An Open Book [Hardcover]

John Huston (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 12, 1980

In An Open Book, this veteran of five marriages, innumerable friendships, practical jokes, horses, love affairs, and intellectual obsessions tells his own story in his own way. It is direct, unadorned, complete—and wonderful reading. Here is Huston on stage for the first time at age three, dressed in an Uncle Sam suit; in the ring at eighteen, boxing for small purses; selling his first short story to H.L. Mencken; down and out in London; acting in Greenwich Village; going to Hollywood to work for Jack Warner as a writer; directing his first picture, The Maltese Falcon; filming dangerous combat scenes in the Aleutians and in Italy; and making over forty years worth of movies, from Key Largo to The Man Who Would Be King. And the stories behind those movies are often as exciting as the movies themselves, featuring such notables as Hemingway, Selznick, Sartre, Hepburn, Monroe, Flynn, Welles, Gable, Bogart, Clift, and Brando. An Open Book is alive with John Huston’s presence: his boldness and daring, his candor and style, and the spontaneity with which he followed his dreams to their ultimate destination, the well-deserved acclaim of a world enchanted by his work.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Famous as a film director par excellence, Huston had a private life that was often as adventurous-and tumultuous-as one of his celluloid creations. Though LJ's reviewer found the book less candid than the title suggests, it will still raise an eyebrow or two and provides "more material for film historians to chew on than any other book about this fascinating man" (LJ 9/1/80).
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Review

Â"Hugely entertaining.Â" -- Newark Star-Ledger, 8/14/06 --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 389 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; 1st edition (September 12, 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394404653
• ISBN-13: 978-0394404653
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #965,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Huston - an Irish huntsman from the Mexican cavalry, November 30, 2006

By 

Arthur Crown (Heathrow, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Open Book (Paperback)

John Huston's autobiography 'An Open Book' was written while the author - a film director whose life spanned the period from the earliest days of Hollywood to his eventual death in 1987 - was living, in old age, as something of a recluse in Mexico.

From this quiet, remote, idyllic spot he tells - as he sees it - the story of his own life and the many experiences and fotuitous friendships and relationships which he believes had been important in making him the way he was.

It goes back as far as he can go into his own ancestry and the origin of his own name - Huston. It goes deep into the impressions of his own family that he formed as a child and refined as he grew up.

He shares with us his many mistakes, as well as the background to some of his greatest successes - which nominally, are his many great films.

But somehow more important than this is the way he approaches his life and how he tells his own story. At one point he is discussing what actually constitutes the 'style' of a writer and what makes it distinctive. He concludes that what is called a writer's style is straightforwardly a unique artefact of how that person thinks and feels about their life and experience.

This book is full of a polished but intimate candour that illuminates and compliments his long and successful career in film

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like autobiographies? This one's a winner., December 7, 2005

By 

Chris bct "music everyday" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Open Book (Paperback)

Not only has he been one of my favorite directors over the years, he did some great acting spots, particularly in Chinatown. Then to have this book to read is truely a window into his life. He gives one bit of advice. Has to do with smoking, I won't spoil it for you. Witty guy. I think we tend to forget that films are visual/written/audio stories that several people have put together. A piece of art, typically. And the director is the eye of the hurricane, piecing it all together, in his (her) vision. This book gives us a look into both his private life, one which the citizen today likely has little idea about, as well as numerous stories about various Hollywood people he worked with over the decades. I could barely put this book down. He's got a writing style that's so comfortable, so enjoyable to read, well, maybe it was more fun for me because, in my mind I heard his resonate speaking voice reading the whole book like one on tape by the author. There's never been a director like him that I'm aware of, someone who did not have his own style so much as cull the story right out of the block of stone so to speak. Each of the great films he did has their own vision, their own look. A great accomplishment for a real director who mastered his craft. I think of him as a man's man and this book keeps that sense alive. Sure am glad he took the time to write it because it's a lot of fun to explore his life with him. Unique places, people and times in American cinematic history, and he was there, right in the midst of it all. [e-mail]

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Must-Read For Film Buffs, December 30, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: An Open Book (Paperback)

Here are some great annecdotes (Bogart, Hepburn, Lorrie, Connery, et al.) by one of Hollywood's greatest directors. Huston's private life rivals any script that he ever shot, and his skill and training as a scriptwriter makes this an interesting, articulate volume.