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marie_gg's review against another edition
5.0
http://mariesbookgarden.blogspot.com/2011/11/drama-actors-education.html
I adore John Lithgow. My husband and I saw him perform in "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" on Broadway a few years ago, and we both laughed out loud during every episode of "Third Rock from the Sun."
Lithgow had me tearing up during the introduction to his memoir, when he shared a poignant tale about taking care of his elderly father during an illness. His love and admiration for his father, who was a Shakespearean director and teacher, created the impetus for this book and Lithgow's one-man show, Stories by Heart.
He takes us through his actor's life, starting with childhood and up through his recent experiences. Much of the book centered on his formative years as he was just starting out as an actor in plays directed by his father. Articulate and funny, Lithgow is a wonderful storyteller. I could not put this book down.
I found this book especially fascinating given the period of my life, as my 8-year-old is rehearsing for his first professional theater performance. One evening I read the book while waiting in the theater lobby for Kieran while listening to the shouting and singing overhead.
Lithgow actually wanted to be an artist, but acting chose him. This line particularly resonated with me during this time in my family's life: "If you hear enough applause and laughter at a young enough age, you are doomed to become an actor. After my performance as the young damsel-in-distress, my fate was probably sealed."
Even though Kieran's worn out at the moment from play rehearsals five days a week, I have a feeling that his fate will be sealed, too, once he starts performing five shows a weekend beginning next Friday. That applause and laughter will seal his fate.
Another time I cried while reading Lithgow's book was when he shared that he and his first wife had a premature baby who died shortly after birth. I am deeply touched each time I read about someone who has had a preemie or a medically fragile child. "I experienced the first genuine tragedy in my life. Jean gave birth to a son nine weeks early. For a few hours the little boy struggled for life and then gave up the ghost. It was a devastating loss for both of us."
Lithgow wrote about how his father found it too difficult to comfort him. "My mother was deeply comforting. My little sister wept compassionate tears. Actors in the company clasped me in long, heartfelt embraces. I honestly cannot remember my father registering the slightest reaction." I remember people in my own life who could not fathom what to say to us while we endured our own premature baby crisis (even though in our case our baby lived)...or later lived through repeated miscarriages. As our dear friend Doug says, "Grief reorders your address book."
Another thing I admired about this book was that Lithgow did not use names when he had less-than-pleasant reports about any of his theater colleagues. Gracefully, he used pseudonyms to protect people's reputations.
He writes about the mistakes he made...for example, getting married too early and suffering through adolescence in his 30s, leading to the death of his first marriage...and starting up a theater company without knowing what he was doing...and throughout it all, he weaves through the themes of family and lifelong learning and growth.
I would dearly love to see Lithgow on stage again someday. In the meantime, I'll have to satisfy myself with rewatching some of his old movies, and perhaps some of his new roles as well.
I adore John Lithgow. My husband and I saw him perform in "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" on Broadway a few years ago, and we both laughed out loud during every episode of "Third Rock from the Sun."
Lithgow had me tearing up during the introduction to his memoir, when he shared a poignant tale about taking care of his elderly father during an illness. His love and admiration for his father, who was a Shakespearean director and teacher, created the impetus for this book and Lithgow's one-man show, Stories by Heart.
He takes us through his actor's life, starting with childhood and up through his recent experiences. Much of the book centered on his formative years as he was just starting out as an actor in plays directed by his father. Articulate and funny, Lithgow is a wonderful storyteller. I could not put this book down.
I found this book especially fascinating given the period of my life, as my 8-year-old is rehearsing for his first professional theater performance. One evening I read the book while waiting in the theater lobby for Kieran while listening to the shouting and singing overhead.
Lithgow actually wanted to be an artist, but acting chose him. This line particularly resonated with me during this time in my family's life: "If you hear enough applause and laughter at a young enough age, you are doomed to become an actor. After my performance as the young damsel-in-distress, my fate was probably sealed."
Even though Kieran's worn out at the moment from play rehearsals five days a week, I have a feeling that his fate will be sealed, too, once he starts performing five shows a weekend beginning next Friday. That applause and laughter will seal his fate.
Another time I cried while reading Lithgow's book was when he shared that he and his first wife had a premature baby who died shortly after birth. I am deeply touched each time I read about someone who has had a preemie or a medically fragile child. "I experienced the first genuine tragedy in my life. Jean gave birth to a son nine weeks early. For a few hours the little boy struggled for life and then gave up the ghost. It was a devastating loss for both of us."
Lithgow wrote about how his father found it too difficult to comfort him. "My mother was deeply comforting. My little sister wept compassionate tears. Actors in the company clasped me in long, heartfelt embraces. I honestly cannot remember my father registering the slightest reaction." I remember people in my own life who could not fathom what to say to us while we endured our own premature baby crisis (even though in our case our baby lived)...or later lived through repeated miscarriages. As our dear friend Doug says, "Grief reorders your address book."
Another thing I admired about this book was that Lithgow did not use names when he had less-than-pleasant reports about any of his theater colleagues. Gracefully, he used pseudonyms to protect people's reputations.
He writes about the mistakes he made...for example, getting married too early and suffering through adolescence in his 30s, leading to the death of his first marriage...and starting up a theater company without knowing what he was doing...and throughout it all, he weaves through the themes of family and lifelong learning and growth.
I would dearly love to see Lithgow on stage again someday. In the meantime, I'll have to satisfy myself with rewatching some of his old movies, and perhaps some of his new roles as well.
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
3.0
Let me start by saying I'm not into theater at all, I've fallen asleep at every play or musical I've ever been to, except Annie when I was around 10. BUT, my mom was a seamstress and she worked backstage at at least a couple plays doing hair, makeup, and costuming, once in a while I dragged along and I always found it pretty fascinating. I even played a mouse, with no lines in a play I can't remember.
I like John Lithgow and I like biographies, so I decided to give it a try. Pretty interesting, and often touching, stuff. He's a surprisingly good writer, certain turns of phrase really wow'd me. The audio was great because he reads it, but then he mentioned some pictures that are in the regular book so now I want to find a copy to look through. What I thought was kind of strange was that he barely talked about "Third Rock From the Sun" at all and he never mentioned Shrek. I thought those would be a big part of it because it's what he's most well-known for, but I guess he wanted it to be a book about acting and directing and maybe there are other books about Third Rock.
I like John Lithgow and I like biographies, so I decided to give it a try. Pretty interesting, and often touching, stuff. He's a surprisingly good writer, certain turns of phrase really wow'd me. The audio was great because he reads it, but then he mentioned some pictures that are in the regular book so now I want to find a copy to look through. What I thought was kind of strange was that he barely talked about "Third Rock From the Sun" at all and he never mentioned Shrek. I thought those would be a big part of it because it's what he's most well-known for, but I guess he wanted it to be a book about acting and directing and maybe there are other books about Third Rock.
jcpdiesel21's review against another edition
3.0
Good, but recommended only for massive fans of Lithgow or those well-versed in theater. Lithgow does a deep dive into his childhood and theater work here, and it's clear that he is proudest of his achievements onstage in many productions. However, he barely scratches the surface with respect to his career on TV and in the movies, which was a bit frustrating and made the book feel incomplete since he has been a presence in both mediums for decades. An odd choice that left me feeling slightly unsatisfied upon finishing despite the solid writing and excellent narration.
deepfreezebatman's review
4.0
John Lithgow is one of my favorite actors and I loved listening to him talk about his life for 10+ hours. His childhood and young adulthood fascinated me, but I wish he had focused more on his tv and film work (although I did learn a lot about the theater). I look forward to enjoying his future work and am inspired to revisit some of my old favorites.
redroofcolleen's review against another edition
3.0
I think I should have paid closer attention to the title because, while I found his life and path to becoming an actor interesting, I did not find all of the details of theater life even remotely so. It was a bit on the excessive side for me.
judyward's review against another edition
4.0
An engrossing and well-written memoir by John Lithgow detailing his childhood--where he attended 8 secondary schools before graduation, his years at Harvard, his Fulbright scholarhip to England, his years in regional theater and on Broadway, and his relocation to the West Coast with his resulting career in film. But much of this book is a tribute to his father, Arthur Lithgow. Arthur Lithgow was an actor, director, and producer in regional theater and he served as a faculty member in numerous colleges from Ohio to Princeton. A hilarious, sentimental, and very moving look at significant episodes in an eventful life.
taylorsaurus's review against another edition
5.0
Celebrities writing their biographies can get away with name dropping and funny stories - but Lithgow does so much more than that in Drama. He is funny, honest and a wonderful writer. He paints a clear picture of his childhood, which was spent moving around as his father created Shakespeare festivals. In addition to being about John, this book is a wonderful tribute to his father Arthur, who clearly shaped and influenced his career and life.
I loved this biography. Lithgow's passion for acting is palpable, and his stories are heartwarming and hilarious.
I loved this biography. Lithgow's passion for acting is palpable, and his stories are heartwarming and hilarious.
sarajean37's review against another edition
4.0
When I told someone that I was reading John Lithgow's autobiography, their response was, "wow, that must be hilarious!" It really wasn't. It was, however, heartwarming, introspective, and instructive. I learned a lot about Lithgow, acting, and life and am better for it. I didn't laugh but I didn't miss it. Also a shout-out to Mr. Lithgow for completing 10th grade at my grandmother's alma mater, John R. Buchtel High!
freya54's review against another edition
2.0
This was not what I was expecting. It was long drawn out explanations of plays he’s done. Methods in those plays. I just didn’t care and found it very dull. Truthfully i didn’t even read the last chapter but I’m counting it as a read because i slogged through this. Sorry John Lithgow. I expected a lot more in your storytelling.
The most fascinating part was realizing he was babysat by Coretta Scott.
The most fascinating part was realizing he was babysat by Coretta Scott.
thomcat's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed the author's description of story, the root of acting and entertainment. Scenes and lessons learned as a young man were done with humor and wisdom, and the ending was quite a nice summation of a life well lived and the full effects of choices made. Some of the middle bits wandered from the main, discussing specifics and names that didn't mean anything to me and didn't add anything to the story, in my opinion. Overall, a good biography.