That Girl and Phil: An Insider Tells What Life is Really Like in the Marlo Thomas/Phil Donahue Household

by Desmond Atholl

Book Overview

When London-born Desmond Atholl, a majordomo for some of the world's most affluent families, accepted a post with power-couple Marlo Thomas and Phil Donohue, he certainly never imagined that it would... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312051697
• ISBN13: 9780312051693
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 222 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Oh Marlo....

I found this book interesting and and entertaining. A great read with a grain of salt. No matter what though, I still love "That Girl" and Marlo Thomas.

Shocking, What The Inquirer cant print

I had to give this book 5 stars because it is one I never forgot. I found it in a condo years ago I was renting on vacation. You will never look at Marlo Thomas and believe her goody goody TV persona again. This woman is not only has a potty mouth where no sentence to her house help is without the F word, but is spoiled and rotten. The outrageousness of the stuff about Marlo written in this book matches Marlos' absurd face on the cover.

This book is an effing knockout!!!

The book is fabulous from beginning to end! It's great to see the veils pulled back on evil hollywood pigs! This book is funny, beautifully written and extremely entertaining. Don't pay any attention to the guy who only put one star on his review: he is the sour grape in the bunch. Get this book or miss out on all the fun!

Greatest book I ever read!

This is a great book! A true story of Hollywood rich and excess! It seems only Carly Simon and Olympia Dukakis are the only other ones who know what life is really like in the Thomas-Donahue household! It's so funny, I'm reading it again today, It's amazing how rich people live, way different than poor little ole' me! I only live on ten thou a year, and Ive lived like this for 37 of them! He is very careful to put the plusses of Phil and Marlo also, I like the line Phil would use to be casual when being served, "at your leisure" I'm sure Phil loves this book, and although Marlo probably does'nt like to admit it, she's a good egg and laughs at it too! The part where Rena and Marlo Square off, is pure housekeeper torture laughs, this book is a must for any poor person or household help! What a Gas!

Deliciously Fun, Trashy Gossip...Ann Marie she ain't!

Imagine hearing sweet Ann Marie of "That Girl" swear, uttering the word "F--K" in every other sentence? Imagine "That Girl" mistreat the help and never clean up after herself, ever?? Her house manager Desmond Atholl debunks the carefully honed image created by Marlo Thomas in this dishy, tell-all book. Poor Danny Thomas must be rolling over in his grave over this one. As a child, Marlo Thomas grew up spoiled and indulged, a privileged little princess whose every whim was catered to by servants. Such odious pampering resulted in an adult woman who is an immature, selfish, self-absorbed, flaky, scatterbrained control freak, used to ALWAYS having her own way. It's sad to see that, because the public Marlo Thomas tries to do good, lending her name to good causes, rubbing shoulders with liberals and feminists, but apparently it's all for show. She claims to be an advocate for the disdvantaged and the poor, yet she treats her own servants and staff like dirt. In spite of being in charge of this difficult woman and her Household from Hell, Desmond Atholl manages to retain his cheeky humor and outrageousness. I supposed he had to, in order to survive Hurricane Marlo. You'll never be able to watch old re-runs of "That Girl" the same way after reading this hilarious book. It should be entitled, "Free to Be...ME ME ME!"