Once again I feel obligated to provide a number of brief book reviews for a box that arrived on my front door, from Bear Manor Media publishing. I am posting stars to rate my opinion of the books, from one star to four stars, but do not let my opinion sway your purchase decisions. If the subject matter is what suits you, consider one of these as beach reading material. I know I took all four with me to the beach last week to read.
By Denny Reese
While several books have been written on The Andy Griffith Show where the Gomer character premiered, this is the first tome devoted to the spin-off series, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Here is an insider’s look at the sixties’ TV show from creation to analysis. Marine history is provided and the author’s viewpoint of Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.ranked high with the service. The book also includes in-depth reviews of select episodes. There is career-spanning bios of the show’s main stars, recurring characters are featured, and there is a bounty of hand-picked photos throughout.
Included is an exclusive interview with one of the last remaining stars of Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C., Ronnie Schell. The Mayberry franchise is extremely popular to this day. Now here’s a humorous and informative record of the years a hayseed recruit went toe-to-toe daily with his sergeant—invariably saving the day—and enriching the lives of everyone around him through side-splitting, sometimes heart-tugging life lessons.
By William Harper
Never has a “star” blazed more brightly across the Hollywood silver screen world as did Deanna Durbin. Without any stage or movie experience she flashed on the screen with a box office smash in 1936, at the age of fourteen, and continued with financial successes year after year – movie after movie to become Hollywood’s highest paid actress. In 1949, at the age of 28, she walked away from all of it too take up housekeeping and raising children with her third husband in the environs of Paris, France - stepping out of the spotlight into anonymity. However, when she died April 17, 2013 obituaries from around the world loudly proclaimed – Deanna Durbin was not forgotten.
In the pages of this book you will find biographical information as well as a look at every movie she starred and co-starred.
I have a policy not to review a book if it is bad, avoiding the uncomfortable means of writing a negative review. But Bear Manor Media sent this to me and I feel obligated so I do want to put this out. I read the book in two hours. I truly expected a lot more about Deanna Durbin, and I suspect spending a few hundred hours browsing newspaper archives online, cinema magazines and even Variety’s online database would have provided me with so much more about the singer-actress. That is not to say this is a bad book, but when an entry for a movie devotes more time providing me with a plot summary than the behind-the-scenes trivia related to background production, adding newspaper reviews of the movies, I was slightly disappointed. A good read? Yes. Could there have been a lot more? Yes. If I spent money buying this book, I would have really been disappointed.
By Peter Marshall and Adrienne Armstrong
With a Foreword by Alex Trebek, this is one of those books that is quintessential for fans of television quiz programs. Peter Marshall, influenced by brother-in-law Dick Haymes, started his career as a big band crooner. Shortly thereafter, he hooked up with Tommy Noonan to form the comedy team of Noonan and Marshall. They appeared in major nightclubs and theatres throughout the country and made a number of appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show which established them with television viewers nationally.
Later, Peter starred in Bye-Bye Birdie on stage in London and Skyscraper on Broadway. He has returned to the stage many times during his long career in such shows as The Music Man, 42nd Street and La Cage Aux Folles among many others. Peter has starred in films, television series (dramatic, variety and game shows), nightclubs and concerts. He now hosts a top radio show on The Music of Your Life radio network, and continues to perform in concerts all over the world and has released two acclaimed CD's.
This is his book, Backstage With the Original Hollywood Square, is certain to be a big hit with game show afficionados and fans.
By Peter Mark Richman
Peter Mark Richman is a true Renaissance man: actor, writer, director, producer, and painter. He is also one of those character actors that did almost everything. A star of film (William Wyler's Friendly Persuasion), theatre (A Hatful of Rain, Albee's The Zoo Story) and more than 500 guest star roles on TV including The Twilight Zone, Bonanza, The Love Boat, Mission: Impossible, Three's Company, Dynasty, and many others. He is instantly recognizable to millions, but his legion of fans haven't heard his extraordinary life story… until now.
From his childhood in South Philadelphia, to leading roles on Broadway and in Hollywood, Peter Mark Richman took time to tell many stories about the luminaries he encountered during his six decades in show business and about the spiritual quest that was the main influence in his life as a father of five, grandfather of six, and as a husband married to the love of his life for 65+ years. He recounted the production of a fantastic film often overlooked, The Dark Intruder (1965), how the cast and crew caught walking bronchitis during filming of an episode of The Outer Limits, and other fascinating recollections.
I SAW A MOLTEN WHITE LIGHT… is not just another celebrity autobiography but a highly personal work from a very public figure. This is his story.
