Rat Pack Confidential

Frank, Dean, Sammy, Peter, Joey and the Last Great Show Biz Party

By: Shawn Levy

Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain

Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's Summary

January 1960. Las Vegas is at its smooth, cool peak. The Strip is a jet-age theme park, and the greatest singer in the history of American popular music summons a group of friends there to make a movie. One is an insouciant singer of Italian songs, ex-partner to the most popular film comedian of the day. One is a short, black, Jewish, one-eyed, singing, dancing wonder. One is an upper-crust British pretty boy turned degenerate B-movie star actor, brother-in-law to an ascendant politician. And one is a stiff-shouldered comic with the quintessential Borscht Belt emcee's knack for needling one-liners. The architectonically sleek marquee of the Sands Hotel announces their presence simply by listing their names: Frank Sinatra. Dean Martin. Sammy Davis, Jr. Peter Lawford. Joey Bishop. They call themselves The Clan. But to an awed world, they are known as The Rat Pack.

They had it all. Fame. Gorgeous women. A fabulous playground of a city and all the money in the world. The backing of fearsome crime lords and the blessing of the President of the United States. But the dark side - over the thin line between pleasure and debauchery, between swinging self-confidence and brutal arrogance - took its toll. In four years, their great ride was over, and showbiz was never the same.

©1998 Shawn Levy (P)2019 Tantor

amazing

listened twice. I have read so many books on Sinatra, but this was full of shocking stories.
Did he really?

If you’re over 50 you must to listen to this book

This will bring back memories, and answer questions as to the real personality of these incredible performers. Who wasn’t in love with Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Sammy. Do you want to know what was really going on in their interaction with Jeff Kennedy this is a great listen

The Best Show on Earth

I was always in awe of these entertainers and that entire era. What a run, what great showmanship.

If. You Are A Fan, Skip This Book

As I listened to the story of the famous Rat Pack, I got progressively sadder. I couldn’t say whether the. author was just extremely objective or hated the. subjects so much, he just had to tear them down. I did learn a lot but I am a fan,I hung on to each stingily given good word in a. story meant to topple the kings of Las Vegas. I’m short, you can live without this one.

Very entertaining, insightful!

Liked it and gave a lot of insights and anecdotes I wasn't aware it, it was a tad long though...

Too many stories in one book

This book is about the “Rat Pack”. Yes it is. But it reads like something out of the National Enquirer. All the stories are nothing but juicy gossip to defame these iconic entertainers, but when I decided to read it I knew this was going to be the case. A lot of this stuff I knew, but much more I didn’t. So, I know it now. Whether true or not, I am still going to respect all that they did for the entertainment world and how we are still all affected by what they did. But, someday they will just be names in history if the world allows it to remain as such. This book is good, but not an essential text that one needs to read to get the real story behind these guys. I think we knew already.

Expected more

Story was dry and fragmented.Performance was dry as well. Not worth the time sadly. Keep looking.

Could hardly put it down…

I really enjoyed listening to this book. I learned so much about the Rat Pack I didn’t know before. The highs, the lows, the scandal…it’s all there. The book gives you just enough background on the fellas to make it interesting, and to give you insight on how they became successful. If you are a fan of the Rat Pack and the era when they were popular, I certainly recommend this book.

Love the Rat Pack!!

so very interesting about the back story. it does not disappoint. great story to listen to why doing hand work or art.

Lackluster read of a slanted book

The overall read is dull, with words and names often mispronounced. The book itself is clearly written with an agenda, overlooking the many good things the guys in the Rat Pack did such as Sinatra’s often anonymous generosity especially to the Palm Springs community. It attempts to portray them as desperate lightweights who owed everything to Sinatra, who was written as being little more than a despotic spoiled brat. The author seems more focused in displaying his intellectual superiority with a grandiose use of vocabulary that often goes beyond the capacity of the average reader.