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The Life and Times of Mickey Rooney

Richard A. Lertzman William J. Birnes

$45

Hardback

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English
GALLERY BOOKS
01 December 2015
A definitive biography of the iconic actor and Hollywood legend Mickey Rooney (1920-2014) and his extravagant, sometimes tawdry life, drawing on never-before-seen excerpts from Rooney's diary and exclusive interviews with Mickey, and with those who knew him best, including his heretofore unknown mistress of sixty years.

Mickey Rooney began his career almost a century ago as a one-year-old performer in burlesque and stamped his mark in vaudeville, silent films, talking films, Broadway, and television. He acted in his final motion picture just weeks before he died at age ninety-three. He was an iconic presence in movies, the poster boy for American youth in the idyllic small-town 1930s. Yet, by World War II, Mickey Rooney had become frozen in time. A perpetual teenager in an aging body, he was an anachronism by the time he hit his forties. His child-star status haunted him as the gilded safety net of Hollywood fell away, and he was forced to find support anywhere he could, including affairs with beautiful women, multiple marriages, alcohol, and drugs.

In The Life and Times of Mickey Rooney, authors Richard A. Lertzman and William J. Birnes present Mickey's nearly century-long career within the context of America's changing entertainment and social landscape. In addition to material from Mickey's own diary, they chronicle his life story using little-known interviews with the star himself, his children, his former coauthor Roger Kahn, collaborator Arthur Marx, and costar Margaret O'Brien.

This Old Hollywood biography presents Mickey Rooney from every angle, revealing the man Laurence Olivier once dubbed "the best there has ever been."

By:   ,
Imprint:   GALLERY BOOKS
Country of Publication:   United States
Dimensions:   Height: 229mm,  Width: 152mm,  Spine: 43mm
Weight:   850g
ISBN:   9781501100963
ISBN 10:   1501100963
Pages:   592
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Richard A. Lertzman and William J. Birnes coauthored Dr. Feelgood, which garnered wide publicity in the United States, has been excerpted for second serial in the UK, and was translated into German. Lertzman is the former editor and publisher of Screen Scene magazine. Birnes, a New York Times bestselling author, has written more than forty books; produced, hosted, and written the History channel television series UFO Hunters ; was a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellow; and now hosts his own radio show, Future Theater on the Dark Matter Radio Network.

Reviews for The Life and Times of Mickey Rooney

Lertzman and Birnes understand Rooney, presenting him as a colorful American guy who had it all, lost it all, regained it all, but no matter what, never gave up. It's the story of a true professional, and a great read by anyone's standards. -- Jeanine Basinger, Corwin-Fuller Professor of Film Studies, Wesleyan University Richard A. Lertzman and William J. Birnes have done their homework...If you're looking for the definitive book on Mickey Rooney, this is it. -- Bookreporter A definitive biography of Hollywood legend Mickey Rooney...[T]his is a page-turner; many of the people portrayed are long gone, but there's enough tell-all entertainment to keep almost any reader pushing through. -- Publishers Weekly Covers everything...Lertzman and Birnes are deeply and appropriately sympathetic biographers. -- The New York Times


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