Television Memoir

This unique biography details the life of magician Marshall Brodien, most remembered for his long-running career as television's Wizzo the Wizard on WGN-TV's Bozo's Circus. His inspirational story begins in the late 1940s, when Brodien was a young magician in his first job as a Chicago magic shop demonstrator, then recounts his steady rise to show-business success, including appearances on the legendary Mike Douglas Show, and as a nightclub hypnotist in Chicago's posh Cairo Supper Club.

Emmy-nominated television producer and executive Andy Friendly takes listeners behind the scenes of the TV and movie business, beginning with his iconic father Fred Friendly's pioneering work in television news with the legendary Edward R. Murrow, through the extraordinary film and television career of his wife, Golden Globe-winning actress Pat Crowley, as well as Andy's own dramatic and at times hilarious adventures working with many of the most talented names in the business: from Richard Pryor, George Clooney, Jimmy Cagney, and Paul McCartney to news and talk legends Tom Snyder, Tim Russert, Dan Rather, Oprah Winfrey, and Vin Scully, among dozens of other top stars.

Floella Benjamin was the little girl from the Caribbean who became a British household name, and along the way, received some of the highest accolades around—including a BAFTA Special Lifetime Achievement Award and a damehood—and became a peer in the House of Lords. A natural storyteller, What Are You Doing Here? is her incredibly moving and honest account of her remarkable life and her refusal to be defined by others.

Join Peter Kay on his incredible journey through the great and the good of TV: from tea-making in Granada, to behind the scenes on Phoenix Nights, Max & Paddy and his legendary performance as John Redmond in Car Share. Charming, sidesplittingly funny and utterly unforgettable, T.V.: Big Adventures on the Small Screen is Peter Kay at his vivid, nostalgic and hilarious best.

For nearly fifty years, Dave Lopez covered every major story in the Southland. The veteran news reporter was a nightly presence in LA living rooms on KCBS Channel 2 for a remarkable 48-year career on camera. General managers and news directors came and went in the unforgiving world of major market TV news, but Dave outlasted more than twenty regime changes.

Jeff Dugan began his career in television as an ashtray holder for Forrest Tucker doing every possible job up to executive producer for the Discovery Channel. Dugan worked alongside some of the most powerful people in the world, from the pope to Oprah, and things rarely went smoothly. Ted Kennedy thought he was an assassin. And on the biggest series of his career, he almost killed his celebrity narrator on the first day of shooting. Ins & Outs is a humorous look behind the scenes of American television written by a guy who made it to the top despite the carnage he left behind.

This is the story of Jerry Bryant, who has spent his life showcasing the biggest rock stars before anyone else could.

Start with a Dream: A Drummer's Journey from Rock & Roll to TV to Broadway is a story about making your dreams come true no matter what obstacles stand in your way. Follow Joey from his early childhood when he was first introduced to his musical idols KISS, to being the drummer of an actual KISS tribute band, and then ultimately touring the US with KISS with his own rock band ZO2. After releasing several albums, Joey and ZO2 went on to star in their own TV show, Z Rock, on IFC.

Most of us have no concept of what goes into creating a show, getting it on the air, and keeping it on. Perhaps we assume that the people in charge simply decide what amuses them at the moment, make those shows, stick them on, and wait to see if the public responds. Or maybe they just throw darts at a board? The truth, as with most things, is more complicated. In "Hello," Lied the Agent, Ian Gurvitz has produced a corrosively funny insider's look at what being a television writer is really all about.

Hailed by the New Yorker as "a crucial forebear of generations," award–winning director Joyce Chopra came of age in the 1950s, prior to the dawn of feminism, and long before the #MeToo movement. As a young woman, it seemed impossible that she might one day realize her dream of becoming a film director. In this engaging, candid memoir, award–winning director Joyce Chopra describes how she learned to navigate the deeply embedded sexism of the film industry, helping to pave the way for a generation of women filmmakers who would come after her.

Follow Ned's journey from football supporter to reporter—from criss-crossing the country in a banger of a car hoping for a word or two from the latest big signing, to the glamour of the Champions League. Ned really has been there, done that and got the Sky Sports jacket to prove it. Witnessing the shenanigans, the machinations and the idiocy of football at close quarters Ned shares his best stories with affection.

The films, TV shows, and music of the '60s, '70s, and '80s are still as classic and timeless as they were long ago. The TV shows and movies were family-friendly, yet interesting and exciting, leaving the viewer breathless and anxiously awaiting the next episode or sequel. TV and film directors knew that science fiction could be mind-bending yet thought-provoking, and horror could actually be frightening but instill that sense of fear without the obligatory graphic violence, pervasive language, and sexual overtones to bring their vision to life.

Fran Drescher, iconic star and co-creator of The Nanny, shares her candid thoughts about the fall of Les Moonves, a surprising critique of her NBC show Indebted—and explains what she sees wrong with American “sick care.” Think you know Joan Collins? If your knowledge begins and ends with her run as Alexis Carrington on Dynasty in the Eighties, darling, you would be so very wrong. Emmy-winning actor, producer, and director Danny DeVito gets behind The Originals bar and serves up drink recipes, quarantine-friendly lymph system workouts, tips for not murdering co-star Jim Carrey, and more.

In this dazzling Hollywood memoir, Jeff Margolis takes us on the ultimate behind-the-scenes tour of television’s most memorable variety series and specials spanning the past fifty years—from the most iconic variety shows of the 1970s to the Oscars. Today, as one of the most prolific directors/producers of event television, Margolis is not only a technical ringmaster but also a confidante and sage to the stars who headline the shows. Students of television will savor the “how-to” of event television while fans will love the intimate stories of beloved stars.

In Gotta Get Theroux This, Louis takes the reader on a joyous journey from his anxiety-prone childhood to his unexpectedly successful career. Nervously accepting the BBC’s offer of his own series, he went on to create an award-winning documentary style that has seen him immersed in the weird worlds of paranoid US militias and secretive pro-wrestlers, get under the skin of celebrities like Max Clifford and Chris Eubank and tackle gang culture in San Quentin prison, all the time wondering whether the same qualities that make him good at documentaries might also make him bad at life.

In this hilarious, frank, and affecting autobiography Ned Sherrin looks back on his life and career with inimitable wit and a good deal of wisdom.

A television producer and a pig farmer meet on a cruise, not knowing they will become business partners. Lisa marries the farmer with his million-dollar debt. The farm business collapses, and they explore other ventures, including becoming traveling carnies. Lisa and Keith's faith in God is the thread that binds them together despite failures. Facing setbacks with hope and determination, they rebuild their lives and eventually find success starting a window cleaning company.

When Philip Serrell - now well known for his television appearances - gave up teaching to become a professional auctioneer, he thought he was embarking on a sensible and safe career...a quiet life in the country with no surprises. How wrong he was.

In How to Produce Comedy Bronze, legendary TV producer Jon Plowman lifts the hood on the comedy industry so you can peer inside and wonder how any of it ever got made in the first place. In a career spanning 30 years Jon has learned (almost) everything there is to know about comedy and now wants to share his wealth of knowledge, before he becomes completely demented and forgets how to do it.

John Scott has lived a varied life, but whether it's behind the scenes of a regional theatre, working on costumes for Hollywood movies such as Interview with a Vampire or Four Weddings and a Funeral or presenting TV shows like This Morning with Richard and Judy, his love of sewing and the humble needle and thread has run, like a rich seam, through everything he does.