Shawn Levy Knihy

Paul Newman se zapsal do historie filmu jako jedna z největších hollywoodských legend. Shawn Levy ve své knize sleduje Newmanovu cestu od divadelních začátků až po vrchol, kde spolupracoval s hvězdami jako Elizabeth Taylorová a Robert Redford, a získal řadu oscarových nominací. Kromě úspěchů se kniha nezdráhá přiblížit i temnější stránky života tohoto modrookého lamače srdcí. Newman, oscarový herec známý svými charismatickými a zlomenými postavami ve filmech jako Biliárový král a Butch Cassidy a Sundance Kid, byl raritou v Hollywoodu – herec, který točil kasovní trháky a zároveň se věnoval charitě dlouho předtím, než se to stalo módou. Narodil se v rodině úspěšného podnikatele, vyrostl na předměstí Clevelandu a místo rodinného byznysu se rozhodl pro herectví. Po počátečních obtížích mu tragická náhoda přinesla roli boxera Rockyho Graziana. Newman, člen původní generace Actors Studia, se vždy snažil o vysokou profesionalitu. Kromě herectví se aktivně angažoval v otázkách občanských práv a nukleárního zbrojení. V automobilovém sportu se stal nejstarším jezdcem, který vyhrál velký profesionální závod, a založil značku Newman’s Own, jejíž zisky věnoval na dobročinné účely. Levy nabízí jedinečný pohled na Newmanův život, jeho lásku k Joanne Woodwardové a tragédii, která zasáhla jeho rodinu. Je to fascinující portrét muže, který se stal jednou z nejoslavenějších hvězd dvacátého století.

When Shawn Levy had the notion to write a poem each day for a year, inspired by the obituary pages of The New York Times, he had no way of knowing that the year in question, 2016, would claim so many of the world's most iconic figures. His project became, in effect, a vehicle for surveying the breadth of the twentieth century: Titans from all fields of endeavor, lives that contained one quirky but insoluble achievement, and people who had special significance in his own life. From Nancy Reagan to Muhammad Ali, David Bowie to Arnold Palmer, Prince to Janet Reno, Antonin Scalia to Mary Tyler Moore, and including a Black Miss America, an obsessive weather reporter, the nurse famously kissed by a sailor on VJ Day, the man who put the '@' in your email address, and the last man to walk on the moon, the lives recollected in these one hundred poems provoke compassion, sorrow, outrage, surprise, nostalgia, even laughter.

A portrait of the film icon offers insights into his early years and family background, drawing on interviews with friends and colleagues to trace his artistic evolution and the apparent disconnect between his real and on-screen personalities

Today, women dominate standup comedy, making headlines and filling arenas, but the path to this prominence was paved by a remarkable group of trailblazers. Before the likes of Amy Schumer and Tiffany Haddish, the notion of a female comedian was often seen as a joke. This narrative chronicles the journeys of unforgettable women who shattered barriers in standup, spanning decades from Moms Mabley's rise in Black vaudeville to the bold performances of Belle Barth and Rusty Warren in the mid-20th century. It highlights Elaine May's role in co-inventing improv, alongside Joan Rivers and Phyllis Diller's fierce climb to stardom. These women defied expectations and faced skepticism from agents, audiences, and even their families. Despite the challenges, they challenged the stereotype that women couldn't be funny, creating opportunities for future generations. Meticulously researched and vividly portrayed, this account celebrates the women who transformed the comedy landscape, redefining womanhood and proving that humor knows no gender. It illustrates how they broke into a male-dominated field, paving the way for those who followed and ensuring their laughter echoed through the ages.

The intoxicating story of Hollywood, as seen from the suites and bungalows of its most iconic hotel

A biography of the 'Rat Pack' - Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop, this is the brilliant story of their rise and fall, and their connections with the Kennedys and the Mafia.

First biography of The Rat Pack -- Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop et al -- the original Swingers. Brilliant and beautifully written story of their rise and fall, and their connections with the Kennedys and the Mafia, which will appeal to fans of Swingers!, Goodfellas and Nick Tosches' Dino. They alit in Las Vegas for a month to make a movie and play a historic nightclub gig they called the Summit; they hit Miami, the Utah desert, Palm Springs, Chicago, Atlantic City, Beverly Hills, Hollywood back lots, illegal gambling dens, saloons, yachts, private jets, the White House itself. It was sauce and vinegar and eau de cologne and sour mash whiskey and gin and smoke and perfume and silk and neon and skinny lapels and tail fins and rockets to the sky. It was swinging and sighing and being a sharpie, it was cutting a figure and digging a scene. while and Joey Bishop when they asked him and Jack Kennedy and Sam Giancana and tables full of cronies and who knew how many broads. It was the ultimate spasm of traditional showbiz -- both the last and the most of its kind. It was the Rat Pack. It was beautiful. Rat Pack Confidential -- you're never far from a cocktail, a swingin' affair and a fist-fight.