Download or read book Florence Foster Jenkins written by Nicholas Martin and published by St. Martin's Griffin. This book was released on 2016-07-12 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the true story of Florence Foster Jenkins—now the basis of a major motion picture starring Academy Award-winning actress Meryl Streep! She was a woman with a dream. Nobody believed in her talent. But nothing could stop her. . . She had no pitch, no rhythm, and no tone. Still, Florence Foster Jenkins (Streep) became one of America’s best-known sopranos. Born in 1868, Florence was a talented young pianist whose wealthy father refused to let her continue her musical studies in Europe. In retaliation, Florence eloped with Dr. Frank Jenkins, a man twice her age, and moved to New York. But when her father died and left her a large sum of money, Florence finally had a chance to pursue her one true passion: Singing. But first she would have to learn how to become a great singer. Years of lessons and a chance meeting with St. Clair Bayfield (Hugh Grant), who would become her manager and common-law husband, would help launch Florence’s career and entry into New York’s prestigious classical musical societies, culminating in her giving a recital, at the age of seventy-six, at Carnegie Hall. This is story of a woman who was not afraid to recreate herself into the person she wished to become—and achieve her own version of the American Dream.
Download or read book Glorious written by Peter Quilter and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-07-11 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hilarious comedy of the worst singer in the world In 1940's New York, the performer who everyone wanted to see live was Florence Foster Jenkins, an enthusiastic soprano whose pitch was far from perfect. Known as 'the first lady of the sliding scale', she warbled and screeched her way through the evening to an audience who mostly fell about with laughter. But this delusional and joyously happy woman paid little attention to her critics, instead she was surrounded by a circle of devoted friends who were almost as eccentric as she was. Based upon a true story, the play spins from Florence's charity recitals and extravagent balls, through to her bizarre recording sessions and an ultimate triumph at Carnegie Hall in this hilarious and heart-warming comedy. Glorious! is published to tie-in with the premiere at Birmingham Repertory Theatre, starring Maureen Lipman. 'Never less than riveting' Scotsman 'Comically sublime' Guardian 'Delightful and often blissfully funny ... This is a cult hit if ever I saw one' Daily Telegraph 'Lunatically funny comedy ... Maureen Lipman gives a virtuoso performance, glittering, hilarious and technically breathtaking' Sunday Times
Download or read book Florence Foster Jenkins written by Darryl W. Bullock and published by Abrams. This book was released on 2016-07-12 with total page 150 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An inspiring biography of the socialite and amateur soprano who didn’t let her terrible voice stop her—Now the subject of a major motion picture. Magazine Madame Jenkins couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket: despite that, in 1944 at the age of seventy-six, she played Carnegie Hall to a capacity audience and had celebrity fans by the score. Her infamous 1940s recordings are still highly prized today. In his well-researched and thoroughly entertaining biography, Darryl W. Bullock tells of Florence Foster Jenkins’s meteoric rise to success and the man who stood beside her, through every sharp note. Florence was ridiculed for her poor control of timing, pitch, and tone, and terrible pronunciation of foreign lyrics, but the sheer entertainment value of her caterwauling packed out theatres around the United States, with the “singer” firmly convinced of her own talent, partly thanks to the devoted attention for her husband and manager St. Clair Bayfield. Her story is one of triumph in the face of adversity, courage, conviction and of the belief that with dedication and commitment a true artist can achieve anything. “Darryl W. Bullock’s charming FLORENCE! FOSTER!! JENKINS!!! is just about right for those who want to know more about the world’s worst opera singer. . . . Thoroughly readable and entertaining. This appealing little biography―which arrives just as a film version of its heroine’s story, starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant, has been released in the U.S.―is warmhearted and delightful. At its core is a touching love story, as well as a message about the human spirit.” —Alexander McCall Smith, The New York Times Book Review
Download or read book The World s Worst Records Volume One written by Darryl W Bullock and published by Bristol Green Publishing. This book was released on 2015-02-04 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An affectionate look at some of the worst recordings ever made, The World’s Worst Records tells the extraordinary but true stories behind some of the most appalling audio crimes ever committed. Extensively researched, and featuring music by major stars, ‘outsider’ artists and almost forgotten singers and songwriters, read about how Elvis Presley came to record a rock ‘n’ roll version of the nursery rhyme Old Macdonald; discover the truth behind actor Peter Wyngarde’s one attempt at pop immortality; meet the beautifully bonkers Florence Foster Jenkins – possibly the most deluded singer in history; fi nd out which Paul McCartney record is most hated world over. Puzzle over why 60’s flower-power icon Donovan would record a song about the toilet habits of astronauts.
Download or read book David Bowie Made Me Gay written by Darryl W. Bullock and published by ABRAMS. This book was released on 2017-11-21 with total page 471 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: LGBT musicians have shaped the development of music over the last century, with a sexually progressive soundtrack in the background of the gay community’s struggle for acceptance. With the advent of recording technology, LGBT messages were for the first time brought to the forefront of popular music. David Bowie Made Me Gay is the first book to cover the breadth of history of recorded music by and for the LGBT community and how those records influenced the evolution of the music we listen to today.
Download or read book The Musical of Musicals written by Eric Rockwell and published by Samuel French, Inc.. This book was released on 2005 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2m, 2f / Musical / Unit Set The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!) is a musical about musicals! In this hilarious satire of musical theatre, one story becomes five delightful musicals, each written in the distinctive style of a different master of the form, from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Stephen Sondheim. The basic plot: June is an ingenue who can't pay the rent and is threatened by her evil landlord. Will the handsome leading man come to the rescue? The variations are: a Rodgers & Hammerstein
Download or read book I Am Golden written by Eva Chen and published by Feiwel & Friends. This book was released on 2022-02-01 with total page 21 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An Instant New York Times Bestseller! This joyful and lyrical picture book from New York Times bestselling author Eva Chen and illustrator Sophie Diao is a moving ode to the immigrant experience, as well as a manifesto of self-love for Chinese American children. What do you see when you look in the mirror, Mei? Do you see beauty? We see eyes that point toward the sun, that give us the warmth and joy of a thousand rays when you smile. We see hair as inky black and smooth as a peaceful night sky. We see skin brushed with gold. Praise for I Am Golden: "[A] richly metaphoric celebration of Chinese American identity ... Luminous, gently textured digital art by Diao includes thoughtful, recognizably Chinese cues that add further dimension ... A loving, affecting tribute to how children of immigrants can serve as bridges and torchbearers for their communities." —Publishers Weekly, starred review "From the outset, this gorgeous picture book exudes joy and celebration of identity. Through dazzling illustrations, Diao brings to exuberant life best-selling Chinese American author Chen’s message of finding love and power in one’s differences. ... This powerful and uplifting story captures [Chinese] American joy and is a definite must-read." —Booklist, starred review
Download or read book Taste Makers Seven Immigrant Women Who Revolutionized Food in America written by Mayukh Sen and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2021-11-16 with total page 207 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A New York Times Editors' Choice pick Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR, Los Angeles Times, Vogue, Wall Street Journal, Food Network, KCRW, WBUR Here & Now, Emma Straub, and Globe and Mail One of the Millions's Most Anticipated Books of 2021 America’s modern culinary history told through the lives of seven pathbreaking chefs and food writers. Who’s really behind America’s appetite for foods from around the globe? This group biography from an electric new voice in food writing honors seven extraordinary women, all immigrants, who left an indelible mark on the way Americans eat today. Taste Makers stretches from World War II to the present, with absorbing and deeply researched portraits of figures including Mexican-born Elena Zelayeta, a blind chef; Marcella Hazan, the deity of Italian cuisine; and Norma Shirley, a champion of Jamaican dishes. In imaginative, lively prose, Mayukh Sen—a queer, brown child of immigrants—reconstructs the lives of these women in vivid and empathetic detail, daring to ask why some were famous in their own time, but not in ours, and why others shine brightly even today. Weaving together histories of food, immigration, and gender, Taste Makers will challenge the way readers look at what’s on their plate—and the women whose labor, overlooked for so long, makes those meals possible.
Download or read book Souvenir written by Stephen Temperley and published by Dramatists Play Service, Inc.. This book was released on 2006 with total page 64 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: THE STORY: For more than half a century the name Florence Foster Jenkins has been guaranteed to produce explosions of derisive laughter. Not unreasonably so, as this wealthy society eccentric suffered under the delusion that she was a great colorat
Download or read book Cinematic Overtures written by Annette Insdorf and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2017-11-07 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A great movie’s first few minutes provide the key to the rest of the film. Like the opening paragraphs of a novel, they draw the viewer in, setting up the thematic concerns and stylistic approach that will be developed over the course of the narrative. A strong opening sequence leads the viewer to trust the filmmakers. Other times, opening shots are intentionally misleading as they invite alert, active participation with the film. In Cinematic Overtures, Annette Insdorf discusses the opening sequence so that viewers turn first impressions into deeper understanding of cinematic technique. From Joe Gillis’s voice-over in Sunset Boulevard as he lies dead in a swimming pool to the hallucinatory opening of Apocalypse Now, from the stream-of-consciousness montage as found in Hiroshima, mon amour to the slowly unfolding beginning of Schindler’s List, Cinematic Overtures analyzes opening shots from a range of Hollywood as well as international films. Insdorf pays close attention to how the viewer makes sense of these scenes and the cinematic world they are about to enter. Including dozens of frame enlargements that illustrate the strategies of opening scenes, Insdorf also examines how films explore and sometimes critique the power of the camera’s gaze. Along with analyses of opening scenes, the book offers a series of revelatory and surprising readings of individual films by some of the leading directors of the past seventy-five years. Erudite but accessible, Cinematic Overtures will lead film scholars and ardent movie fans alike to greater attentiveness to those fleeting opening moments.
Download or read book Irene Iddesleigh written by Amanda McKittrick Ros and published by . This book was released on 1897 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Female Lead written by Edwina Dunn and published by Random House. This book was released on 2017-02-09 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a one-of-a-kind book, which will motivate generations of girls and women for years to come, The Female Lead is a collection of portraits - in their own words - of over 50 inspirational women who changed the world around them. With stunning photography and heartfelt, personal interviews, this will inspire a whole generation of young women. 'A truly inspirational book' -- ***** Reader review 'Beautifully written and illustrated' -- ***** Reader review 'A beautiful, inspiring book' -- ***** Reader review 'Loved it! Truly inspiring!' -- ***** Reader review 'Inspiring and motivating with beautiful images' -- ***** Reader review ************************************************************************************************ Over fifty inspirational women, from many walks of life. All have changed the world in a variety of fields. Among them are politicians and artists, journalists and teachers, engineers and campaigners, fire fighters and film stars. Together they form an arresting gallery of portraits, each one illustrated with original photography by Brigitte Lacombe. Some have led their professions; some have broken new ground for women; some have inspired changes through relentless endeavour. All were chosen for their ambitions and achievements and all tell their stories in their own words. Includes portraits from Meryl Streep, Tina Brown, Lena Dunham, Jo Malone, Laura Bates, Yeonmi Park, Lucy Bronze, Julie Bentley and Michaela DePrince, amongst many others. For girls, it can be hard to identify role models in our society. This book will help and inspire women everywhere to realize their hopes and ambitions.
Download or read book Florence Foster Jenkins written by Nicholas Martin and published by Pan Macmillan. This book was released on 2016-05-05 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: People may say that I couldn't sing. But no one can say that I didn't sing.' Despite lacking pitch, rhythm or tone, Florence Foster Jenkins became one of America's best-known sopranos, celebrated for her unique recordings and her sell-out concert at Carnegie Hall. Born in 1868 to wealthy Pennsylvanian parents, Florence was a talented young pianist but her life was thrown into turmoil when she eloped with Frank Jenkins, a man twice her age. The marriage proved a disaster and, in order to survive, Florence was forced to abandon her dreams of a musical career and teach the piano. Then her father died in 1909 and, newly installed in New York, she used a considerable inheritance to fund her passion. She set up a prestigious amateur music club and began staging operas. Aided by her English common-law husband, St Clair Bayfield, she worked tirelessly to support the city's musical life. Many young singers owed their start to Florence, but she too yearned to perform and began giving regular recitals that quickly attracted a cult following. And yet nothing could prepare the world for the astonishing climax of her career when, at the age of seventy-six, she performed at the most hallowed concert hall in America. In Florence Foster Jenkins, Jasper Rees tells her extraordinary story, which inspired the film starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant, and directed by Stephen Frears. This remarkable book also includes Nicholas Martin's funny, moving and inspirational screenplay.
Download or read book This Is Not My Memoir written by André Gregory and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2020-11-17 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The autobiography-of-sorts of André Gregory, an iconic figure in American theater and the star of My Dinner with André This is Not My Memoir tells the life story of André Gregory, iconic theatre director, writer, and actor. For the first time, Gregory shares memories from a life lived for art, including stories from the making of My Dinner with André. Taking on the dizzying, wondrous nature of a fever dream, This is Not My Memoir includes fantastic and fantastical stories that take the reader from wartime Paris to golden-age Hollywood, from avant-garde theaters to monasteries in India. Along the way we meet Jerzy Grotowski, Helene Weigel, Gregory Peck, Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, Wallace Shawn, and many other larger-than-life personalities. This is Not My Memoir is a collaboration between Gregory and Todd London who create a portrait of an artist confronting his later years. Here, too, are the reflections of a man who only recently learned how to love. What does it mean to create art in a world that often places little value on the process of creating it? And what does it mean to confront the process of aging when your greatest work of art may well be your own life?
Download or read book Hapa Girl written by May-Lee Chai and published by Temple University Press. This book was released on 2007 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A vivid depiction of the racism suffered by a mixed-race family in rural South Dakota.
Download or read book A Very English Scandal written by John Preston and published by Other Press, LLC. This book was released on 2016-10-11 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The basis for the Emmy award-winning limited series starring Hugh Grant and Ben Whishaw A behind-the-scenes look at the desperate, scandalous private life of a British MP and champion manipulator, and the history-making trial that exposed his dirty secrets While Jeremy Thorpe served as a Member of Parliament and Leader of the Liberal Party in the 1960s and 70s, his bad behavior went under the radar for years. Police and politicians alike colluded to protect one of their own. In 1970, Thorpe was the most popular and charismatic politician in the country, poised to hold the balance of power in a coalition government. But Jeremy Thorpe was a man with a secret. His homosexual affairs and harassment of past partners, along with his propensity for lying and embezzlement, only escalated as he evaded punishment. Until a dark night on the moor with an ex-lover, a dog and a hired gun led to consequences that even his charm and power couldn’t help him escape. Dubbed the “Trial of the Century,” Thorpe’s climactic case at the Old Bailey in London was the first time that a leading British politician had stood trial on a murder charge, the first time that a murder plot had been hatched in the House of Commons. And it was the first time that a prominent public figure had been exposed as a philandering gay man, in an era when homosexuality had only just become legal. With the pace and drama of a thriller, A Very English Scandal is an extraordinary story of hypocrisy, deceit and betrayal at the heart of the British Establishment.
Download or read book Florence Foster Jenkins written by and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
