Elia Kazan: A Life (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

One of the most important theater autobiographies of the 1980s, Elia Kazan: A Life, has finally been released in paperback. The extra decade adds to the book's poignancy and its value: a history of backstage personalities and politics in the 20th century is included in this release. Elia Kazan was a founding member of the Group Theatre, was among those shouting "Strike! Strike!" on the legendary opening night of Waiting for Lefty, directed the two greatest Broadway dramas ever--Death of the Salesman and A Streetcar Named Desire--and earned countless other credits, but he also played a flawed role in the greatest real-life moral drama of his era: the McCarthy Communist witch hunts of the 1950s. Kazan offered names to the House Un-American Activities Committee. He cut his conscience to fit the fashion of the time, and his conscience continues to bleed. Though this book is framed, like so much of Kazan's best stage and film work, as a lifelong search for man's proper relationship to society, the book serves as a massive explanation and apologia for Kazan's one monumental lapse. He lived his life intensely, a life in which a single word could transform you, where a misdeed might be "never forgotten or forgiven." Such were the times, and Kazan captures them with appropriate drama.

From Publishers Weekly

According to PW , "flashes of sudden insight or eloquence keep the reader turning the pages of Kazan's garrulous autobiography." His expansive memoir makes no apologies for his decision to name names during the McCarthy era, and includes cutting portraits of Lillian Hellman and Arthur Miller, as well as glimpses of Odets, Cagney, Bankhead, Monroe, Brando, Goldwyn and dozens more. Photos.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 860 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (August 21, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306808048
• ISBN-13: 978-0306808043
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #330,754 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Elia Kazan--What A Life!!!, January 12, 2003

By	Joe Cuddihy (Barnes, London, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

Before I read this book, I knew a little about Elia Kazan. For example, I knew that he had been a successful Hollywood film director in the late forties and early fifties. Indeed, I had seen some of his films: East Of Eden, in particular, came to mind. I had also read somewhere that he had also been a prominent and successful theatre director on Broadway; that he had given the likes of Marlon Brando and James Dean their first starts; that he was one of the influential people behind the advent of the Method Acting style; and finally, that he had been a `friendly' witness-that means naming names, of course--at the HUAC hearings in the early fifties: what a snake, I thought!

But hey, I've now read the book, and I know the real story and the real Elia Kazan. The book is an 800+ page epic. And an epic in every sense of the word. Kazan's autobiography is a long, brooding, and fascinating recall of his eventful life. He has, as he acknowledges in the later pages, lived a variegated and full life, he has no regrets about any of it, and he realises that he has been fortunate to have led such an interesting life. And `interesting' it certainly is. The book, though, is no glamorous odyssey of a life lived in Broadway and Hollywood; neither is it a chronicle of the great and the good of America's creative talent. Yes, there are valuable insights and vivid portraits of people like Harold Clurman, Lee Strasberg, Clifford Odets, Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, Marilyn Monroe, Marlon Brando and John Steinbeck. You will also meet some of Hollywood's movie moguls, particularly Darryl Zanuck at Fox. Yes, those stories are told, but all in the context of the main enterprise: the laying down for posterity of the intimate detail of the life of one of America's most celebrated creative talents of the middle of the twentieth century. Kazan unashamedly reveals his inner thoughts, his recollections, reasons, reminiscences and experiences-whether they show him in a good, bad or indifferent light. The book is brutally frank and you can only admire the author's unstinting honesty-possibly a cathartic aspect to the work aided Kazan along the way.

Remarkable for a book of this size, there is never a hint of unevenness or flagging. It's an enthralling, engrossing book from start to finish. Much of life's rich tapestry, to use the euphemistic cliché, is explored here. Kazan is clearly an astute and perceptive observer of life. Life essentially means human beings, of course, and this brings us to the essence of the book, human nature, particularly the behaviour between man and woman. Manipulation, expediency, lust, deceit, hurt, love, the passion and the platonic: it's all here in a very stark black and white. Yet still the book continually sparkles, even when the reader faces some genuinely sad and pitiful moments, particularly relating to Kazan's fiercely supportive and loyal first wife, Molly. There is no cherry-picking of `the good times' in this book: highs and lows, triumph and disaster, they all co-exist side by side. Kazan doesn't shirk from revealing his overwhelming determination at the time to have his cake and eat it ie. a loving wife at home and a passionate mistress outside.

Apart from the inherent problems that male/female relationships spawn, if you forgive the pun, Kazan also talks extensively about his rather frustrating and unfulfilling time at college; his less-than-perfect relationship with his father; reflections on the life of a Greek immigrant family trying to make their way in the `new world', in this case, New York; more reflections on Greeks, this time those living in another `foreign' country, Turkey (where Kazan's parents had emigrated from), and the altered behaviour necessary to survive amongst `the enemy'; and, of course, he describes the whys and wherefores of his `friendly' HUAC testimony, and the subsequent vitriol directed against him as a consequence from many quarters, including so-called `friends'; we learn of the unsavoury modus operandi of both the Communist Party in America and the HUAC authorities in the late forties and early fifties; and Kazan's single-mindedness and determination as, post-HUAC, he persevered and produced his best work as a film director; also, an interesting account of how Kazan's second wife, Barbara, and her confused but brave struggle against cancer; and so on.

The book is a courageous and brutally honest self-expose, if you like, of a man who has remained largely silent over the years. He doesn't gloss over his extra-marital activities, and the hard-heartedness and guile required on his part to maintain his passionate love for his mistress and, at the same time, his more platonic love for his first wife. This reflects the `insoluble' (Kazan's word) nature of man's relationship with the opposite sex.

The book is beautifully-written-quality throughout--and the prose intimate, inviting and lucid. The honesty and intimacy of Kazan's words, as he describes his thoughts, feelings and rationale at the time, ensure that you live his life with him, and by the end of the book, you also feel you've been through one hell of a life.

Over a year ago, I read an excellent book called A Child Of The Century, Ben Hecht's autobiography, published in the fifties. I never thought I'd read another autobiography to match or surpass it. I have, and it's called A Life, by Elia Kazan. Waste no more time and buy this book. Alternatively borrow it or steal it, but whatever you do, read it!!

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An epic and personal journey of a theatrical giant, July 26, 2000

By	J. Remington "John Remington" (Adams, Oregon USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is perhaps one of the greatest autobiographies of the modern Theatre. Kazan pulls no punches in depicting his epic journey from Greek immigrant to one of the greatest theatre and film directors of all time. His life parallels the crucial artistic movements and conflicts of the Twentieth Century: The Group Theatre, The HUAC hearings, The height and fall of the Hollywood Studio System, the founding of the Actor's Studio, and the development of the American Theatre. Kazan, along with Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams played a crucial role in creating a strong and vibrant American Theatre. All throughout this amazing journey are insights into the craft of acting as well as the trials and tribulations of a man struggling for personal identity. This book demands to be on the shelf of any student, practitioner or fan of the Theatre. Five out of five stars

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read for those aspiring in the arts, August 31, 2004

By	freestylefx (New York City) - See all my reviews

I knew absolutely nothing about Elia Kazan prior to reading this book. He does a superb job of reconstructing his life from his early years learning theatre stage craft at Yale all the way through to his final years (he was 78 when he completed the book). He is seemingly forthwright about many of the tough decisions he faced throughout his career from the House of UnAmerican Activities revealing of many of his old 'comrades', which he does a decent job of articulating why he did whatthat, even if on the surface it seems lecherous.

What I was left with was the impression of a person who lived life to the absolute fullest, a person with conflicting and often questionable morals (particularly with women), and the thick skin you need to have to survive and thrive in the arts. A book like this far surpasses any 'how to' book for aspiring artists and is proof that there are no hard and fast rules other than perseverance, conviction, hard work, and individuality (finding your own voice).