Steve McQueen

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Sally Field

One of the most celebrated, beloved, and enduring actors of our time, Sally Field has an infectious charm that has captivated the nation for more than five decades, beginning with her first TV role at the age of seventeen. From Gidget's sweet-faced "girl next door" to the dazzling complexity of Sybil to the Academy Award-worthy ferocity and depth of Norma Rae and Mary Todd Lincoln, Field has stunned audiences time and time again with her artistic range and emotional acuity. Yet there is one character who always remained hidden: the shy and anxious little girl within. With raw honesty and the fresh, pitch-perfect prose of a natural-born writer, and with all the humility and authenticity her fans have come to expect, Field brings readers behind-the-scenes for not only the highs and lows of her star-studded early career in Hollywood, but deep into the truth of her lifelong relationships--including her complicated love for her own mother. Powerful and unforgettable, In Pieces is an inspiring and important account of life as a woman in the second half of the twentieth century.

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Ronald L. Davis

"Stage actor turned Hollywood star, William S. Hart (1864-1946) was for movie fans a cherished symbol of the romantic Old West. His silent westerns offered excitement, lessons in righteous behavior, and a nostalgic vision of the American frontier. This biography explores the personal and professional life of Hollywood's prototypical cowboy hero." "For the first time, readers are given insights into Hart's somewhat lonely and tragic personal life, his quarrels with exploitive studios, and his association with such latter-day frontier legends as Charles M. Russell, Bat Masterson, and Wyatt Earp, who regarded him as a kindred spirit. Other highlights of this book include excerpts from his previously unpublished letters to starlet Jane Novak, Hart's one-time fiance, as well as numerous photographs from studio and private collections." "Drawing on Hart's papers, primary sources of the Motion Picture Academy, oral history, and contemporary newspapers, this chronicle of Hart's life is the first since his own starry-eyed autobiography, My Life East and West, appeared in 1929"--Jacket.

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Michelle Vogel

"Living in the shadow of a famous parent can have powerful effects. Some children of stars are proud of their roots while others live in secrecy. Here is a rare look into the private lives of the children (and, in a few cases, grandchildren) of Hollywood icons, revealing the stresses and inspirations of living with great performers who may or may not have been great parents." "From the bedtime stories Harpo Marx and his wife told their four adopted children to explain where they'd come from, to the studded belt Bing Crosby used to punish his sons, this work tells the best and worst of growing up in a celebrity home." "Families covered include those of W.C. Fields, the Marx Brothers, Eddie Cantor, Mario Lanza, Ruth Hussey, Jerry Lewis, Douglas Fairbanks and Boris Karloff. Research is drawn from interviews with celebrity offspring, who also provided never-before-published snapshots of Hollywood legends at home."--Jacket.

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Howard Kazanjian and Chris Enss

Presents a comprehensive biography of the early life and career of actor John Wayne that focuses on his childhood in Iowa, college football days, and his early Hollywood roles.