A collection of Rogers' writings and observations includes selections from his weekly articles and previously unpublished excerpts from his notes and correspondence
In this definitive biography, Cynthia Brideson and Sara Brideson offer a comprehensive look at both the life and legacy of Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. Drawing on a wide range of sources, they provide a lively and well-rounded account of Ziegfeld as a father, a husband, a son, a friend, a lover, and an alternately ruthless and benevolent employer. Lavishly illustrated, this is an intimate and in-depth portrait of a figure who profoundly changed American entertainment.
Of the many books written about Will Rogers, none can have the immediacy, firsthand knowledge, and personal perspective of this account by his wife, Betty Blake Rogers. Her story is of Will Rogers, from wayward youth to international celebrity. Will was born in 1879 in the Cherokee nation of Indian Territory, near what is now Oologah, and died in 1935 with Wiley Post in an airplane crash in Alaska. The period witnessed the passing of the frontier and the arrival of the air age, and Will Rogers became a unique part and interpreter of it all. "The book offers a ’unique insight’ into the Oklahoma cowboy who became a worldwide celebrity. Betty Rogers understood Will as no one else could, and her book amplifies the importance of a homegrown philosopher who captured the spirit of the American experience. Cowboy, showman, homespun pundit-Will left his mark in many ways, each of which is carefully developed in the book’s twenty-two chapters. Most notable, however, is Mrs. Rogers’s treatment of her husband’s character. Behind the facade lay a complex man who, despite his lack of formal education, had a grasp of modern psychology and world politics. Equally at home with cowboys and presidents, Will accepted both as human beings engaged in the larger arena of life, whether in the wide open spaces of Oklahoma or the confines of Washington....For those who would know Will Rogers in a familiar way, there is no better book than this reprint." Arizona and the West. "The best of all the books on the best of all the homespun philosophers as seen through the eyes of his wife." Midwest Book Review. "Folksy, detailed and loving, it offers a timeless glimpse at a real American hero of his time-and ours." American Way.
Autobiography of a Ziegfeld Follies star, an copartner of Arthur Murray Dance Studios, a quarter horse ranch owner in Oklahoma, and at age 88, the recipient of a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oklahoma.
It's New York, 1952. Welcome to Broadway, the glamour and power capital of the universe. J.J. Hunsecker rules it all with his daily gossip column in the New York Globe, syndicated to sixty million readers across America. J.J. has the goods on everyone, from the president to the latest starlet. And everyone feeds J.J. scandal, from J. Edgar Hoover and Senator Joe McCarthy down to a battalion of hungry press agents who attach their news to a client that J.J. might plug. When a young press agent, S
This book reveals how Fields became a character comedian while performing in Broadway’s most illustrious revue, the Ziegfeld Follies. As the first biography to use the recently opened Fields Papers at the Motion Picture Academy, the book explores how Fields years as a Follies entertainer portraying a beleaguered husband and a captivating conman became a landmark turning point in his career, leading to his fame as a masterful film comedian. The book also untangles a web of mysteries about Fields’s turbulent private life, from the heartrending stories about the tragic relationship with his calculating wife who refused to divorce him, to his estranged son controlled by his mother, to the seven-year extra-marital affair with a chorus girl that led to the birth of an unwanted child. This electrifying saga illuminates a complex dual personality, whirling from tenderness to brusqueness, who endured so much anguish in order to bring the gift of laughter to millions. Although vilified by Ziegfeld and assailed by demons, Fields survived the cutthroat rigors of Broadway show biz to become a legendary American iconoclast and cultural icon.
Will Rogers was America. Part Cherokee Indian and former cowboy, he captivated audiences around the world with sparkling gems of wisdom cloaked in gentle and uproarious country wit and astonishing rope tricks. His colorful life recently inspired a commercially successful and critically acclaimed Broadway musical -- winner of 6 Tony Awards. His words are as entertaining, inspiring and revelant today as they ever were. A simple, plain-spoken man, he was the voice of a nation during the '20s and '30s. Movie star, vaudeville headliner, radio commentator, his views and observations were syndicated daily and weekly in over 600 newspapers across the country. Here is the essential Will Rogers -- the story of his remarkable career, from Oklahoma "cowpuncher" to international star . . . and the warm, knowing and hilarious philosophies of the man embodied the heart and soul of the nation.
Any girl who twists her hat will be fired! – Florenz Ziegfeld And no Ziegfeld girl ever did as she made her way down the gala stairways of the Ziegfeld Follies in some of the most astonishing spectacles the American theatergoing public ever witnessed. When Florenz Ziegfeld started in theater, it was flea circus, operetta and sideshow all rolled into one. When he left it, the glamorous world of "show-biz" had been created. Though many know him as the man who "glorified the American girl," his first real star attraction was the bodybuilder Eugen Sandow, who flexed his muscles and thrilled the society matrons who came backstage to squeeze his biceps. His lesson learned with Sandow, Ziegfeld went on to present Anna Held, the naughty French sensation, who became the first Mrs. Ziegfeld. He was one of the first impresarios to mix headliners of different ethnic backgrounds, and literally the earliest proponent of mixed-race casting. The stars he showcased and, in some cases, created have become legends: Billie Burke (who also became his wife), elfin Marilyn Miller, cowboy Will Rogers, Bert Williams, W. C. Fields, Eddie Cantor and, last but not least, neighborhood diva Fanny Brice. A man of voracious sexual appetites when it came to beautiful women, Ziegfeld knew what he wanted and what others would want as well. From that passion, the Ziegfeld Girl was born. Elaborately bejeweled, they wore little more than a smile as they glided through eye-popping tableaux that were the highlight of the Follies, presented almost every year from 1907 to 1931. Ziegfeld's reputation and power, however, went beyond the stage of the Follies as he produced a number of other musicals, among them the ground-breaking Show Boat. In Ziegfeld: The Man Who Created Show Business, Ethan Mordden recreates the lost world of the Follies, a place of long-vanished beauty masterminded by one of the most inventive, ruthless, street-smart and exacting men ever to fill a theatre on the Great White Way : Florenz Ziegfeld.
"This biography recounts the early life of this superstar as well as her coronation on Broadway, her work in silent film, and her sexual liaisons. It also covers her eventual disappearance from public life, her alcoholism and her death, which went largely unnoticed. The book includes first-hand personal anecdotes and observations from recently discovered tapes"--Provided by publisher.