The Gross: The Hits, the Flops: The Summer That Ate Hollywood


Peter Bart - 1999
    A backstage glimpse of the realities of the new Hollywood focuses on the film releases and strategies of the summer of 1998, showing why Godzilla was fated to fail and how Spielberg triumphed.

Annie Hall: Screenplay


Woody Allen - 1980
    One of a hand-picked selection of some of the most popular and cult-worthy titles on Faber and Faber's extensive list of film scripts.

Marilyn


Norman Mailer - 1973
    Mailer, the winner of two Pullitzer Prizes, was the first writer to explore the relationship between Monroe and Bobby Kennedy.

Alfred Hitchcock: A Life in Darkness and Light


Patrick McGilligan - 2003
    Acclaimed biographer Patrick McGilligan re-examines his life and extraordinary work, challenging perceptions of Hitchcock as the “macabre Englishman” and sexual obsessive, and reveals instead the ingenious craftsman, trickster, provocateur, and romantic.With insights into his relationships with Hollywood legends – such as Cary Grant, James Stewart, Ingrid Bergman, and Grace Kelly – as well as his 54-year marriage to Alma Reville and his inspirations in the thriller genre, the book is full of the same dark humor, cliffhanger suspense, and revelations that are synonymous with one of the most famous and misunderstood figures in cinema.

Shock Value: How a Few Eccentric Outsiders Gave Us Nightmares, Conquered Hollywood, and Invented Modern Horror


Jason Zinoman - 2011
     Much has been written about the storied New Hollywood of the 1970s, but at the same time as Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Francis Ford Coppola were making their first classic movies, a parallel universe of directors gave birth to the modern horror film-aggressive, raw, and utterly original. Based on unprecedented access to the genre's major players, The New York Times's critic Jason Zinoman's Shock Value delivers the first definitive account of horror's golden age. By the late 1960s, horror was stuck in the past, confined mostly to drive-in theaters and exploitation houses, and shunned by critics. Shock Value tells the unlikely story of how the much-disparaged horror film became an ambitious art form while also conquering the multiplex. Directors such as Wes Craven, Roman Polanski, John Carpenter, and Brian De Palma- counterculture types operating largely outside the confines of Hollywood-revolutionized the genre, exploding taboos and bringing a gritty aesthetic, confrontational style, and political edge to horror. Zinoman recounts how these directors produced such classics as Rosemary's Baby, Carrie, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Halloween, creating a template for horror that has been imitated relentlessly but whose originality has rarely been matched. This new kind of film dispensed with the old vampires and werewolves and instead assaulted audiences with portraits of serial killers, the dark side of suburbia, and a brand of nihilistic violence that had never been seen before. Shock Value tells the improbable stories behind the making of these movies, which were often directed by obsessive and insecure young men working on shoestring budgets, were funded by sketchy investors, and starred porn stars. But once The Exorcist became the highest grossing film in America, Hollywood took notice. The classic horror films of the 1970s have now spawned a billion-dollar industry, but they have also penetrated deep into the American consciousness. Quite literally, Zinoman reveals, these movies have taught us what to be afraid of. Drawing on interviews with hundreds of the most important artists in horror, Shock Value is an enthralling and personality-driven account of an overlooked but hugely influential golden age in American film.

Still So Excited!: My Life as a Pointer Sister


Ruth Pointer - 2016
    When overnight success came to the Pointer Sisters in 1973, they all thought it was the answer to their long-held prayers. While it may have served as an introduction to the good life, it also was an introduction to the high life of limos, champagne, white glove treatment, and mountains of cocaine that were the norm in the high-flying '70s and '80s. Ruth Pointer’s devastating addictions took her to the brink of death in 1984. Ruth Pointer has bounced back to live a drug- and alcohol-free life for the past 30 years and she shares how in her first biography. Readers will learn about the Pointer Sisters’ humble beginnings, musical apprenticeship, stratospheric success, miraculous comeback, and the melodic sound that captured the hearts of millions of music fans. They will also come to understand the five most important elements in Ruth’s story: faith, family, fortitude, fame, and forgiveness.

Burning Man: Art on Fire


Jennifer Raiser - 2014
    This vastly inhospitable location, called the playa, is the site of Burning Man, where, within a 9-mile fence, artists called Burners create a temporary city devoted to art and participation. Braving extreme elements, over two hundred wildly ambitious works of art are created and intended to delight, provoke, involve, or amaze. In 2013, over 68,000 people attended – the highest number ever allowed on the playa. As Burning Man has created new context, new categories of art have emerged since its inception, including Art to Ride, Collaborative Art, Art for Social Change, and of course, Art to Burn.The Art of Burning Man is an authorized collection of the best of Burning Man art from 1986 through today. Experience the amazing sculptures, art, stories, and interviews from the world’s greatest gathering of artists. Get lost in a rich gallery of images showcasing the best examples of playa art with over 200 photos. Interviews with the artists reveal not only their motivation to create art specifically for Burning Man, but they also illuminate the dramatic efforts it took to create their pieces. Featuring the incredible photography of long-time Burning Man photographers, Sidney Erthal and Scott London, an introduction from Burning Man founder Larry Harvey, and a preface from artist Leo Villareal, this stunning gift book allows Burners and enthusiasts alike to have a piece of Burning Man with them all year around.

Audrey Style


Pamela Clarke Keogh - 1999
    She was Gigi, a princess, Holly Golightly, a nun, Maid Marian, even an angel. And we believed her in every role. But Audrey Hepburn was also one of the most admired and emulated women of the twentieth century, who encouraged women to discover and highlight their own strength. By example, she not only changed the way women dress--she forever altered the way they viewed themselves.But Audrey Hepburn's beauty was more than skin deep. "You know the Audrey you saw onscreen? Audrey was like that in real life, only a million times better," says designer Jeffrey Banks. For the first time, this style biography reveals the details--fashion and otherwise--that contributed so greatly to Audrey's appeal. Drawing on original interviews with Hubert de Givenchy, Gregory Peck, Nancy Reagan, Doris Brynner, and Audrey Wilder, as well as reminiscences of professional friends like Steven Spielberg, Ralph Lauren, noted Hollywood photographer Bob Willoughby, Steven Meisel, and Kevyn Aucoin, Audrey Style brings the Audrey her family and friends loved to life.With more than ninety color and black-and-white photographs, many of which have never before been published, and original designer sketches from Edith Head, Hubert de Givenchy, Vera Wang, Manolo Blahnik, Alexander McQueen, and others, Audrey Style gives measure to the grace, humor, intelligence, generosity, and inimitable fashion sense that was Audrey Hepburn.

Pulp Fiction


Dana Polan - 2000
    He shows how broad Tarantino's points of reference are, and analyzes the narrative accomplishment and complexity. In addition, Polan argues that macho attitudes celebrated in film are much more complex than they seem.

Flicker


Theodore Roszak - 1991
    Jonathan Gates could not have anticipated that his student studies would lead him to uncover the secret history of the movies—a tale of intrigue, deception, and death that stretches back to the 14th century. But he succumbs to what will be a lifelong obsession with the mysterious Max Castle, a nearly forgotten genius of the silent screen who later became the greatest director of horror films, only to vanish in the 1940s, at the height of his talent. Now, 20 years later, as Jonathan seeks the truth behind Castle's disappearance, the innocent entertainments of his youth—the sexy sirens, the screwball comedies, the high romance—take on a sinister appearance. His tortured quest takes him from Hollywood's Poverty Row into the shadowy lore of ancient religious heresies. He encounters a cast of exotic characters, including Orson Welles and John Huston, who teach him that there's more to film than meets the eye, and journeys through the dark side of nostalgia, where the Three Stooges and Shirley Temple join company with an alien god whose purposes are anything but entertainment.

Jean-Luc Godard: Interviews


David Sterritt - 1998
    He has pursued his revolution in works ranging from the explosive Breathless to the eloquent Contempt to the controversial Hail Mary and the postmodern Histoire(s) du cinema, shaking up conventional formulas with boldly innovative approaches to every aspect of cinema and video - including film criticism via provocative essays in Cahiers du Cinema and interviews dating to the early years of his career. This book presents a varied selection of his conversations with critics, scholars, and journalists, spanning the 1960s to the 1990s and illuminating key facets of his life work and ideas.

Gilliamesque: A Pre-posthumous Memoir


Terry Gilliam - 2015
    and London, Terry Gilliam’s life has been as vivid, entertaining and unorthodox as one of his films.Telling his story for the first time, the director of Time Bandits, Brazil, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, The Fisher King, 12 Monkeys, and Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas—not to mention co-founder of Monty Python’s Flying Circus—recalls his life so far. Packed with never-before-seen artwork, photographs and commentary, Gilliamesque blends the visual and the verbal with scabrous wit and fascinating insight.Gilliam’s “pre-posthumous memoir” also features a cast of amazing supporting characters—George Harrison, Robin Williams, Jeff Bridges, Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt, Uma Thurman, Johnny Depp, Heath Ledger and all of the fellow Pythons—as well as cameo appearances from some of the heaviest cultural hitters of modern times, from Woody Allen to Frank Zappa, Gloria Steinem to Robert Crumb, Richard Nixon to Hunter S. Thompson. Gilliam’s encounters with the great and the not-so-good are revealing, funny, and hugely entertaining.This book is an unrestrained look into a unique creative mind and an incomparable portrait of late twentieth-century popular culture.

The Morning Star 3-Volume Boxed Set


Nick Bantock - 2004
    Both longtime fans and new readers will be thrilled to see the series in an exquisite boxed edition. The Morning Star trilogy (The Gryphon, Alexandria, and The Morning Star) is now available in a stunning red slipcase-a handsome complement to the Griffin & Sabine 3-Volume Boxed Set. A fantastic gift for lovers of art, mystery, and romance, here is an essential purchase for both new and tried-and-true Nick Bantock fans everywhere.Author Biography: Nick Bantock is the author of the Griffin & Sabine saga: Griffin & Sabine, Sabine's Notebook, The Golden Mean, The Gryphon, Alexandria, and The Morning Star. His numerous other books include, The Artful Dodger, a visual autobiography. Born in England, he now lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The Filmmaker Says: Quotes, Quips, and Words of Wisdom


Jamie Thompson Stern - 2013
    But the drama they project on screen is only half the picture. Stretching back from its earliest days of two-reel silent films to the latest 3-D digital blockbusters, film history provides a cast of characters ready to spill witty bon mots, outrageous pronouncements, and heartfelt reflections. The Filmmaker Says is a colorful compendium of quotations from more than one hundred of history's most influential and opinionated creators of filmed entertainment. Paired like guests at the ultimate filmgeek dinner party—a celebrated filmmaker of today might sit next to a giant from the silent era—the members of this raucous crew puts on a show arguing, complimenting, and disagreeing with each other about every step of the moviemaking process. A perfect gift for working filmmakers, aspiring auteurs, and avid moviegoers, The Filmmaker Says will delight anyone who has dreamed of yelling "action" or just can't wait for the lights to go down and the curtain to go up.

Fear: The Autobiography of Dario Argento


Dario Argento - 2014
    For many years Argento's ground-breaking shockers like Deep Red, Suspiria, Inferno and Opera meant box-office gold. Now the maverick auteur, lauded as the Italian Hitchcock and the Horror Fellini, has written his autobiography, revealing all about his fascinating life, his dark obsessions, his talented family, his perverse dreams, and his star-crossed work.With candour and honesty, Fear lifts the lid on Argento's glittering career, from his childhood mixing with glamorous Italian movie stars to his start in the fledgling field of cinema criticism, Argento shares compelling anecdotes about his life growing up in La Dolce Vita Rome. Born into a family that breathed cinema, as a child Dario Argento was a voracious devourer of books and films. Bored by school so much that he fled to Paris, the young Dario felt at ease only in the darkness of a cinema - where he found fertile soil in which his solitary nature and overflowing imagination could flourish.But it was his experience as a journalist that led to his life-changing encounter with Sergio Leone, for whom he and Bernardo Bertolucci wrote the script for Once Upon a Time in the West. Meanwhile, the mind of the future director developed a desire as ambitious as it was magnificent: to make a film in a new style, distinct from all others. Channelling the films of Hitchcock, Lang and Antonioni triggered a wealth of ideas that changed the history of cinema.His first film came out in 1970 - The Bird with the Crystal Plumage. In no time at all the name of Dario Argento was known across the globe. And soon enough a series of classic films including Deep Red and Suspiria saw the light of the projector beam. Dario Argento is a maverick auteur who captured his personal demons on celluloid.At last, his fascinating life story can be told: his passions, his loves, his fears. In his autobiography, alongside the tale of an inspirational film director making his mark on the world, one glimpses the anxieties of a driven but shy man, in love with cinema and life itself. Adapted from the Italian translation and illustrated with rare photographs, the award-winning and critically acclaimed Master of Terror tells all. So put on your black leather gloves and start turning the pages of Fear for the answer to every question you've ever wanted to ask about the weird and wonderful world of Dario Argento.