This Is Your Captain Speaking

My Fantastic Voyage Through Hollywood, Faith and Life

By: Gavin MacLeod, Mark Dagostino

Narrated by: Gavin MacLeod

The remarkable life, career, and faith journey of Gavin MacLeod, the beloved star of The Love Boat and The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

For 16 years, millions of Americans welcomed Gavin MacLeod into their living rooms every Saturday night. This veteran of stage and screen transformed himself from a seasoned character actor into the leading, lovable father-figure of Captain Merrill Stubing in The Love Boat at the height of TV’s boom years.

From his humble theatrical beginnings in upstate New York to Radio City Music Hall and on to Hollywood, Gavin MacLeod was on the fast track to success. However, a few hard life lessons—like dealing with a divorce—taught him that the key to happiness can only be found through a deep faith in God, and he feels his work for Christ is more important than any award.

The consummate storyteller, Gavin shares his fondest memories of meeting and working with countless stars, such as Cary Grant, Steve McQueen, Gregory Peck, Bette Davis, Frank Sinatra, Ethel Merman, Ella Fitzgerald, Ronald Reagan, Milton Berle, and Fred Astaire.

In This Is Your Captain Speaking, Gavin shares:

• Behind-the-scenes accounts from the early days of New York theatre, TV shows, and Hollywood
• Personal stories never shared before on the death of his father, struggles with depression, and his painful divorce
• How he found an enduring faith in the hostile world of entertainment, calling on God and never giving up

A nostalgic look back at the golden era of American television, This is Your Captain Speaking will take readers on an uplifting and inspiring journey into the life of one of TV’s most beloved actors.

Praise for This Is Your Captain Speaking:

“Gavin epitomizes the old-fashioned concept of a gentleman. He is a loving, generous, and authentic seeker of God’s truth. His life story speaks for itself.”—Kathie Lee Gifford

Absolutely Wonderful

The Title of this review says it all! Gavin we miss you! Rest in Peace!

Second Best Biography I've run across this year.

I loved watching McLeod work on the Mary Tyler's Moore Show and the Love Boat. I wanted to find out more about Macleod and his life. This one didn't disappoint at all.

Wonderful

It was beautifully told & written! Brought back a lot of childhood memories! Fantastic & inspiring to here his transformation to being a Born Again Christian. Must read for all Christians!

An amazing story by an amazing person.

This book touched me personally. Thank you Gavin for sharing your story and life experiences. Your performance is amazing. You brought back so many memories when I was a kid watching you in The Love Boat, you made me laugh and cry as you told these amazing stories. Thank you my brother in Christ, Thank you.

Uplifting Read

I was surprised how much I liked this book. It was very uplifting. I watched the Love Boat, so knew who Gavin was, but not much else. He did a good job recounting his life events with a blunt matter without being negative.
I did not realize it would end on his spiritual journey and enjoyed learning how that came about. This is a journey I am just embarking on so it really drew me in.
The only part I would say needed work was how he would pause and then come back louder. This left the narration choppy.
This book left me wanting to listen to his other one and that does not always happen.