In Memoriam

The real Hugh Hefner-the extraordinary inside story of an American icon ""Riveting... Watts packs in plenty of gasp-inducing passages.""-Newark Star Ledger ""Like it or not, Hugh Hefner has affected all of us, so I treasured learning about how and why in the sober biography.""-Chicago Sun Times ""This is a fun book. How could it not be? Watts aims to give a full account of the man, his magazine and their place in social history. Playboy is no longer the cultural force it used to be, but it made a stamp on society.""-Associated Press ""In Steven Watts'' exhaustive, illuminating biography Mr. Playboy, Hefner''s ideal for living -- marked by his allegiances to Tarzan, Freud, Pepsi-Cola and jazz -- proves to be a kind of gloss on the Protestant work ethic.""-Los Angeles TimesGorgeous young women in revealing poses; extravagant mansion parties packed with celebrities; a hot-tub grotto, elegant smoking jackets, and round rotating beds; the hedonistic pursuit of uninhibited sex. Put these images together and a single name springs to mind-Hugh Hefner. From his spectacular launch of Playboy magazine and the dizzying expansion of his leisure empire to his recent television hit The Girls Next Door, the publisher has attracted public attention and controversy for decades. But how did a man who is at once socially astute and morally unconventional, part Bill Gates and part Casanova, also evolve into a figure at the forefront of cultural change?In Mr. Playboy, historian and biographer Steven Watts argues that, in the process of becoming fabulously wealthy and famous, Hefner has profoundly altered American life and values. Granted unprecedented access to the man and his enterprise, Watts traces Hef''s life and career from his midwestern, Methodist upbringing and the first publication of Playboy in 1953 through the turbulent sixties, self-indulgent seventies, reactionary eighties, and traditionalist nineties, up to the present. He reveals that Hefner, from the beginning, believed he could overturn social norms and take America with him.This fascinating portrait illustrates four ways in which Hefner and Playboy stood at the center of several cultural upheavals that remade the postwar United States. The publisher played a crucial role in the sexual revolution that upended traditional notions of behavior and expectation regarding sex. He emerged as one of the most influential advocates of a rapidly developing consumer culture, flooding Playboy readers with images of material abundance and a leisurely lifestyle. He proved instrumental-with his influential magazine, syndicated television shows, fashionable nightclubs, swanky resorts, and movie and musical projects-in making popular culture into a dominant force in many people''s lives. Ironically, Hefner also became a controversial force in the movement for women''s rights. Although advocating women''s sexual freedom and their liberation from traditional family constraints, the publisher became a whipping boy for feminists who viewed him as a prophet for a new kind of male domination.Throughout, Watts offers singular insights into the real man behind the flamboyant public persona. He shows Hefner''s personal dichotomies-the pleasure seeker and the workaholic, the consort of countless Playmates and the genuine romantic, the family man and the Gatsby-like host of lavish parties at his Chicago and Los Angeles mansions who enjoys well-publicized affairs with numerous Playmates, the fan of life''s simple pleasures who hobnobs with the Hollywood elite.Punctuated throughout with descriptions and anecdotes of life at the Playboy Mansions, Mr. Playboy tells the compelling and uniquely American story of how one person with a provocative idea, a finger on the pulse of popular opinion, and a passion for his work altered the course of modern history. Spans from Hefner''s childhood to the launch of Playboy magazine and the expansion of t

Fifty years after inventing the Good Life as no one else had dared, the Master Playboy of the Western World at last shares the secrets that have for generations made him the envy of all free-thinking men and women. Hef's Little Black Book conjures the legendary lifestyle of Hugh M. Hefner as never before, a treasure trove of urbane lore, wry advice, and time-honored wisdom spanning the realms of romance, hedonism, ambition, business, dreams, and, of course, sex. From the pursuit of Love to the politics of the Bedroom, from the inspiration of a single idea to the emergence of a sprawling international corporation built on self-belief, Hef provides an invaluable guide to anyone who has ever thought big. Accompanied by tantalizing, never-before-seen photographs, the gateway to Hugh Hefner's Dream World of Cool awaits you. If you don't swing, don't ring.

With generosity of spirit, ebullience, and sly humor, Mary Tyler Moore presents the intensely private, often funny, and sometimes startling story of her life with diabetes. Growing Up Again is a delightfully candid read for her legion of fans, the more than 20 million Americans with diabetes, and everyone struggling to cope with life's unexpected challenges. Mary Tyler Moore, actress and activist, relates the highs and lows of living with type 1 diabetes for the past forty years. With inspired, well-crafted prose, she drills down to the most heartfelt, yet universal truths about life-including the lives of those with diabetes. She unflinchingly chronicles her struggle with diabetes, as well as her successful rehabilitation from alcohol dependence, all while deriving gratification from her roles as an actress, mother, businesswoman, campaigner, and fund-raiser. Her revealing tales of both her successes and failures in coping with diabetes offer others with the disease guidance and inspiration through example. In the book, stories include her rebounding from a low-blood-sugar episode during a Mary Tyler Moore Show script reading after the director poured orange juice down her throat, to misadventures caused by diabetes-related vision impairment at a dimly lit party for John Travolta.She also taps into the vast diabetes research network to talk to diabetic children and adults and with leading experts who are discovering new ways to control diabetes and its complications, and pursuing new ways to cure this disease.

Eugene Cernan is a unique American who came of age as an astronaut during the most exciting and dangerous decade of spaceflight. His career spanned the entire Gemini and Apollo programs, from being the first person to spacewalk all the way around our world to the moment when he left man's last footprint on the Moon as commander of Apollo 17. Between those two historic events lay more adventures than an ordinary person could imagine as Cernan repeatedly put his life, his family and everything he held dear on the altar of an obsessive desire. Written with New York Times bestselling author Don Davis, this is the astronaut story never before told - about the fear, love and sacrifice demanded of the few men who dared to reach beyond the heavens for the biggest prize of all - the Moon.

As one of the greatest rock icons of all time, Gregg Allman has lived it all and then some. For almost fifty years, he's been creating some of the most recognizable songs in American rock, but never before has he paused to reflect on the long road he's traveled. Now, he tells the unflinching story of his life, laying bare the unvarnished truth about his wild ride that has spanned across the years. The story begins simply: with Gregg and his older brother, Duane, growing up in the South, raising hell with their guitars, and drifting from one band to another. But all that changed when Duane and Gregg came together with four other men to forge something new—a unique sound shaped by soul, rock, and blues and brimming with experimentation; a sound not just of a band, but of a family. Bringing to life the carefree early days of the Allman Brothers Band, Gregg holds nothing back—from run-ins with the law to meeting girls on the road, from jamming at the Fillmore East to experimenting with drugs. Along the way, he goes behind the scenes of some of greatest rock music ever recorded, without shying away from the infamous and painful deaths of his brother, Duane, and Allman Brothers bassist Berry Oakley. Speaking for the first time about the profound impact that his brother's death had on him, Gregg offers a tribute to Duane that only a younger brother could write, showing how, to this day, he still confronts the grief of losing his big brother, even as Duane continues to guide and inspire him. Setting the record straight about the band's struggles in the face of death, Gregg shows how the decision to persevere came with a heavy price. While the rock and roll excesses of drugs, alcohol, and personality clashes led to a series of breakups that culminated with the band's permanent reunion in 1989, Gregg fought his own battle with substance abuse, going to rehab no less than eleven times and floating through a string of failed marriages, including his tabloid-frenzied relationship with Cher, before finally cleaning up once and for all. Capturing the Allman Brothers' ongoing, triumphant resurgence as well as his own recent fight against hepatitis C and featuring over one hundred photos from throughout the band’s history, Gregg presents a story as honest as it is fascinating, providing a glimpse inside one of the most beloved and notorious bands in the history of rock music and demonstrating how, through it all, the road goes on . . . forever.

Rock 'n' roll defined the last half of the twentieth century, and while many think of Elvis Presley as the genre's driving force, the truth is that Fats Domino, whose records have sold more than 100 million copies, was the first to put it on the map with such hits as Ain't That a Shame" and "Blueberry Hill." InBlue Monday, acclaimed R&B scholar Rick Coleman draws on a multitude of new interviews with Fats Domino and many other early musical legends (among them Lloyd Price, the Clovers, Charles Brown, and members of Buddy Holly's group, the Crickets) to create a definitive biography of not just an extraordinary man but also a unique time and place: New Orleans at the birth of rock 'n' roll. Coleman's groundbreaking research makes for an immense cultural biography, the first to thoroughly explore the black roots of rock 'n' roll and its impact on civil rights inAmerica. A true music lovers' biography,Blue Monday, includes new revelations about the politics behind the music labels of the 1930s and 1940s, and provides a searing indictment of the great white myths of rock 'n' roll. Coleman also brings the African-American culture of New Orleans to life, and his narrative is passionate, compassionate, and authoritative.Blue Monday is the first biography to convey the full scope of Fats Domino's impact on the popular music of the twentieth century. "

Official and authorised Tom Petty has been long been seen as sone of the great songwriters of American rock 'n' roll, as well as one of the key standard bearers of integrity in the music business.Conversations With Tom Petty is the first authorized book to focus solely on the life and work of the man responsible for some of the most memorable rock anthems of our generation, including: American Girl, Breakdown, Refugee, The Waiting, Don't Come Around Here No More, I Won't Back Down, Free Fallin', Runnin' Down a Dream, You Don't Know How It Feels, Mary Jane's Last Dance, and many others. He was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 and his work with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, as well as his solo albums and those with the Traveling Wilburys, have been critically acclaimed the world over and have earned numerous Platinum-status awards from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), as well as Grammys and other major awards. Tom and Paul conducted a series of in-depth discussions about Tom's career, with special focus on his songwriting. represent a unique perspective on Tom's entire career.

The New York TimesBestseller *One ofRolling Stone's 10 Best Music Books of 2015* An exhilarating and intimate account of the life of music legend Tom Petty, by an accomplished writer and musician who toured with Petty No one other than Warren Zanes, rocker and writer and friend, could author a book about Tom Petty that is as honest and evocative of Petty's music and the remarkable rock and roll history he and his band helped to write. Born in Gainesville, Florida, with more than a little hillbilly in his blood, Tom Petty was a Southern shit kicker, a kid without a whole lot of promise. Rock and roll made it otherwise. From meeting Elvis, to seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan, to producing Del Shannon, backing Bob Dylan, putting together a band with George Harrison, Dylan, Roy Orbison, and Jeff Lynne, making records with Johnny Cash, and sending well more than a dozen of his own celebrated recordings high onto the charts, Tom Petty's story has all the drama of a rock and roll epic. Now in his mid-sixties, still making records and still touring, Petty, known for his reclusive style, has shared with Warren Zanes his insights and arguments, his regrets and lasting ambitions, and the details of his life on and off the stage. This is a book for those who know and love the songs, from "American Girl" and "Refugee" to "Free Fallin'" and "Mary Jane's Last Dance," and for those who want to see the classic rock and roll era embodied in one man's remarkable story. Dark and mysterious, Petty manages to come back, again and again, showing us what the music can do and where it can take us.

This collection of classic southern rock is an indispensable addition to any guitarist's library. Titles are: Ain't Wastin' Time No More * Good Clean Fun * Hot 'Lanta * Statesboro Blues * Wasted Words * Whipping Post * Win, Lose, or Draw * Melissa * Midnight Rider * Mountain Jam * I'm No Angel.

(Guitar Recorded Versions). 17 classics from Petty's vast repertoire, newly transcribed with tab: American Girl * Breakdown * Don't Come Around Here No More * Don't Do Me like That * Even the Losers * A Face in the Crowd * Free Fallin' * Here Comes My Girl * I Need to Know * I Won't Back Down * Into the Great Wide Open * Learning to Fly * Listen to Her Heart * Mary Jane's Last Dance * Refugee * Runnin' Down a Dream * Stop Draggin' My Heart Around.

Marty Sklar was hired by The Walt Disney Company after his junior year at UCLA, and began his Disney career at Disneyland in July 1955, the month before the park opened. He spent his first decade at Disney as "the kid," the very youngest of the creative team Walt had assembled at WED Enterprises. But despite his youth, his talents propelled him forward into substantial responsibility: he became Walt's speech writer, penned Walt's and Roy's messages in the company's annual report, composed most of the publicity and marketing materials for Disneyland, conceived presentations for the U.S. government, devised initiatives to obtain sponsors to enable new Disneyland developments, and wrote a twenty-four-minute film expressing Walt's philosophy for the Walt Disney World project and Epcot. He was Walt's literary right-hand man. Over the next forty years, Marty Sklar rose to become president and principal creative executive of Walt Disney Imagineering, and he devoted his entire career to creating, enhancing, and expanding Walt's magical empire. This beautifully written and enlightening book is Marty's own retelling of his epic Disney journey, a grand adventure that lasted over half a century.

The Bond movies remain the longest continually running film series in movie history, and 2012 marks its fiftieth anniversary.  To celebrate these universally adored films, their cultural history, and wide appeal, Sir Roger Moore, KBE, has written a book that features all the Bond movies, along with a wonderfully witty account of his own involvement in them. From the girls to the villains, the cars to the cocktails, and oh so many gadgets,Bond on Bondhas it all. This sumptuous book is  illustrated with over 400 hundred iconic images from all the films including many previously unseen photos from the Bond archive as well as photos from Moore's personal collection.  And while there have been other actors that have taken on the coveted role of James Bond, Moore, the longest starring 007, is certainly one of the most renowned and beloved. Written with all the affection and good humor he brought to the role, his charming wit and charismatic personality come through on every page.    This the ultimate Bond book, written by the ultimate insider, and for this reason, Bond on Bondis not to be missed. It will dazzle and delight 007 fans of all ages and with out a doubt, leave them feeling both shakenandstirred.  

One of the most recognizable big-screen stars of the past half-century, Sir Roger Moore played the role of James Bond longer than any other actor. Beginning with the classic Live and Let Die, running through Moonraker and A View to a Kill, Moore brought his finely honed wit and wry charm to one of Hollywood's most beloved and long-lasting characters. Still, James Bond was only one in a lifetime of roles stretching back to Hollywood's studio era, and encompassing stardom in theater and television on both sides of the Atlantic. From The Saint to Maverick, Warner Brothers to MGM, Hollywood to London to extreme locations the world over, Roger Moore's story is one of the last of the classic Hollywood lives as yet untold. Until now. From the dying days of the studio system and the birth of television, to the quips of Noël Coward and David Niven, to the bedroom scenes and outtakes from the Bond movies, Moore has seen and heard it all. Nothing is left out—especially the naughty bits. The "special effects" by which James Bond unzipped a dress with a magnet; the spectacular risks in The Spy Who Loved Me's opening scene; and Moore's preparation for facing down villains (he would imagine they all have halitosis): the stories in My Word is My Bond are priceless. Throughout his career, Moore hobnobbed with the glamorous and powerful, counting Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Seymour, and Cary Grant among his contemporaries and friends. Included are stories of a foul-mouthed Milton Berle, a surly Richard Burton, and a kindhearted Richard Kiel, infamous as Bond enemy Jaws. As much as it is Moore's own exceptional story, My Word is My Bond is a treasure trove of Hollywood history.

In a career that spans over seven decades, Roger Moore has been at the very heart of Hollywood. Of course, he’s an actor and has starred in films that have made him famous the world over; but he’s also a tremendous prankster, joker and raconteur. Despite the fact that he is well known as one of the nicest guys in the business, on and off the screen he has always been up for some fun. nbsp; In this fabulous collection of true stories from his stellar career, Moore lifts the lid on the movie business, from Hollywood to Pinewood.nbsp; One Lucky Bastard features outrageous tales from his own life and career as well as those told to him by a host of stars and filmmakers including, Tony Curtis, Sean Connery, Michael Caine, David Niven, Frank Sinatra, Gregory Peck, John Mills, Peter Sellers, Michael Winner, Cubby Broccoli, and many more. Wonderfully entertaining and laugh-out-loud funny, these extraordinary tales from the world of the movies is vintage Moore at his very best.

The actress recounts her life and career up to the present, from her tough Brooklyn-to-Hollywood childhood, to her long marriage to Grant Tinker and their painful divorce, the loss of her son, and her struggles with alcoholism.

The biggest names in standup comedy reveal the howlingly funny, completely shocking, and disturbingly bizarre moments they've experienced on the road.

FINALIST FOR THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR DRAMA In such critically acclaimed plays as The Dining Room and The Cocktail Hour, A. R. Gurney has wittily captured the manners of upper-middle-class WASP America, but never as gracefully or with such dazzling economy as in Love Letters. Tracing the lifelong correspondence of the staid, dutiful lawyer Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and the lively, unstable artist Melissa Gardner, the story of their bittersweet relationship gradually unfolds from what is written--and what is left unsaid--in their letters. A smash hit both off and on Broadway, Love Letters captures Andy and Melissa with a precision of detail and depth of feeling that only Gurney can command. Two other, thematically related plays by Gurney, The Golden Age and What I Did Last Summer, are included, providing a trio of wry and affectionate paeans to love lost, found, and fleetingly glimpsed.

Originally published in 1971, it remains one of the most controversial novels ever written and went on to become a literary phenomenon. Inspired by a true story of a child’s demonic possession in the 1940s, William Peter Blatty created an iconic novel that focuses on Regan, the eleven-year-old daughter of a movie actress residing in Washington, D.C. A small group of overwhelmed yet determined individuals must rescue Regan from her unspeakable fate, and the drama that ensues is gripping and unfailingly terrifying. The Exorcist was, and is, more than just a novel and a film: it is a true landmark. Purposefully raw and profane, The Exorcist still has the extraordinary ability to disturb readers and cause them to forget that it is “just a story.” Published here in this beautiful fortieth anniversary edition, it remains an unforgettable reading experience and will continue to shock and frighten a new generation of readers.
Also available in the following formats: DVD | BLU-RAY | AudioBook | eBook

READ THE SENSATIONAL BLOCKBUSTER THAT STARTED IT ALL! Take it from the top in #1 New York Times bestselling author Sue Grafton's knockout thriller that introduced detective Kinsey Millhone--and a hot new attitude--to crime fiction... A IS FOR AVENGER A tough-talking former cop, private investigator Kinsey Millhone has set up a modest detective agency in a quiet corner of Santa Teresa, California. A twice-divorced loner with few personal possessions and fewer personal attachments, she's got a soft spot for underdogs and lost causes. A IS FOR ACCUSED That's why she draws desperate clients like Nikki Fife. Eight years ago, she was convicted of killing her philandering husband. Now she's out on parole and needs Kinsey's help to find the real killer. But after all this time, clearing Nikki's bad name won't be easy. A IS FOR ALIBI If there's one thing that makes Kinsey Millhone feel alive, it's playing on the edge. When her investigation turns up a second corpse, more suspects, and a new reason to kill, Kinsey discovers that the edge is closer--and sharper--than she imagined.
"A" Is for Alibi, "B" Is for Burglar, "C" Is for Corpse, "D" Is for Deadbeat, "E" Is for Evidence, "F" Is for Fugitive, "G" Is for Gumshoe, "H" Is for Homicide, "I" Is for Innocent, "J" Is for Judgment, "K" Is for Killer, "L" is for Lawless, "M" Is for Malice, "N" Is for Noose, "O" Is for Outlaw, "P" Is for Peril, "Q" Is for Quarry, "R" Is for Ricochet, "S" Is for Silence, "T" Is for Trespass, "U" Is for Undertow, "V" Is for Vengeance, "W" Is for Wasted, "X" Is for..., "Y" is for Yesterday

Featuring a foreword by Dick Van Dyke, The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book is the first and only complete, fully authorized biography of one of TV's most beloved sitcoms, including the first complete viewer's guide to all 158 episodes, as well as special behind-the-scenes trivia and a full chapter concordance. 50 black-and-white photos.

With candour and humour, this biography tells of Rose Marie's many years in the entertainment world. Her behind-the-scenes look at show business is replete with intimate stories of household names from Hollywood, Las Vegas and Broadway.