My Mother Was Nuts

A Memoir

By: Penny Marshall

Narrated by: Penny Marshall

Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Most people know Penny Marshall as the director of Big and A League of Their Own. What they don’t know is her trailblazing career was a happy accident. In this funny and intimate memoir, Penny takes us from the stage of The Jackie Gleason Show in 1955 to Hollywood’s star-studded sets, offering up some hilarious detours along the way.

My Mother Was Nuts is an intimate backstage pass to Penny’s personal life, her breakout role on The Odd Couple, her exploits with Cindy Williams and John Belushi, and her travels across Europe with Art Garfunkel on the back of a motorcycle. We see Penny get married. And divorced. And married again (the second time to Rob Reiner). We meet a young Carrie Fisher, whose close friendship with Penny has spanned decades. And we see Penny at work with Tom Hanks, Mark Wahlberg, Whoopi Goldberg, Robert De Niro, and Whitney Houston.

Throughout it all, from her childhood spent tap dancing in the Bronx, to her rise as the star of Laverne & Shirley, Penny lived by simple rules: “try hard, help your friends, don’t get too crazy, and have fun.” With humor and heart, My Mother Was Nuts reveals there’s no one else quite like Penny Marshall.

©2012 Penny Marshall (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“There's as much practical, hard-won advice here as there is Hollywood gossip, and Marshall's boundless energy and no-nonsense attitude make for a fun read.” (Publishers Weekly)

“Hollywood aficionados will get a kick out of Marshall’s anecdotes about her circle of friends, including Albert Brooks, John Belushi, and Carrie Fisher, all told in a funny, down-to-earth manner.” (Booklist)

“Penny Marshall is a fascinating woman who has lived a life few of us could survive. Did you know she gave me two of the best jobs I’ve ever had? Of course not, because when she talks she is barely comprehensible. Read her memoir and you’ll come to love her as much as I do.” (Tom Hanks)

Great story

I think Penny Marshall was an entertaining individual. Her life was pretty straightforward. I enjoyed listening to her talk about the shows she was in and all the great movies she directed for which I'm a big fan.
My only caveat was the "f" word.
For most of the book I could deal with the language - it's Penny I guess-but toward the end it was getting harder to listen with every other word the "f" word.
I'm not a prude by any means, but really it gets really old really fast.
Penny was a very colorful personality and will be missed.

She had an interesting life! so successful/funny

It was a great story and I love listening to Bronx New Yorkers. Seems a pretty honest assessment of her life .

Hollywood royalty

I love the fact that Penny read this herself. I loved this book. Plenty of people just remember “Laverne” but clearly she was so much more.

Memorable Read

So much more enjoyable that I would have ever expected.

At first Penny's talking with the mouth full of marble was annoying. Then her voice broke while talking about her mother and it was read by the perfect person.

What a wonderful life. I felt it was an honest representation without having to go to the dark side. The hoop jumping of the motion picture industry was enlightening.

love penny marshall

If you could sum up My Mother Was Nuts in three words, what would they be?

Penny Marshall's Truth

Who was your favorite character and why?

Of course Penny Marshall; it's her memoir

Have you listened to any of Penny Marshall’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

On TV. Laverne was Penny.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Penny's battle with an unstoppable cigarette addiction

Any additional comments?

One wishes the f-word had been reserved for just a few occasions. But that is her vernacular. Her book was more than I expected. She was blessed to have doors opened by her famous brother, but she delivered the goods and more. An interesting autobiography.

A hoot and very raw.

Would you consider the audio edition of My Mother Was Nuts to be better than the print version?

Audio Books for me are always better. However I have not read the book so I could not comment on that.

What was one of the most memorable moments of My Mother Was Nuts?

The ninja robbers story.

What about Penny Marshall’s performance did you like?

I love it. She is a no frills kinda of lady and it shows. She doesn't strike me as loved by all who meet her but definitely loved by those that can get past her no nonsense demeanor. You are either full of s&*^ or you aren't in her book.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When she found out her mom had dementia and her mothers death.

Any additional comments?

I recommend this to all that can get past a rough exterior. I think Penny's bark is louder than her bite. She has a soft spot for the crazies.

she was a great actress and person.

it was like she was sitting across from you, just talking. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Loved this life story!

If you could sum up My Mother Was Nuts in three words, what would they be?

Penny is amazing! I had no idea what an interesting life she had. And she seemed to love every minute of it.

What other book might you compare My Mother Was Nuts to and why?

"Digging up Mother" by Doug Stanhope. It is a humorous memoir about a life with a crazy mother in the middle.

What about Penny Marshall’s performance did you like?

I generally do not like people reading their own books, but understand that they want to read stories about themselves. However, there are some who should not (Anjelica Huston for one) but I really enjoyed listening to her. I could hear the joy in her voice when she was describing certain events.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

This book was written before her best friend of 35 years, Carrie Fisher, and her brother Garry died. I could not help but feel sad at how she must have felt when these two people died.

Any additional comments?

One of the better Hollywood memoirs. She knew so many people and has lots of great stories.

An interesting memoir

I enjoyed this audiobook very much. Penny Marshall reading her own story - I can't imagine anyone else doing it! I learned many interesting things about her life that I never knew.

interesting and funny life story

Penny Marshall did a great job sharing her life story and narrating her book. what an honest funny woman.