The Complete Visual Dictionary of Star Wars: The Ultimate Guide to Characters and Creatures from the Entire Star Wars Saga

Book Description

Provides a complete, comprehensive overview of the Prequel movies (Episodes I-III) and the Trilogy (Episodes IV-VI), this is the definitive photographic guide to the entire Star Wars saga.

Customer Reviews:

The Complete Visual Dictionary of Star Wars.......2007-09-26

This book is extraordinary. The pictures are sharp and extremely detailed. There are explanations of many characters that are only seen in the background scenes. I highly recommend if you're a Star Wars fan. My 4 year old won't give it up.

My Star Wars fanatic loves this book.......2007-09-26

I bought this for my 6 year old who is a Star Wars FREAK. He sat down with this book immediately and has not really stopped looking at it since. He can barely read, but he loves examining all of the characters, and the way they are broken down and labeled is very exciting to him. He likes to see everything that he's seen in the movies, and video game, in full detail.
I can't comment on how this book is similar or different to any other book, but I can say, it's very detailed, it covers a lot of information and describes alot of the relationships and uses of the characters & items. My 6 year old can identify way more than I can. This book is well set up, with loads of information and LOTS AND LOTS of details full color high quality photos which is just what we were looking for.

Good luck!

A Must-Have for any Star Wars fan.......2007-09-21

My son constantly wants to look at this book, and he is only 6 and has never seen any of the movies. That pretty much says how good this book is. I grew up with the original Star Wars movies, so looking through this book is like looking into the past for me. It is well put-together, very concise with a lot of nice photos and a plethora of Star Wars information. An excellent resource for any Star Wars aficionado.

Star Wars is a Five star choice for the ultimate fan.......2007-09-09

This book is just fantastic, and it is worth every penny. I originally bought it for my friends son who loves Star Wars. The kid walked around with the book under his arm like a bible! He never put it down. I recently bought it for my own two elementary age boys and they love it just as much. This is wonderful gift to get for any Star Wars fan -- Once again DK has cornered the market on wonderful visual books for young children. Their books are so well executed and so wonderfully edited, they know exactly how to appeal to this age group by giving just enough information with out making it too simple. An adult fan would actually love this book too. It's a great purchase.

My 9-year-old loves this book!.......2007-09-03

I purchased this book for my 9-year-old son who has been a Star Wars fan for a few years. He has spent hours looking through the book on his own or alongside his friends. I have never seen the movies and I have little knowledge of the people in them, but I could easily learn A LOT from this book if I wanted to. The pictures of the people and tools/weapons are great! I also like the fact that they show pictures from movie scenes that depict the people or the tools being discussed on that particular page. This was a great price for a large hardcover book with great details and pictures!

The Encyclopedia of Stanley Kubrick (Library of Great Filmmakers)

Average customer rating:

For the Kubrick fan
Well, why not?

The Encyclopedia of Stanley Kubrick (Library of Great Filmmakers)
Rodney Hill , and Gene D. Phillips
Manufacturer: Facts on File
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0816043884

Customer Reviews:

For the Kubrick fan.......2003-08-22

This is a book of Kubrick facts and trivia, arranged in easy-reference format. The authors are opinionated about their subject, which is good --- they clearly love writing about these movies and everything that went into them. For the non-fan, this book could be tedious. Entries on actors veer off into complete discussions of the Kubrick movie in which they starred, minor details are repeated, and a few entries seem to be too technical or industry-based to be worth mentioning.

(For example, Kubrick says that at the end of Lolita, Humbert realizes that he loves her --- he's not just feeling lust for her. Kubrick calls this the most poignant moment in the story. This particular quote is repeated in the book at least five times.)

If you've read every other book about Kubrick, get this one. If not, read the books by Ciment, Walker, Herr, LoBrutto, and Baxter first.

Well, why not?.......2003-06-20

Bronx-born Stanley Kubrick spent much of his professional life in England where he made some of the most controversial and original films ever to grace the silver screen. This uneven but fascinating book is in a sense a tribute to the man and his work. This is not the first encyclopedic treatment of a top movie director published by Facts on File--they have also done Alfred Hitchcock and Orson Welles. Perhaps this format--an "encyclopedia"--will catch on. At any rate, it is fun to leaf through randomly or perhaps one could actually proceed alphabetically.

The entries of course all have some connection with Kubrick. Included are actors who played in his movies, and people related to him and his friends and other people he worked with. There are also entries on movie business phenomena like "antiwar themes" and "censorship." There is an interesting entry on Steven Spielberg's Artificial Intelligence (2001) in which I learned that the original conception came from Kubrick. There are a number of black and white photos spread throughout the text and some line drawings, mostly of Kubrick and the actors who played in his films. Often the photos are stills from the movies. It is interesting to see Kubrick at various stages of his career and how time changed his appearance. My favorite photo is of George C. Scott and Stanley Kubrick playing chess on the set of Dr. Strangelove underneath the "War Room" mock up. By the way, Scott is reported to have gained respect for the younger Kubrick when Kubrick beat him at chess.

There is rather a lot of repetition in the entries, some of it unavoidable of course because entries overlap in content. However the entry for Sue Lyon, for example, who was Kubrick's Lolita, contains a summary of the plot of Lolita to the exclusion of the rather sparse information about Lyon. Also the editing and proofreading of the entries is not first rate. The text was begun by Rodney Hill and then taken up by Gene D. Phillips, which may account for some of the avoidable repetition. Some of the entries were written by John C. Tibbetts and others tagged with initials and identified as "Contributors" near the back of the book.

Clearly the strength of the book is in the light it sheds on Stanley Kubrick and his life in film. The detail is fascinating and the writing, in spite of the repetitions, is engaging. There are nice pieces on George C. Scott, James Mason, Peter Sellers, Malcolm McDowell, Nicole Kidman, Shelley Winters, Arthur C. Clarke, etc. as well as essays on all of Kubrick movies. Included are behind the scenes information about what went on during the shooting of the films, how the films were conceived and how they progressed. I was intrigued to learn that Kubrick was able to get a fine performance from the otherwise undistinguished Sue Lyon partly because he sometimes allowed her to use her own vernacular instead of words from the script. Also interesting was the difficulties that Shelley Winters experienced (from her viewpoint!) in working with James Mason and Peter Sellers in Lolita (1962). The relationship between Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, who wrote the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey and worked with Kubrick on the screenplay for the film, is interesting to follow. One realizes again that at the base of Kubrick's film creations is an abiding interest in science and human psychology.

Customer Reviews:

A Book that Disney Fans should not live without!.......2007-10-03

"Disney A to Z" is an awesome book that a true Disney fan cannot live without. It is a great book that will help you find out about old Disney movies, that you might have not seen. "Disney A to Z" encyclopedia is also an essential source for those that love to play the "Disney Seen it" board game. It gives a short description of ALL Disney movies including the short ones that came out after the World War II. I LOVE IT!!!

Great source of infomation!.......2007-05-12

This book is a great resource for all Disney fans. All the characters, all the movies (unfortunately, the Mephisto movie made in collaboration with Salvador Dali is not in the book) and all the attractions, parks, properties and influentials employees are mentioned. Maybe just not as exhaustive as I would like it; it is, however, a great resource.

Great Gift.......2007-03-15

This is a great gift for any Disney fan. Many listing bring back great memories and coll trivia.

Disney A to Z.......2007-01-29

Great source for references to Disney films, characters and much more.

Great resource!.......2007-01-17

This is a wonderful resource for a one-stop look at "all things Disney." However, be forewarned that this book does have its mistakes and is not completely thorough, so don't expect something exhaustive...but this is pretty close to it. Descriptions tend to bounce back and forth between incredibly descriptive to incredibly nondescriptive. A tv show that lasted literally only a month will sometimes have a much longer description than a park attraction that had been up for years. There are other mistakes that veteran Disney lovers will also note. For example, the encyclopedia lists "Pecos Bills" eatery (Frontierland) in Disney World as serving some Mexican fare. However, that is incorrect...the Mexican fare is served at "El Pirata y El Perico" eatery (Adventureland), but this eatery is not even listed in the book at all. The two do share an outside dining area. It lists "Caribbean Plaza" (home to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride) in Disney World as "near Adventureland", when it's actually a part of Adventureland and borders Frontierland. Those are just a couple of examples of little mistakes throughout the book. That said, it is a wonderful compilation of everything Disney and is a great gift for any Disney lover!

Average customer rating:

Outstanding, but an update is overdue!
OK if you ignore obsolecence
Must have for Star Trek fans
Good, but...
In desperate need of review!!

The Star Trek Encyclopedia
Michael Okuda , Denise Okuda , and Debbie Mirek
Manufacturer: Star Trek
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0671536095

Amazon.com

This new version of the Star Trek Encyclopedia is a reissue of the 1997 edition, plus a 128-page supplement of additional material that updates Deep Space Nine to the end of its run and Voyager to midway through season five. It also covers the movie Star Trek: Insurrection. The supplement is as meticulously detailed as the rest of the volume, listing such fascinating trivia as chadre kab (Seven of Nine's first meal), 'Kahless and Lukara' (a Klingon opera), and voraxna (a Cardassian poison), as well as all the new characters and species. Appendices include illustrations of starships, cast and crew listings, a historical timeline, and a bibliography. All photographs and illustrations (except for a few historical shots) are in color. The encyclopedia was devised in part to help production staff on the various Star Trek TV series to keep up with the ever-increasing level of detail generated by over 30 years of creative effort. It is an excellent reference volume and, whether you want to settle an argument or write a novel, this book will answer your questions. But beware: the extensive cross-referencing leads to curious time-distortion effects, in which the unwary reader, dipping in to settle a single query, encounters an irresistible urge to browse further, during which hours of normal time can pass in the wink of an eye. --Elizabeth Sourbut

Book Description

From 'audet IX to Zytchin III, this book covers it all. This is the ultimate reference book for all Star Trek fans!

Added to this edition are 128 new pages. This addendum highlights the latest episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine®, Star Trek: Voyager® and the newest feature film, Star Trek: Insurrection™.

The thousands of photos and hundreds of illustrations place the Star Trek universe at your fingertips. Planets and stars, weapons and ships, people and places are just part of the meticulous research and countless cross-reference that fill this book.

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding, but an update is overdue!.......2007-06-17

I bought this book in 2003, and it covered most of the bases then, but only the movies through 1998 ("Insurrection" IIRC; "Nemesis" is not covered.), and the 5th season of Voyager. It just covered the last season of DS9. And of course it has none of the "Enterprise" series.

There have also been events such as the Paramount auction of all the series and movie paraphernalia since then, and that could be a chapter all by itself.

I came on Amazon today expecting to see a new and updated version for sale, and was disappointed that the old edition is still all that's available.

Michael and Denise Okuda know everything there is to know about ST, and are the perfect people to update this. If I were shopping today for the first time I would say wait for the new edition, but buy a used paperback 1999 just to see what it's all about.

Keeping my fingers crossed that someone sees the demand for an updated version!

OK if you ignore obsolecence.......2007-04-19

Nothing on the end of Voyager's Delta Quadrant wanderings? Nothing on Enterprise's backstory additions and newly-created anachronisms? Both this book and the related Star Trek Chronology need serious revamping. I appreciate the Okuda's insider Trekker style, but this reeks of willful blindness!

Must have for Star Trek fans.......2007-03-04

The COMPLETE encyclopedia of Star Trek info. A must for those fans who want to ensure an exhaustive Star Trek knowledge base.

Good, but..........2007-02-08

Hi! I am from Italy. I have bought "Star Trek Encyclopedia" and I like it very much, but this book stops at 1999: it is not updated whith last Voyager's seasons (fifth, sixth and seventh), the whole Enterprise's cycle and "Star Trek: Nemesis".

In desperate need of review!!.......2006-10-03

1999? It's 2006!! Come on, folks!! Excellent book that needs an update!!

Keys to the Rain: The Definitive Bob Dylan Encyclopedia

Average customer rating:

Entertaining, informative, but not definitive yet
Less Than Definitive
If you appreciate (or are interested in) Mr. Dylan's art...
A more 'definitive' encyclopedic guide
Great Reference Material

Keys to the Rain: The Definitive Bob Dylan Encyclopedia
Oliver Trager
Manufacturer: Billboard Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0823079740

Book Description

The most encyclopedic sourcebook on one of the 20th century's most important artists, Keys to the Rain: The Definitive Bob Dylan Encyclopedia completely chronicles this music icon's recorded work. Discussions of all of his officially released albums and collaborative efforts, including year of release, record company, serial number information for all formats (LP, CD, and cassette), track list, musicians, and descriptive analysis of its place in Dylan's career are provided. In addition, it offers critical and historically detailed entries on each of the songs that Dylan has recorded or performed in more than four decades of touring, including composer information, and the album on which the song appeared. Completing this reference are detailed biographical sketches of more than 100 musicians, songwriters, and other individuals associated with Dylan, and a selected list of films in which he has been involved.

Customer Reviews:

Entertaining, informative, but not definitive yet.......2005-08-31

Oliver Trager's "Keys To The Rain" is far from the "definitive" Bob Dylan Encyclopedia. As another reader notes, there are errors including some he didn't mention that I'll add here: The original September 1974 New York recording of "If You See Her, Say Hello," re-recorded in Minneapolis for its release on "Blood On The Tracks," was not included on "Biograph" (Trager may be confusing it with "You're A Big Girl Now"), but on "The Bootleg Series, Volume 1-3." Trager also claims Dylan's 1984 "Real Live" failed to make the charts. Not so. It failed to make the top 100, but it did have a brief, albeit dim, blaze of glory in the Billboard Top 200. There are other errors, most of them fairly minor, but their cumulative effect makes one question Trager's reliability too often.

Despite the faults, this is still an entertaining and informative read with lots of background on the recordings and, more significantly, the songs, including those that Dylan only performed in concert. Yes, it is reasonable to argue that it wasn't necessary to provide two pages on the careers of Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini simply because Dylan covered their legendary "Moon River" at a handful of concerts (and if other sources are correct, Dylan only performed it once upon hearing of the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan). But I find these facts to be the main appeal of Trager's book. There are similar biographical details provided for everyone from Mel Tillis (whose "Detroit City" is another hit and run cover from the Never Ending Tour) and Charles Gates Dawes, vice president to Calvin Coolidge and co-author of "It's All In The Game," another chestnut Dylan dug out two decades ago in concert. And, of course, there are pages on less surprising figures, including Woody Guthrie, Blind Willie McTell, Johnny Cash, and Leonard Cohen. The result is that this book is almost a mini-history of popular music as much as it is about Dylan, but I find it contributes to a greater appreciation for Dylan's impressive range of musical styles and influences. On the other hand, a ridiculous amount of space is given to a biography of Catfish Hunter, the baseball player who was the subject of the most inconsequential outtake from the 1976 "Desire" album.

Trager's unpretentious style is refreshing, though, especially in contrast to those who write about Dylan and his songs as though the man was already dead and buried instead of alive, kicking, and as brilliant as ever.

Hopefully, Trager or someone at the publisher's office will pay attention to the complaints provided by the readers, and eliminate the errors in future editions. With a little work, Trager's book may one day live up to its title. It's still worthwhile overall, but Clinton Heylin would have gotten more of the facts straight.

Brian W. Fairbanks

Less Than Definitive.......2005-04-01

Keys to the Rain is undoubtedly a valuable guide to Bob Dylan's recorded output. The book is well-researched and written in a straightforward, accessible style.
Unfortuntately, the book has numerous flaws that make it an often frustrating read. The factual errors include the following: the author states that The Basement Tapes' version of "Million Dollar Bash" is "notable for Dylan's use of the harmonica" when there is no harmonica on the track; the version of "Spanish Is the Loving Tongue" that appeared as the B-side single of "Watching the River Flow" is not the same version that was released on the Dylan lp; "Step It Up and Go" is from the album Good As I Been to You, not World Gone Wrong; and "Down Along the Cove" is erroneously listed as being included on The Band's re-release of Rock of Ages.
Numerous errors in dates dot the book. There is a wonderful photo of Dylan and two youngsters (page 602) that is dated 1966 but comes from much earlier (either 1962 or 1963).
There is one particularly egregious misquotation of Dylan's words, as the phrase "Truth is shadowy" in the World Gone Wrong liner notes becomes "Truth is a shadow" in the book, which changes the phrase's meaning.
Trager writes in the introduction that "unreleased outtakes" and "unreleased material from The Basement Tapes are not included." Yet he includes songs never released by Dylan but recorded and released by other artists (which the author should have explained in the too-brief introduction). There really is no reason for Trager not to have included these songs, since he includes all songs Dylan has played in concert (both original songs and cover versions), and he includes unnecessarily long biographies of the authors of said covers. So the reader gets pages and pages on songwriters such as Sammy Cahn, Merle Travis, Lefty Frizzell and Donnie Fritts (to name a few), but nothing on such great unreleased Dylan songs as "I'm Not There," All-American Boy," "Goodbye Holly" and "Yonder Comes Sin." The author says that "these omissions were made for reasons of space," but surely he could have cut back on his discussion of other artists in a Bob Dylan encyclopedia and made room for all of Dylan's original songs, officially released or not. Nor is there anything on great covers recorded by Dylan in the studio but not released (such as "Freedom for the Stallion"). Including these songs would then have truly earned the book the title of definitive.

If you appreciate (or are interested in) Mr. Dylan's art..........2005-01-06

I've got Trager's 1997 book--The American Book of the Dead: The Definitive Grateful Dead Encyclopedia--and have plucked it off my shelf numerous times. I'll be doing the same with his latest effort, this Dylan encyclopedia. It is interesting that with all the Dylan books out there, it took until 2004 for something like this to appear. For the hardcore aficionado, this will be similar to Krogsgaard's Positively Bob Dylan and Heylin's Stolen Moments (as far as its usefulness), but to the casual observer it's a chance to get to know the songs Dylan has chosen to record and perform--not to mention biographical info. Photos throughout, and enough details in its 700-plus pages to keep one busy throughout 2005 (and 2006 and 2007, etc.) It's not dry either, I'd say Trager has a fondness and apprecation for the music.

Scott Marshall
author of Restless Pilgrim: The Spiritual Journey of Bob Dylan (with Marcia Ford, Relevant Books, 2002)

A more 'definitive' encyclopedic guide .......2005-01-04

Another Bob Dylan book? Yes, and what makes Keys To The Rain: The Definitive Bob Dylan Encyclopedia a more 'definitive' encyclopedic guide than others is its descriptions of all 44 of his officially released albums including collaborative efforts, entries on over 700 songs he's recorded or performed over the length of his career, and biographical sketches of all musicians, songwriters and others associated with any of his projects, including film. And if that isn't enough... entries include track lists, musician lists, critical analysis, serial number info for all formats including cassette, and background history. It doesn't get any better - or more 'definitive' - than this.

Great Reference Material.......2004-10-15

Absolute must for all those who consider rock and roll "art", and Dylan the ultimate "artist" of the genre. A quick glance will provide such useful info that "Blonde on Blonde" was recorded in Nashville, using primarily studio musicians. Consider that the next time you listen to "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands", and its haunting refrain. Only problem is that in a few years it will be out of date. Sadly, a compilation of Dylan's work will only be complete when Dylan retires which, gratefully, he shows no signs of doing anytime soon.

American Sideshow: An Encyclopedia of History's Most Wondrous and Curiously Strange Performers

Average customer rating:

Go ahead and STARE!
Good book
Absolutely Fabulous & Entertaining!
American Sideshow
Compelling encyclopedia of fascinating people, more context would have been great

American Sideshow: An Encyclopedia of History's Most Wondrous and Curiously Strange Performers
Marc Hartzman
Manufacturer: Tarcher
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1585424412

Book Description

A fascinating look into the history of the American sideshow and its performers. Learn what's real, what's fake, and what's just downright bizarre.

You've probably heard of Tom Thumb. The Elephant Man. Chang and Eng, the original Siamese twins. But what about Eli Bowen, the legless acrobat? Myrtle Corbin, the four-legged woman? Or Prince Randian, the human torso? All these and more were stars during the heyday of the American sideshow, from 1840 to 1950. American Sideshow chronicles the lives of truly amazing performers, examining these brave and extraordinary curiosities, not just as sideshow attractions, but as people, delving into the lives they led and how they were able to triumph over their abnormalities.

American Sideshow discusses the rise and fall of the original sideshows and their subsequent replacement by today's self-made freaks. With the progress of modern medicine, the physical abnormalities are disappearing, either through treatment or prevention; and, ironically, those same technological advancements now make it possible to change our bodies at will. It's amazing how easy it is to have your tongue forked, horns surgically implanted, or your earlobes removed. There are also modern-day giants, fire-eaters, fire-breathers, sword-swallowers, glass-eaters, human blockheads, and, oh, so much more.

These fascinating personalities are celebrated through intimate biographies paired with stunning photographs. Approximately 200 performers from the past 160 years are featured, giving readers a comprehensive and sometimes astonishing view of the history of the American sideshow.

Customer Reviews:

Go ahead and STARE!.......2007-08-28

In the Old days the "freaks" didn't have the talk show circuit, they had very few options given to them to make money. If you were born deformed you could either shut yourself up in your house, or join the circus. Back then there wasn't any political correctness, if you had giant growths on your face you were "the ugliest woman", if you weighed over 400 pounds you were the "jolliest fattest person alive" It was all about exploiting your abnormalities to the fullest. It is human nature to be curious about those among us that are different, even shocking in appearance. We try not to stare in public, so when these shows came around it was our opportunity to get an eyeful and not feel guilty. Many times these performers were sold as children by their parents, because it was good money and it got rid of the burden the sideshows became permanent homes for the "orphans". These days disorders and diseases like gigantism, Ichthyosis (alligator skin), even conjoined twins have treatments or solutions for recovery. A lot of the thalidomide babies are grown up and have moved onto normal lives, dwarfism has its own community and they want to be seen as more than an oddity.
This book gives us a rare insight to all the people, big or small, who put themselves on display for entertainment purposes. It's laid out in a certain timeline, with each performer getting a mini biography and a picture; it was fascinating to learn about their origins and what happened to them after the sideshow life. I thought it was interesting that men who were cross dressers were billed as hermaphrodites dressing up one half man one half women, and males who had parasitic twins were made to have that "twin" a female no matter what. Many owners hyped up their performers, blatantly lying to the public to give them more of an exotic feel. Two albino black men with dreadlocks were Albanian goat men. Even a famous "Chinese" dwarf, was rumored to be a Jewish guy dressed up.
The book is really informative; I was glued to it for days. The only thing I have to complain about has nothing to do with the book itself, but rather the state of "sideshows" today. Now it's mostly about "Human Marvels" or "self made freaks" and less about physical deformities. The Modern section was FULL of tattooed, sword swallowing, pierced, bug eaters. To me that's just not entertaining, if you go and choose to become a "freak" I really don't care about seeing you. I went and saw the Jim Rose Circus when it came through town in the early 90's, and I wasn't impressed by what I saw.

Good book.......2007-06-17

There were some good information and some pictures in this book, however, I felt they covered so many performers that there wasn't enough information about those who were covered. Still a good read.

Absolutely Fabulous & Entertaining!.......2007-05-25

"The dazzling real lives of the bearded ladies, the dog faced boys, the camel girl, the lobster boy, the frog boy, the lizard man and all the other strange carnival and sideshow performers."

American Sideshow.......2006-10-10

Great sideshow book!

This book covers more performers and has more photos than any of my
other sideshow books. Hartzman shows us who these performers are, not
just as freaks, but as people. He gets into their lives, their loves,
and their triumphs. Light humor and a casual style make the book very
readable and enjoyable. Turn to any page and you'll read something
amazing - something to tell people at work about the next day.

I read another reviewer's comment below who said Hartzman stated
too many sideshow claims as fact, but he clearly stated in the
beginning of the book that giants' and midgets' heights, fat peoples'
weights, and other "facts" were often exaggerated. This way he didn't
have to say it every time he mentions a height or weight, which
would've gotten repetitive. This reviewer also wished he cited his
sources, which he clearly did in his bibliography.

Get this book! It's American history at its most fascinating.

Compelling encyclopedia of fascinating people, more context would have been great.......2006-07-11

This book makes fascinating reading. It's mainly done in an encyclopedia style, with entries for many, many people who chose to exhibit their unusual features or talents. The author obviously feel strongly that they have a right to do so, and shows much caring and respect for them. I really liked how he followed their lives all the way through if he could find the information, so they were presented as people and not just shows.

However, I would have really liked a little more context with the listing---more information about sideshows in general and more perspective on the listings. I did like the sidebars here and there, but it would have been great to read more about life in general for all the performers--what it was like to travel with a sideshow, what the people watching the shows acted like, etc.

I also found the humor inserted in almost every listing a little forced, and not in keeping with the general respectful tone of the book. There were lots of little puns and silly jokes, which didn't add much and were a distraction.

I found the last section of the book, about present day shows and performers, to not really fit with the rest of the book. These performers almost all just do odd and bizarre things, as opposed to having odd and bizarre things thrust upon them. I think it's a very different thing to CHOOSE to be odd and bizarre as opposed to making the best of a life where you already are.

It sounds like I liked this book much less than I did. I really did find it an interesting and caring survey of a group of people political correctness often prefers not to talk about. It's ironic that this same attitude probably keeps many people on public assistance, instead of making them extremely rich as many of these performers became!

Vaudeville, Old and New: An Encyclopedia of Variety Performers in America, 2 volumes

Average customer rating:

A Lifetime of Research on Vaudeville -
A Trans-Atlantic view
Outstanding vaudeville history
The Best Vaudeville Book Ever
Vaudeville - Brought Back to Life

Vaudeville, Old and New: An Encyclopedia of Variety Performers in America, 2 volumes
Frank Cullen , Florence Hackman , and Donald McNeilly
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 0415938538

Book Description

This is a one-of-a-kind reference work to the history of vaudeville, performance art, burlesque, revue, and comic opera. Author Frank Cullen has done deep research, including archival work and personal interviews, to uncover the rich history of this American art form. Most of the artists profiled here are not examined in other reference books. This will be a must-have for students of theater history and performance art, and also for anyone interested in the cultural history of America.

Customer Reviews:

A Lifetime of Research on Vaudeville -.......2007-04-05

This is from my review published in "In The Groove" Magazine - April 2007
Frank Cullen LOVES Vaudeville in all it's forms, whether it's the baggy pants comics of burlesque, the "specialty acts" like strongman or eccentric dancers who graced the stages of New York and around the circuits in the 1920s, or the singers who went on to make some of the most popular records of their day. This passion is obvious in the recent publication of the huge two-volume 1300-page compilation Vaudeville Old & New: An Encyclopedia of Variety Performers in America (Routledge). Now in his 70s, Cullen saw his first Laurel & Hardy film at the age of nine and was hooked. (Yes, Laurel and Hardy both appeared on the vaudeville stage early in their careers and Cullen devotes six pages to them.). He started reading and watching and listening in his high school years and had a brief acting career as well. In the mid-1980s he formed the American Vaudeville Museum in CT and began publishing the quarterly Vaudeville Times (which I mentioned here last year). Now relocated to New Mexico, Cullen has put his energies into this fascinating book. The peak years for "Vaudeville" were 1905-1925, with over 2,000 theaters around the US. As many as 50,000 performers were in the business during that period. Obviously, not all are in the book but a good mix of the known and the "lesser known" are here. Record collectors will recognize many of them. There are the recording Bakers (Belle, Josephine and Phil) as well as the Smiths (Mamie, Bessie and Kate). Other recording artists covered in much detail include, Eddie Cantor, Sissle & Blake and Moran & Mack. The performers are listed alphabetical from A (Abbott a& Costello) to Z (Zetts Weekly, a rival to Variety, published in 1921). There are sections devoted to each of the "circuits" and the impresarios as well. Photos of the performers and sheet music covers are on many pages. In fact, you'll find a lot of performers who you've only known from sheet music covers. The very handy Bibliography and a 30-page Index, make the book even more useful. Whether you start from the beginning and read it straight through, or use to look up an artist you found on a recording, you'll find this book a great resource. It's a tribute to the hard work and passion of the author. Highly recommended!

Steve Ramm "Anything Phonographic"

A Trans-Atlantic view.......2006-12-01

All that you could ever want to know about vaudeville is contained in a monumental two-volume work, Vaudeville Old and New: an Encyclopedia of Variety Performers. It surpasses anything previously written about the American equivalent of British music hall and will stand as the major reference work on the subject for many years to come.

Given its scope, there are entries about entertainers whose names will mean nothing to the average British reader. But that is more than offset by the comprehensiveness the authors bring to all they touch. It is fascinating, for instance, to get an American take on British artistes who became big stars in the U.S., the likes of Vesta Victoria and Alice Lloyd. We learn more about such top-liners as Al Jolson and Danny Kaye and find the answers to all manner of questions. What was so special about Fanny Brice? What brought Sid Caesar's career to a halt? And who knew that the distinguished commentator, Walter Winchell, started out in vaudeville?

The books' essays about burlesque and music hall are as good as you'll likely to get and the fine writing evinces some deft and delicate touches: a description of Beatrice Lillie, for instance, is as "a treasured English tea-rose with thorns" is spot on. The "new" in the title is no false promise. The encyclopedia is bang up-to-date with entries on Britain's Chris Simmons, for example.

The extensive knowledge and deep love of vaudeville by the author, Frank Cullen [working with Florence Hackman and Donald McNeilly], shine through in each of these tomes' 1,300 magnificent pages.

Richard Anthony Baker

Outstanding vaudeville history.......2006-11-19

A monumental and definitive encyclopadia by an outstanding theater historian. This tome is everything you wanted to know about vaudeville and its performers. It is destined to become the bible for historians and researchers of early American popular theater.

Frank Cullen's knowledge and articulation of the facts of vaudeville, old and new, is a welcome and needed addition to a genre sadly overlooked by the public. Vaudeville was America's first national pasttime and laid the foundation for the world of entertainment in our contenporary culture.

Nicely laid out, easy to read, ample photographs and humor make the two-volume set a must for libraries, archives and theater buffs, or anyone who has an interest in American social history.

The Best Vaudeville Book Ever.......2006-11-10

Frank Cullen, longtime publisher and head writer of the Vaudeville Times magazine, has finally published his 2 volume biographical encyclopedia of vaudeville. For those who don't know, vaudeville was the main form of live entertainment in America from 1880 to 1930 and it continued even as late at the 1960s. This book carefully catalogues who was who in vaudeville, tells the major reason they became famous or were important, and offers biographies and descriptions of everything connected with the subject.
Along with the work of Professor Anthony Slide, these tomes by Frank Cullen constitute the most important documentation of this major form of American popular culture. Vaudeville is rapidly being forgotten today as its participants die off and younger audiences cannot even recognize the term. Cullen's work honors the performers and offers invaluable insights into what the experience was like.
The book is well written and, like vaudeville itself, immensely entertaining, whether you are reading about familiar stars such as Al Jolson or the completely forgotten ones such as the great Eddie Leonard. There is nothing to complain about in this effort-- if you want to know all about vaudeville, this is the magnum opus. It is lavishly illustrated and has about it that aura of love and care that comes when a writer is totally engrossed in his subject matter and approaches it with honesty, integrity and admiration.
Of course I have to tell you that I am biased because I'm in the book. I once was in "the show business" in vaudeville and there are only a few of us still alive who made it into the Cullen opus. But those of us who are left can assure you, dear reader, that all those vaudevillians who are encapsulated within would be proud of this book. It costs a good bit but it's got everything you need to know about a subject that once was close to the hearts of so many Americans. What's really fun is watching old movies on Turner, admiring the work of stars such as Eddie Cantor, Ruth Etting, or Trixie Friganza, and then keeping these volumes by your bed to look up the bios! Of course at my age that passes for high adventure! So, thanks, Frank, and good night Mrs. Calabash, wherever you are. If you know the meaning of that last phrase you'll love this book. If you don't you should read it anyway.

Vaudeville - Brought Back to Life.......2006-10-25

This massive two volume work is without a doubt the greatest tribute to vaudeville and its performers ever written. It brings back to life an important aspect of show business that has almost been forgotten.

In this book you relive the lives and stories of a group of hard working entertainers, many of whom went on to give birth to the motion pictures, radio, and television industries. Most of the stars of the years between 1925 and 1960 got their start in vaudeville.

You won't read this book in one night, but it could provide a thousand nights of some of the greatest entertainment you've ever experienced.

If you love show business and all of it's aspects, then you will absolutely love this masterful work. It may just be what is needed to help resurrect the spirit of a long deceased tradition.

The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Daytime TV but Didn't Know Where to Look! from American Bandstand, As the World Turns, and Bugs Bunny, to

Average customer rating:

Very well done
Great
Great book for TV buffs....higly recommended

The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Daytime TV but Didn't Know Where to Look! from American Bandstand, As the World Turns, and Bugs Bunny, to
Wesley Hyatt
Manufacturer: Billboard Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0823083152

Customer Reviews:

Very well done.......2004-05-11

For a book that covers so many disparate types of daytime programs (game shows, soap operas, sports, cartoons and kids' shows, and so on), the volume is remarkably accurate, well-written and heavily researched. You'd think the author was an expert on every genre. Maybe he is, but more likely, he just cared enough to get everything right. How refreshing.

Great.......1999-01-11

This is the must have reference for all you TV buffs. Very interesting reading, not just a boring refernce guide. I read it cover to cover.

Great book for TV buffs....higly recommended.......1998-01-14

found the book to be very thorough, reads well. Loved reading about the creation of these great daytime tv shows there casts and from the time they aired to the time they were cancelled

Average customer rating:

Essential jazz reference book
Jazz Reference

The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 019532000X

Amazon.com Reviews

The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz series was Leonard Feather's franchise for decades, providing fans with large-format books that featured photos of jazzers and short bios detailing their background and recordings. When Feather passed away in 1994, though, his editorial partner Ira Gitler was left with the task of completing this new edition, then four years in development. It's much different from Feather's earlier volumes--The Encyclopedia of Jazz in the 60s, for example--opting for an all-text coverage and a standard-size hardcover, emphasizing perhaps the book's inarguable value as a reference. For historical purposes, the book is vastly important, giving extremely concise rundowns of musicians' lives--so concise, in fact, that most multisyllabic words are abbreviated. For contemporary players, though, especially Europeans, the volume is spotty. Trumpeter Joe Morris, who wrote "Punch & Judy" and played throughout the 1940s and '50s with Johnny Griffin, Elmo Hope, and others is certainly important. But what of the living Joe Morris, who's not a mainstream player but who nonetheless possesses amazing skills that reach at least as far as his predecessor? And while trumpet virtuoso Michael Philip Mossman is here, where is John Zorn? This isn't nitpicking on the mainstream so much as it is recognizing that books like Jazz: The Rough Guide have stepped up to address the skimpy coverage of living, thriving musicians.

Having said all that, it's vital to note Gitler and Feather's strengths: they've canvassed the past thoroughly, reaching to Italy to include reed dynamo Gianluigi Trovesi and pianist Giorgio Gaslini (but not trumpeter Pino Minafra or saxophonist Carlo Actis Dato). They've also caught key players from the early 20th century and from the peak bebop and hard bop eras, as well as the 1970s, when the avant-garde and fusion reigned in an oddly shaped jazz world. But these biographies were always Feather's and Gitler's strengths, making earlier by-decade editions of the Encyclopedia so important. --Andrew Bartlett

Book Description

Do you want to know when Duke Ellington was king of The Cotton Club? Have you ever wondered how old Miles Davis was when he got his first trumpet? From birth dates to gig dates and from recordings to television specials, Leonard Feather and Ira Gitler have left no stone unturned in their quest for accurate, detailed information on the careers of 3.300 jazz musicians from around the world. We learn that Duke Ellington worked his magic at The Cotton Club from 1927 to 1931, and that on Miles Davis's thirteenth birthday, his father gave him his first trumpet. Jazz is fast moving, and this edition clearly and concisely maps out an often dizzying web of professional associations. We find, for instance, that when Miles Davis was a St. Louis teenager he encountered Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie for the first time. This meeting proved fateful, and by 1945 a nineteen-year-old Davis had left Juilliard to play with Parker on 52nd Street. Knowledge of these professional alliances, along with the countless others chronicled in this book, are central to tracing the development of significant jazz movements, such as the "cool jazz" that became one of Miles Davis's hallmarks. Arranged alphabetically according to last name, each entry of this book chronologically lists the highlights of every jazz musician's career. Highly accessible and vigorously researched, The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz is, quite simply, the most comprehensive jazz encyclopedia available.

Customer Reviews:

Essential jazz reference book.......2005-03-25

Back in the mid-1960s, as a high schooler just discovering jazz, I found a copy of Feather's "Encyclopedia of Jazz (1960)"; it was a revelation and fostered my enthusiasm and knowledge of the music and musicians. I still have it. But this completely new book is just as good, if not better. It contains brief biographical entries on 3,300 musicians covering all eras, styles, and genres under the wide umbrella of jazz. The entries, though concise, are thorough and trace each musician's career and recorded output. It should be on every jazz fan's shelf. Highly recommended.

Jazz Reference.......2000-03-28

As a librarian, I can't begin to explain the value of this volume for use by students and other patrons wanting concise but informative biographical information on jazz musicians -- a very popular topic for school reports.

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