmes' life as any book is likely to. "Inches" includes many rare photographs, not to mention an astounding film(loop)ography that lists 150 loops, 306 features and 27 compilations, making it priceless to any collector of adult films and vintage erotica. Highly recommended!

First its a good read and i do recommend you buy it.The lessons are many including what drugs and bad friends can do to you.There were many likable qualities to him as a person but you also learn the details of how his involvement in wonderland led to the beating deaths of two women.One other one managed to survive.The guys killed lived by the sword and had it coming-sure,but him leaving the door open both at the gangster Nash place and at the wonderland place showed a careless and ruthless side to Holmes that all the "He was a great guy" does not change.He got his underage girlfriend into prostitution and stole from his friends to feed his drug habit.All of his money went down the drain and perhaps that can get through to some peaple and help them choose a better course.one of the guys killed at wonderland ave was suspected of many murders by the LAPD so his death was no loss to society but to understand that one was completely innocent shows the real tragic consequences of holmes choices.The chapters on holmes films were a bit too long-some are not even available and lets face it the short film loops could have been explained in one page but overall i must say they have put togeather the definitive work on the tradgedy that is the person of John Holmes

I bought this book late last year and could not put it down. It is simply one of the best biographies I have ever read.

Unlike some earlier efforts, Inches really gives you an insight into the nature of John and what was behind all the hype. Rather than just focussing on the porn movies etc that John made, it lets you in on his closest relationships, the way he wanted to be seen by others and what his peers really thought of him. The way the book is written - the history of John's life broken up by the recollections of people who John associated with, is unusual but really works well. It turns the book into a type of "living history", which is highly readable and very entertaining.

I view the story of John's life as a tragedy. He obviously was a lot more than just an adult star, but the drugs were his downfall and eventually wrecked his life. John always wanted fame, and in that regard he suceeded. He was without doubt the King of the adult movie industry and befitting of a book such as Inches.

The movie listings and reviews of John's movies at the back of the book are extensive and highly detailed. The research to compile just this part of the book must have been enormous.

To conclude, I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to read either just a well-written and researched biography in general, or to know more about this tragic figure in particular. RIP John!

Very good book, well written. i do like the way the book is set up. the cast list makes it extremely easy to keep track of who is who. this type of format is user friendly and enjoyable. john holmes makes a very interesting topic. i recommend this book.

I just finished reading this biography from beginning to end and I could not put it down. First and foremost, the cast list and biography section found at the beginning of the book is critical reading. It explains all of the characters who contributed to the story and how they came to know John Holmes. A brilliant stroke. William Margold's Foreward beautifully sets the table for what is to follow. What follows is an amazing ride through Holmes' 43 years of life experience.

As a fringe boomer, it is easy to identify with the era in which the book takes place, from the 1940s to the late 1980s. Before learning about this book, I hadn't thought about John Holmes in years, yet, I found this biography to be an engaging and ripping story of a country boy turned adult film star. Without giving too much away, A Life Measured in Inches is a potpourri of sex, relationships, deception, addiction, murder and "Atonement", as the title of chapter 9 suggests.

The book contains amazing detail and is told by many people who knew John Holmes personally as the authors take you on an incredible sojourn through his wild and scandalous life. Putting it mildly, Holmes did everything in extremes. With a highly addictive personality, how could you not?

Holmes was nicknamed THE KING relatively early in his career. It must have been difficult living up to those expectations, but he did so with a vengeance. One bit that struck me as quite funny was when John was asked by a friend if he was bisexual and he replied, "Yeah, I'm bisexual. You buy me, I'm sexual."

I found the film and loop reviews to be entertaining, colorful and articulate. It is apparent that the authors logged in a lot of hours in order to produce such an incredible collection. The book also includes an impressive filmography and three dynamic picture sections with more film photos scattered throughout the reviews. The nude pictures of Holmes are a welcome surprise and show consistency with the honesty of the text. One thing is certain... John Holmes A Life Measured in Inches is no fluff piece. Recommended.