Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)




One of the most entertaining autobiographies ever., 12 Mar 1999
Gypse Rose Lee (nee Louise Hovick) had an incredible childhood, one that provided not only material for this wonderful book but the Broadway musical "Gypsy", later made into a classic film. She was the daughter of "Mama Rose", perhaps the most intense and certainly the most famous stage mother of all time. Gypsy spent her childhood in vaudeville, as a chorus "boy" in the act that starred her younger sister "Dainty June" (later June Havoc, Broadway star).

The book is written in a snappy, witty, anecdotal style, which is perfect for Lee's endless supply of anecdotes. Spending her childhood in an endless round of theaters, trains, cars, and cheap hotels, meeting an endless number of incredible characters. Actors, mountebanks, con artists, carnies, all seen through the eyes of a bright and observant child, and recounted by a witty adult with a talent for storytelling.

The book is deeply personal as well. This is THE classic ugly-duckling story as well as the quintessential book about vaudeville in its last days. Gypsy/Louise was very much the "other" child until she was fifteen, her little sister was blonde, pretty, talented, and The Star. While Dainty June was getting thousands a week as a vaudeville headliner Louse was ignored, used in the chorus and otherwise pretty much forgotten by her mother and everyone else. Even she wondered if she would ever by any good at anything, even though she was so bright that she educated herself fabulously with nothing more to work with than a little trunk space for books. Everything changed when June ran away to get married at age thirteen (a story told in her own book "Early Havoc", a good read) at the same time that vaudeville was dying out. It's here that Mama Rose revealed the depth of her obsession with stardom, trying to make her seemingly plain, talentless, and ungainly daughter a star in a medium that no longer existed. The truly amazing thing is that she succeeded, although not the way she intended.

All in all a fine read, a real-life comedy, the chronicle of a bygone era and vanished world, and the story of an ugly ducking becoming the most glamorous of swans.

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)




One of the most entertaining autobiographies ever., 12 Mar 1999
Gypse Rose Lee (nee Louise Hovick) had an incredible childhood, one that provided not only material for this wonderful book but the Broadway musical "Gypsy", later made into a classic film. She was the daughter of "Mama Rose", perhaps the most intense and certainly the most famous stage mother of all time. Gypsy spent her childhood in vaudeville, as a chorus "boy" in the act that starred her younger sister "Dainty June" (later June Havoc, Broadway star).

The book is written in a snappy, witty, anecdotal style, which is perfect for Lee's endless supply of anecdotes. Spending her childhood in an endless round of theaters, trains, cars, and cheap hotels, meeting an endless number of incredible characters. Actors, mountebanks, con artists, carnies, all seen through the eyes of a bright and observant child, and recounted by a witty adult with a talent for storytelling.

The book is deeply personal as well. This is THE classic ugly-duckling story as well as the quintessential book about vaudeville in its last days. Gypsy/Louise was very much the "other" child until she was fifteen, her little sister was blonde, pretty, talented, and The Star. While Dainty June was getting thousands a week as a vaudeville headliner Louse was ignored, used in the chorus and otherwise pretty much forgotten by her mother and everyone else. Even she wondered if she would ever by any good at anything, even though she was so bright that she educated herself fabulously with nothing more to work with than a little trunk space for books. Everything changed when June ran away to get married at age thirteen (a story told in her own book "Early Havoc", a good read) at the same time that vaudeville was dying out. It's here that Mama Rose revealed the depth of her obsession with stardom, trying to make her seemingly plain, talentless, and ungainly daughter a star in a medium that no longer existed. The truly amazing thing is that she succeeded, although not the way she intended.

All in all a fine read, a real-life comedy, the chronicle of a bygone era and vanished world, and the story of an ugly ducking becoming the most glamorous of swans.

Neither Hero Nor Villain, 15 Dec 1998
"All His Jazz" is compelling for the blow-by-blow account that it gives of Bob Fosse's unparalled career. It is probably one of the more comprehensive and insightful books about show business that has been written. The main problem with the book lies in his subject matter, which one would think would be untenable for a biography. Bob Fosse and those around him (with the exception of very few) come across as arrogant, self-centered, and certainly self-destructive. Hey, let's face it. Truth certainly can be stranger than fiction, but it kept me from really getting into the book on a personal level. I ended up angry more than sympathetic and incredulous more than intrigued. The other problem I had with the book is a noble one, but exposes the flaws all the same. There really are not enough photos to supplement the narrative. The only reason I say this is because so much attention is spent on the details of Fosse's career, that it is a shame there are so few photos representing his amazing stage career. We can all go rent the movies if we want to see what they are about, and it might not be a bad idea to watch "All That Jazz" (which, by the way, is one of my all time favorites) before picking up a copy of this book.

THE GREATEST BOOK ON EARTH!!, 09 Jul 1998
This book is one of , if not the, greatest books I have ever read. It reads so wonderfully. I read it in three days. It just flew off the pages. I can't give this book enough praise. FOSSE FANS READ THIS BOOK!!!!!

A fascinating biography of a remarkable artist, 24 Jun 1998
Martin Gottfried has done a superb job of illuminating Fosse's life and work; I cannot imagine a better biography. He shows a complete understanding of the issues that informed Fosse's creative genius and creates a fascinating narrative which intertwines his life and his work. I picked this book up after having seen and loved the revival of "CHICAGO" on Broadway and have been transfixed by the book. I am a great admirer of Fosse's film work as well -- most notably ALL THAT JAZZ -- and found Gottfried's behind the scenes accounts of the movies gripping. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for anyone who is interested in Fosse, choreography, or the development of an artist. I'd give it ten stars!

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)




One of the most entertaining autobiographies ever., 12 Mar 1999
Gypse Rose Lee (nee Louise Hovick) had an incredible childhood, one that provided not only material for this wonderful book but the Broadway musical "Gypsy", later made into a classic film. She was the daughter of "Mama Rose", perhaps the most intense and certainly the most famous stage mother of all time. Gypsy spent her childhood in vaudeville, as a chorus "boy" in the act that starred her younger sister "Dainty June" (later June Havoc, Broadway star).

The book is written in a snappy, witty, anecdotal style, which is perfect for Lee's endless supply of anecdotes. Spending her childhood in an endless round of theaters, trains, cars, and cheap hotels, meeting an endless number of incredible characters. Actors, mountebanks, con artists, carnies, all seen through the eyes of a bright and observant child, and recounted by a witty adult with a talent for storytelling.

The book is deeply personal as well. This is THE classic ugly-duckling story as well as the quintessential book about vaudeville in its last days. Gypsy/Louise was very much the "other" child until she was fifteen, her little sister was blonde, pretty, talented, and The Star. While Dainty June was getting thousands a week as a vaudeville headliner Louse was ignored, used in the chorus and otherwise pretty much forgotten by her mother and everyone else. Even she wondered if she would ever by any good at anything, even though she was so bright that she educated herself fabulously with nothing more to work with than a little trunk space for books. Everything changed when June ran away to get married at age thirteen (a story told in her own book "Early Havoc", a good read) at the same time that vaudeville was dying out. It's here that Mama Rose revealed the depth of her obsession with stardom, trying to make her seemingly plain, talentless, and ungainly daughter a star in a medium that no longer existed. The truly amazing thing is that she succeeded, although not the way she intended.

All in all a fine read, a real-life comedy, the chronicle of a bygone era and vanished world, and the story of an ugly ducking becoming the most glamorous of swans.

Neither Hero Nor Villain, 15 Dec 1998
"All His Jazz" is compelling for the blow-by-blow account that it gives of Bob Fosse's unparalled career. It is probably one of the more comprehensive and insightful books about show business that has been written. The main problem with the book lies in his subject matter, which one would think would be untenable for a biography. Bob Fosse and those around him (with the exception of very few) come across as arrogant, self-centered, and certainly self-destructive. Hey, let's face it. Truth certainly can be stranger than fiction, but it kept me from really getting into the book on a personal level. I ended up angry more than sympathetic and incredulous more than intrigued. The other problem I had with the book is a noble one, but exposes the flaws all the same. There really are not enough photos to supplement the narrative. The only reason I say this is because so much attention is spent on the details of Fosse's career, that it is a shame there are so few photos representing his amazing stage career. We can all go rent the movies if we want to see what they are about, and it might not be a bad idea to watch "All That Jazz" (which, by the way, is one of my all time favorites) before picking up a copy of this book.

THE GREATEST BOOK ON EARTH!!, 09 Jul 1998
This book is one of , if not the, greatest books I have ever read. It reads so wonderfully. I read it in three days. It just flew off the pages. I can't give this book enough praise. FOSSE FANS READ THIS BOOK!!!!!

A fascinating biography of a remarkable artist, 24 Jun 1998
Martin Gottfried has done a superb job of illuminating Fosse's life and work; I cannot imagine a better biography. He shows a complete understanding of the issues that informed Fosse's creative genius and creates a fascinating narrative which intertwines his life and his work. I picked this book up after having seen and loved the revival of "CHICAGO" on Broadway and have been transfixed by the book. I am a great admirer of Fosse's film work as well -- most notably ALL THAT JAZZ -- and found Gottfried's behind the scenes accounts of the movies gripping. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for anyone who is interested in Fosse, choreography, or the development of an artist. I'd give it ten stars!

A poor account of the life of the great Gene Kelly., 19 Aug 2008
This is a bad biography. It was alright I suppose until I read up to Easter Parade. During the pre-production of the film, Gene Kelly broke his ankle and then called Fred Astaire and urged him out of retirement to make this film. The biographer obviously made up a story of Astaire announcing his retirement at his wife's funeral a few years before 1948. Yet when I read Astaire's autobiography earlier this year, I distinctly remember reading Astaire saying that his wife died in 1954 and I looked up other accounts that say that she died in 1954. I had to put the biography down after that, I thought to myself "If you make a mistake like that, how much of the biography is false?" Also it doesn't go into much detail, there is only about a paragraph on the spectacular ballet in "An American in Paris" and I thought that if I were writing a biography of Kelly I would go into out much more detail about it, for example I would find out what inspired Kelly and how he felt throughout choreographing it, it would get a bit more attention from it.

Disappointing summary of the life of Gene Kelly, 14 Mar 2000
I looked forward to reading this book. I had read-and reread- Clive Hirschhorn's 1974 biography, butI wanted to read something that tied Kelly's life up and perhaps presented a well argued and constructive criticism of his work after his death. However Yudkoff's work proved extremely disappointing. The part of the book that dealt with things after the end of Hirschhorn's book was very short-only a few pages . The rest of the book dealt with Kelly's life but without shedding any new light on it.

The most annoying part however was the beginning of each chapter. Here Yudkoff "imagined" inward dialogue that Kelly was supposedly having whilst listening to a tribute being paid to him by the AFI. This, to me, put it in the catagory of the new biog of Ronald Reagan where the author puts himself into the narrative when he plainly wasn't there. How could Yudkoff know what Kelly was thinking? He freely admits that Hirschhorn was the biographer able to speak to Kelly. Yudkoff wasn't. The over-riding impression I was left with -rightly or wrongly- was that Yudkoff didn't really like Kelly. There is no warmth in the book towards him. If you didn't have the filmatic evidence you would be left with the impression that Kelly was a so-so dancer,a middle rate actor- and in later life a coward because he used doubles when he was older and had already proved his courage in films such as The Pirate and The Three Muskateers.

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)




One of the most entertaining autobiographies ever., 12 Mar 1999
Gypse Rose Lee (nee Louise Hovick) had an incredible childhood, one that provided not only material for this wonderful book but the Broadway musical "Gypsy", later made into a classic film. She was the daughter of "Mama Rose", perhaps the most intense and certainly the most famous stage mother of all time. Gypsy spent her childhood in vaudeville, as a chorus "boy" in the act that starred her younger sister "Dainty June" (later June Havoc, Broadway star).

The book is written in a snappy, witty, anecdotal style, which is perfect for Lee's endless supply of anecdotes. Spending her childhood in an endless round of theaters, trains, cars, and cheap hotels, meeting an endless number of incredible characters. Actors, mountebanks, con artists, carnies, all seen through the eyes of a bright and observant child, and recounted by a witty adult with a talent for storytelling.

The book is deeply personal as well. This is THE classic ugly-duckling story as well as the quintessential book about vaudeville in its last days. Gypsy/Louise was very much the "other" child until she was fifteen, her little sister was blonde, pretty, talented, and The Star. While Dainty June was getting thousands a week as a vaudeville headliner Louse was ignored, used in the chorus and otherwise pretty much forgotten by her mother and everyone else. Even she wondered if she would ever by any good at anything, even though she was so bright that she educated herself fabulously with nothing more to work with than a little trunk space for books. Everything changed when June ran away to get married at age thirteen (a story told in her own book "Early Havoc", a good read) at the same time that vaudeville was dying out. It's here that Mama Rose revealed the depth of her obsession with stardom, trying to make her seemingly plain, talentless, and ungainly daughter a star in a medium that no longer existed. The truly amazing thing is that she succeeded, although not the way she intended.

All in all a fine read, a real-life comedy, the chronicle of a bygone era and vanished world, and the story of an ugly ducking becoming the most glamorous of swans.

Neither Hero Nor Villain, 15 Dec 1998
"All His Jazz" is compelling for the blow-by-blow account that it gives of Bob Fosse's unparalled career. It is probably one of the more comprehensive and insightful books about show business that has been written. The main problem with the book lies in his subject matter, which one would think would be untenable for a biography. Bob Fosse and those around him (with the exception of very few) come across as arrogant, self-centered, and certainly self-destructive. Hey, let's face it. Truth certainly can be stranger than fiction, but it kept me from really getting into the book on a personal level. I ended up angry more than sympathetic and incredulous more than intrigued. The other problem I had with the book is a noble one, but exposes the flaws all the same. There really are not enough photos to supplement the narrative. The only reason I say this is because so much attention is spent on the details of Fosse's career, that it is a shame there are so few photos representing his amazing stage career. We can all go rent the movies if we want to see what they are about, and it might not be a bad idea to watch "All That Jazz" (which, by the way, is one of my all time favorites) before picking up a copy of this book.

THE GREATEST BOOK ON EARTH!!, 09 Jul 1998
This book is one of , if not the, greatest books I have ever read. It reads so wonderfully. I read it in three days. It just flew off the pages. I can't give this book enough praise. FOSSE FANS READ THIS BOOK!!!!!

A fascinating biography of a remarkable artist, 24 Jun 1998
Martin Gottfried has done a superb job of illuminating Fosse's life and work; I cannot imagine a better biography. He shows a complete understanding of the issues that informed Fosse's creative genius and creates a fascinating narrative which intertwines his life and his work. I picked this book up after having seen and loved the revival of "CHICAGO" on Broadway and have been transfixed by the book. I am a great admirer of Fosse's film work as well -- most notably ALL THAT JAZZ -- and found Gottfried's behind the scenes accounts of the movies gripping. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for anyone who is interested in Fosse, choreography, or the development of an artist. I'd give it ten stars!

A poor account of the life of the great Gene Kelly., 19 Aug 2008
This is a bad biography. It was alright I suppose until I read up to Easter Parade. During the pre-production of the film, Gene Kelly broke his ankle and then called Fred Astaire and urged him out of retirement to make this film. The biographer obviously made up a story of Astaire announcing his retirement at his wife's funeral a few years before 1948. Yet when I read Astaire's autobiography earlier this year, I distinctly remember reading Astaire saying that his wife died in 1954 and I looked up other accounts that say that she died in 1954. I had to put the biography down after that, I thought to myself "If you make a mistake like that, how much of the biography is false?" Also it doesn't go into much detail, there is only about a paragraph on the spectacular ballet in "An American in Paris" and I thought that if I were writing a biography of Kelly I would go into out much more detail about it, for example I would find out what inspired Kelly and how he felt throughout choreographing it, it would get a bit more attention from it.

Disappointing summary of the life of Gene Kelly, 14 Mar 2000
I looked forward to reading this book. I had read-and reread- Clive Hirschhorn's 1974 biography, butI wanted to read something that tied Kelly's life up and perhaps presented a well argued and constructive criticism of his work after his death. However Yudkoff's work proved extremely disappointing. The part of the book that dealt with things after the end of Hirschhorn's book was very short-only a few pages . The rest of the book dealt with Kelly's life but without shedding any new light on it.

The most annoying part however was the beginning of each chapter. Here Yudkoff "imagined" inward dialogue that Kelly was supposedly having whilst listening to a tribute being paid to him by the AFI. This, to me, put it in the catagory of the new biog of Ronald Reagan where the author puts himself into the narrative when he plainly wasn't there. How could Yudkoff know what Kelly was thinking? He freely admits that Hirschhorn was the biographer able to speak to Kelly. Yudkoff wasn't. The over-riding impression I was left with -rightly or wrongly- was that Yudkoff didn't really like Kelly. There is no warmth in the book towards him. If you didn't have the filmatic evidence you would be left with the impression that Kelly was a so-so dancer,a middle rate actor- and in later life a coward because he used doubles when he was older and had already proved his courage in films such as The Pirate and The Three Muskateers.

A stunning visual biography, 07 Sep 2005
A unique book on a unique Ballerina! The photos say it all and the book tells the story of Sylvie Guillem.... No words are needed because no words can ever express what she is all about. Sylvie Guillem is unique, as is her book. The stunning photography captures Sylvie in all her glory,in all her simplicity and shows her many sides. To be so open and honest about herself reveals the true artist she is. No book has ever been published in this "grand" format, showing the great ballerina in different aspects of her live alongside objects she likes. A work of art in itself! A true collectors book!

The Last True Prima Ballerina, 27 Apr 2005
Normally when a book is described as heavy, it normally relates to the depth of the content. When this book is described as heavy, I am refering to the pure weight of this volume.

Whilst Uliana Lopatkina and Alina Cojacaru are the present darlings of the ballet set, Miss Guillem has a technique and grace that is unique, and is truly beautiful.

For a person that has been given the nickname of "Mademosielle Non", partly due to the way she has protected her image, the images in this book are both very open and honest. Many of the pictures show Miss Guillem stripped of the heavy stage makeup, and it reveals an incredible, and sometimes extremely vulnerable portrait.

The announcement of the Royal Ballet's 2005-6 schedule highlights how few chances many will have to witness the talent of Sylvie on the ROH stage, so this book becomes an even more essential purchase.

This is a wonderful record of the World's last true Diva, and I mean that as a compliment

An Invitation to Awe, 21 Apr 2005
Sylvie Guillem, in my opinion the most relevant female artist of today, has again pulled it off with this stunning "family album", correctly named Invitation. After "Sylvie Guillem" - the little book of photographs, which sold out completely in just a few weeks, it was clear that Guillem's fans were craving for more photographic details on the "artiste étoile".

With this new book, Guillem "invites" us to take a privileged seat and quietly realize her busy and most unusual life. Each photo, carefully picked, is in itself an isolated object that demands paused and profound contemplation. Her exquisite artistry oozes from every detail, every movement, and every second captured on film.

Also, important to mention and recognize, is the amazing talent of Gilles Tapie (French photographer) who has followed Guillem for many years, and because of whom this book was made possible. His work is raw and powerful at times, and gentle and almost ethereal at others. His unique view on Guillem is irreprehensible. Some of Guillem's self-portraits are also included on this book, and her amazing ability to push the limits a bit further is prominent in those particular captures.

Documents on the subject of Sylvie Guillem are rare, may they be taped or printed, and are mere peek holes over a much greater reality. But this time, Guillem has opened a wide window over herself, and the invitation to let us watch her is sincere. The book itself is huge and heavy (about 400 photos), a clear proof that Guillem was willing to show a lot, and surely delivers with this masterpiece.

Again, a rare view over Guillem's world which I consider absolutely essential!

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)




One of the most entertaining autobiographies ever., 12 Mar 1999
Gypse Rose Lee (nee Louise Hovick) had an incredible childhood, one that provided not only material for this wonderful book but the Broadway musical "Gypsy", later made into a classic film. She was the daughter of "Mama Rose", perhaps the most intense and certainly the most famous stage mother of all time. Gypsy spent her childhood in vaudeville, as a chorus "boy" in the act that starred her younger sister "Dainty June" (later June Havoc, Broadway star).

The book is written in a snappy, witty, anecdotal style, which is perfect for Lee's endless supply of anecdotes. Spending her childhood in an endless round of theaters, trains, cars, and cheap hotels, meeting an endless number of incredible characters. Actors, mountebanks, con artists, carnies, all seen through the eyes of a bright and observant child, and recounted by a witty adult with a talent for storytelling.

The book is deeply personal as well. This is THE classic ugly-duckling story as well as the quintessential book about vaudeville in its last days. Gypsy/Louise was very much the "other" child until she was fifteen, her little sister was blonde, pretty, talented, and The Star. While Dainty June was getting thousands a week as a vaudeville headliner Louse was ignored, used in the chorus and otherwise pretty much forgotten by her mother and everyone else. Even she wondered if she would ever by any good at anything, even though she was so bright that she educated herself fabulously with nothing more to work with than a little trunk space for books. Everything changed when June ran away to get married at age thirteen (a story told in her own book "Early Havoc", a good read) at the same time that vaudeville was dying out. It's here that Mama Rose revealed the depth of her obsession with stardom, trying to make her seemingly plain, talentless, and ungainly daughter a star in a medium that no longer existed. The truly amazing thing is that she succeeded, although not the way she intended.

All in all a fine read, a real-life comedy, the chronicle of a bygone era and vanished world, and the story of an ugly ducking becoming the most glamorous of swans.

Neither Hero Nor Villain, 15 Dec 1998
"All His Jazz" is compelling for the blow-by-blow account that it gives of Bob Fosse's unparalled career. It is probably one of the more comprehensive and insightful books about show business that has been written. The main problem with the book lies in his subject matter, which one would think would be untenable for a biography. Bob Fosse and those around him (with the exception of very few) come across as arrogant, self-centered, and certainly self-destructive. Hey, let's face it. Truth certainly can be stranger than fiction, but it kept me from really getting into the book on a personal level. I ended up angry more than sympathetic and incredulous more than intrigued. The other problem I had with the book is a noble one, but exposes the flaws all the same. There really are not enough photos to supplement the narrative. The only reason I say this is because so much attention is spent on the details of Fosse's career, that it is a shame there are so few photos representing his amazing stage career. We can all go rent the movies if we want to see what they are about, and it might not be a bad idea to watch "All That Jazz" (which, by the way, is one of my all time favorites) before picking up a copy of this book.

THE GREATEST BOOK ON EARTH!!, 09 Jul 1998
This book is one of , if not the, greatest books I have ever read. It reads so wonderfully. I read it in three days. It just flew off the pages. I can't give this book enough praise. FOSSE FANS READ THIS BOOK!!!!!

A fascinating biography of a remarkable artist, 24 Jun 1998
Martin Gottfried has done a superb job of illuminating Fosse's life and work; I cannot imagine a better biography. He shows a complete understanding of the issues that informed Fosse's creative genius and creates a fascinating narrative which intertwines his life and his work. I picked this book up after having seen and loved the revival of "CHICAGO" on Broadway and have been transfixed by the book. I am a great admirer of Fosse's film work as well -- most notably ALL THAT JAZZ -- and found Gottfried's behind the scenes accounts of the movies gripping. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for anyone who is interested in Fosse, choreography, or the development of an artist. I'd give it ten stars!

A poor account of the life of the great Gene Kelly., 19 Aug 2008
This is a bad biography. It was alright I suppose until I read up to Easter Parade. During the pre-production of the film, Gene Kelly broke his ankle and then called Fred Astaire and urged him out of retirement to make this film. The biographer obviously made up a story of Astaire announcing his retirement at his wife's funeral a few years before 1948. Yet when I read Astaire's autobiography earlier this year, I distinctly remember reading Astaire saying that his wife died in 1954 and I looked up other accounts that say that she died in 1954. I had to put the biography down after that, I thought to myself "If you make a mistake like that, how much of the biography is false?" Also it doesn't go into much detail, there is only about a paragraph on the spectacular ballet in "An American in Paris" and I thought that if I were writing a biography of Kelly I would go into out much more detail about it, for example I would find out what inspired Kelly and how he felt throughout choreographing it, it would get a bit more attention from it.

Disappointing summary of the life of Gene Kelly, 14 Mar 2000
I looked forward to reading this book. I had read-and reread- Clive Hirschhorn's 1974 biography, butI wanted to read something that tied Kelly's life up and perhaps presented a well argued and constructive criticism of his work after his death. However Yudkoff's work proved extremely disappointing. The part of the book that dealt with things after the end of Hirschhorn's book was very short-only a few pages . The rest of the book dealt with Kelly's life but without shedding any new light on it.

The most annoying part however was the beginning of each chapter. Here Yudkoff "imagined" inward dialogue that Kelly was supposedly having whilst listening to a tribute being paid to him by the AFI. This, to me, put it in the catagory of the new biog of Ronald Reagan where the author puts himself into the narrative when he plainly wasn't there. How could Yudkoff know what Kelly was thinking? He freely admits that Hirschhorn was the biographer able to speak to Kelly. Yudkoff wasn't. The over-riding impression I was left with -rightly or wrongly- was that Yudkoff didn't really like Kelly. There is no warmth in the book towards him. If you didn't have the filmatic evidence you would be left with the impression that Kelly was a so-so dancer,a middle rate actor- and in later life a coward because he used doubles when he was older and had already proved his courage in films such as The Pirate and The Three Muskateers.

A stunning visual biography, 07 Sep 2005
A unique book on a unique Ballerina! The photos say it all and the book tells the story of Sylvie Guillem.... No words are needed because no words can ever express what she is all about. Sylvie Guillem is unique, as is her book. The stunning photography captures Sylvie in all her glory,in all her simplicity and shows her many sides. To be so open and honest about herself reveals the true artist she is. No book has ever been published in this "grand" format, showing the great ballerina in different aspects of her live alongside objects she likes. A work of art in itself! A true collectors book!

The Last True Prima Ballerina, 27 Apr 2005
Normally when a book is described as heavy, it normally relates to the depth of the content. When this book is described as heavy, I am refering to the pure weight of this volume.

Whilst Uliana Lopatkina and Alina Cojacaru are the present darlings of the ballet set, Miss Guillem has a technique and grace that is unique, and is truly beautiful.

For a person that has been given the nickname of "Mademosielle Non", partly due to the way she has protected her image, the images in this book are both very open and honest. Many of the pictures show Miss Guillem stripped of the heavy stage makeup, and it reveals an incredible, and sometimes extremely vulnerable portrait.

The announcement of the Royal Ballet's 2005-6 schedule highlights how few chances many will have to witness the talent of Sylvie on the ROH stage, so this book becomes an even more essential purchase.

This is a wonderful record of the World's last true Diva, and I mean that as a compliment

An Invitation to Awe, 21 Apr 2005
Sylvie Guillem, in my opinion the most relevant female artist of today, has again pulled it off with this stunning "family album", correctly named Invitation. After "Sylvie Guillem" - the little book of photographs, which sold out completely in just a few weeks, it was clear that Guillem's fans were craving for more photographic details on the "artiste étoile".

With this new book, Guillem "invites" us to take a privileged seat and quietly realize her busy and most unusual life. Each photo, carefully picked, is in itself an isolated object that demands paused and profound contemplation. Her exquisite artistry oozes from every detail, every movement, and every second captured on film.

Also, important to mention and recognize, is the amazing talent of Gilles Tapie (French photographer) who has followed Guillem for many years, and because of whom this book was made possible. His work is raw and powerful at times, and gentle and almost ethereal at others. His unique view on Guillem is irreprehensible. Some of Guillem's self-portraits are also included on this book, and her amazing ability to push the limits a bit further is prominent in those particular captures.

Documents on the subject of Sylvie Guillem are rare, may they be taped or printed, and are mere peek holes over a much greater reality. But this time, Guillem has opened a wide window over herself, and the invitation to let us watch her is sincere. The book itself is huge and heavy (about 400 photos), a clear proof that Guillem was willing to show a lot, and surely delivers with this masterpiece.

Again, a rare view over Guillem's world which I consider absolutely essential!

A wonderful story of a life dedicated to beautiful music., 24 Feb 1999
A story I have tried to locate and read for a number of years. Wonderfully written with love and respect. I feel so fortunate to have this book - it took so long to be released and I am now reading it for the second time. Chan gives the average fan a better understanding of the artist (Bird) who forever changed the music of our lives. Many details of her life and the exciting time of her youth are included. I almost felt like I was there myself - you can feel the music in the air. A huge thank you to the author - I am so grateful to have this piece of history and am even more passionate about the music of the great Charlie Parker. A must read for any jazz fan....

Steps in Time!, 20 Aug 2008
It was a pleasure and an exciting thrill to read about Fred Astaire's life in his own words up until the late 1950s, at some points you really did feel like you were there, even when he talked about places or films you've never seen or even heard of! The ups and downs of Astaire's life are thought provoking and inspirational. There are parts where everyone can fit into Astaire's shoes; he seems to reflect on everyone's life in some way or another. This is a brilliant autobiography, it is one of the best I have ever read and I recommend it to all Astaire fans or people who are interested in taking a career in the theatre or on the stage.

Candid recollections of the most famous tap dancer, 17 Nov 2001
STEPS IN TIME is a must for fans of Fred Astaire. It is important to bear in mind - and this book helps remind us - that Astaire was first and foremost one of the most talented dancers of the 20th Century, as well as a superlative musician. He was not, however, a writer and is candid about his lack of literary ambition. In spite of its 'unliterary' style, STEPS IN TIME is a fascinating read. It is an authentic testimony of someone who, for many of us, represents the song-and-dance-man par excellence, about the Vaudeville circuit and the making of some of the best known Hollywood musicals.

Astaire is sparing with personal details, using them chiefly as a framework for the history of his impressive career. In spite of his self-professed amateur status as a writer, he succeeds in transporting us to the legendary world of stage and film entertainment, often relating very interesting and funny episodes involving musical heros, such as Gershwin, Berlin and Ziegfeld. He also gives us a portrayal of stars such as Ginger Rogers and of his own, talented sister - the unimitable Adele. Yet, Astaire is always candid about his own flaws, both personal and professional.

STEPS IN TIME offers a unique insight into a world where perfectionism was not just a quality but a professional necessity.

"Without Adele as his partner at the beginning...Fred Astaire might have [become] a suburban husband, selling swank cars.", 27 Oct 2008
Part of Yale University's Icons of America series, this fascinating Joseph Epstein study of Fred Astaire and his success is not a biography and contains nothing "juicy" about his personal life. Astaire himself did not share personal information. As "tough guy Chicago journalist" Mike Royko says, "He did his work, went home, closed the door, and said: `That's it, world. You get my performance. The rest belongs to me.'" Epstein instead concentrates on how Astaire became an "icon," analyzing the secrets of his success as a dancer and singer--what made him a man that other men wanted to emulate and made women want to love.

Born in 1899 as Frederick Austerlitz, Fred was three years younger than his beautiful sister Adele, who was expected to be the family's star when his mother took both children to New York from Omaha. With a succession of mentoring dance teachers, their song and dance act became successful enough they eventually went to England, where they became a huge hit and often went to dinner with Prince George, later King George VI, after performances. After Adele's marriage to Lord George Cavendish, Fred was on his own.

His unprepossessing appearance, combined with his fanatical attention to detail--exactly the right way to hold his overly large hands to keep them from being distracting, when to raise his eyebrows for emphasis--made him a very different performer from Gene Kelly, who was far more athletic, and Epstein gives fascinating descriptions of Astaire's dance partners. Ginger Rogers, with whom he appeared in ten films but with whom he was never close, Rita Hayworth, Eleanor Powell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Leslie, Vera Ellen, Betty Hutton, and Judy Garland, who was the only one ever to supersede him in billing, all became part of his "act" in films. Later he performed with Audrey Hepburn, Leslie Caron, and Cyd Charisse, their dance characteristics described in detail, and the plots of their films analyzed.

Songwriters, especially Irving Berlin and the Gershwins, regarded Astaire as one of the great interpreters of their songs, and many wrote specifically for him and for his films. Admired by all choreographers, he was praised by George Balanchine, who called him "terribly rare...like Bach, with the same concentration of genius." He was also praised by Rudolf Nureyev as "the greatest dancer in American history." Even though he transformed entertainment into art, was recognized as brilliant in both dance and song, and achieved enormous personal popularity, however, Astaire the determinedly private man, remained an enigma throughout his life. As author John O'Hara says, "He takes a job, he works and works on it until he is ready, and then he delivers." Epstein conveys the importance of Astaire in this fascinating study, but Astaire remains an enigma as a person. n Mary Whipple

Frankly, My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited (Icons of America)
Gypsy: The Art of the Tease (Icons of America)
King's Dream (Icons of America Series) (Icons of America Series)
Alger Hiss and the Battle for History (Icons of America)




One of the most entertaining autobiographies ever., 12 Mar 1999
Gypse Rose Lee (nee Louise Hovick) had an incredible childhood, one that provided not only material for this wonderful book but the Broadway musical "Gypsy", later made into a classic film. She was the daughter of "Mama Rose", perhaps the most intense and certainly the most famous stage mother of all time. Gypsy spent her childhood in vaudeville, as a chorus "boy" in the act that starred her younger sister "Dainty June" (later June Havoc, Broadway star).

The book is written in a snappy, witty, anecdotal style, which is perfect for Lee's endless supply of anecdotes. Spending her childhood in an endless round of theaters, trains, cars, and cheap hotels, meeting an endless number of incredible characters. Actors, mountebanks, con artists, carnies, all seen through the eyes of a bright and observant child, and recounted by a witty adult with a talent for storytelling.

The book is deeply personal as well. This is THE classic ugly-duckling story as well as the quintessential book about vaudeville in its last days. Gypsy/Louise was very much the "other" child until she was fifteen, her little sister was blonde, pretty, talented, and The Star. While Dainty June was getting thousands a week as a vaudeville headliner Louse was ignored, used in the chorus and otherwise pretty much forgotten by her mother and everyone else. Even she wondered if she would ever by any good at anything, even though she was so bright that she educated herself fabulously with nothing more to work with than a little trunk space for books. Everything changed when June ran away to get married at age thirteen (a story told in her own book "Early Havoc", a good read) at the same time that vaudeville was dying out. It's here that Mama Rose revealed the depth of her obsession with stardom, trying to make her seemingly plain, talentless, and ungainly daughter a star in a medium that no longer existed. The truly amazing thing is that she succeeded, although not the way she intended.

All in all a fine read, a real-life comedy, the chronicle of a bygone era and vanished world, and the story of an ugly ducking becoming the most glamorous of swans.

Neither Hero Nor Villain, 15 Dec 1998
"All His Jazz" is compelling for the blow-by-blow account that it gives of Bob Fosse's unparalled career. It is probably one of the more comprehensive and insightful books about show business that has been written. The main problem with the book lies in his subject matter, which one would think would be untenable for a biography. Bob Fosse and those around him (with the exception of very few) come across as arrogant, self-centered, and certainly self-destructive. Hey, let's face it. Truth certainly can be stranger than fiction, but it kept me from really getting into the book on a personal level. I ended up angry more than sympathetic and incredulous more than intrigued. The other problem I had with the book is a noble one, but exposes the flaws all the same. There really are not enough photos to supplement the narrative. The only reason I say this is because so much attention is spent on the details of Fosse's career, that it is a shame there are so few photos representing his amazing stage career. We can all go rent the movies if we want to see what they are about, and it might not be a bad idea to watch "All That Jazz" (which, by the way, is one of my all time favorites) before picking up a copy of this book.

THE GREATEST BOOK ON EARTH!!, 09 Jul 1998
This book is one of , if not the, greatest books I have ever read. It reads so wonderfully. I read it in three days. It just flew off the pages. I can't give this book enough praise. FOSSE FANS READ THIS BOOK!!!!!

A fascinating biography of a remarkable artist, 24 Jun 1998
Martin Gottfried has done a superb job of illuminating Fosse's life and work; I cannot imagine a better biography. He shows a complete understanding of the issues that informed Fosse's creative genius and creates a fascinating narrative which intertwines his life and his work. I picked this book up after having seen and loved the revival of "CHICAGO" on Broadway and have been transfixed by the book. I am a great admirer of Fosse's film work as well -- most notably ALL THAT JAZZ -- and found Gottfried's behind the scenes accounts of the movies gripping. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for anyone who is interested in Fosse, choreography, or the development of an artist. I'd give it ten stars!

A poor account of the life of the great Gene Kelly., 19 Aug 2008
This is a bad biography. It was alright I suppose until I read up to Easter Parade. During the pre-production of the film, Gene Kelly broke his ankle and then called Fred Astaire and urged him out of retirement to make this film. The biographer obviously made up a story of Astaire announcing his retirement at his wife's funeral a few years before 1948. Yet when I read Astaire's autobiography earlier this year, I distinctly remember reading Astaire saying that his wife died in 1954 and I looked up other accounts that say that she died in 1954. I had to put the biography down after that, I thought to myself "If you make a mistake like that, how much of the biography is false?" Also it doesn't go into much detail, there is only about a paragraph on the spectacular ballet in "An American in Paris" and I thought that if I were writing a biography of Kelly I would go into out much more detail about it, for example I would find out what inspired Kelly and how he felt throughout choreographing it, it would get a bit more attention from it.

Disappointing summary of the life of Gene Kelly, 14 Mar 2000
I looked forward to reading this book. I had read-and reread- Clive Hirschhorn's 1974 biography, butI wanted to read something that tied Kelly's life up and perhaps presented a well argued and constructive criticism of his work after his death. However Yudkoff's work proved extremely disappointing. The part of the book that dealt with things after the end of Hirschhorn's book was very short-only a few pages . The rest of the book dealt with Kelly's life but without shedding any new light on it.

The most annoying part however was the beginning of each chapter. Here Yudkoff "imagined" inward dialogue that Kelly was supposedly having whilst listening to a tribute being paid to him by the AFI. This, to me, put it in the catagory of the new biog of Ronald Reagan where the author puts himself into the narrative when he plainly wasn't there. How could Yudkoff know what Kelly was thinking? He freely admits that Hirschhorn was the biographer able to speak to Kelly. Yudkoff wasn't. The over-riding impression I was left with -rightly or wrongly- was that Yudkoff didn't really like Kelly. There is no warmth in the book towards him. If you didn't have the filmatic evidence you would be left with the impression that Kelly was a so-so dancer,a middle rate actor- and in later life a coward because he used doubles when he was older and had already proved his courage in films such as The Pirate and The Three Muskateers.

A stunning visual biography, 07 Sep 2005
A unique book on a unique Ballerina! The photos say it all and the book tells the story of Sylvie Guillem.... No words are needed because no words can ever express what she is all about. Sylvie Guillem is unique, as is her book. The stunning photography captures Sylvie in all her glory,in all her simplicity and shows her many sides. To be so open and honest about herself reveals the true artist she is. No book has ever been published in this "grand" format, showing the great ballerina in different aspects of her live alongside objects she likes. A work of art in itself! A true collectors book!

The Last True Prima Ballerina, 27 Apr 2005
Normally when a book is described as heavy, it normally relates to the depth of the content. When this book is described as heavy, I am refering to the pure weight of this volume.

Whilst Uliana Lopatkina and Alina Cojacaru are the present darlings of the ballet set, Miss Guillem has a technique and grace that is unique, and is truly beautiful.

For a person that has been given the nickname of "Mademosielle Non", partly due to the way she has protected her image, the images in this book are both very open and honest. Many of the pictures show Miss Guillem stripped of the heavy stage makeup, and it reveals an incredible, and sometimes extremely vulnerable portrait.

The announcement of the Royal Ballet's 2005-6 schedule highlights how few chances many will have to witness the talent of Sylvie on the ROH stage, so this book becomes an even more essential purchase.

This is a wonderful record of the World's last true Diva, and I mean that as a compliment

An Invitation to Awe, 21 Apr 2005
Sylvie Guillem, in my opinion the most relevant female artist of today, has again pulled it off with this stunning "family album", correctly named Invitation. After "Sylvie Guillem" - the little book of photographs, which sold out completely in just a few weeks, it was clear that Guillem's fans were craving for more photographic details on the "artiste étoile".

With this new book, Guillem "invites" us to take a privileged seat and quietly realize her busy and most unusual life. Each photo, carefully picked, is in itself an isolated object that demands paused and profound contemplation. Her exquisite artistry oozes from every detail, every movement, and every second captured on film.

Also, important to mention and recognize, is the amazing talent of Gilles Tapie (French photographer) who has followed Guillem for many years, and because of whom this book was made possible. His work is raw and powerful at times, and gentle and almost ethereal at others. His unique view on Guillem is irreprehensible. Some of Guillem's self-portraits are also included on this book, and her amazing ability to push the limits a bit further is prominent in those particular captures.

Documents on the subject of Sylvie Guillem are rare, may they be taped or printed, and are mere peek holes over a much greater reality. But this time, Guillem has opened a wide window over herself, and the invitation to let us watch her is sincere. The book itself is huge and heavy (about 400 photos), a clear proof that Guillem was willing to show a lot, and surely delivers with this masterpiece.

Again, a rare view over Guillem's world which I consider absolutely essential!

A wonderful story of a life dedicated to beautiful music., 24 Feb 1999
A story I have tried to locate and read for a number of years. Wonderfully written with love and respect. I feel so fortunate to have this book - it took so long to be released and I am now reading it for the second time. Chan gives the average fan a better understanding of the artist (Bird) who forever changed the music of our lives. Many details of her life and the exciting time of her youth are included. I almost felt like I was there myself - you can feel the music in the air. A huge thank you to the author - I am so grateful to have this piece of history and am even more passionate about the music of the great Charlie Parker. A must read for any jazz fan....

One word - amazing., 08 Mar 2002
An autobiography of a dancer can't be very interesting, now can it? It can, and this is one of the most remarkable books I have ever read. When it was first published, it was banned. Perhaps her condemnation of, and utter contempt for, classical ballet was more than the Establishment could take? Officially, it was her immorality that was the problem, but a modern-day reader won't find any. On the contrary, her intelligence, visionary imagination, determinism and remarkable insights into human behaviour and the human mind make it clear that she was one of the most brilliant people of modern times. In many ways she was as much a philosopher as a dancer, and strongly influenced - and rightly too - by Darwin. My only criticism is that the book would ideally have included the last few years of her life, but she sadly died before it was finished, so it's hardly her fault. And she does use a few more French and German quotations than many modern English-speaking readers would ideally want. But it matters not at all. Even if - like me - you have no interest whatsoever in dance, or the history of dance, I still urge you to buy this book.

Isadora Duncan: artista, amante, mujer., 07 Feb 1998
La primera vez que lei este libro comprendi que la vida de Isadora habia encaminado mi propia vision de "Arte" a un nivel mas humano, porque con sus acciones, sus errores y sus virtudes, te ensena a apreciar la belleza en su nivel mas basico. No es dificil obsesionarse con la vida de esta artista, por distintas razones: con ella nace la danza moderna; su vida es una constante lucha contra los convencionalismos sociales que pretenden regir su arte y su comportamiento, logrando solamente calificarle como "rebelde". Personalmente, admirar a Isadora como ser humano resulta lo mas fascinante de todo. El arte de Isadora es la mas fiel muestra de su propia existencia.

Loved this biography of a flawed but brilliant woman., 02 Jan 1998
Isadora Duncan was a trailblazer and this book details her life and how she became the unique woman and artist that she was. Her story is fascinating not only because she was one of the originators of modern dance but because her flaws and her ego are so obviously present in the text. This only serves to make her more fascinating and when she writes about the loss of her child or the efforts to keep the flame of love alive, every man and woman can identify with her.