Helpful Score: 2
"I want to be you" is what young people starting out in television would say to Barbara Walters, her reply was always "Then you have to take the whole package". But that package has been kept as a closely guarded secret to the real world for her entire career. Even her age is speculated by different media (tabloid) outlets. This book reveals all.
As is usual in an celebrity's life, the beginning is not always pretty. She talks in detail about her sister and her deficiencies. Whether now with all the testing and diagnosing and help available might her sister's life have been different? How her Father worked night and day to make the world of entertainment an everyday thing for everyday people. Lou Walters didn't get much recognition in life but recently had a street named after him in NY, where the Latin Quarter once stood.
She talks about her many romances, and speaks candidly about her marriages. Her chapter on Merv was familiar to me as she talked about Lorimar and such.
The chapter on her daughter is beautifully written about an ugly time. A time most parents of teenage daughters go through but hid from their friends. It is good to read that with everything they went through, there is hope in the end.
The last third of the book deals mainly with her hundreds of interviews, it is fascinating to read how hard she worked to get the "get". How much travel and fatigue is involved.
I have never been a "fan" per se. But I am definately impressed with all she has done and the "glass ceilings" she has broken for many women.
As is usual in an celebrity's life, the beginning is not always pretty. She talks in detail about her sister and her deficiencies. Whether now with all the testing and diagnosing and help available might her sister's life have been different? How her Father worked night and day to make the world of entertainment an everyday thing for everyday people. Lou Walters didn't get much recognition in life but recently had a street named after him in NY, where the Latin Quarter once stood.
She talks about her many romances, and speaks candidly about her marriages. Her chapter on Merv was familiar to me as she talked about Lorimar and such.
The chapter on her daughter is beautifully written about an ugly time. A time most parents of teenage daughters go through but hid from their friends. It is good to read that with everything they went through, there is hope in the end.
The last third of the book deals mainly with her hundreds of interviews, it is fascinating to read how hard she worked to get the "get". How much travel and fatigue is involved.
I have never been a "fan" per se. But I am definately impressed with all she has done and the "glass ceilings" she has broken for many women.
Helpful Score: 1
Loved this book!!! So much information on people that you are familiar with and never knew what was going on behind the scenes... fasinating!!!
Helpful Score: 1
Well written witty and a fun read. Covers many celebrities and politicians that Barbara interviewed. A lot of insight into her life. Worth reading.
Helpful Score: 1
An in-depth autobiography of the news legend Barbara Walters. The first 100-200 pages are solely about her upbringing and family history and how she first got into broadcast news. That first part was really interesting. Barbara talks about how she was the first woman to do various TV roles and how she led the way for other women to follow in her footsteps. She also goes into great detail about various interviews she has done with celebrities and political figures and how she stays in touch with them, even after the interview is over (or not). I stopped reading about 350 pages in. Honestly, after 350 pages, the book seems to be a lot of name-dropping and either bragging or complaining about the various interview situations she found herself in. It got to be very monotonous and I had to put the book down. I enjoyed reading the first half of the book, but the second half just gets to be too much, IMHO. If you're a diehard Barbara Walters fan you will probably like this.
Helpful Score: 1
This was a truly fascinating account of Barbara Walter's life, both personal and professional. I was impressed with how honest she chose to be. There was a lot of information that didn't need to be shared, but she figured if she was writing a book there was no holding back.
Helpful Score: 1
Barbara's memoir depicts a life of ups and downs, successes and failures, celebrations and divorces, but more importantly Barbara's life as not always seen by the public. Barbara does not simply gloss over the stages in her life, but lets the reader peak inside for some details not written before about the many facets that make up Barbara Walters. Embarrassing moments are put out there for the reader to empathize (if not sympathize) with. Barbara does not write about a perfect person or a charmed life, but of a woman who steps where other woman could only dream about generations ago. She portrays a working mother who feels guilty if she isn't home every minute with her daughter, but then feels guilty if she is away from her work. Many mothers can certainly relate to what Barbara describes in her story. Barbara, also with the blessing of her daughter, talks about the tumultuous teenage years and the frustration felt by both the famous mother, and the adopted child. Although she has made choices that I wouldn't necessarily agree with, I do respect her for what she has accomplished, and encourage members to read her book. There are 582 packed pages of information that will take the reader awhile to wade through, but with patience, the effort will be worthwhile in my humble opinion. Great book by an inspiring pioneer.
Ok, so I was at my local library and saw this in the new bin. I picked it up well basicaly because I hadn't found anything else to read ( we have a very small library) and I like to read bios and such from time to time. Well, the first half of the book was pretty good, hearing Barbara recap her ancestory and childhood was excelent and interesting, but it seems in the middles of the book it just ran out of steam for me. It was like from there on one big book of name dropping of people I havent even heard of( i'm not talking about the interviews with the celebrities and political figures and state heads, that was a plus)people that has been in the business that I really don't care about, but perhaps they do to her in a great deal for they did help her along the way, so I guess my only real complaint is the endless name dropping of people I dont know, over and over again.Nontheless Ms. Walters has had a very colorful, eventful, very full life, kudos to her for sure. And really is there anyone out there that doesn't like Barbara?
My opinion of Barbara Walters is always changing. She obviously lives amongst the "upper crust" & there is no two ways about that. Although it is impossible for us mere mortals to understand living that sort of life, it does make for a fascinating read. Is she a "good guy or a bad guy" ? I think she has accomplished an overwhelming positive position for women. But I think her ideas of "giving" are very poor, unless she receives some benefits or accolades from it. I would not be surprised upon her death to see her money used for a Barbara Walters Library/Museum like our former presidents....or hopefully she will show yet another side.
Great read !
Loved it! She didn't name-drop, I think. She was more pointing out the irony that she had so little, then got a whiff of something special, only to be treated rather rough in a male-dominated field (and world--at that time) UNTIL she showed them what she herself didn't know, at first, SHE HAD TALENT. (Not to mention, hard work, ethics and sincerity.) This book tells the stories that many of us missed knowing at the times they happened--because she tells, not only what was going on in the world at the time, but also she tells behind the scenes things and from a WOMAN'S perspective. I couldn't put the book down!!!!! (And I learned so many things I didn't know.)
I like non-fiction so I picked this up not really being a Barbara Walters fan but of course have seen her interviews as well as the Saturday Night Live skits over many years. I have to say I really enjoyed this book. As others have said, the first part of the book is when Barbara was a young girl and growing up in the 40's, 50's etc in Boston, NYC and Miami. I think she did herself a favor including this information because you can tell it is really what shaped her, gave her drive and also makes Barbara very human. I highly recommend this book.
I came away appreciating Barabara Walters even more after reading about her amazing parents,her sister and the struggle she had as a woman in the profession she chose. Her personal comments and reflections were an honest and frank look at herself.The history she lived through,the people she interviewed!! A great read!
If you like looking into the lives of the rich and famous, you'll love Barbara Walters' autobiography and her excessive name-dropping. She apparently knows every famous living person and has known most of the dead ones, too. Not an awful book and it is definitely written in Barbara Walters' voice.
After more than 40 years interviewing heads of state, world leaders, movie stars, criminals and murderers, inspirational figures and celebrities of all kinds, the most influential woman in the history of television journalism finally writes her memoir. Barbara Walters's perception of the world was formed from a very early age. Her father, Lou Walters, was the owner and creative mind behind the legendary Latin Quarter nightclub, and it was his risk-taking lifestyle that gave Barbara her first taste of glamour. It also made her aware of the ups and downs, the insecurities, and even the tragedies that can occur when someone is willing to take such great risks, for Lou Walters not only made several fortunes - he also lost them.
Barbara learned early about the damage that such an existence can do to relationships - between husband and wife as well as between parent and child. Throughout her roller-coaster ride of a childhood, Barbara had a constant companion, her mentally-challenged sister, Jackie. True, Jackie taught her younger sister much about patience and compassion, however Barbara also writes honestly about the resentment she often felt having a sister who was so "different" and the guilt that still haunts her.
All of this - the financial responsibility for her family, the fear, the love - played a large part in the choices Barbara made as she grew up: the friendships she developed, the relationships she had, the marriages she tried to make work. Ultimately, thanks to her drive, as well as a decent amount of luck, she began a career in television. And what a career it has been! Against incredible odds, Barbara has made it to the top of a male-dominated industry. She is a true trail-blazer within the industry, becoming the most trusted television journalist of all time. She has not only interviewed the world's most fascinating figures, she has become a part of their world.
I really enjoyed this book! After having it on my bookshelf unread for almost three years, I finally took the plunge and read it. At 579 pages, I was somewhat daunted to begin reading, despite really wanting to read this book almost from the moment it was published! Overall, it was an incredibly interesting and engaging book for me to read, even though there were one or two chapters that were slow reading. I must say that Barbara Walters has lived an incredibly exciting life and has done much to be admired for by her peers. Ultimately, I give Audition: A Memoir by Barbara Walters an A+!
Barbara learned early about the damage that such an existence can do to relationships - between husband and wife as well as between parent and child. Throughout her roller-coaster ride of a childhood, Barbara had a constant companion, her mentally-challenged sister, Jackie. True, Jackie taught her younger sister much about patience and compassion, however Barbara also writes honestly about the resentment she often felt having a sister who was so "different" and the guilt that still haunts her.
All of this - the financial responsibility for her family, the fear, the love - played a large part in the choices Barbara made as she grew up: the friendships she developed, the relationships she had, the marriages she tried to make work. Ultimately, thanks to her drive, as well as a decent amount of luck, she began a career in television. And what a career it has been! Against incredible odds, Barbara has made it to the top of a male-dominated industry. She is a true trail-blazer within the industry, becoming the most trusted television journalist of all time. She has not only interviewed the world's most fascinating figures, she has become a part of their world.
I really enjoyed this book! After having it on my bookshelf unread for almost three years, I finally took the plunge and read it. At 579 pages, I was somewhat daunted to begin reading, despite really wanting to read this book almost from the moment it was published! Overall, it was an incredibly interesting and engaging book for me to read, even though there were one or two chapters that were slow reading. I must say that Barbara Walters has lived an incredibly exciting life and has done much to be admired for by her peers. Ultimately, I give Audition: A Memoir by Barbara Walters an A+!
A very fast read & very informational about Barbara Walters life - from childhood to adult. Very interesting!
I truly enjoyed reading this book! I adore Barbara Walters. This book seems honest and it is well written.
Not as good as I expected. Kinda' dragged.
