From Publishers Weekly
As informative and readable as "Kup's Column," which has appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times for the past 45 years, this autobiography looks back over that period, for 27 years of which Kupcinet also hosted a TV talk show. Writing with freelancer Neimark, this gossip columnist cast in the ConsidineWinchell mold deals with politics, show biz, sports and the celebrities he has known. There are anecdotes about presidents from Truman to Reagan, entertainers from John Barrymore to Princewith special chapters on Frank Sinatra and Bob Hopeand sports figures from George Halas to Ernie Banks. Many of the stories appeared as scoops in Kupcinet's columnand there are some shockers. Readers who enjoy inside tales of the great and near-great will find this memoir a treasure-trove. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
After more than a half-century as a journalist, Irv Kupcinet shows that he can still write with passion about-among other things--subjects on which he built his career: famous people and his native Chicago. "Kup," as he is known to readers of his Chicago Sun-Times celebrity column and viewers of his TV talk show, has peppered his autobiography with stories and personal recollections of some of the most celebrated personalities of this century--and the volume is as hard to put down as the names the author drops are easy to pick up. Kupcinet began "Kup's Column" in 1943 (for what was then the Chicago Times) after a short stint as a pro football player with the Chicago Bears and several years as a sportswriter. Since then, the plucky journalist has become an institution in his beloved Windy City-and a national celebrity in his own right, thanks in part to the syndicated "Kup's Show," which ran on television for an amazing twenty-seven years. With coauthor Paul Neimark, Kupcinet offers a somewhat rambling but always enjoyable account of his life and career, chock-full of anecdotes about his personal encounters with the famous and infamous. Kup's cast of characters ranges from entertainers-like Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra-to popes and presidents. A full chapter is devoted to Harry Truman, whom Kup first met as a senator and befriended throughout his years in the White House and beyond. Truman once gave Kupcinet a White House card with "Open Sesame" scrawled on the back, and Kup gathered many insights from the feisty president from Independence. Although in many respects Kup and his wife Essee have led a charmed life, they have not been spared their share of tragedy. Within a week of JFK's assassination in 1963, the Kupcinets' only daughter, aspiring actress Karyn-their beloved "Cookie'!--was brutally murdered in her Los Angeles apartment at the age of twenty-two. Kupcinet deals honestly and movingly with his family's shock and grief following the devastating crime, which remains unsolved some twenty-five years later. Kup also devotes a chapter to another tragic figure in his life Essee's close friend, the ill-fated Diana Barrymore. Kup is a book filled with memorable images of people who helped shape the last half-century-from Al Capone to Johnny Carson-and of a city that helped make one of its own an institution. Along with "Kup's Column" and "Kup's Show," Chicago and the rest of the country now has Kup's book to enjoy. Highly recommended. -- From Independent Publisher
