Reviews (21)

Lying to Vickie, Cheating Death, Stealing Life!
Now that I got your attention... I just finished the book minutes ago, and it was very inspirational to say the least.
Excellent Tribute
This is the greatest book I've ever read. I finally get the truth of one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. I got this for my birthday and I was so excited that I finished in it about 11 hours over a two day span. I'm glad I read this and I will never forget Eddie Guerrero.
Beautiful
I love the Cheat Death Stealing Life: The Eddie Guerrero story book because it was a very emotional, beautifully writing page turner. I knew he had a lot of problems with drugs and alcohol but I never knew it stemmed that far. This was a five star book, but if I had my way I would double that. That's how great it was. I really hope for the people who haven't purchased this book yet, do so now because you are missing out on a great person. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    6. General    7. Sports - General    8. Substance use    9. United States    10. Wrestlers    11. Wrestling    12. Biography & Autobiography / Entertainment & Performing Arts   

Reviews (15)

Made me appreciate Willie Nelson even more!
I've always enjoyed the music of Willie Nelson . . . his latest
Down To Earth
A very witty and humorous look at life and how to live a rewarding existence.For golfer's a lesson exceeding anything the pro's could offer you.For RV'rs - get On The Road Again.

There's More to Willie Than Marijuana
Willie has not always been on top, and his views on life are uplifting. The book is part a mini-bio of Willie's convoluted life, part inspiration to tell how to get back on your feet when you fall or keep moving forward when it seems there are obstacles in your way, and some good ideas for the survival of the planet, all interspersed with Willie's down-to-earth humor.It's a little book, but there's a lot to think about in it.You have to respect the guy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1933-    2. Composers & Musicians - Country & Folk    3. Conduct of life    4. Country And Western Music    5. General    6. Genres & Styles - Country & Bluegrass - General    7. Nelson, Willie,    8. Personal Growth - Happiness    9. Personal Guidance    10. Psychology    11. Self-Help    12. Biography & Autobiography / Composers & Musicians    13. Biography: film, television & music    14. Mind, body, spirit: disciplines & techniques    15. Rock & pop   

Reviews (2)

A sublime product
It's not just a book of fine Crumb illustrations. Oh no. It's a nice book for the shelf for people like me who didn't want to have to get these in their past life as trading cards. It's a little bit of info on all the musicians Crumb has drawn. And, it's a fine CD that one can listen to, tapping one's foot as you look at the fine Crumb illustrations.
Great Book,Great Price
I'm just delighted with this book.It's nice to have all of Crumb's colorful jazz, blues and country portraits together for the first time in one place.Each portrait is accompanied by a short biography of the artist and usually a few tidbits about their records.It also comes with a 21 track CD featuring Jimmie Noone, King Oliver, The Memphis Jug Band, Dock Boggs, The East Texas Serenaders, Skip James and others.Filmmaker and musician Terry Zwigoff also contributes an introduction detailing how Crumb's involvement in the portraits (originally released as trading cards) came about.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Blues musicians    4. Country musicians    5. General    6. Genres & Styles - Blues    7. Genres & Styles - Country & Bluegrass - General    8. Genres & Styles - Jazz    9. Jazz musicians    10. Music    11. Music/Songbooks    12. Biography: film, television & music    13. Blues    14. Country & western    15. Jazz    16. Music / Blues    17. Music; comics   

Reviews (5)

BIG TOME. BIG TIME MOVIE STAR. BIG TIME DECORATOR
Part-time P'town resident William Mann's Wisecracker was the first (and definitive) bio of Haines, on of the silent era's greatest stars and one of its first certified heartthrobs. But Haines was gay---something eh refused to hide---and when MGM honcho fired him. Haines began a new (and much more lucrative career) as a self-taught decorator. His work graced the homes of Joan Crawford, Marion Davies, Constance Bennett, and mega-watt socialites Alfred and Betsy Bloomingdale an d Walter and Lee Annenberg; even in his death in 1973, Haines` legacy followed, with his associate Ted Graber in charge of the décor of Ronald and Nancy Reagan`s private riddance at the white House. This coffee table book is the price of a good steak dinner (with wine), but the hungry of film fans and stylists and interior designers will long be satisfied by the intellectual text and more than 300 vintage and rare drawing, illustrations and photos.

Crossover: Movie Stars to Decorating
This book is appealing to both those who are fascinated by the movie star world from the glamorous 1920's thru the 1960's.Haines world was a fascinating one with close friends from the movie world such as Joan Crawford. His decorating style was classic and timeless.The book is filled with wonderful illustrations of his work throughout the many years of his long career.

Elite Hollywood /unique photos
Peter Schifando and Jean H. Mathison's CLASS ACT: WILLIAM HAINES, LEGENDARY HOLLYWOOD DECORATOR (0972766146, $95.00) tells of talent contest winner William Haines, who came to Hollywood in 1922 and appeared in over twenty films as a leading many to many famous stars, then recreated himself as a decorator using many of his costars as clients. Haines developed a unique style over a 40-year period, designing elite homes and producing notable designs for business leaders, socialites and arts patrons. Pack in photos in both black and white and color - many of which haven't seen print previously - with a survey by members of the Haines firm and you have an authoritative, in-depth expose which will prove an outstanding pick for any collection of Hollywood history or interior design arts. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Artists, Architects, Photographers    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Interior Design - General    5. Biography: general    6. Home furnishing & decoration    7. USA   

Reviews (203)

Well written and Provacative
I read this book in 2 days - I was taken and fascinated with Jenna's story, I couldnot put the book down. It was well worth every penny spent. I highly reccommend this book to ANYONE - whether you are intersted in the porn industry or a fan of Jenna, this book is a must read. Very, very well written - I gained so much respect for her after reading this book. She is intelligent and a true self made woman.

Addictive
This book is dangerously well-written.Once you start reading it, you won't be able to stop.It is the true story of one of modern america's greatest celebrity icons, a woman who made her own fortune in the porn business instead of being used up and spit out by it like so many other women are.Neil Straus co-wrote this book with Jenna, and he is the author of the intensely awesome story THE GAME, which is another one you won't be able to put down.Read either or both of these books with the knowledge that they are like smoking crack -- COMPLETELY OVERPOWERING AND ADDICTIVE.

Quite impressed
I didn't have high expectations for this book. I expected it to be another cliche about an abusive childhood that caused her to become a porn star.
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Subjects:  1. Actors    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Entertainment & Performing Arts - Actors & Actresses    7. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    8. Erotic films    9. Jameson, Jenna    10. Motion picture actors and actr    11. Motion picture actors and actresses    12. Pornography    13. Sexuality    14. United States    15. Biography & Autobiography / Entertainment & Performing Arts    16. Sex & sexuality   

Reviews (10)

Very Happy Hours
This is hands-down the BEST "mommy" book I have read.Forget all the parenting magazines, forget all the girlfriend guides...anyone who has become a mommy and wonders where the wild girl she was before went MUST read this book.I listened to the audiobook and it had me in stitches.Thank you Brett Paesel for your brutal, raw, and much needed honesty!

Best Book
This is the funniest, best book I've ever read about the thoughts and emotions of new mothers.Brett Paesel has had the courage to publish thoughts that I don't even admit I have.Even my husband, who endured my reading it aloud to him, enjoyed it and totally relates to the scenarios Brett paints about her own husband.
A very funny, refreshingly honest, well-written tale of new motherhood.
Any adult can relate to the core story: How does one resolve a decision your heart knows is right, but which threatens the rest of your being? Here, Brett knows having a husband, child, and family was the right choice, but she'd like a second opinion. What follows is a story of a woman searching for the answer she knows it out there. The answer that is, "yes. Yes. Yes!"
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Subjects:  1. Anecdotes    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. California    7. Character actors and actresses    8. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    9. Individual Actors And Actresses    10. Los Angeles    11. Motherhood    12. Mothers    13. Parent And Child    14. Personal Memoirs    15. Women's Studies - General    16. Biography & Autobiography / Entertainment & Performing Arts   

Reviews (16)

GREAT BOOK
I read it in like three days, would have read it cover to cover in a day but work, wife and three kids prevented that from happeneing.
Me and a Guy Named Elvis: My Lifelong friendship with Elvis Presley
I think this is one of the best books I have read.I am an Elvis fan through and through.It told about a young boy meeting a very famous person and how their friendship grew.It made me laugh and it made me cry.It let you see inside Elvis the person, not the superstar or the legend.It wasn't degrading or accusing. It was very thoughtfully written. You got to see another side of Elvis through this friend's eyes.

Jerry Loved Elvis Like A Brother - End of Story
It's a fairly good book about Elvis and a lot of good stuff written about Jerry.I did not think there was enough in-depth information about Elvis in the book - especially about all the women that Elvis was involved with.I'm sure Jerry knew them all, but said nothing much about them because of Priscilla and wanting to keep his friendship with her and Lisa Marie.Jerry must have known Gladys and Vernon and could have said more about all of that part of Elvis's life too, but didn't.This is a pretty good book and it is well-written, but I was looking for a little more insight into Elvis's life.I know that Jerry knows a ton of stuff that he will never reveal, but that is his choice.I am a die-hard Elvis fan and read all the books I can about Elvis.This book is more about Jerry and less about Elvis. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1935-1977    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    7. Individual Actors And Actresses    8. Personal Memoirs    9. Popular Music    10. Presley, Elvis,    11. Rock musicians    12. Schilling, Jerry    13. United States    14. Biography & Autobiography / Entertainment & Performing Arts    15. Rock & pop   

Reviews (141)

WHATISIT ?/
uhmm well ive seen the reveiws listed but one question still racks my brain... whay type of book is this ? is it a book that consists of multiple tales of black people or it it one book that comcludes a story of "A Black Boy" ???
Required reading
This is one of the most moving books that I have read. Its message stays with you and motivates you to considered thought about it long after you have finished it.

Lessons In Sociology
Richard Wright, born in 1908, tells his life's story while living in Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee and later, the more accepting city of Chicago, in this interesting and eloquently written autobiography.
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Subjects:  1. 1908-1960    2. 20th century    3. African Americans    4. American - General    5. Authors, American    6. Biography    7. Biography & Autobiography    8. Biography / Autobiography    9. Biography/Autobiography    10. Childhood and youth    11. Historical - U.S.    12. Homes and haunts    13. Literary    14. Mississippi    15. People of Color    16. Social life and customs    17. Wright, Richard,    18. Wright, Richard, 1908-1960    19. Biography & Autobiography / People of Color    20. Modern fiction    21. Wright, Richard    22. Reading Group Guide   

Reviews (22)

ABSOLUTELY ASTONISHING.
The Wu-Tang Manual is akin to all the EU (Expanded Universe) novels, comic books, and publications related to the Star Wars franchise for a hip hop fan of one of the culture's biggest phenomenons ever. The Manual is chock full of EVERYTHING an intellectual listener and avid fan of the Wu would want to know: biographies, lyrics explanations, philosophy, music equipment, and spirituality.
Must Have
If you're a Wu-Tang fan, you must buy this book. I think they could go deeper in few subjects, but it is good enough for the first book.

Wu-Tang Wu-Tang!
"The book you hold in your hands is not a complete biography or a total philosophy of the Wu-Tang Clan." This sums the book up in terms of what the book is about. The Wu-Tang Manual outlines the Rap group's history along with other aspects of their life ranging from religion to even the game of chess. The book is split into 4 parts: Their history (Book One), Philosophy (Book Two), Lyrics (Book Three), & Music (Book Four). They all go into deep detail on how they incorporate these types of things into their life along with explanations of the music business. I wouldn't call this a story as there's no conflict, climax, resolution, etc. Rather though this is more of a documentary written on a book. Overall, I'd recommend this book to fans of the Wu-Tang Clan or even anyone who has little interest in Hip-Hop. Although I have to warn you that there is some use of profanity in this book, but not too much to take away from the experience of reading the book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Genres & Styles - Rap & Hip Hop    3. History and criticism    4. Music    5. Music/Songbooks    6. Rap (Music)    7. Rap musicians    8. United States    9. Wu-Tang Clan (Musical group)    10. Biography: film, television & music    11. Music / General    12. Rap & hip-hop   

Reviews (1)

"It woke me nights, the bump of his chest upon the floor."

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Subjects:  1. Alcohol Abuse    2. Alcoholics    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Doberman pinscher    8. Dog owners    9. General    10. Literary    11. Personal Memoirs    12. Pets    13. Scotland    14. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Editorial Review

In the States, Nick Hornby is best know as the author of Read more

Reviews (119)

A great look at sports and life
Let me begin by noting that I find soccer/football incredibly dull.Dull, dull, dull!But Hornby's book is a great read.
Amusing, but mostly average
I'll admit, its probably just me.Maybe its just that I dont understand British culture all that much, nor the culture of football or the mind of the obsessive sports fan...but aside from a few amusing passages (between LONG spells of really dull ones) I really wasnt all that impressed with this book.It had a few moments that made me chuckle, but it certainly wasnt as drop-dead funny to me as all the reviews led me to believe.It was long, drawn-out, and filled with names and places of people I've neither heard of nor cared about.But again, its just a clash of culture; this would be like someone from England reading a book about the Dawg Pound in Cleveland or the fans with terrible towels in Pittsburgh.Basically, if you're not a sports fan or if you dont know anything about soccer or its culture, I'd pass on this one.While it did give some interesting insight into the mind of the obsessive sports fan and a glimpse of a true English soccer fan I just wasnt entertained.Then again, I'm probably not the type of person to whom this book was intended...I really should have read High Fidelity!

The Mind of The Hardcore Sports Fan
Hornby takes the reader into the mind and obsessions of the hardcore sports fan in "Fever Pitch", a tale of the author's obsessive relationship with Arsenal, one of London's main football (soccer) clubs.
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Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. Authors, English    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. English authors    8. Great Britain    9. Historical - British    10. Hornby, Nick    11. Literary    12. Soccer    13. Sports - General    14. Family & Relationships / Parenting   

Subjects:  1. 20th century    2. American Letters And Correspondence    3. Authors, American    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Correspondence    6. Editors, Journalists, Publishers    7. Journalism    8. Journalists    9. Letters    10. Literary    11. Literary Collections    12. Literature: Classics    13. United States    14. United States - 20th Century    15. Women - 20th Century History    16. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Entertainment & Performing Arts - Actors & Actresses    5. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    6. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Reviews (58)

ROCK AND ROLL ! THATS ALL IT NEEDS TO BE, PEOPLE! ROCK AND ROLL!

Readable, informative, overdone.
Led Zeppelin is either the most over-rated band in rock history, or the least respected great band of all time. You decide. In this book, Led Zep,the ultimate arena band of the '70's is subjected to a prose review that alternates between a sycophant's fawning praise and a reporter's damning crtique. Somewhere in the middle of those extremes a picture emerges of four blues-loving musicians with clashing egos, a lot of talent, and a wild streak that found expression on a canvas of orgies, drinking marathons and obliterated hotel suites. In among details of the bandmembers insatiable lusts for drugs, booze, fast cars and faster women, we are reminded this quartet from the English midlands also gave us Stairway To Heaven,Black Dog, In The Light, No Quarter, and a score of other all-time great recordings. Hammer of the Gods is a fun,no-holds barred read that once in a while comes off as having needed one more round of pre-publication facts-checking, but it's still a spirited road trip with a band sure to be among the titans of rock and roll.

Oh dear.
It's from this book that Led Zeppelin's reputation as rock n roll "bad boys" is largely responsible. If you are a teenage boy or have the mentality of a teenage boy, it no doubt illicits great admiration and hero worship and you will enjoy this book. But to anyone else the individual band members simply come across as sh*ts. Even so, I still think they are worthy of a better book than this. Wild on the road behaviour-which is the main contents of this book largely- is really very common place for a band from that era. I just simply can't understand why it's represented as being so unique. When infact, what is really great about Led Zeppelin is their fantastic music. The writer really fails to capture this or what makes the band as individuals tick. Although he can deliver some salcious tales it becomes pretty obvious he knows very little about them. The photographs are pretty uninspired too. I think the real Led Zeppelin story is full of the heights of success and the lows of human tragedy, and various trials and tribulations inbetween which constitutes their real growth as individuals and musicians. But I have quite honestly never seen any writer particularly, let alone this one- tackle this skillfully. Anything very meaningful tends to be brushed over in favour of petty gossip-mainly to impress a certain type of male fan.I still think the definative book about them which is more truly representive of their lives and music has yet to be written. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Composers & Musicians - Rock    3. Fiction    4. Genres & Styles - Rock    5. Fiction / General   

Reviews (5)

Execution is the key
The idea that Gostick and Elton proposed is not new. In fact, it has been proposed in 1940s by Abraham Maslow in his hierarchy of needs. Maslow's argued that human behaviors are motivated by a series of needs, and are hierarchical in nature. If I understand correctly what Maslow had proposed and applied the same theory to this book, in fact what we are seeing is the execution of satisfying the needs on love/belonging and esteem. This is why an employee will prefer public recognition anytime compare to bonuses, since money, to a large degree, is use to satify the human needs for food and shelter only, which is at the lowest hierarchy of all human needs. The book carries no new theory of human behavior, but a new way in reminding managers that employees are human, and do satisfy human needs in the hierarchical form.

Simple Ways to Energize Your Employees
I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Gostick and hearing him speak at the annual International Association of Business Communicators conference in June in Washington, D.C.
A recipe book for providing recognition
This is an easy-to-read book providing useful tips on how to develop and implement a recognition reward program in your organization.Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography/Autobiography    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Employee motivation    5. Employee retention    6. Incentive awards    7. Leadership    8. Literary    9. Management - General    10. United States    11. Business & Economics / Motivational    12. Business & Management   

Reviews (17)

Dream Lovers:The Magnificent Shattered Lives of Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee
Penetrating.Worth looking at, taking the information at face value.Too bad the information is a little TOO personal and private and probably would not have been wished to have been shared, perhaps by his father, at least.Nobody is proud of their most embarassing moments.

A courageous look at two entertainment idols by their son
"Dream Lovers" is a daring book. Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee's son Dodd Darin sorts through his parents' shattered lives and marriage. His express purpose is to write definitively rather than risk seeing their story further distorted by others. He also seeks therapy: making sense of himself by exploring his parents' lives.
Heartfelt accounting of his parents lives
I am grateful that Dodd wrote this book.His Father has not been given the credit due him.I hope others reading this book will have a greater appreciation of his contributions to American Music history.It is easy to forget that Sandra Dee was the top movie star at the time since she withdrew from the spotlight.The book is very well written. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Darin, Bobby    6. Dee, Sandra    7. Entertainment & Performing Arts - General    8. General    9. Individual Movie Actors And Actresses    10. Motion picture actors and actresses    11. Singers    12. United States    13. Biography & Autobiography / General    14. Biography: film, television & music    15. Darin, Dodd    16. Films, cinema    17. USA   

Editorial Review

The seemingly impossible Zen task--writing a book about nothing--has a loophole: people have been chatting, learning, and even fighting about nothing for millennia. Read more

Reviews (102)

The universe begins and ends with zero
Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea is a tour of the historical advances that were made in mathematics and science due to the use or misuse of the dual ocncepts of Zero and Infinity. The author tours throught the ages as he traces the path that humankind has taken with this concept and its implications.
Eye-opening and fun
This was a great book.I took it on a trip, and it provided sufficient reading for a couple plane trips and a couple boring nights.Though written by a mathematician, it's appropriate for nearly any audience, and I've had no trouble passing it off to friends who aren't engineers.
Zero and I
Zero is the most interesting book I have ever read. It ponders the existence of infinitely small amounts of everything as well as infinitely large amounts. Everything can be divided into an infinite amount of pieces, but although the size of the pieces decreases as the amount of pieces increases, the sizes will always approach zero, but never hit it. How can zero exist as a number then? Zero began as a place holder in Babylonian and Mayan societies. It was accepted as a place holder in some societies, while rejected in others. Zero does not conform to the laws of mathematics, and therefore became a difficult concept to accept. Since it did not fit in with laws, it could destroy all logic. Charles Seife wrote this "biography" as a result of his love of math and science, and his desire to inflict logic upon others. While this book provides for interesting intellectual insight into the history of math and the importance of logic, it also offers the reader a feeling of relative size, both massive and miniscule, in comparison to the rest of the world. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Arithmetic    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. History & Philosophy    5. Literary    6. Mathematics    7. Philosophy & Social Aspects    8. Mathematics / History    9. Phenomenology & Existentialism   

Features

• Box set

Reviews (2)

As of May 2006, this hasn't been published yet
In reply to the above poster: this book hasn't been published yet, and may not come out for a while (the authors were delayed by work on the "Reader's Companion to the Lord of the Rings", which has been published).
where is it?
I ORDERED THIS BOX SET IN OCTOBER OF 2005 AND HAVE WRITTEN AMAZON ABOUT NOT RECEIVING IT TWICE. IT IS NOW MAY 2006 AND IT STILL HASN'T SHIPPED. THEY SAY IT WILL STILL BE SHIPPED AT SOME POINT. HAS ANYONE RECEIVED THIS ITEM FROM AMAZON IN THE LAST YEAR? PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW HERE IF YOU HAVE HELPFUL INFORMATION. I WILL REVIEW THE ITEM WHEN AMAZON DELIVERS IT. THANKS... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography/Autobiography    3. Literary    4. Literature - Classics / Criticism    5. Reference    6. Science Fiction & Fantasy    7. Biography & Autobiography / Literary   

Reviews (21)

A touching biography of a celebrated comic
This biography of Groucho is as touching as is through.The reader is wisked away into the comic world of one of America's greatest performers.The book is filled with humorous stories from Groucho's life.The author has woven in some of Groucho's most personal views and we hear his outspoken and sometimes controversial views on a wide array of subjects.Groucho was truly the first "Sssssshock jock!"The book ends on a decidedly melancholy note when in the twilight of his years Groucho meets a young man by the name of Anthony.The two share a touching moment in which the reader watches as the torch is passed from one generation of comics to another.(Anthony later goes on to become a renowed professor and comedic talk show host.)A great read and an exciting page turner for the serious reader...NOT YOU!

Very funny fast read
Even though, as others have mentioned, this isn't really a true autobiography per se, it's a very involving, fast, funny read.There are a lot of personal reflections, anecdotes, and the wonderful chapters about the Marx family when their boys were young and then their early vaudeville days, but there are a lot of seemingly important things left out; if you want to get a story told in a more linear format and with more concise personal information, you'd be better-served reading a more serious scholarly biography (though you probably won't laugh as much with that kind of book).The autobiographical accounts that do appear are priceless though; to most people, the people, events, and culture of New York in the late 19th century and early 20th century and on the vaudeville circuit in America is a foreign long-vanished world, a world where a dollar was still a lot of money and there were still neighborhood tailors and pants-p