Gene Wilder defined film comedy in the 1970s and
'80s. But this is no traditional autobiography, rather
it's an intelligent, quirky, humorous account of key
events that have affected him in search for love and
art. In this very personal, fascinating book, Wilder
gives a great insight into the creative process on stage
and screen. He discusses his experiences of working with
the very best of movie talent, including Mel Brooks,
Woody Allen, Sidney Poitier and Richard Pryor, and tells
how he developed his own unique style from his early
days at The Actors' Studio with Lee Strasberg. Amongst
other incidents, he describes his time in the UK, which
he has great fondness for, studying at the Old Vic
Theatre School in Bristol. During this period he came
top of his class at fencing and doorstepped Sir John
Geilgud to ask him to explain the use of iambic
pentametre. Wilder also talks amusingly about his failed
love life off-screen (including 4 marriages) and is
candid about much darker times such as the death of his
third wife, comedienne Gilda Radner, from cancer. He
also reveals his own recent battle with the disease,
which he's now come through, and which changed his
perspective on life.This isn't a traditional celebrity
'tell all' but an insight into the life and mind of a
great comic actor who has a rare ability to write as
well as he performs. |
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