Helpful Score: 2
It was an interesting look at television's inception, and finally a bio that was mostly sweetness and light, not creepy tragedy lurking at half of the corners. It was just a breezy, fun read-- like having a conversation with Betty herself.
And, when she spoke about feeling defensive when attacked by those feminists at the Television and Broadcast Convention, I was SO on her and Jayne Wyatt's side! "Go, ladies!", I thought. Personally, I thought the feminatzis were being stupid-- the roles of women in the 1940s-50s television were anything BUT detrimental. If anything, the shows back then showed more true equality than TODAY'S standards (in my opinion). Think about it: The households were presented as comical give and takes, Mom and Dad both got equal input into the household. Today, it's either the husband is another child and the woman goes out of her WAY to emasculate him at every turn for comic relief (which isn't that funny) or the men are complete misogynists and the women nothing but bimbos, also not that funny. Woman can be both beautiful and clever without being harpies. Men can be sexy and funny without being pigs or idiots.
And, I finally understood why they went the direction they did with "The Golden Girls" finale-- because I had before always thought it was a bit too rushed of a romance between Dorothy and Leslie Nielson's character (one hourlong episode for them to both meet, court and marry?), but, as it turns out, Bea Arthur made no bones about wishing to move on, and that was the only way they could properly do a spinoff was to write her out. (Of course, for those of us who watched "The Golden Palace", we know that the spinoff was somewhat of a mistake, as did the network...)
But, she spoke with such love of all of the friends she'd made over the years, and seems such a fun and warm person, who truly just had a charmed life and loved what she did. If we all could be so lucky...
And, when she spoke about feeling defensive when attacked by those feminists at the Television and Broadcast Convention, I was SO on her and Jayne Wyatt's side! "Go, ladies!", I thought. Personally, I thought the feminatzis were being stupid-- the roles of women in the 1940s-50s television were anything BUT detrimental. If anything, the shows back then showed more true equality than TODAY'S standards (in my opinion). Think about it: The households were presented as comical give and takes, Mom and Dad both got equal input into the household. Today, it's either the husband is another child and the woman goes out of her WAY to emasculate him at every turn for comic relief (which isn't that funny) or the men are complete misogynists and the women nothing but bimbos, also not that funny. Woman can be both beautiful and clever without being harpies. Men can be sexy and funny without being pigs or idiots.
And, I finally understood why they went the direction they did with "The Golden Girls" finale-- because I had before always thought it was a bit too rushed of a romance between Dorothy and Leslie Nielson's character (one hourlong episode for them to both meet, court and marry?), but, as it turns out, Bea Arthur made no bones about wishing to move on, and that was the only way they could properly do a spinoff was to write her out. (Of course, for those of us who watched "The Golden Palace", we know that the spinoff was somewhat of a mistake, as did the network...)
But, she spoke with such love of all of the friends she'd made over the years, and seems such a fun and warm person, who truly just had a charmed life and loved what she did. If we all could be so lucky...
Helpful Score: 1
Great book! Very readable and interesting to the very end!
I didn't care for this book at all, I just kind of skimmed through it. It is about the very beginning of tv and how they did things but it just isn't all that interesting as it kind of drags on and on in spots, therefore, skimming to the end.
I grew up watching "The Golden Girls" so have always been a fan of Betty White.
It was nice to go back in time with her and learn about how she got her start in the business, and fascinating that she was basically there when television first began.
Since this book was originally written in 1995, she's included a forward that summarizes 1995-2010 when it was re-published, and promises not to publish HERE WE GO AGAIN ever again, LOL.
This is a great read for all fans of the great Betty White and show business itself!
It was nice to go back in time with her and learn about how she got her start in the business, and fascinating that she was basically there when television first began.
Since this book was originally written in 1995, she's included a forward that summarizes 1995-2010 when it was re-published, and promises not to publish HERE WE GO AGAIN ever again, LOL.
This is a great read for all fans of the great Betty White and show business itself!
I liked this book. I am a BIG fan of Betty White (who isn't?) and I enjoyed learning about her career from her earliest days on radio and tv beginning in the 1940s through The Golden Girls years. There are many triumphs and awards. There's good coverage of her stint on The Mary Tyler Moore Show; slightly less (unfortunately) on The Golden Girls. Along the way she also had a few clunkers believe it or not. As I read, I heard the voice of Sue Ann Niven narrating, with that sugary syrup dripping, which made it quite fun. Betty also describes her many guest shots and game show appearances, and of course her devotion to her late husband, Allan Ludden, the host of Password, shines through.
My only complaint is that the book ends in 1995, the year it was published. Betty has continued to flourish since then and I would love to be able to read more. There's 25 more years of Betty White to learn about!! Finger's crossed.
***1/2 Three and a half stars!
My only complaint is that the book ends in 1995, the year it was published. Betty has continued to flourish since then and I would love to be able to read more. There's 25 more years of Betty White to learn about!! Finger's crossed.
***1/2 Three and a half stars!
Lots of stories about the beginnings of television, how they did things and how tv grew.
I found this to be a very enjoyable read. It tells about her beginning in television. She tells of her successes and failures of different shows she was on. She tells of her marriages to Allen Ludden and of the wild escapades with THE GOLDEN GIRLS.
