Has anyone read his memoir?
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goodbyeenemyairship — 12 years ago(July 03, 2013 10:44 AM)
I read it & enjoyed it & I don't read very much because I quickly lose interest. But he is such a charming individual, like the other poster said - it feels like you are enjoying a dinner companion tell a story, very good read.
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Gemma_Philips — 11 years ago(December 11, 2014 02:57 AM)
It's very personal. He writes about himself with fair honesty. He comes across as a very human person with flaws who wanted to make himself a better person as he went through life. The tone is conversational and friendly, as if you're listening to him simply tell you his story over a drink.
I quite liked it.
I have only read 'The World's A Balloon' by David Niven and Gene Wilder's memoir sounds a similar style, so my interest is aroused.
What is the name of the memoir you speak of?
Many stars have more than one auto-biography and books of memoirs, and these are crowded in the market with biographies. It is very easy to buy the wrong book. I gave up trying to find auto-biographies a couple of decades ago for this reason after buying the wrong book too many times.
I like auto-biographies, not stuff written by ghost writers, biographers who think they know things after speaking to people "close to the star" and even worse, the type of biographer who writes using only material he finds in other biographies and newspaper cuttings.
I want an auto-biography written by the star. I do not care about literary skills of stars, I am not a grammar Nazi, I just want honesty. -
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sammygkelseye — 10 years ago(June 24, 2015 01:08 PM)
I have also read it. And while I really appreciated his honesty, in some ways, it made me like him less. It's been a few years since I read it but I remember when he was writing about Gilda's cancer, he sounded like he was complaining about her complaining. I thought "For crying out loud, she's dying of cancer and you're frustrated with her? And because she can't be physically intimate with you, you go out and flirt with your hearing coach (for See No Evil, Hear No Evil)?" He ended up marrying the coach after Gilda died and I don't know if that makes it better or worse.
However, he never tries to gloss over his mistakes and owns everything he does, good or bad. And he also does something which I tend to do in my own life which is "I made(choice A)which led to (scenario B). (Scenario B) led to me meeting (Actor C). Meeting (Actor C) gave me the opportunity to work on (Movie D)." Obviously, my life isn't actors and movies but I liked how he could trace something back to who he met and how it was a complete coincidence and it influenced the rest of his life because I do that a lot too. (Example, he was in a movie with Anne Bancroft, who introduced him to her then-boyfriend Mel Brooks, which led to his being cast in some of the most popular movies of his career.) -
stacy0912 — 10 years ago(January 20, 2016 05:07 PM)
I liked how he could trace something back to who he met and how it was a complete coincidence and it influenced the rest of his life because I do that a lot too. (Example, he was in a movie with Anne Bancroft, who introduced him to her then-boyfriend Mel Brooks, which led to his being cast in some of the most popular movies of his career.)
I like how he recognized it, because, sadly, so many of us miss those connections in our own lives somehow especially those that directly influenced us. A bunch of seemingly random dots always end up making sense if we choose to look back and open our minds to it.
I can't fault him about Gilda Radner. Who knew what that relationship was truly like once he already committed himself to it. It sounds like he stayed out of guilt, then after she died, searched for a way to forgive himself for not staying out of love. I'm just glad he found some happiness afterwards with his wife. I was looking through their photos and I found myself more than tearing up, but not quite bawling. I think they call that cryingright? He seems happy. I hope he's happy, but I sure do miss seeing him on my screen.
~Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable~ -
radb707 — 9 years ago(September 19, 2016 10:34 AM)
Yeah, I had to skip past the Gilda stuff after a while because he came off as such an beep and it was repetitive. I mean yeah, dealing with it w16d0as hard and he did a good job explaining how he felt at the time even as he recognizes how selfish it was. He's not justifying his actions, just how maybe it made sense at the time. I respect that.
After reading his and many other celebs' memoirs, the one thing they have in common is that they got successful and famous through sheer luck. If not for a few lucky events, Jerome Silberman would've been an excellent stage actor and playwright and he would've been happy with that. -
welchyd — 9 years ago(September 01, 2016 02:43 PM)
I'm part way through it and he's way more honest and detailed than I could have imagined. This is not a PG memoir by any means. Some of the details seem unnecessary, but maybe that's just the way he is. If you're a Wonka fan, you will be disappointed that he pretty much glosses over that film. He tells about his demands if he's going to make the film and says he flew to Europe to film it and that's about it. I haven't finished the book, so maybe he talks more about it further in?
Also, it see111cms like the assault he endured at the military school when he was young, set him up for a life long search for love through non-meaningful sexual relationships. he may have had a great acting career, but his private life seems kind of sad. -
Bookmanmovielover — 9 years ago(September 03, 2016 04:53 PM)
Yes. He was a talented writer. I've enjoyed most of his books I haven't read all. Kiss Me Like A Stranger was my favorite. It was very personal. I liked reading about his career and the people he's met over the years. He's a very deep thinker and wise man.
