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Film, television and performing arts

  • Auteur:
    Gadsby, Hannah
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    The memoir from Australia's much-loved comedian, Hannah Gadsby, whose stand-up show and self-described swan-song, Nanette, played to sold-out houses in Australia, the UK and the US. Its launch on Netflix, and subsequent Emmy and Peabody wins, took Nanette (and Hannah) to the world. 'There is nothing stronger than a broken woman who has rebuilt herself.' Hannah Gadsby, Nanette Multi-awardwinning Hannah Gadsby transformed comedy with her show Nanette, even as she declared that she was quitting stand-up. Now, she takes us through the defining moments in her life that led to the creation of Nanette and her powerful decision to tell the truth -- no matter the cost. Gadsby's unique stand-up special Nanette was a viral success that left audiences captivated by her blistering honesty and her ability to create both tension and laughter in a single moment. But while her worldwide fame might have looked like an overnight sensation, her path from open mic to the global stage was hard-fought and anything but linear. Ten Steps to Nanette traces Gadsby's growth as a queer person from Tasmania-where homosexuality was illegal until 1997-to her ever-evolving relationship with comedy, to her struggle with adult diagnoses of autism and ADHD, and finally to the backbone of Nanette - the renouncement of self-deprecation, the rejection of misogyny, and the moral significance of truth-telling. Equal parts harrowing and hilarious, Ten Steps to Nanette continues Gadsby's tradition of confounding expectations and norms, properly introducing us to one of the most explosive, formative voices of our time. "Hannah is a Promethean force, a revolutionary talent ... This hilarious, touching, and sometimes tragic book is all about where her fires were lit." EMMA THOMPSON 'Gadsby wields her craft like a weapon, lancing out the trauma and forcing us to look at it.' THE GUARDIAN 'As uproariously funny as it is profoundly furious.' NEW YORKER on Nanette 'The laughs of her show are a means to an end, which is, at its core, a ferocious attack on comedy itself.' NEW YORK TIMES 'Nanette is the kind of work that leaves you shaken. Not because it's really funny (it really is), or because it's equally heartbreaking, but because it finds a fusion of those two modes that's incandescent.' THE ATLANTIC

  • Auteur:
    Tucci, Stanley
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    INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER From award-winning actor and food obsessive Stanley Tucci comes an intimate and charming memoir of life in and out of the kitchen. Stanley Tucci grew up in an Italian American family that spent every night around the kitchen table. He shared the magic of those meals with us in The Tucci Cookbook and The Tucci Table , and now he takes us beyond the savory recipes and into the compelling stories behind them.​ Taste is a reflection on the intersection of food and life, filled with anecdotes about his growing up in Westchester, New York; preparing for and shooting the foodie films Big Night and Julie & Julia ; falling in love over dinner; and teaming up with his wife to create meals for a multitude of children. Each morsel of this gastronomic journey through good times and bad, five-star meals and burned dishes, is as heartfelt and delicious as the last. Written with Stanley's signature wry humor, Taste is for fans of Bill Buford, Gabrielle Hamilton, and Ruth Reichl-and anyone who knows the power of a home-cooked meal.

  • Auteur:
    Weissmuller Jr., Johnny, Reed, William, Reed, W. Craig
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    A portrait of the most beloved Tarzan and a tale of Hollywood at its legendary peak. An authoritative insight into the life of the man most film fans consider the one and only Tarzan--Olympic swimming champion Johnny Weissmuller--this book offers an intimate look at Weissmuller's early life, middle years, and later decline, through swimming training, Olympic triumphs, failed marriages, a Hollywood life as Tarzan of the Apes, and subsequent career as Jungle Jim. Written by his only son, this biography is a sensitive yet unsentimental portrayal of the man who was Tarzan to movie fans around the world. Johnny Junior's inside perspective on his father's life and career includes interviews with his father's celebrity friends and former wives, recollections of conversations with his father over the years, and family stories involving international icons such as Humphrey Bogart, Errol Flynn, Robert Mitchum, Joe Louis, and many others. There are surprises in the text and many photos from'private collections that have never before been printed or seen by the general public.

  • Auteur:
    Mercer, Rick
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    Canada's beloved comic genius tells his own story for the first time.

    What is Rick Mercer going to do now? That was the question on everyone's lips when the beloved comedian retired his hugely successful TV show after 15 seasons—and at the peak of its popularity. The answer came not long after, when he roared back in a new role as stand-up-comedian, playing to sold-out houses wherever he appeared.

    And then Covid-19 struck. And his legions of fans began asking again: What is Rick Mercer going to do now? Well, for one thing, he's been writing a comic masterpiece. For the first time, this most private of public figures has turned the spotlight on himself, in a memoir that's as revealing as it is hilarious. In riveting anecdotal style, Rick charts his rise from highly unpromising schoolboy ("Rick still owes 15 dollars to the chocolate bar fundraiser" was one of the less brutal items on a typical report) to heights of TV fame, by way of an amazing break as a teenager when his one-man show, "Show Me the Button, I'll Push It. Or, Charles Lynch Must Die," became an overnight sensation—thanks in part to a bizarre ambush by its target, Charles Lynch himself. That's one story you won't soon forget, and this book is full of them.

    There's the tale of how little Rick stole a tree from the neighbours that's set to become a new Christmas classic. There's Rick the aspiring actor—hitting the road as a new young punk in a vanload of hippies and appearing on stage in Shakespeare—and a wealth of behind-scenes revelations about This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Made in Canada, Talking to Americans and the coming of the mega-hit Rick Mercer Report.

    It's a life so packed with incident and laughter we can only hope that a future answer to "What is Rick Mercer going to do now?" is: "Write volume two."

  • Auteur:
    Deprince, Elaine
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    Michaela DePrince was known as girl no. 27 at the orphanage, where she was abandoned at a young age and tormented as a "devil child" for a skin condition that makes her skin appear spotted. But it was at the orphanage that Michaela would find a picture of a beautiful ballerina en pointe that would help change the course of her life. At the age of four, Michaela was adopted by an American family, who encouraged her love of dancing and enrolled her in classes. She went on to study at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at the American Ballet Theatre and now dances for the Dutch National Ballet. In this engaging, moving, and unforgettable memoir, Michaela shares her dramatic journey from an orphan in West Africa to becoming one of ballet's most exciting rising stars.

  • Auteur:
    Wheeler, Anne
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    Laced with humour and revelation, Anne Wheeler's creative non-fiction stories tell of her serendipitous journey in the seventies, when she broke with tradition and found her own way to becoming a filmmaker and raconteur. Join this celebrated screenwriter and director as she travels south of Mombasa after calling off her wedding; attempts to gain acceptance in a male-dominated film collective; travels to India to visit friends who are devoted to a radical Master, and ultimately discovers her sense of purpose and passion close to home, sharing stories that would otherwise be lost about ordinary people living extraordinary lives. Taken by the Muse: On the Path to Becoming a Filmmaker is a must-read for anyone open to exploring the possibilities of who they are and what they might do with their lives - and for those who love a good story told with integrity and warmth.

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    Selected episodes from the classic radio program.

  • Auteur:
    Margulies, Julianna
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    As an apple-cheeked bubbly child, Julianna was bestowed with the family nickname “Sunshine Girl”. Shuttled back and forth between her divorced parents, often on different continents, she quickly learned how to be of value to her eccentric mother and her absent father. Raised in fairly unconventional ways in various homes in Paris, England, New York, and New Hampshire, Julianna found that her role among the surrounding turmoil and uncertainty was to comfort those around her, seeking organization among the disorder, making her way in the world as a young adult and eventually an award-winning actress. Throughout, there were complicated relationships, difficult choices, and overwhelming rejections. But there were also the moments where fate, faith, and talent aligned, leading to the unforgettable roles of a lifetime, both professionally and personally - moments when chaos had finally turned to calm. Filled with intimate stories and revelatory moments, Sunshine Girl is at once unflinchingly honest and perceptive. It is a riveting self-portrait of a woman whose resilience in the face of turmoil will leave listeners intrigued and inspired.

  • Auteur:
    Miller, Josh
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    "Stuck! is a practical guide based on years of industry experience that helps screenwriters understand the core of their story and how to bring it alive on the page. Through analysis and description of the elements of screenwriting craft--supported by examples from classic and modern films--both emerging and experienced screenwriters will be able to identify the spine of their narrative and decide what to keep and what to discard as they get themselves unstuck once again."--

  • Auteur:
    Wheaton, Wil
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    Wil Wheaton reveals how he has charted a career course unlike anyone else and has emerged as one of the most popular and well respected names in science fiction, fantasy, and pop culture.

  • Auteur:
    Laurie, Greg
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    Join Greg Laurie as he takes a cross-country drive in his 1968 Highland Green Ford Mustang 390 GT through the canyons of Malibu, the alleys of Hollywood, the wide and open roads of the Midwest, the streets of New York, as he traces the wooly geography of actor Steve McQueen's life, relationships, career and spiritual journey. This iconic muscle car was the vehicle McQueen drove in his most raucous and enduring film, Bullitt. In the 1960s, McQueen was, according to box office receipts, the biggest movie star of his generation and one of the coolest men to ever walk the planet. Greg Laurie was a teen at the time and an ardent fan of ''The King of Cool,'' first mesmerized by McQueen in 1963's The Great Escape. Like millions of cinema fans, Greg developed a lifelong fascination with the actor. Now he has a chance to tell McQueen's story. McQueen was a complex, contradictory man who lived the same way he drove his motorcycles and cars: fearlessly, ruthlessly and at top speed. After a lifetime of fast cars, women and drugs, McQueen took a surprising detour. In this book, Laurie thoughtfully interviews members of Steve McQueen's family, friends, co-stars, associates, widow and pastor to tell of the dramatic life-change for the actor in the spring of 1979 - six months before McQueen was diagnosed with terminal cancer. What were the critical steps that led McQueen to make such a life-altering decision? Perhaps more importantly, why is that part of his story so rarely told? This book answers these questions. Greg Laurie will follow the seeds of Christianity that were sown throughout McQueen's improbable life where a Light finally shone into the darkness of his troubled life. These seeds miraculously germinated, allowing McQueen to see that redemption through Jesus Christ is a lasting truth more glittering and real than any magic of the entertainment industry.

  • Auteur:
    Bernstein, Jay, Hamm, Larry Cortez, Rubini, David
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    His women were tens, his guns were .38s, and his collection of jewel-encrusted walking canes numbered in the hundreds. For nearly 50 years, Jay Bernstein was a Hollywood fixture, owning one of the most powerful PR firms in Hollywood, making stars of Farrah Fawcett and Suzanne Somers, and producing dozens of television films and series.

    Future Hollywood insider Jay Bernstein was born outside — way outside — Tinseltown, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on June 7, 1937. But Bernstein, helped by his pals the Rat Pack, eventually found his way from the mailrooms of Hollywood to owning a top agency that represented over 600 A-List stars in the ’60s and ’70s. Bernstein’s creative PR stunts made him as famous as his clients, such as paying women to throw hotel keys at Tom Jones and having Entertainment Tonight host Mary Hart’s legs insured by Lloyd’s of London for one million dollars.

    Bernstein died, with Farrah Fawcett by his side, in 2006 after suffering a stroke. Starmaker is Bernstein’s own behind-the-scenes look at his life — the life of an outrageous Hollywood personality, and the stars who surrounded him. It is a true Hollywood memoir, written in Bernstein’s voice by his closest confidante Larry Cortez Hamm.

  • Auteur:
    Foster, Charles
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    "You’ll like Louis Mayer," Mary Pickford told Charles Foster in 1943. "He is from Canada, too." As Foster was soon to discover, Mayer was not alone: a great many of those who helped shape Hollywood into the movie capital of the world were Canadian. Stardust and Shadows brings together the stories of 18 Canadians who were celebrities during Hollywood’s formative years. Most of those profiled were known to Foster, and stories they told him about Hollywood’s early days, enhanced by many years of research and interviews with other living performers and directors from the silent movie era, reveal a never-before-seen look at what the movie industry was really like in those early days. This is Canadian history that has never been told, and many of the startling stories and secrets of Hollywood’s past are revealed here for the first time. Celebrities profiled: May Irwin, Al and Charles Christie, Joe and Sam De Grasse, Marie Dressler, Allan Dwan, Florence La Badie, Florence Lawrence, Del Lord, Louis B. Mayer, Sidney Olcott, Jack Pickford, Mary Pickford, Marie Prevost, Mack Sennett, Douglas Shearer, Norma Shearer.

  • Auteur:
    White, Jerry
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    This is a collection of writings by the giant of experimental cinema, Stan Brakhage, that shows him in a completely new light, as part of world cinema. For the duration of the 1980s, Brakhage contributed to the Boulder literary magazine Rolling Stock, mostly publishing reports from the Telluride Film Festival. These reports show that Brakhage was keenly interested in world cinema, anxious to meet and dialogue with filmmakers of many different stripes. The book also contains substantial discussion of Brakhage's work in light of the filmmakers he encountered at Telluride and discussed in Rolling Stock. Long chapters are given over to Soviet filmmakers such as Andrei Tarkovsky, Larissa Shepitko, and Sergei Parajanov, as well as the German filmmaker Hans-Jürgen Syberberg. Brakhage was a keen viewer of these filmmakers and their contemporaries, both at Telluride and in his role as teacher at the University of Colorado, and Stan Brakhage and Rolling Stock attempts to place his work alongside theirs and thus reclaim him for world cinema. The book's appendices reprint letters Brakhage wrote to Stella Pence (Telluride's co-founder and managing director), as well as summaries of his work for Telluride and a brace of difficult-to-find reviews.

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    The island of Newfoundland is home to much music of Celtic tradition, but this whimsical program celebrates the unexpected—a local flamenco company attracting enthusiastic crowds to its music and dance performances. In the historic city of St John's, we meet the members of El Viento Flamenco, including a striking singer taking Spanish lessons to try to fulfil his potential, and a dancer who draws on the power of flamenco tradition to help overcome personal challenges.

  • Auteur:
    Crouse, Richard
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    Fans of offbeat cinema, discriminating renters and collectors, and movie buffs will drool over this checklist of the best overlooked and underappreciated films of the last 100 years. In Son of the 100 Best Movies You’ve Never Seen, Richard Crouse, Canada AM film critic and host of television’s award-winning Reel to Real, presents a follow-up to his 2003 book with another 100 of his favorite films.

    Titles range from the obscure, like 1912’s The Cameraman’s Revenge, to El Topo’s unusual existential remake of the classic western, and little-seen classics like The Killing. Each essay features a detailed description of plot, notable trivia tidbits, critical reviews, and interviews with actors and filmmakers. Featured interviews include Billy Bob Thornton on an inspirational movie about a man with his head in the clouds, Francis Ford Coppola on One from the Heart, and Mario Van Peebles on playing his own father in Badasssss!

    Sidebars feature quirky details, including legal disclaimers and memorable quotes, along with movie picks from A-list actors and directors.

  • Auteur:
    Purdum, Todd S.
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    A revelatory portrait of the creative partnership that transformed musical theater and provided the soundtrack to the American Century They stand at the apex of the great age of songwriting, the creators of the classic Broadway musicals Oklahoma! , Carousel , South Pacific , The King and I , and The Sound of Music , whose songs have never lost their popularity or emotional power. Even before they joined forces, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II had written dozens of Broadway shows, but together they pioneered a new art form: the serious musical play. Their songs and dance numbers served to advance the drama and reveal character, a sharp break from the past and the template on which all future musicals would be built. Though different in personality and often emotionally distant from each other, Rodgers and Hammerstein presented an unbroken front to the world and forged much more than a songwriting team; their partnership was also one of the most profitable and powerful entertainment businesses of their era. They were cultural powerhouses whose work came to define postwar America on stage, screen, television, and radio. But they also had their failures and flops, and more than once they feared they had lost their touch. Todd S. Purdum's portrait of these two men, their creative process, and their groundbreaking innovations will captivate lovers of musical theater, lovers of the classic American songbook, and lovers in general. He shows that what Rodgers and Hammerstein wrought was truly something wonderful.

  • Auteur:
    Meinzer, Kristen
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    A comprehensive step-by-step guide to creating a hit show, So You Want to Start a Podcast covers everything from hosting and guest booking to editing and marketing - while offering plenty of encouragement and insider stories along the way.Though they are the fastest-growing form of media, podcasts are actually difficult to create-and even harder to sustain. Few know the secrets of successfully creating a knockout podcast better than Kristen Meinzer. An award-winning commentator, producer, and former director of nonfiction programming for Slate's sister company, Panoply, Meinzer has also hosted three successful podcasts, reaching more than ten million listeners. Now, she shares her expertise, providing aspiring podcasters with crucial information and guidance to start their own audio forum. Meinzer believes that we each have a unique voice that deserves to be heard. But many of us may need some help transforming our ideas into reality. So You Want to Start a Podcast asks the tough questions to help budding podcasters define and achieve their goals, including: Why do you want to start a podcast' Think about specifically why you want to start a podcast versus a blog, zine, YouTube channel, Instagram feed, or other media outlet. Find out if a podcast is really the best way to tell your story. What is your show about? For any advertiser, corporate partner, or press outlet, you need a snappy pitch. How would you describe what you want to do in two to three sentences? Who is your podcast for? Who are you trying to reach? How will your content and tone appeal to those listeners? How is your show going to be structured? Create a step-by-step map planning the show out. Think about length, segments, interviews, advice, news reads, and other aspects of successful podcasts you can adapt for your own. With this motivational how-to guide-the only one on the subject available-you'll find the direction you need to produce an entertaining and informative podcast and promote it to the right audience. So You Want to Start a Podcast gives you the tools you need to start a podcast-and the insight to keep it thriving.

  • Auteur:
    Champniss, Kim Clarke
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    The true story of a legend of Canadian pop culture broadcasting and the way he got his start in the 1970s: working as a fur trader for the Hudson’s Bay Company in the Northwest Territories and then moving on to DJing in disco-era Vancouver. A true story of an adventurous pop-loving teenager who, in the early 1970s, went from London’s discotheques to the Canadian sub-arctic to work for the Hudson’s Bay Company. His job? Buying furs and helping run the trading post in the settlement of Arviat (then known as Eskimo Point), Northwest Territories (population: 750). That young man is Kim Clarke Champniss, who would later become a VJ on MuchMusic. His extraordinary adventures unfolded in a chain of On the Road experiences across Canada. His mind-boggling journey, from London to the far Canadian North and then to the spotlight, is the stuff of music and TV legends. Kim brings his incredible knowledge of music, pop culture, and the history of disco music, weaving them into this wild story of his exciting and uniquely crazy 1970s.

  • Auteur:
    Fleischman, Sid
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    Charlie Chaplin comes to life in this astonishing rags-to-riches saga of an irrepressible kid whose childhood was dealt from the bottom of the deck.

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