I really like Tony Curtis as an actor. Based on this book he was probably pretty fun to be around. But be warned, this is definitely a tell-all book. And he tells it in the gritty language he grew up with on the streets of New York. And the story is all Tony, all the time.

Tony covers his childhood and his escape from home into the Navy. Then his discovery of acting and being discovered as an actor and sent to Hollywood. There are the struggles of a new actor who is just a pretty face (with great hair), the success of being an actor who is perceived as just a pretty face, and the waning years of a had-been actor who still has a pretty face, but is too old for leading man roles. Throughout, he names names, the good and bad (in his mind).

All in all, I enjoyed listening to the book. Obviously, this is all from Tony's point of view. It would be interesting to hear the other side of some of these stories. I wished Tony himself would have read it, but at least the voice actor didn't try to sound like him. ( )

Tony Curtis was never one of my favorites, but the Golden Boy of the Golden Age had a life story that I wanted to read. He truly lived life, regardless of whether we agree with it or not. He started with a multitude of swashbuckling screen roles before expanding into some classics. He always had charm and that trait also comes across in his memoir.

I just couldn't get past his constant whining about not being taken seriously as an act-or. Good grief. Get over it. Cary Grant, Oliver Reed, Richard Burton, and Peter O'Toole never won Oscars, so Curtis's belief that he ranked with the best was a bit too much. He is certainly honest, though, even titling one of his chapters, "Cocaine". Now, that's why we buy celebrity autobiographies.


Book Season = Summer (on the beach) ( )

Curtis comes off as a conceited jerk. ( )

A thorough autobiography with a normal amount of self justification and perhaps more than a normal amount of honesty. Mr. Curtis seems to have been very frank without being mean, or cruel. He is very open about his life as a "move star", husband to multiple women, absent father to six children and friend to savory and unsavory people. It certainly was not an admirable life however he seems to have lived it with joy and enthusiasm for the most part while also feeling the pain and sadness of being human and part of a dysfunctional family and industry. ( )

Tony Curtis sits down with Golenbock to give us the inside story about his journey from the streets of New York to his rise to stardom. Although the layout of the book was a little disjointed and confusing, I tried not to get caught up in time line jumps. There are no real earth-shattering revelations; Curtis led a typical Hollywood life with the ups and downs we so often hear about in a star's career. I did enjoy all his personal stories, though, involving some of our great cultural icons of his heyday in the biz. Made me very nostalgic and took me back in time in my own personal life. Definitely a trip down that memory lane we so often hear about.

Interesting. ( )