In 1940, nineteen-year-old Vivian Morris has just been kicked out of Vassar College, owing to her lackluster freshman-year performance. Her affluent parents send her to Manhattan to live with her Aunt Peg, who owns a flamboyant, crumbling midtown theater called the Lily Playhouse. There Vivian is introduced to an entire cosmos of unconventional and charismatic characters, from the fun-chasing showgirls to a sexy male actor, a grand-dame actress, a...

In engaging anecdotes, Carol discusses her remarkable friendships with stars such at Jimmy Stewart, Lucille Ball, Cary Grant, and Julie Andrews; her television show that won twenty-five Emmys in its remarkable eleven-year run; and the sorrows that she overcame with her irresistible humor.

In this book, Angelou details what brought her mother to send her away, and unearths the well of emotions she experienced long afterward as a result. For the first time, she reveals the triumphs and struggles of being the daughter of Vivian Baxter, an indomitable spirit whose petite size belied her larger-than-life presence, a presence absent during much of the author's early life. When her marriage began to crumble, Vivian famously sent three-year-old...

Nancy is elated to be in the school play, but when her embarrassing performance is posted on YouTube, she must overcome her shame and embrace her infamy.

A first-person presentation of the life and career of comedian and studio head Lucille Ball.

In a collection of personal essays, the actress shares her views and insights on aging, Hollywood, being polite, sex, and anger.

Legendary talk show host Dick Cavett shares his reflections and reminiscences about Hollywood legends, American cultural icons, and the absurdities of everyday life. On his talk show, Cavett welcomed the leading figures from film, music, theater, literature, comedy, and politics, and engaged them in conversation that made viewers feel that the discussion was taking place in their own living rooms. Here he introduces us to the fascinating characters...

A 1984 East Berlin simple surveillance assignment: Capt. Gerd Wiesler, a Stasi officer and a specialist in surveillance, has been assigned to keep an eye on Georg Dreyman, a respected playwright, and his actress girlfriend, Christa-Maria Sieland. Though Dreyman is known to associate with blacklisted director Albert Jerska, a known dissident, Dreyman's record is spotless. Wiesler discovers that Minister Hempf has an ulterior motive in spying on this...

Jessica is a beautiful young woman from the provinces who has come to Paris and lands a job waiting tables at a chic bistro on fabled Avenue Montaigne. Jessica's customers include a popular TV actress who is courting a major Hollywood director for her first serious film role; a wealthy art collector who is about to liquidate a lifetime's worth of treasures at auction; and an illustrious classical pianist who is at odds with his manager/wife as to...

Presents the life of the comic actress, discussing her childhood, marriage to and divorce from Desi Arnaz, and her career on the successful television hit series "I Love Lucy."