Let Me Entertain You: Conversations With Show People [Paperback]

Jordan R. Young (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0940410834 | ISBN-13: 978-0940410831 | Publication Date: July 1988 | Edition: 1st

Amazingly candid interviews with show biz personalities -- from the worlds of film, music, theater, vaudeville and television -- discussing their careers, their successes and failures, their shortcomings. The cast includes Jack Nicholson, Peter Sellers, Jack Lemmon, Donald Sutherland, Red Skelton, Marcel Marceau, Spanky McFarland of the Little Rascals, Huntz Hall of the Bowery Boys, comedian Doodles Weaver, zany bandleader Mickey Katz, silent stars Laura La Plante and Eleanor Boardman, character actor Reginald Owen, silent film comic Clyde Cook and ragtime legend Eubie Blake. Over 75 photos; foreword by Leonard Maltin.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

These 22 pieces, some originally published in the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times , offer glimpses of performers with their guardsand egoslowered. They include faces from the past, like Laura La Plante of silent films and Huntz Hall of the Bowery Boys, and from various fieldsactor Jack Nicholson, musician Eubie Blake and mime Marcel Marceau. Nicholson reviews his career and reveals an easygoing personality behind the belligerent and rebellious public persona. George Rock, trumpeter for Spike Jones's band from 1944 to 1960, discusses his start in music and the banality behind that zany troup. He admits, "Later, in retrospect, you try to balance it and see if it was worth it. We always had quite a bit of time at home, but the career didn't really justify the other times when we were gone." Young ( The Beckett Actor , etc.) met with some interviewees several years ago, such as Peter Sellers, who died in 1980. His subjects open up, and their revelations flow freely, uninterrupted by questions, which have been edited out to make the interviews into streamlined monologues. The author prefaces the words with brief bios and warm, critical commentary, and is to be commended for the informed selection of performers who are no longer household names. It is the realistic edge of the pieces that makes his book special. From the memorabilia and arcana of the entertainment industry provided here, younger readers will learn, older ones will reminisce, and enthusiasts will enjoy. Photos not seen by PW. Author tour.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"The personalities profiled in this volume range from the famous to the obscure, and it is precisely this mix of the expected and the eclectic among show people which gives Jordan Young's book its charm... People like Mickey Katz, the Borscht Belt musician, singer and comic (and father of Joel Grey), former Spike Jones trumpeter George Rock and silent film actress Eleanor Boardman lend a refreshing balance to the book. Young's pieces are candid glimpses of their subjects' personalities and how they view their own lives and careers... Each interview, with questions edited out, flows like a monologue and conveys a warmth and sincerity that gives the reader a real sense of its subject." -- Small Press, 2/89

"Younger readers will learn, older ones will reminisce, and enthusiasts will enjoy." -- Publishers Weekly, 6/17/88

Glimpses of performers with their guards and egos lowered... it is the realistic edge of the pieces that make this book special. -- Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 175 pages
• Publisher: Past Times Pub Co; 1st edition (July 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0940410834
• ISBN-13: 978-0940410831
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,131,270 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a freelance writer, entertainment historian and playwright. I've traveled extensively in Europe and the U.S. but researching and writing books like "Spike Jones Off the Record," "Acting Solo," and "The Beckett Actor" has been the great adventure of my life. Without readers I wouldn't be here, so I thank all of you who have discovered my books and shared my adventures.