Turner (All that Glittered, 1990) again turns a nasty eye on Motown's seamy flip side, this time on the chaotic careers of Temptations singers Eddie Kendrick, Dennis Edwards, and the late David Ruffin. Befriended in 1966 at age 12 by Flo Ballard of the Supremes, Turner served as dresser, makeup man, and errand boy for Mary Wilson and her ``fake Supremes'' in the early 1980's and, later, as road manager and gofer for the myriad combinations of former Temptations as they tried, often pathetically, to regain their lost glory. Admitting that ruthless Motown founder Berry Gordy, ``one of the biggest legit pimps in the world,'' used him to spy on some of the performers, Turner also doesn't dismiss rumors of his affairs with both Gordy and Eddie Kendrick. The author tells (and, in some cases, retells) all, from the early days of Diana Ross and her now legendary ambition to Paul Williams's 1973 suicide; from Gordy's alleged confrontation with the mob to the sad post-Motown stories of Mary Wells, Martha Reeves, and Marvin Gaye—whom Turner claims to have helped ``dress in drag,'' complete with wigs and female underwear. The infighting, backstabbing, carousing, and profligacy of the Motown stars receive a lot of attention here, highlighted by David Ruffin's drug problems and his death by apparent overdose in June 1991. Ruffin's funeral, presided over by Louis Farrakhan and paid for by Michael Jackson (Turner takes time to critique the floral arrangements), became a macabre circus as Kendrick was arrested for failing to pay child support and the corpse's patent- leather-and-rhinestone shoes were removed for enshrinement in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Turner does lots of dirty laundry, little of it coming clean- -and he pays no serious attention either to Motown's music or to its role in the history of the American entertainment business. (Photographs—not seen.)
Pub Date: Nov. 15, 1992
ISBN: 1-56025-034-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1992
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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
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