Goldman also name-drops like a gossip columnist with revealing details and tidbits about familiar names and the then-current (early 1982) Hollywood climate - Stallone, Redford and Newman feature prominently - and many forgotten or never heard of films have been added to my radar. He devotes a section to subtext but doesn't seem to have a clear idea of the difference between subtext and basic cinematic storytelling techniques. Goldman launches his first fart rocket within the opening 20 pages, tattling four anecdotes to illustrate that movie stars are bad people. By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions.

Goldman's insider's approach is still compelling, though I wondered how much of what he says about how Hollywood works is still true 36 years later. Although he himself is a bona fide insider, it's clear that he holds Hollywood at arms'-length and doesn't take it or himself too seriously, which allows him to be free and candid with his observations. And there's a bunch of other good stuff and fun anecdotes as you already know, though those parts actually do feel a bit dated. The full text of "Da Vinci" and the subsequent screenplay that he wrote are included, followed by interviews with key movie industry figures, including director George Roy Hill, cinematographer Gordon Willis, and composer Dave Grusin. BIll's such a regular guy that, when he came to LA for his first movie biz meeting, he couldn't stand the thought of being picked up at the airport by a chauffeur-driven car and insisted on riding up in front with driver, because that's what regular guys like him and me and you do.Perhaps the best Hollywood story in the book concerns the courtroom drama The Verdict, a movie that Goldman didn’t work on but one that perfectly illustrates the perils of working in Hollywood. The only thing that would make this book better, in my opinion, is if he'd written it five years later--so he could discuss The Princess Bride. Between all the self-aggrandizing and payback that Willy skillfully disguises as friendly banter, he throws in some screenwriting advice. He mentions that, out of courtesy, he's only naming two of the actors in question because some of them have recently died. Bill Goldman is painfully frank about his struggles, his weaknesses, and the seamy underbelly of the business that has paid his bills for decades.

This collection of anecdotes, advice, and essays is one of the most engaging pieces of writing that I’ve read. After detailing the vast amount of work it takes to bring a script all the way to the big screen, it's no wonder Goldman gets so angry at the Auteur theory. Goldman grew up in a Jewish family in Highland Park, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, and obtained a BA degree at Oberlin College in 1952 and an MA degree at Columbia University in 1956.The point being that if a studio giant couldn’t guess the biggest star in his business, the territory is a bit murkier than most of us would imagine. Goldman is one of the best storytellers this country has produced, which may seem a bold claim to some, but it happens to be true. I live in Los Angeles, in the heart of the filmmaking industry, and it seems all I ever hear about is how that industry is going down the toilet. Nor realized that lots of regular guys dream of being in a position where rich people send expensive cars to drive them around.