The Five Best Celebrity Memoirs

why no mm?

the long road out of hell - marilyn manson. crazier than any horror story someone could make up

I loved 'My Story' too. Very revealing, no matter how brief. I'm reading 'American Rose', the life of Gypsy Rose Lee. Terrific read and quite fascinating.

Julia Phillips's 'You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again' and 'Haywire' by Brooke Hayward are both almost painful to read, but funny and cathartic, too.

Great choice of books, when you consider how many one could choose. Phillipe Hallman took a great, great close-up of Diane, who returned it, signed by her, and subsequently signed by Halsman. I purchased the doubleweight photograph, framed it and love to see her next to Drew, photographed by Len Prince. A stunning family.

Jane Fonda's is really insightful and she doesn't hold back about her life or her inner life.

Arthur Laurent's is one of the best books about being gay and being in a gay relationship. He was gay when gay meant a wife named Phyllis.

Mia Farrow's has had a fascinating life with a juicy scandal and she's just weird enough to write a really good book.

Ellen Burstyn's is very strange and a little too intimate, which makes for a perfect story about someone whom you might not necessarily know you should read about.

Haven't read them in years but how about a shout-out to Lauren Bacall and Frances Farmer? That's six.

Ava Gardner & Memoirs by Tennessee Williams. I would never read Katharine Hepburn's though, what a bunch of BS.

Worst: Goldie Hawn's. All over the place, kooky, but not fun.

irene mayer selznick's "a private view"

I loved Mia Farrow's WHAT FALLS AWAY. Bitch met everybody! And she's a damn elegant writer.

Similarly, Antony Sher is one hell of a writer and his autobiography, BESIDE MYSELF was so moving I read it twice.

Love LuPone, but I found her memoir a one-note affair.

Thank you for sharing Michael.

OK, you've definitely sold me on Diana Barrymore's book.

Sounds much better than Diana Ross's "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" or whatever it was.

Diana Barrymore's "Too Much, Too Soon" does it for me.

Her father was boozing, womanizing stage and screen giant John Barrymore (he even tried to make her teen-aged schoolgirl friend, plying her with Brandy Alexanders).

Her mother was society bitch Blanche Oelrichs, of the Newport Oelrichs, whose pen name was Michael Strange. Strange, indeed. Despite three husbands, she was a notorious lesbian whose girl friend was children's author Margaret Wise Brown ("Goodnight, Moon," indeed!)

Her half-brother Robin's boy friend (after Tyrone Power) threw himself off the Empire State Building. Robin drank himself to death.

Diana was a debutante who hit the stage with little training, but a box-office name. She was the first of the famous-for-being-famous girls.

After six movies at Universal, she was Box-Office Poison in Hollywood. She drank and drugged her way all over the U.S.while doing plays, married three times, went through multiple trust funds and ended up, according to book collaborator Gerold Frank, "in a fleabag hotel where even the words on the men's room wall were misspelled. (Gerold did his research!)

Diana came up with the phrase, "Too Much, Too Soon," which is now part of the language.Basically, her friends say, she was a very sweet girl and bright, except about herself. And God knows she was colorful. (There's a Mike Wallace interview with Diana online that shows how naively nutty she was. saying one thing one moment and then contradicting herself. You can also find LIFE magazine pictures of her clowning with her father.)

She'd male a dynamite role for her niece, Drew Barrymore, who has Diana's heart-shaped face, but is much more glam.

At Universal, cinematographer Stanley Cortez told Diana she had an "interesting face: one side has absolutely nothing to do with the other."

Diana cleaned up her act for awhile, but not for long.

Not in the book: Diana's obsession with Tennessee Williams and her falling off the wagon when he and Kazan wouldn't let her play "Sweet Bird of Youth" in London. She went on a bender and picked up a trick who beat her up. (She'd goad men until they started slapping her around.) She was found dead at 38. Two of her gal pals, agent Viola Rubber and Essie Kupcinet, cleaned up the death scene and removed Diana's stash before the cops got there.

Drew, you're missing a good bet here.

Ava Gardner's memoir. Very, very delectably saucy.

I admit I am a sucker for Kathy Griffin and Bruce Campbell's books.

No Elizabeth Taylor????? No Maria Callas????

LuPone's book is even better if you get the audiobook (which she reads) it's intense but I loved it as well

Swanson on Swanson by...Gloria Swanson. Very fab. You'll enjoy. I'm going to read Marilyn's.

Shelley Winters' first autobiography was terrific.

Yeah, "Haywire" is astounding.

Also love Liz Ashley's.

My favorites:Shelley: Also Known as Shirley / Shelley WintersHaywire / Brooke HaywardThe Quality of Mercy / Mercedes McCambridgeWhat Did I Do? / Larry RiversMemoirs / Tennessee Williams

I also read Amy Fisher's book, which almost made you feel for her.

Also, Hedy Lamarr's book (by the same guy who wrote Barbara Payton's). A really fun read, but Hedy sued.

My Wicked Wicked Ways by Mr. Errol Flynn

Do you think Patti LuPone will ever forgive Glenn Close? Settling scores is right. Also, not very introspective, more reactive. But still, a Star. (I am ordering "I Am Not Ashamed." I've read all about her. Didn't know she had a book.)

Todd Bridges' memoir ties with Shannen Doherty's for most avoidable.

moonwalk by michael jackson