Seeing Stars: Memoirs of a Professional Celebrity-Seeker

By Edwin Howard

Seeing Stars is a timeless book that promises to draw its readers -- young and old, male and female -- into the alluring and fabled whirlwind that is stardom. Its 288 pages profile some of the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0963656511
• ISBN13: 9780963656513
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Rocky Run Publishing
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

A wonderful book

Why are so many of the best American writers Southerners? Edwin Howard is a Southerner and a brilliant novelist and his gifts show through also in the intimacy and warmth of these extended interviews with his fellow Southerners William Faulkner, John Grisham, Patricia Neal, Dixie Carter and Joanne Woodward. In spite of the catchy sub-title, don't mistake Howard for your usual "celebrity seeker". He is a serious writer, and even his short pieces are remarkable for their depth and penetration. And for their frankness and raw humour, because the death of many of his subjects has allowed Howard to print things they said that couldn't be printed in their lifetime (at least not in his Memphis paper). Mae West is even earthier and John Wayne tougher than you imagined - though her main interest is a healthy diet and he loves ballet and considers himself a liberal. Others like Sophia Loren, Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant are as we know them but more so. I skipped some of the interviews at first because they were with actors who didn't interest me (I won't mention names - they may be your favorites) but when I finally read them I found that in Howard's hands they had become interesting. My personal favourite, though, is Lucille Ball; I particularly like her answer to Howard's question, "You don't mind being considered a legend, then?" This is a wonderful book; read it and find out what she says.

Seeins Stars sees 20/20

I read Mr. Howard's wonderful book, and was struck by the feeling of being there personally for each interview. Make no mistake, you are there as each star is warmly and artfully brought to life. A must read for fans of the biggest stars of our time and the best writers too.

Seeing Stars - A Delicious Celebration of a Celebrity Seeker

Edwin Howard's Seeing Stars is a celebration of a professional celebrity seeker, beautifully written with passionate insight for his abundance of subject matter - such as calling "John Wayne the Grand Canyon of movie stars" and Lucille Ball "the Niagara Falls." Throughout the book, Howard has seasoned his original interviews of some of Hollywood's most famous stars with personal observations and evaluations of their films and careers. This reader learned so much and was inspired to want to see again films in which the stars appeared. This reader-friendly book, with candid photographs of many of the stars, is a must for the cinema loving public as well as for theater/cinema libraries - and the personal book shelves of students studying these disciplines.Seeing Stars' introduction is a perfect tune-up for what is to come - by first defining what an interview actually is: "biography in a hurry"... and very informative about where the word interview comes from: "to see each other" from old French. The book's opening chapter on Mae West, who invited the author up to her apartment, whets the appetite to read on. In subsequent chapters, one is introduced to sharp, witty and appropriately catchy chaper titles - salt and peppering the interviews to follow. With Howard's flare for words, his interviews are absolutely delicious! The chapter on Patricia Neal will bring a tear to the eye. Wait until you read the final words Howard writes about Elvis Presley!Let's hope Edwin Howard doesn't stop seeing more stars in the future. This 260-page book seeks a celebratory sequel.

5 Stars For Seeing Stars!!

I grew up reading Mr. Howard's columns and I was thrilled when I heard he'd finally published a book. He's a brilliant storyteller and I found these detailed accounts of his encounters with the stars thoroughly entertaining-He makes you feel as though you've met them personally. I read it from beginning to end in a weekend, but you can just as easily pick it up and read a chapter at random whenever you need an escape!

A candid and surprisingly insightful collection

Seeing Stars: Memoirs Of A Professional Celebrity-Seeker is the personal story of Edwin Howard, a veteran newspaperman, television arts critic and former book review editor whose encounters with the Hollywood elite ranged from Cary Grant, William Faulkner, and Sophia Loren, to James Earl Jones, Jack Nicholson, and Ingrid Bergman, to Paul Newman, Hal Holbrook, Elvis Presley, and so many others. An amazingly candid and surprisingly insightful collection of memorable and autobiographical vignettes offering the reader a unique perspective on and into the lives of some of the greatest entertainers Hollywood has ever known. Seeing Stars is as thoroughly entertaining as it is informed and informative.