Tales of a Theatrical Guru (Music in American Life) [Hardcover]

Danny Newman (Author), Studs Terkel (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 11, 2006 | Series: Music in American Life

In Tales of a Theatrical Guru, legendary showman Danny Newman brings together thirty-three profiles of key arts people he’s known during his amazing career, many of them connected with Lyric Opera of Chicago. Among the singers, conductors, promoters, actors, and others are Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Milton Berle, Jimmy Durante, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, Sally Rand, Sam Wanamaker, Dina Halpern (to whom he was married), George Balanchine, Samuel Goldwyn, Carol Channing, Yul Brynner, Richard Tucker, Leontyne Price, Jussi Bjöerling, Tito Gobbi, and Maria Callas.
 
Ranging from hilarious to somber, these fascinating vignettes and anecdotes provide a complete picture of a world that few have ever seen so intimately. Newman himself is necessarily very much a part of these stories, and his irrepressible nature and love for the arts shine through on every page.                   

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Opera buffs and Chicago arts fans will be interested in Newman's first autobiographical work, a memoir-in-profiles that chronicles the storied press agent's work with luminaries from Milton Berle to Laurel and Hardy to Geraldine Page to Luciano Pavarotti. Unfortunately, they may be disappointed: though he's been the go-to press agent for the best theatre and classical music organizations for over 60 years, Newman's account of the theatre legends he's met is disjointed and largely insubstantial. Carol Channing's chapter reveals only she "has never let a holiday go by without sending me a message, and I appreciate it"; readers will also learn that Nina Hirschfeld, daughter of late, great caricaturist Al Hirschfeld, "stops off between trains in Chicago to visit with us." Still, some of Newman's 33 recollections are engaging, including his thoughts on Geraldine Page, Placido Domingo and respected but lesser-known opera luminaries such as Richard Tucker, Jan Kiepura and the Lyric Opera's Ardis Kranik. A frustrating tendency to repeat himself-a late-book description of Newman's deceased wife, actress Dina Halpern, follows an entire chapter on her-could have been helped by more vigorous editing. Readers of this vanity project will get a sense of Newman's contributions to the theatre world, but no understanding of the world itself, or the achievements made during Newman's time in it. Photos.
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Review

"Danny Newman has become a household word to America 's cultural institutions. A fantastic stream of ideas and brilliant articulation." The Houston Chronicle "We learn the way greater and lesser celebrities in the performing arts acted and lived in the lively arena of their times; we get to know directors, theater managers, producers, box office chiefs, press agents, critics, conductors, singers - in short, the entire show business empire. We are always right there with him, sharing his secrets through the many twists and turns of American cultural history." Elise K. Kirk, author of American Opera "Many of the events that are now 'legendary' in American operatic life are precisely that because Danny Newman knew an opportunity when he saw it and craftily arranged for photographers and journalists to be around at the right time. This book explains what was going through Mr. Newman's mind as he supervised the press coverage of, for example, Luciano Pavarotti's dismissal from Lyric Opera and Maria Callas's being served with a subpoena backstage. These are rich anecdotes told with considerable charm, warmth, and humor by one of American culture 's most lively figures." James Wierzbicki, associate professor of musicology, University of Michigan "Each short chapter in these reminiscences of [Newman's] colourful career centres on a personality and Newman's relationship with them... Newman provides us with the kind of intimate detail and racy anecdote you do not usually get... The thing that amazes when reading this book is: when did Newman ever find time to sleep?"--Classical Music, 12 April 2008

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press; 1 edition (December 11, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0252031644
• ISBN-13: 978-0252031649
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,713,005 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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