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IT AIN'T AS EASY AS IT LOOKS

Name: IT AIN'T AS EASY AS IT LOOKS
Author: Porter Bibb
ISBN: 0-517-59322-X

TED TURNER'S AMAZING STORY

by Porter Bibb ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 10, 1993

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A gossipy but enlightening rundown on the madcap mogul whose contrarian approach to broadcast media has made him a billionaire and left big tracks across the globe. In recounting how Robert Edward (``Ted'') Turner III built a transnational Atlanta-based empire that encompasses a clutch of TV networks (including CNN), the MGM film library, pro sports franchises, movie studios, satellite facilities, and allied assets, Bibb (a former Newsweek correspondent now employed as an investment banker) largely avoids the issue of whether his subject is a force for good or ill. Although he gives the Brown University expellee full credit, for instance, for capitalizing on the Information Age's commercial potential, the author steers clear of value judgments, opting instead for a narrative account of Turner's career and character—both of which were shaped to a great extent by conflicts with a domineering father who died by his own hand. Even so, the tale of how Turner (b. 1938) made his way as a world- class visionary, womanizer, and yachtsman holds considerable appeal. Married three times (most recently to Jane Fonda), Turner created an immensely influential TV-based enterprise from the billboard-advertising operation he inherited. An ultracompetitive entrepreneur willing to run big risks, ``Terrible Ted'' (as he's known in show-biz and ocean-racing circles) doesn't shy from going against the grain of conventional cable-industry wisdom. Nor does the so-called ``Mouth of the South'' hesitate to trumpet his boardroom and bedroom triumphs. Somewhere along his wayward ascent, however, Turner (who's on a lithium regimen) seems to have acquired a social conscience, and he now devotes much of his considerable energy to environmental causes and international peace. A dirt-dishing, fast-paced progress report on a consequential and controversial magnate on whom the book has yet to be closed. (Sixteen pages of b&w photographs—not seen)

Pub Date: Nov. 10, 1993

ISBN: 0-517-59322-X

Page Count: 512

Publisher: Crown

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1993

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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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

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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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.