A brisk, amusing memoir of one of everybody's favorite TV classics, ``The Honeymooners.'' When Jackie Gleason first saw actress Audrey Meadows, he immediately rejected her as a possible Alice Kramden, saying, ``She's too young and too pretty.'' The determined Meadows had a photographer come to her house first thing in the morning to take pictures of her newly awake, disheveled, and without makeup. Gleason didn't recognize the woman in the pictures and, when told who she was, hired her on the spot. The rest, of course, is TV history—so much so that nearly 40 years after the last of the original ``Honeymooners'' was filmed, Audrey Meadows still answers fan mail and is recognized as Alice wherever she goes. Now, with Daley, she has written her memories of the years with Gleason, Art Carney, and company. Devout ``Honeymooners'' fans know that Meadows will say nothing negative about Gleason, and her book is clearly intended in part as a corrective to two recent biographies (The Great One by William A. Henry III and Jackie Gleason by W.J. Weatherby, both 1992) that she feels were unduly harsh. Those looking for hot gossip will have to look elsewhere. But despite some rambling and repetitions (the text cites Gleason's composing and conducting record albums as an example of his creative strengths in four separate places), this is, by and large, a very entertaining book, gracefully written, with a wealth of funny anecdotes. Meadows's rosy portrait of Gleason might seem questionable—although, to her credit, she never pretends that what she saw was necessarily the whole story—but her account leaves little doubt that she is a nice person as well as a gifted comedienne. Meadows brings her own wit and charm to backstage stories that will be a treat for her many fans. (b&w photos, not seen) (Author tour)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-517-59881-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1994
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
