N - denotes New U - denotes Used [All prices include shipping, handling & postage.] 170 YEARS OF SHOW BUSINESS by Kate Mostel & Madeline Gilford (Random House) A personal glimpse into the lives of legendary Broadway comedians Zero Mostel and Jack Gilford by the two women who knew them best. A rare book which perfectly captures the see-sawing spirit of Broadway in the 40s and 50s, generously illustrated. First edition LET THE CHIPS FALL.... by Rudy Vallee (Stackpole Books) A great romp of a biography covering Rudy Vallee's fifty years in the public eye from the 'Vagabond Lover of the '20s' to his unpredictable emergence in the 50s as one of Hollywood's most outstanding character comedians. A first edition with numerous illustrations. DEAR BORIS: THE LIFE OF WILLIAM HENRY PRATT aka BORIS KARLOFF by Cinthia Lindsey (Limelight Edition) "There are show biz nuggets here," wrote Publisher's Weekly "which should reward and delight all Karloff fans and movie nostalgia buffs". The transformation of a typical English gentleman into screenland's most horrific monster written by a woman who was his closest confidante for over 35 years. EVERY OTHER INCH A LADY by Beatrice Lillie (Doubleday & Co.) The fascinating and hilarious story of Bea Lillie, the daffy Canadian performer who, apart from being a top-flight revue-comedienne in Britain and America, eventually became, as Lady Peel, a member of the English aristocracy. A backstage memoir of the artist told in the dotty and eccentric style that only Bea Lillie could tell it. A first edition generously illustrated. EDWIN BOOTH: PRINCE OF PLAYERS by Eleanor Ruggles (W.W. Norton & Co.) The definitive biography of the Mad Booths of Maryland and how their madness spawned the most heinous political assassin, John Wilkes Booth, and the greatest American actor of the 19th century, Edwin Booth. A rare volume now a collector's item. First edition. OONA O'NEILL: LIVING IN THE SHADOWS A BIOGRAPHY OF OONA O'NEILL CHAPLIN by Jane Scovell (Warner Books, Inc.) A revelatory biography - the first - of the woman who, at the age of eighteen, became the fourth and last Mrs. Charlie Chaplin; a marriage which produced eight children and lasted until Charlie's death in 1977. The book, generously illustrated, casts a bright light on a relationship which hitherto had been drowned in shadows and is essential reading for all Chaplin enthusiasts. LOLA MONTEZ: A LIFE by Bruce Seymour Yale University Press The story of the second most fascinating woman of the Victorian era, after the Queen herself; a woman who toppled governments and created gossip and tumult wherever she went. But mainly a woman who entirely reinvented herself transforming a humble Irish schoolgirl into an internationally- renowned dancer, actress and aristocrat that scandalized all of Europe. A DANCE ON THE HIGH WIRE by Jed Harris (Crown Publishers, NY) A memoir of one of the most successful and despised directors on the American stage. In the 20s and 30s, Jed Harris was the undisputed master of the American stage with hits such as BROADWAY, OUR TOWN, THE FRONT PAGE and THE ROYAL FAMILY. Detested as much as he was revered, Olivier based his characterization of Richard III on Harris whom he thought to be the most evil man he had ever met. Here is his story in his own words. An illustrated first edition. THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF JOSEPH JEFFERSON by Joseph Jefferson The Century Co. N.Y. (1890) Joseph Jefferson was a star long before the concept of 'stardom' existed in America. In his record-breaking production of 'Rip Van Winkle', he toured throughout the country for decades enchanting audiences wherever he went. His autobiography, written at the end of the 19th century, is one of the most vivid descriptions of life in the early American theatre extant. An exceptional collector's item, the work is generously illustrated with photos of the earliest and most charismatic actors of the American stage, and every page is filled with the charm of Jefferson's warm personality. W.C. FIELDS BY HIMSELF by W. C. Fields and Ronald J. Fields (Prentice Hall) An amalgam of letters, scripts, reminiscences and photos by one of the biggest grouches and greatest comedians that ever trod the boards or mugged in front of a motion picture camera. Material discovered after Field's death and lovingly assembled into 510 pages of autobiography by his diligent grandson, Ronald J. Fields. A magnificent recreation of the enigma that was W. C. Fields. MUCH ADO ABOUT ME by FRED ALLEN (Little Brown & Co.) One of the funniest reminiscences ever written by a comedian. Fred Allen, vaudeville-headliner, Broadway idol, radio-comedy star and film-actor delves into the topsy-turvy world of theatre, film and radio to reconstruct a life of accident, disaster, toil and triumph. "A rare and wonderful book by a rare and wonderful man' said Edward O'Connor. A First edition sprinkled with eight pages of illustrations. PEOPLE IN A DAIRY: A Memoir by S.N. Behrman Little Brown & Co. A touching memoir of one of America’s most successful playwrights with engrossing souvenirs of artists such as the Gershwins, Katherine Cornell, The Lunts, Laurence Olivier, Greta Garbo, Sigfried Sassoon and W. Somerset Maugham. A fascinating glimpse behind the early American cinema and the founding of The Playwrights Company. MY LIFE IS IN YOUR HANDS by Eddie Cantor As Told to David Freeman Harper & Bothers (1929) A disarming early autobiography of one of America’s most beloved comedians with a wittily ironic introduction by Will Rogers. This book catches Cantor at the height of his celebrity in the late 20s and is full of mesmerizing period photos. A very hard-to-come by volume in good condition with its original caricature jacket-design in tact. RICHARD BURTON: A LIFE by Melvyn Bragg Little Brown & Co. A fully comprehensive biography of one of England’s greatest and most controversial actors. A man who, at the top of his profession on the British stage, suddenly segued into an international film star, the husband of Elizabeth Taylor (twice) and one of the most enigmatic figures in the entertainment world. Written by Meelvyn Bragg, a fellow Welshman and the celebrated editor of London’s South Bank Show. Fully illustrated. LEAVING A DOLL’S HOUSE: A MEMOIR by Claire Bloom Little Brown & Co. “A courageously vivid and intimate account of a distinguished and troubled career,” said Sir John Gielgud when this memoir first appeared. Life under the shadow of the great American novelist Philip Roth and the psychological ravages that ensued. “....She records in a terse tell-all style of such candor that she even makes - inadvertently - her last husband, Philip Roth into something he himself has failed to do - not for want of trying - interesting at last,” wrote Gore Vidal. - Fully illustrated. U - $18.00
MY NAME ESCAPES ME: THE DIARY OF A RETIRING ACTOR by Alec Guinness Introduction by John le Carre`/Viking Press Alec Guinness captured ‘to the life’ by Guinness himself in his eighties, with all his faculties in tact and the Guinness wit as dry and wicked as ever. A fascinating glimpse into the mind and talent that produced some of the British cinema’s most durable achievements, filled with the kind of sans souci that characterized the man all his life. BEATLES: A CELLARFUL OF NOISE By Brian Epstein A Pyramid Book An early illustrated paperback from 1964 when the Beatle explosion first hit the United Kingdom, written by the man who virtually created the Beatles phenomenon. LENNON By Ray Coleman McGraw HILL A first edition from 1985 of the definitive Lennon Biography with a wide variety of rare photographs. In Mint condition. THE BEATLES AUTHORIZED BIOGRAPHY By Hunter Davies McGraw Hill The best-written and most treasured biography of the Fabulous Four written by the legendary journalist Hunter Davies; a first edition from 1968. In very good condition. We accept payments via Paypal. Click the "Add to Cart" buttons to add an item to your shopping cart or click Contact Us to inquire about the availability of an item. |
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