[Read by Keith Szarabajka] For the centennial of his birth, the defining wunderkind of modern entertainment gets his due in a groundbreaking new biography of his early years -- from his first forays in theater and radio to the inspiration and making of Citizen Kane. In the history of American popular culture, there is no more dramatic story, no swifter or loftier ascent to the pinnacle of success, and no more tragic downfall than that of Orson Welles. In this magisterial biography, Patrick McGilligan brings young Orson into focus as never before. He chronicles Welles' early life growing up in Wisconsin and Illinois, as the son of an alcoholic industrialist and a radical suffragist and classical musician, and the magical early years of his career, including his marriages and affairs, his influential friendships, and his artistic collaborations. The tales of his youthful achievements were so colorful and improbable that Welles, with his air of mischief, was often thought to have made them up. Now after years of intensive research, McGilligan sorts out fact from fiction and reveals untold, fully documented anecdotes of Welles' first exploits and triumphs, from starring as a teenager on the Gate Theatre stage in Dublin and bullfighting in Seville, to his time in the New York theater and his fraught partnership with John Houseman in the Mercury Theatre, and to his arrival in Hollywood and the making of Citizen Kane. Filled with intriguing new insights and startling revelations -- including the surprising true origin and meaning of ''Rosebud'' -- Young Orson is a fascinating look at the creative development and influences that shaped this legendary artistic genius.

Describes Nicholson's childhood in seaside New Jersey, his formative years as an actor and screenwriter in Hollywood, his almost accidental breakthrough, his work in such films as 'Chinatown' and 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest,' and his private life

An examination of the renowned director not only looks at the great volume of Lang's work, but also at his personal life, including the question of whether or not he murdered his first wife

Relates the life of the secretly gay Hollywood director who guided to stardom such legendary actresses as Garbo, Bergman, Garland, and Hepburn

A very special oral history offers an instructive and moving chronicle of the Hollywood blacklist, showing how McCarthyism and fear deeply affected people's lives, as more than thirty survivors share their long-supressed stories. Reprint.

Product Description: Award-winningfilm historian Patrick McGilligan follows hisacclaimed biographies of Alfred Hitchcock and Oscar Micheauxwith a revelatory look at the life of Nicholas Ray, the troubled director of Ina Lonely Place, We Can’t GoHome Again, and Rebel Without a Cause...read more

A portrait of the filmmaker traces his career and numerous works, noting his role in the establishment of industry standards and the characteristics most associated with his persona, while offering insight into his private, professional, and family life.

Product Description: Del spaghetti western al cine de autor. La primera gran biografía del polifacético cineasta integral norteamericano. Aunque es uno de los rostros más conocidos de nuestra...

Traces the life and career of a pioneering director from the genre of African-American cinema, discussing his childhood in the homesteading communities of South Dakota, his direction of numerous silent and sound films at a time before black-produced movies could be shown in white theaters, and his lesser-known influence on American black culture. 25,000 first printing.

Continuing Patrick McGilligan's highly acclaimed series on Hollywood screenwriters, these engrossing, informative, provocative interviews give wonderfully detailed and personal stories from veteran screenwriters of the seventies and eighties focusing on their craft, their lives, and their profession. Backstory 4 is a riveting insider's look at how movies get made; a rich perspective on many of the great movies, directors, and actors of the seventies and eighties; and an articulate, forthright commentary on the art and the business of screenwriting.The screenwriters interviewed for this volume include well-known Oscar winners as well as cult filmmakers, important writers who were also distinguished directors, and key practitioners of every commercial genre. These writers have worked with Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen, Peter Bogdanovich, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Altman, Clint Eastwood, and other film giants of the so-called New Hollywood. The stories of their collaborations—some divine, some disastrous—provide some of the most fascinating material in this volume. They also discuss topics including how they got started writing screenplays, their working routines, their professional relationships, their influences, and the work of other major writers and directors.Backstory 4 features interviews with Robert Benton, Larry Cohen, Blake Edwards, Walter Hill, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Lawrence Kasdan, Elmore Leonard, Paul Mazursky, Nancy Meyers, John Milius, Frederic Raphael, Alvin Sargent, and Donald E. Westlake.

Product Description: Madrid. 2005. T y B. 24x17. 703p.

Product Description: A fresh and definitive portrait of the Master of Suspense by acclaimed biographer Patrick McGilligan Full of fresh revelations, dark humour and cliff hanging suspense, this new biography of Alfred Hitchcock follows his life from its humble beginnings, as the son of an East End greengrocer, through an extraordinary career in which his films set new standards for cinematic invention, to his death as a Hollywood legend in Beverley Hills...read more

A collection of interviews with many great figures of Hollywood's Golden Era from a respected Hollywood biographer offers revealing insights into such directors as Hitchcock and George Stevens and stars including Ida Lupino and future President Ronald Reagan. Reprint. 10,000 first printing. (view table of contents)

A no-holds-barred biography that squelches Clint Eastwood's Hollywood image reveals him to be an artist, compulsive egotist and habitual womanizer as drawn from court documents, studio archives, and unpublished manuscripts as well as interiews with family, friends, and associates.

The acclaimed chronicler of Jack Nicholson and Robert Altman takes on another Hollywood legend, peeling back the mystery surrounding Clint Eastwood to reveal a rebel with a clear vision of human existence. 20,000 first printing.

Product Description: Screenwriter Robert Riskin (1897-1955) was a towering figure even among the giants of Hollywood's Golden Age. Known for his unique blend of humor and romance, wisecracking and idealism, Riskin teamed with director Frank Capra to produce some of his most memorable films...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)