Book Description
Handcuff King. Escape Artist. International Superstar. Since his death eighty years ago, Harry Houdini's life has been chronicled in books, in film, and on television. Now, in this groundbreaking biography, renowned magic expert William Kalush and best-selling writer Larry Sloman team up to find the man behind the myth. Drawing from millions of pages of research, they describe in vivid detail the passions that drove Houdini to perform ever-more-dangerous feats, his secret life as a spy, and a pernicious plot to subvert his legacy.
After years of struggling on the dime museum circuit, Harry Houdini got a break that put him on the front page of a Chicago newspaper. He never looked back. Soon Houdini was performing for royalty, commanding vast sums, and exploring the new power of Hollywood to expand on his legend.
At a time when spy agencies frequently co-opted amateurs, Houdini went to London and developed a relationship with a man who would run MI-5. For the next several years, the world's most famous magician traveled to Germany and Russia and routinely reported his findings.
After World War I was successfully concluded, Houdini embarked on a battle of his own. He created a group of disguised field operatives to infiltrate the seamy world of fake spirit mediums. In doing so, Houdini triggered the wrath of fanatical Spiritualists, led by the esteemed British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Death threats became an everyday occurrence, but the group would pose an even greater danger to Houdini's legacy.
Rigorously researched, and as exciting as a good thriller, The Secret Life of Houdini traces the arc of the master magician's life from desperate poverty to worldwide legend, initiating the reader along the way into the arcane world of professional magic. In this remarkable book, Kalush and Sloman decode a life based on deception, providing an intimate and riveting portrayal of Houdini, the man and the legend.
Customer Reviews:
Really 4.75 Stars - Fabulous Book.......2007-10-04
This book is fantastic on so many levels. One doesn't even have to like magic to appreciate this book, but it sure helps. The authors have done a wonderful job of painting the social scene, class hierarchy and the world at large during this time period. In the true style of a Houdini dichotomy, while there's not much new we learn, we learn so much that's new.
The book heavily follows Houdini's involvement with the spiritualist movement, in particular, a Boston spiritualist named Margery.
I can not recommend this book highly enough.
Harry Houdini : The Man, The Myth, The Spy, The Secret Service Agent.......2007-05-18
Harry Houdini : The Man, The Myth, The Spy, The Secret Service Agent
A lot of people love reading about Harry Houdini the magician, the Handcuff King the escape artist but did you know that he was a spy & a Secret Service agent? I can prove it with one book & a few well versed words here. The book I am talking about is one I am just over half way through & it is entitled "The Secret Life of Houdini : The Making of a Superhero."
This book is awesome & I encourage everyone to read it and enjoy the story of Harry Houdini from beginning to end. It tells about the man, the myth, the spy, the Secret Service agent who was a performer who made the world love him & his shows & continually conquered his every demon, including his own self loathing while continually re-creating himself for the world at large.
Yes this book still fits into this world of the wide web that is the internet. The book is all about how all of Harry Houdini's having been a major instigator in World War I in the propaganda & success of America while Harry Houdini, or some may know him better as Ehrich Weiss, a Jewish man who changed his identity to fit better into the world and to better sell himself to the world as an entertainer at large for War World I in the rise of Germany the first time it came to power.
The fact that the book is from archival data and letters both from & to Harry Houdini is what makes this book so intriguing. Please feel free to enjoy the book & I would love to hear anyone else's opinion & thoughts on this subject. A lot of people do not know that the Secret Service was a spy agency at one time and was connected to the spy world like the C.I.A., N.S.A., D.I.A. & the rest of the alphabet Intelligent Agencies.
Harry Houdini taught our American Dough Boys how to escape from handcuffs, being tied in ropes, & how to escape from torpedoed ships by being on stage in an ampitheater & having actually being a teacher of the American military.
spooky.......2007-04-26
Good book but Harry was given something to drink by a woman that slowly killed him.
Comprehensive and Fascinating.......2007-04-18
What a fascinating and readable story. The addition of conjectured dialogue, authentic letters, and numerous thoughtfully placed photographs gives this mammoth biography the feel of both a novel and an A&E special.
It is near impossible to condense this book into a review, but I will say what beguiled me the most was the concept of how the extent and grandeur of Houdini's worldwide fame--in his own lifetime--was conceived and flawlessly executed by his own will and brilliance in an age of no television and no Internet.
The thoroughness of the book is what makes it impressive. It's also what makes it hard to finish. For the length of the book, I can't see how the authors could have made it more exciting, but I can't help thinking that some of the details could have been cut out for the sanity of the reader. I would liken it to the most interesting textbook I've ever read.
Serious and complete.......2007-04-15
This is a very serious and complete biography. I bought this expecting something more for the masses, lots of rumor and sensationalism. In fact, it's a very thoughtful book, with lots of detail and very little speculation, presenting many of the lesser known aspects of Houdini's life, including his campaign against spiritualism and fraudulent mediums, and his extraordinary physical prowess. Not everything was a trick. Many things he accomplished by sheer force of will. Houdini was clearly much more multidimensional than portrayed in movies and popular references. The book also includes many details on the culture and other celebrities of the time; the extensive information on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was especially interesting. I give it 4 stars only for the fact that there are no footnotes or references. I understand that the authors chose to put those on their Web site, but they're much less useful separated from the book they document.
Customer Reviews:
Miriam Haskell-- the QUEEN of Costume Jewelry!.......2000-05-11
She is definately a QUEEN when it comes to costume jewelry. If you are a fan of her Jewels, you won't be sorry buying this book. (Amazon is the best place too!)
Jewels of Miriam Haskell.......2000-04-22
Miriam Haskell is recognized as an important American costume jewelry designer in this wonderful coffee table book. She had a penchant for the unusual with her ostentatious accessories. She was born in 1899 in Tell City, Indiana to immigrant parents (a Russian father and a Prussian mother).
At the dawn of the Roaring Twenties, she moved to New York City with $500 in her pocket, opening a small boutique. Named Le Bijou de L'Heure, there she sold costume jewelry that she designed. In the early 1920's, Haskell advertised that "colored glass necklaces, one for each outfit, are considered a necessity this year."
Not only was Haskell riding the wave of the Roaring Twenties, she was creating a wave of her own. The Twenties were the years that all of the fashion rules were broken. Haskell's unbounded creativity met with enormous popularity. The prices for her costume jewelry were much lower than the cost of precious metals and stones, so anyone could afford to look fashionable.
The popularity of her costume jewelry continued, even after the stock market crash. Her sales did not drop significantly until 1931. Another difficulty Haskell encountered was the lack of material available for jewelry during WWII when glass from Bohemia and white metal was scarce.
Haskell never registered her designs, although she began to sign her pieces in 1950. The Miriam Haskell trademark was not received until 1988, 64 years after she began designing. Because there were no marks to identify her work prior to 1950, it took a great deal of research on author Cera's part to verify pieces of costume jewelry as Haskell's. Cera relied upon advertisements in magazines and newspapers, and photographs of movie stars shown wearing jewelry attributed to Haskell.
Haskell drew inspiration for her designs from many cultures - South America, China, Greece and the US southwest Indian designs. Her designs mimicked or consisted of any and all materials, including flotsam, stones, seeds, berries and beans.
For the collector of costume jewelry, this book is a keeper.
The Jewels of Miriam Haskell.......2000-02-08
I had so much looked forward to reading this book that when it arrived I was disappointed. The text was rather disorganised in places and so it was hard to follow the points the author was making about the early life and various influences upon Miriam Haskell. Most of the book was focused on one designer and most of the pictures, although they are very nice pictures, came from the same few sources. I was hoping for a carefully researched piece which told me a lot more about Haskell and gave a much wider assortment of the pieces she designed. The book left you asking more questions than it answered and wanting more variety then it presented.
Good information, beautiful pictures, interesting history........1998-05-10
I felt this book was worth the price. For the person interested in Miriam Haskell, her history, and the history of her company, it is quite good. I wanted some practical information, however, and that was not quite there. For instance, what kind of findings were used? How to tell a fake hang tag from a true one? These are some of the things that would make this book super useful. Additionally, only the top-of-the-line pieces were pictured. I would have liked to see some of the lower-end production for identification purposes. All in all, however, it was a very good book and well worth the price.
Average customer rating:
- More Making Books by Hand: Exploring Miniature Books, Alternative Structures, and Found Objects
- BEWARE
- Making small books
- Inspiring!
- Getting into more detail
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More Making Books by Hand: Exploring Miniature Books, Alternative Structures, and Found Objects
Peter Thomas , and
Donna Thomas
Manufacturer: Quarry Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Making Books by Hand: A Step-by-Step Guide
ASIN: 1592530745 |
Book Description
This must-have book for newcomers to the popular art of bookmaking teaches all the basics and features easy and interesting projects that allow self-expression and experimentation. More experienced bookmakers and paper enthusiasts will also note that it offers a wealth of practical tips and techniques in one handy resource.
All the basic bookmaking techniques include lots of specialized tips. Simple book structures, miniature books, and a wide variety of projects that highlight themes such as travel, music, even wearable books -- a book necklace and earrings -- provide creative variations on traditional ideas.
The authors share innovative, unique, and previously unpublished binding structures that incorporate scrolls, flaps, folders, and more. In addition, some book projects are made from unusual materials or found objects, such as a book out of a ukulele, a real accordion book, a book diorama in a cigar box, and other experimental creations.
Customer Reviews:
More Making Books by Hand: Exploring Miniature Books, Alternative Structures, and Found Objects.......2007-09-13
EXCELLENT illustrations! This book not only provides excellent ideas, it also CLEARLY shows you how to execute the techniques necessary to complete the project! Excellent reference book for anyone who wants to create their own professional looking books!
BEWARE.......2007-02-16
The book "More Making Books by Hand: Exploring Miniature Books, Alternative Structures, and Found Objects" is, contrary to expectation, not a supplement or addition to the book "Making Books by Hand: Exploring Miniature Books, Alternative Structures, and Found Objects", but merely a REPRINT of exactly the same material. It differs only in the additional word 'More' in the title.
DO NOT PURCHASE BOTH BOOKS IN THE ASSUMPTION THAT YOU ARE ACQUIRING MORE INFORMATION. You are merely buying two identical books.
With regard to the value of the information found in this book, there are others that are more informative, definitive and inspiring.
Making small books.......2006-08-07
For a beginner, I found everything I needed in this book, from materials to step-by-step instructions. Very easy to follow.
Inspiring!.......2006-02-25
This book is divided into two sections. The first one is an introduction to the techniques and materials used for bookbinding. The technique are illustrated with clear drawings to show you what to do. I don't know anything about bookbinding so I can't tell if this part of the book describes best practices, traditional techniques, or modern adaptations. I can say, however, that it was perfectly understandable and clear. The materials are all common and easy to find...though I would have liked to see more brand names mentioned, just so that I was EXTRA sure I was getting the right stuff at the store.
The second part of the book contains instructions for a series of projects. Unless you are a pretty good artist, there's no way you will be able to reproduce these incredible miniature books since many of them include original artwork. But WOW, are they cool to look at! And of course you can design your own pages using stickers, clipart, cutouts, rubber stamps, or anything else.
Keep in mind that when the authors say "miniature," they mean it! The projects are all very small. (The techniques section in front will help you learn how to make books of any size, though.)
Getting into more detail.......2005-08-31
This book is good for the crafter with a bit of experience. It has some great ideas for someone who has a little bit of knowledge about making books by hand. The instructions are pretty easy to understand and the end projects are wonderful!
Book Description
This biography of composer Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) describes with unprecedented intimacy, affection, and respect the life of one of France's greatest artists. After long being regarded as an oddity and an eccentric figure, Berlioz is now being accepted into the ranks of the great composers. Based on a wealth of previously unpublished sources, and on a profound understanding of the humanity of his subject, David Cairns's book provides a full account of this extraordinary and powerfully attractive man.
Berlioz, Volume I, previously published only in Britain, is now available to American readers in a revised edition, together with the eagerly awaited, new Volume II. These two volumes together comprise a monumental biographical achievement, sure to stand as the definitive Berlioz biography.
In researching Berlioz's life, Cairns has had access to unpublished family papers, and in Volume I he is able to portray all the people close to Berlioz in his boyhood, and to evoke a detailed picture of their lives in and around La Côte St.-André in the foothills of the French Alps. No artist's achievement connects more directly with early experience than that of Berlioz, whose passionate sensibility began to absorb the material of his art long before he had heard any musical ensemble other than the local town band. Volume I also traces the student years in Paris and Italy and discusses Berlioz's three great love affairs, shedding remarkable light on his later character and development. Volume I ends on the afternoon of December 9, 1832, the day of the concert that launched the composer's career.
Customer Reviews:
Brilliant portrait of a complex man, vol. 1.......2004-01-27
An amazing biography. A work such as this will most likely appeal to only 1 out of 100,000 Amazon customers, but those who read it will never forget it, and once having read it will listen to Berlioz's music with a knowing insider's grin.
Cairns has done what is extremely difficult: he has created an easy-to-read, engaging, yet methodical and thorough modern biography in English of a composer who was born 200 years ago and whose paper trail was written entirely in French. The book has good humor but is not fawning or hagiographic.
A little note (pun intended): this is about Berlioz the man, and not about Berlioz as an ethnomusicologist's project. In other words, this is the study of a young man and how he came to know and create music, but not about that music per se.
Bonne lecture!
Great Scholar.......2001-09-20
David Cairns is a great Berlioz scholar. Like to meet him someday. His translation of "Memoirs" is much superior to Newmans.I bought the 1st volume of the biography some years ago when it first came out and the second a couple of years ago when it was first published. I revisit these volumes frequently. Berlioz was one of the really great romantics. At least 50 years before his time. Glad to see SF opera is planning on staging Cellini & B & B over the next few years. Sixtus Beckmesser
Incredible........2000-05-14
This really is one of the best biographies of any subject to come my way.I didn't know a lot of Berlioz's music before approaching this but it didn't actually matter.All the elements of a gripping novel are here only for they're true!-fighting paternal disapproval,living in poverty in Paris,eloping with a virtuoso pianist-it's all here and Cairns paints such an intimate picture that you can't but fail to admire Berlioz and his dogged determination to be a composer and write HIS music only to be continually rebuked in his native homeland.The efforts that the man had to go to just to hear his own music is truly heartbreaking.Biography doesn't get much better than this-especially if you're only even remotely interested in music or art.
A Passionate Man.......2000-04-25
This is a wonderful book both for the lay reader and for the musically knowledgeable. It says a great deal about how well written this book is that someone like me who knows nothing about music could still enjoy the book so much. Mr. Cairns takes the tale from the birth of Berlioz in 1803 up until 1832, when he was in his late 20's. You learn about his relationship with his parents, who were opposed to his choice of composer for a career, and his sisters. We are very fortunate that this was a great age for letter writing. Mr. Cairns makes judicious use of the correspondence between Berlioz and his family and friends to the point where you almost feel yourself to be a friend or family member. You get inside the young composer's mind as he tries to convince his parents that his desire to write music is not just a "whim", but something that he is absolutely passionate about and must do. Berlioz was also extremely sensitive and romantic. After seeing the English actress Harriet Smithson perform on stage in several works by Shakespeare he developed an obsessive love for her, even though he had never met her. He had an apartment across the street from where she lived and would longingly watch her comings and goings. He eventually wrote her several notes expressing his feelings but she rebuffed him, quite understandably one would think! (She had also heard a rumor, which was untrue, that he was an epileptic.) Shortly after coming to the realization that Smithson was unattainable Berlioz met the virtuoso pianist Camille Moke and they fell in love with each other and eventually got engaged. Alas, when poor Hector had to go to Rome to live in order to receive grant money from winning the Prix de Rome, Camille dumped him and opted for security by marrying a wealthy man. This soured Hector on women for awhile but did not diminish his love for music, nature and life. Mr. Cairns has been a professional music critic and is also a scholar, so he understands and ably explains the technical aspects of Berlioz's music. I was totally lost in these sections but my ignorance did not diminish my enjoyment of this sympathetic and wonderfully written book.
Average customer rating:
- he's nuts, but he produces fabulous art
- Ho-Hum
- Simply Brilliant, Simply Authentic, Simply Golden.
- A fine book!
- Stunningly beautiful, an intense portrait of mind and work..
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Daniel Brush Gold Without Boundaries
Ralph Esmerian
Manufacturer: Harry N. Abrams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0810940183 |
Customer Reviews:
he's nuts, but he produces fabulous art.......1999-03-31
as good as the book is, i must say that it pales in comparison to seeing his work in person. i saw some of it at the renwick gallery in washington d.c. and it's just incredible. he's come out of his shell in the last few years but has been producing great stuff for a long time.
nevertheless, the book is worth it. but if you ever get the chance to see his work, by all means do so. there was an interesting piece on him by the "sunday morning" cbs news show. you may be able to get a tape of it from them.
Ho-Hum.......1999-03-29
Great photography and sculptures, but the writing style is fool's gold. Too expensive as well, even with the Amazon reduction. It's great but not that great.
Simply Brilliant, Simply Authentic, Simply Golden........1999-01-24
As a professor of Art History at an Afghani University, I would like to congratulate, extol, and exult Daniel Brush's masterpiece of a monograph. Its insight and vivid explanations are invaluable and I am discussing with my colleagues about including it as an elective course for my students. Its sheer brilliance exemplifies its utter domination over any other art book. Congratulations to Daniel Brush for enhancing the art world. He will surely go down in history as the pioneer of gold sculpting and as example for all.
A fine book!.......1998-12-30
This book was reviewed in the newsletter of the Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG). The author of that review ended his extensive review by saying "If I could buy only one book this year, this would be the one! The work is magnificent and the book excellent." I highly recommend it.
Stunningly beautiful, an intense portrait of mind and work.........1998-12-28
This is perhaps one of the most beautiful artist monographs of the last twenty-five years! Gorgeous photography and insightful writing. A glimpse at a very pure artist.
Customer Reviews:
Great book!.......2007-08-15
I found this book very inspiring. There are many interesting projects. I especially liked the projects done with tiny stitches, and the cube pendant. This book covered the basic techniques, but went beyond them. I have referred back to the book many times and will continue to do so. Every time I look at it I springboard off with new ideas of my own.
Good Ideas.......2007-02-14
This book have good ideas wich help me to create my own projects. The models are elegant and easy to do.
Great book and worth the money!.......2006-09-21
This book is inspiring for the depth and innovation of the projects shown. I expect the projects of professional artist to be pushing the limits of what can be done in the medium. I would not be interested in buying a "how to" book that showed me how to make ordinary things -- go to Michael's craft stores for such "make and take" classes. This type of book, with such a variety of projects, is meant to be used as a basis to make your own, unique pieces (not to make copies of other's designs).
Not What I Expected.......2006-07-03
I was very disappointed in this long awaited book. I teach wire crochet at a local craft store and had this book on my wish list for months. While the book had good clear instructions on the various techniques involved in crocheting wire, I found the projects to be way too bizarre to have any use for the average person. As a teacher of this technique, I feel that the person new to wire crochet will be overwhelmed with the oddness of the "over the top" designs featured here while the experienced wire crocheter, will feel let down by the perhaps one or two new techniques they may find as well as the designs being virtually non-usable in the average person's wardrobe. I am definitely feeling as though I wasted my money on this book, and as a previous reviewer stated, it is definitely headed for eBay VERY soon...
Disappointed.......2006-06-26
I was very disappointed in this book. The instructions were very detailed in explaining the basic stitches -- however, the projects were not what I was expecting. The projects were all above and beyond what the average person would attempt, or wear if achieved. I will be selling this on ebay soon! Sorry!
Book Description
On a farmlike compound near New Hope, Pennsylvania, George Nakashima, his family, and fellow wood-workers create exquisite furniture from richly grained, rare timber. Tables, desks, chairs, and cabinets from this simple workshop grace the homes and mansions and executive boardrooms of people
who prize such excellence. In this lavishly illustrated volume, George Nakashima allows us in intimate look at his artistry, his philosophy, his life. It is the portrait of an artisan who strives to find the ideal use for each plank in order to "create an object of utility to man and, if nature
smiles, an object of lasting beauty."
The author's search for the meaning of life took him as a young man to Paris, Tokyo, and Pondicherry, India. In India, he found the inner peace for which he had been searching and began to find ways to work with timber. He writes movingly about the grandeur of ancient trees and stunning figured
woods and explains how he selects and prepares his materials. Above all, he impresses us with his devotion to discovering the inherent beauty of wood so that noble trees might have a second life as furniture. The Soul of a Tree looks at the world through the eyes of an artist and evokes the joy of
living in harmony with nature.
Customer Reviews:
He is a rarity.......2007-01-26
Able to tug at you in so many ways. A privilege to be able to buy his product.
great book - a woodworkers essential.......2006-09-11
Alot of philosphy, mostly biographical, has a few quotes that stick:
"Man has the audacity to try to improve the tree...."
This is a MUST read for a woodworker.
Gorgeous and inspiring book.......2005-11-27
Like the books of James Krenov, "The Soul of a Tree" is as much a book about philosophy as it is about wood. And it's a good philosophy: slow down, take your time, play with the wood, and enjoy it. The book is really about the soul of Nakashima. He outlines some of his own personal history and how he developed his ideas about craft. There's not really much on technique here - you can certainly find better books for that - but you won't find many more inspiring.
On a personal note I had a lady call me years ago to fix up `some old furniture' she and her husband had bought years ago (in the `50's I believe.) Seems when they were young college professors they found this young oriental guy down the road who made furniture in his garage. When I looked at the furniture I told her that her young oriental friend had become quite famous and showed her this book. She was flabbergasted. What she wanted me to do was to nail up some chairs that had worked loose over time. I refused, of course, and explained to her that these were valuable pieces that should be cared for properly. I also encouraged her to contact Nakashima's Conoid Studio (if it still existed) to let them catalogue the pieces. Even after years of use by a family with kids living in the sticks the pieces were obviously crafted with meticulous care and held up surprisingly well. It was a real joy to bring them back to daily use.
Pure Style........2001-08-27
The author omit needless wood and carve great pieces of furniture. It is like zen on wood. You will not regret the money you spent on this title.
This man never wasted a single second of his life.......1999-10-30
George Nakashima was not only a master craftsman in his field, he was a genius. He could pick up any piece of wood and at a glance know what the end product would be to its full potential...and more.He would let the wood tell him. Even his simplest of projects 'sing' beauty and finesse. I bought the book for insperation to my own woodworking skills, and learnt much more than i expected. Included in the book is a short biography telling us of his early life, his travelings and how he ended up the man he became, his family, lifestyle, work and good natured beliefs. It certainly gave me insperation towards beautiful woodwork and i like to think I learnt a few lessons in life as well. If i was to me this man and only shake his hand I would feel honoured.......
Book Description
Bohemian Los Angeles brings to life a vibrant and all-but forgotten milieu of artists, leftists, and gay men and women whose story played out over the first half of the twentieth century and continues to shape the entire American landscape. It is the story of a hidden corner of Los Angeles, where the personal first became the political, where the nation's first enduring gay rights movement emerged, and where the broad spectrum of what we now think of as identity politics was born. Portraying life over a period of more than forty years in the hilly enclave of Edendale, near downtown Los Angeles, Daniel Hurewitz considers the work of painters and printmakers, looks inside the Communist Party's intimate cultural scene, and examines the social world of gay men. In this vividly written narrative, he discovers why and how these communities, inspiring both one another and the city as a whole, transformed American notions of political identity with their ideas about self-expression, political engagement, and race relations. Bohemian Los Angeles, incorporating fascinating oral histories, personal letters, police records, and rare photographs, shifts our focus from gay and bohemian New York to the west coast with significant implications for twentieth-century U.S. history and politics.
Customer Reviews:
A terrific read and an excellent history.......2007-03-12
Daniel Hurwitz has written a fascinating history of an unusual slice of life in Los Angeles. His book should be of interest to anyone who likes to read about gay history and urban history. Hurewitz is a graceful writer and a careful historian. He clearly spent a great deal of time digging through little-known archives and interviewing people who were key figures in his story. This is a terrific read!
Hooray for Edendale.......2007-03-08
The Bohemian history of Los Angeles is every bit as interesting and important to the culture and fabric of Los Angeles as its Hollywood history. Daniel Hurewitz has revealed a depth and intelligence to Los Angeles that the city is all too often accused of not having.
Bravo Daniel. This book is a must-read for Los Angeles history enthusiasts and Edendale residents like myself.
Move over Stonewall! Silverlake is where gay politics really began! .......2007-01-10
From drag queens to communists, Bohemian Los Angeles is full of characters and stories from L.A.'s surprising secret past. As a resident of Silverlake--the hillside neighborhood that provides the focus of this book and which was the epicenter of so much early social activism--I was particularly fascinated to learn about the history under my feet. But I think anyone would be charmed by this nostalgic portrait of a world that has been lost--and yet is the foundation of our own. Congratulations to Daniel Hurewitz for this important and engrossing book!
Dubious thesis.......2006-12-29
The author originally presented his findings in a UCLA dissertation. In the several years intervening he has enlarged his data and refined his ideas. What we have then is a carefully crafted presentation of his case. Hurewitz focuses on the early and middle years of 20th century. Supplementing previous accounts, there is a good deal of information about ordinary gay men that is new.
In my review of Gay L.A. by Faderman and Timmons, a generally excellent book, I faulted the writers for not offering a sufficient explanation for the seemingly improbable fact that America's only enduring gay emancipation movement arose in Los Angeles. Commendably, Hurewitz attempts to resolve this conundrum. Unfortunately, his explanation doesn't work.
He portrays three interdependent spheres of innovation in the Southern California city--the arts community; the political radicals (especially the Communists); and gay men and lesbians.
Ostensibly linked by their sharing the neighborhood of Edendale between Hollywood and downtown LA, Hurewitz' three worlds are not in fact closely connected. While many artists and leftists lived in Edendale in the first half of the twentieth century it did not enjoy the status of a "gay village" until recent decades, when it became known as Silver Lake and Echo Park.
A number of the founders of the Mattachine Society had also been Communists, but this fact, while true, is not enough to justify the triple project. The reason Mattachine survived and prospered was because after its reorganization in 1953 (a change much lamented by today's nostalgic leftists) it was led by individuals who were centrists.
Over this book there is a haze of the Romance of American Communism, to cite the title of a gushing book by Vivian Gornick. These people were working to establish a Soviet system in America. Had they succeeded in doing so, "degenerates" would have been sent to Gulags.
Those who sugarcoat this leftist history instruct us to forget about international politics. Instead, just look at the rewarding personal lives these Communists lived! Regrettably this picture wasn't rosy either. When one joined the Party one was urged to devote all one's free time as much as possible to working for the Revolution. There were no "free weekends." Just as with a religious sect, members were encouraged to marry within the Party. This meant severing one's previous ties. After this pattern was set, members were discouraged from leaving because they knew that if they did no they would be ostracized. They would end up with no friends at all.
As noted, the linkage of the three phenomena is elusive. If there was an L.A. Bohemia, this wasn't it.
Hurewitz makes much of the matter of identity. Yet this was not an issue during the period he mainly covers. Gay identity (and other purported identities) became important only in the seventies. The legacy of this concept has been scarcely benign. The perception of Balkanization, appealing to separate interest groups rather than the national interest, continues to haunt the Democratic Party. Hurewitz further believes that Los Angeles was the crucible in which the identity principle advanced to be part of the national agenda. This claim, which ignores the crucial effect of the civil rights movement in the South, is specious.
In short this book is good in parts. Yet in my view its overall claim fails.
Book Description
Back in print with a new introduction and epilogue by the author, this modern classic is "one of the few indispensable books about Hollywood." --Jack Kroll, Newsweek. "What altered Hollywood irrevocably was the notorious 1980 film Heaven's Gate." --Irwin Winkler, The New York Times, 1/14/99. Heaven's Gate is probably the most discussed, least seen film in modern movie history. Its notoriety is so great that it has become a generic term for disaster, for ego run rampant, for epic mismanagement, for wanton extravagance. It was also the watershed film of the '80s--not for its cinematic qualities, but for its effect on Hollywood and the way movies were and were not made for years afterward. For Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate did not merely fail; the film did the unthinkable: it sank a studio. Less than a month after the picture's second release, United Artists--the company founded in 1919 by Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, D. W. Griffith, and Charlie Chaplin--for all practical purposes ceased to exist. What happened? Why? How? In answering these questions, combining wit, extraordinary anecdotes, and historical perspective, Steven Bach has produced a landmark book on Hollywood and its people, and in so doing, tells a story of human absurdity that would have made Chaplin proud.
Customer Reviews:
Destroy the Myth.......2006-12-22
Myths and legends pervade and shade our light of the truth. Art is lost to commerce and business; the business of Hollywood, which rarely produces art. Michael Cimino became a leper of ill-repute based solely on negative reviews and publicity that shielded and prevented the public with seeing 'Heaven's Gate.' Do we know this, or do we still nurse the myth and legend? This film is a masterpiece along the lines of D.W. Griffith, David Lean, Akira Kurosawa, Francis Ford Coppola, and possibly, John Ford. Cimino's genius lies in 'The Deer Hunter' as well. 'Deer Hunter' is a powerful, masterful film. 'Heaven's Gate' parallels this mastery with its excessive beauty (excessive is used lightly in the bloated productions of 2006). This book should be destroyed as it only perpetuates the thought of a time when negative hype can wipe clean of any exposure to art on celluloid. Watch the film; ignore the ignorant past; embrace this director; watch his films. 'Year of the Dragon' is a fine film as well. Begin with 'Deer Hunter,' and then the film in question.
Worthwhile history of eighties Hollywood.......2006-11-03
So much has been written about Michael Cimino's "Heaven's Gate" that few people recall the film itself: a bloated, aimless, wandering and unfocused epic about the Johnson County "war" of the late eighteen hundreds. The book's story of wretched excess, greed, artistic ambition run amok and misguided faith in that ambition mirrors the story of the making of Fox's "Cleopatra" in 1961. Though "Heaven's Gate" has a devoted cult following today, such admiration is common to reviled works: people have a tendency to champion projects that "nobody else got" because it makes them feel elevated from the common wisdom, or a part of an exclusive culture of appreciation. Sadly, Cimino's film doesn't warrant such revisionist thinking. The book explains in excruciating detail the process by which a small, personal project became one of the grandest flops in the history of Hollywood. Equally culpable in this fiasco are the men and women who allowed this director to squander the millions spent, even after it became apparent that the film was a disappointment by the kindest standards. Far from being a lost opportunity (the story of the Johnson County war has been done several times, in films like "Shane") "Heaven's Gate" is probably the best known example of the kind of apalling waste that drove the film industry into the sad state it has fallen to. The author accepts his share of the blame, and is astonishingly fair to Cimino, defending the director's vision, his decisions, and his intentions. But the end result (known to every film buff) hangs over the proceedings like grim death.
Don't go in the cellar!.......2006-03-09
This is one of the finest books ever written about the movie business. Bach explains, step by step, why he and the other UA execs did the things they did, and the disaster that unfolded. He's honest about his own failings, but at every step, as he outlines the choices available, you realise that - in his place and without the benefit of hindsight - you'd probably make the same mistakes. It's fascinating.
Of course, with the benefit of hindsight, it's easy to see the experience as a kind of horror movie. Each time UA concedes a point to Cimino, you feel like yelling "Don't go in the cellar!" (or, in this case, "Don't cast Isabelle Huppert!"). Of course, down they go into the cellar, where there are even more zombies lurking. The high point is the part where Cimino demands the installation of an irrigation system to ensure the grass looks properly green - but of course it's his land!
I have read this book several times since it was first published, and lent my copy to at least a dozen people who are also in the business. Everyone I know who knows anything about moviemaking has loved it.
The Big Money Movie Business, Blow By Blow.......2005-08-26
Wanna detailed blow-by-blow account of the behind-the-scenes business machinations surrounding the production of a big-budget (and bank-breaking) movie at a major Hollywood studio? Look no further than this book!
Perhaps "surrounding" isn't the appropriate term since author Steven Bach, who was head of production at United Artists during the time immediately preceding the original publication of this book (its original title was Final Cut: Dreams and Disaster in the Making of Heaven's Gate), really couldn't get his hands around the major film project which was writer/director Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate.
Following the lengthy but fascinating back history of United Artists, Bach presents a matter-of-fact but truly stomach-churning description of how the elusive sense of creative unity in the sincere quest for timeless cinematic art butts heads with the realities of capitalism. Though he rarely dwells on it as such, Bach gives the reader a visceral sense of the ulcer-inducing frustrations that can befall such a project.
How is it possible that a film's original budget can balloon so exponentially without a clear sense of the market's need or want for such a project? How is it possible that financial disaster can be predicated on the faith afforded in the talents of a single man whose reputation rests solely on a single well-received film? You'll find out by reading this book.
It's perhaps too easy to make Michael Cimino the fall guy in this scenario; there were plenty of corporate politics apart from the Heaven's Gate project, and which Bach thoroughly delineates, which "might" have been circumstantially responsible for UA's downfall. But what Bach rightfully chooses to focus on is that area for which he was ultimately responsible. It's painfully obvious that Cimino's exploits on location in Montana were "allowed" to get out of hand. It was Cimino who formulated the original budget and made certain assurances. It was Cimino who built, destroyed, then rebuilt a large exterior set of late 19th century Casper, Wyoming. It was Cimino who chose to print upwards of fifty takes of scenes. It was Cimino who promised a roughly two-and-a-half hour film that eventually came in at over five hours. These are personal shortcomings which are simply impossible to overlook...up-and-coming Academy Award-winning cinematic genius or not.
Granted, Cimino's own account of the happenings on location are not to be found here. Bach does, however, give accounts of the many meetings and conversations he, the producer, and Cimino had during the entire gut-wrenching process. Perhaps one day Cimino will bravely come forward and explain, in writing or in film, his personal culpability and reasoning. That his career in Hollywood took a downward spiral following this escapade is most unfortunate--he is obviously a director with talent and a vision.
It's well known and understood that in the world of entertainment, luck and timing can count for an inordinate amount toward success or failure. Indeed, success and failure can only be quantified in ways which are hardly tangible apart from dollars and cents. From Bach's account, it's plain to see that with a little judiciousness on the part of many important decision-making people, this financial disaster need not have occurred.
I can't imagine a better read than Final Cut if one wants a detailed dissection of torment in the pursuit of corporate American art.
Fascinating account of a filmmaking disaster.......2004-07-13
It was called a "runaway," and never has a term been more appropriate. In this case, it was a movie running millions of dollars over budget with an end nowhere in sight. The 1980 film "Heaven's Gate" has become synonymous with failure, its very name punned whenever big-budget productions flirt with disaster. Steven Bach's "Final Cut: Art, Money, and Ego in the Making of Heaven's Gate, the Film That Sank United Artists" gives a terrific blow-by-blow account of this gargantuan flop. A former producer at United Artist who suffered the ax after "Heaven's Gate," Bach penned this detailed tome a couple of years after fallout.
The book should be a fascinating account for film lovers. "Final Cut" details the history of United Artists and filmmaking in the 1970s - a truly golden era. At United Artists, Francis Ford Coppola premieres "Apocalypse Now," Woody Allen helms "Manhattan" and Martin Scorsese prepares "Raging Bull." But the man of the hour in 1978 is a quiet guy named Michael Cimino. He just won an Academy Award for directing "The Deer Hunter," and now he wants to make a western - a big, big western.
Bach accurately reveals the difficulties United Artists was going through at this time, losing several long-time executives who jump ship to form the Orion film company. Bach and company, wishing to re-establish United Artists as a major player, take on Cimino's western project. Cimino sets up shop in Montana, the location work a two-hour's drive from the nearest cement road. He ships an antique train across five states to the Montana wilds. He hires over 700 extras. He signs a cast of mainly unknowns including Kris Kristofferson, Christopher Walken, Isabelle Huppert, John Hurt and Sam Waterson. And he films only during the twilight hour, a period right before dusk so scenes will have a golden hue. But what terrifies United Artists most is Cimino is filming 50-60 takes per scene, and printing almost every take. Such obsession was unheard of.
As Bach reveals in "Final Cut," Cimino's western (now hovering around $25 million) was going to have make blockbuster numbers just to turn a profit, performing in the "Jaws" and "Star Wars" neighborhoods. United Artists attempts to fire Cimino, at one point even asking David Lean to take over. Cimino realizes the dire situation, finally bucks up and finishes the film. With promotional and post-production fees, "Heaven's Gate" cost United Artists $44 million - the most expensive film in history up to that time.
Heaven's Gate is premiered in New York, a three-and-a-half hour monstrosity that receives devastatingly bad reviews. It is eventually released to the theaters and makes $1.8 million. It is the biggest bomb in motion picture history (cue dead elephant hitting the cement). Heads roll at the studio, Cimino's career is finished and United Artists, a film company created by Charlie Chaplin, D.W. Griffith, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, is purchased by MGM to disappear forever into the sunset.
Cimino's "Heaven's Gate" spelled the end of the free-spirited, amazingly creative decade of the 1970s. Producers and studios took the reins out of the hands of superstar directors (Coppola's "Apocalypse Now" ran a similar "Heaven's Gate" route, but he pulled success from the fires of disaster, perhaps inspiring this debacle as much as anything else). "Final Cut" is a tragedy exposing the end of a golden era of filmmaking and a once-great studio. It's as good as an Irwin Allen disaster film, and a lot cheaper.
Book Description
In an era when American artists didn't count and women were expected to stay home, Edith Gregor Halpert burst onto the fledgling New York gallery scene, defying all cultural and societal rules. In 1926, Halpert, just twenty-six years old, opened one of the first art galleries in Greenwich Village and set about turning the art world upside down. Her Downtown Gallery, which she ran for forty-four years, laid the groundwork for the art market's modern era, and its aggressive promotion and sales tactics. Halpert cultivated the most illustrious art collectors of the day, invented the market for folk art, and pushed the first group of American artists working in a modern vernacular into the history books, including Stuart Davis, Jacob Lawrence, Georgia O'Keeffe, Ben Shahn, and Arthur Dove. Despite all this, Edith Halpert herself has been lost to history. Until now.
In The Girl with the Gallery, journalist Lindsay Pollock brings Halpert and her era vividly back to life, tracing the story of how this remarkable woman, who started out a penniless Jewish immigrant, made it her mission to fight for American art and artists. Illlustrated with eight pages of full color photographs, this is biography at its finest, an unforgettable story of class, money, vanity, jealousy, and tragic loss.
Customer Reviews:
Good Read For Any Small Business Owner. It's Fascinating History As Well!.......2007-03-22
I had a lot of trouble putting aside the book so that I could take care of my normal daily chores and business. It was interesting to me from a variety of points. One of them was the excellent introduction information about how the author first learned of Edith Gegor Halpet and then how surpirsed she was to discover a treasure trove of available research material including an oral history that included more than 800 transcrbed pages. While I'm not in the gallery business, I do enjoy art and I found the book a very interesting story of how tough a business the marketing of art really is. Halpert's struggles opening and running a gallery have valuable lessons for any small business owner. Some of her sales techniques could be applied to almost any business with great success. The book is a great read and provides glimpses into the world of art, artists, patrons,museums, and the important contributions women have made to the art fields over the years. It's another example of how women have come into their own.
Excellent Book.......2007-01-23
Fascinating bio and first rate discussion of the strange intersection of high-art and commerece. Shows how much artists owe to the people who support and believe in them.
Portrait of a Titan of American Modern Art.......2006-12-15
The title here is just a little bit misleading. Yes Edith was the girl with the gallery, but there were a lot of girls that had galleries. What Edith built was THE Gallery, at least so far as modern American art was concerned. Furthermore she did it from the outside, she was born Russian, coming to America when she was six, and at the young age of 26 founding the Downtown Gallery in Greenwich Village.
There was at the time no American art movement. The few painters of the time had great difficulty selling their work. Edith changed that. Her gallery specialized in the work of these New York locals, combined agressive selling with a devotion to this style that remained for forty four years.
It was largely because of her that there is an American art scene. This book is a fine tribute to her life that has largely been forgotten.
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- Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
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Books Index
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