Showing results by publisher "BearManor Media"

Raised Eyebrows is the bittersweet story of the last years in the life of Groucho Marx, told by a young Marx Brothers fan who was fortunate enough to work for Groucho as his personal secretary and archivist, right inside Marx's Beverly Hills home. In addition to getting to know his hero, the author was able to spend quality time with Zeppo, Gummo, Mae West, George Burns, Bob Hope, Jack Lemmon, SJ Perelman, Steve Allen, and scores of other luminaries of stage, screen, TV, and literature.

> Joi Lansing: A Body to Die For, colorfully chronicles personal and intimate details of the last four years of the talented '50's blonde bombshell star's fascinating life. After three decades of successful TV and movie appearances and Vegas singing stardom, Ms. Lansing died far too young at just 43. Though her funeral was attended by luminaries of the day, (Frank Sinatra sent a huge floral display), her light went out relatively unceremoniously.

Gary Craig, actor, singer, and renowned radio personality, amused audiences on stage, film, television, and radio. Hilarious anecdotes, riotous pranks, and sidesplitting stories regale you with the raucous roots of his radio reign from humble beginnings to his current spectacular ratings on Hartford's beloved WTIC-FM morning show, Craig and Company. Follow his footsteps as an underdog struggling to secure a niche career while reaching for the stars to follow his dreams.

"Gary Rhodes and Bill Kaffenberger have added the final chapter to Bela Lugosi's career, combining fascinating unknown details of his film and stage activities with post-WWII film history. Superbly researched and written as an engrossing story of an actor's struggle against professional decline. A must-read!" (Robert Cremer, author of Lugosi: The Man Behind the Cape)

Critic-producer Nat Segaloff was granted access to private papers, production records, never-before-published interviews, and specialized archives in reconstructing the colorful, touching, and sometimes scandalous stories behind the making of the last films of some of Hollywood's top directors.

The latest in a series of books by researchers extraordinaire Gary D. Rhodes and Bill Kaffenberger, Bela Lugosi in Person brims with new facts and figures documenting the actor's scores of live public performances from 1931 to 1945, the era of his greatest fame. Three-act plays, vaudeville sketches, variety shows, and personal appearances are all chronicled at length, bringing new perspective to Lugosi's life and career.

Lovers of old-time radio hold a special place in their heart for Agnes Moorehead. She was one of the busiest and most definitive actresses of that medium. The bottom line is that Agnes Moorehead is one of the few actresses who succeeded in every realm of show business: stage, radio, film, and television. This impressive biography proves to listeners and scholars alike that she was much more than the witch of Endor! This is the second edition of the best-selling book, with new material!

Autobiography of the King of Porn In the world of adult cinema, one name stands out above all others: John Holmes. For nearly 20 years, from 1967 to 1987, Holmes reigned as the undisputed king of X-rated films, having appeared in a record 2,200 plus productions, from the landmark Johnny Wadd movies (one of which became the first adult motion picture to gross over $1 million) to the legendary Insatiable with Marilyn Chambers.

You know the films. You know the characters. You may even know the man behind the glasses. But do you really know the events and happenings that most changed Harold Lloyd? That define him? The turning points in his life and career? From birth to death, Harold Lloyd grew and evolved because of the things that were happening around him, and he was always aware of the importance of these events.

This book will let you into the heart and soul of Paul Lynde. Best remembered for outrageous jokes on Hollywood Squares, as Uncle Arthur from Bewitched, and as the frantic father in Bye Bye Birdie, Paul was never satisfied with his career - or his personal life. But even as he suffered through some of the cruelest of times, Paul continued to make us forget our troubles and was forever gracious to his fans. This is the book those fans have been waiting for.

When Charles Chaplin signed a record-setting contract with the Mutual Film Corporation in February 1916, it was the culmination of events that changed the motion picture business. Mutual's founders redefined how films were bought, sold, and distributed. Chaplin redefined screen comedy with a character that leapt into the hearts of moviegoers around the world. Together they established the value of star power and created 12 magnificent comedies that have endured for generations.

Guarding Gable - an original audio novel by Nat Segaloff - starts with an actual event in the life of the screen's number one star and becomes a story worthy of a Hollywood movie. It's 1942 and World War II is just beginning. Beloved actress Carole Lombard is killed in a plane crash while returning from a bond-selling tour and her husband, Clark Gable, is beyond consolation. Depressed to the point of suicide, he enlists in the US Army Air Corps, telling his bosses at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer that he doesn't care if he ever comes back.

Burlesque: A Living History captures the spirit of this unique art form through hundreds of photographs and stories from many who were a part of America's most colorful past. This audiobook highlights the careers and contributions of selected artists, many of whom were the nuts and bolts of burlesque. It also acknowledges just some of the young performers of today who are diligently working to remember the days of old. When burlesque theatres and clubs went dark, a whole world went dark with them.

Arguably the greatest comedy duo in show business history, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy delighted filmgoers and theatregoers for over 30 years. The public not only found Laurel's serene simpleton and Hardy's pompous buffoon hilarious, but they also thought of them as friends. Laurel and Hardy may have been nitwits, but they were loveable nitwits.

What is a comedian doing writing poetry? I often ask myself the same question. I suppose it's just something I can't help doing. In fact, I have always written. At last, I had enough poems to put together to create this collection. In it you will find poems of all sorts, serious, not-so-serious, poems to teach and poems to amuse. Most of my poetry is free verse, although you will also find a few rhyming poems, one trying to teach iambic pentameter, and a few limericks. All of it, however, comes from my own experience. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

Here at last is the real story of how TTV was formed! Inside you will find rare production artwork and storyboards, as well as reminiscences from TTV's founders.

A massive biography of Zorro and Lost in Space star, Guy Williams. Author Antoinette Girgenti Lane's honest, loving account of Disney's dashing TV star contains the first ever detailed information on the man behind the legend.

Mel Blanc needs no introduction to cartoon and radio fans. He was The Master of the funny voice. For the first time ever, here is the ultimate biography, encompassing Noel Blanc's unpublished biography, with an introduction by Bugs Bunny. Read by the great Fred Frees, son of voice actor Paul Frees.

The complete, tortuous story of the 1910 film version of Frankenstein is narrated in this 100th-anniversary edition. Everything you ever wanted to know about the classic first Frankenstein film and then some. This highly researched document begins in the dusty archives of Thomas A. Edison and follows a trail of evidence that leads through the tattered pages of pre-Hollywood film history. The story unfolds from the making of the film and its disappearance on to the actual rediscovery of the long-lost 1910 Frankenstein film starring Charles Ogle, Augustus Phillips, and Mary Fuller, and finally getting it released on DVD.

The over 800 radio broadcasts summarized in this book combine exciting, high-technology advancements of the 1940s with high adventure! This is why Captain Midnight riveted over 20 million people - equally among youths and adults - to their radios around the globe. It's also why many fans went on to become career aviators. Originally written by military pilot Robert M. Burtt, and recovered by screenwriter and novelist Leonard Zane, these post-WWII thrills are back! So come climb aboard prop and jet planes, and haaaapppyyy laaandiiiings!