I was really excited to learn more about Judy Garland, I think she is an amazing talent! I was already aware that her life was fairly unhappy and tragic, but this book really lets you know. There are some pretty ugly things you learn about Judy and other people. You probably shouldn't read this if that will bother you.
By the way, this book is very researched. Clarke has an appendix at the end of the book that states every source (most of which were interviews).
If you like biographies and Judy Garland, this book might be for you.
I really enjoyed this book. That being said, I learned a lot of disappointing things about Sinatra. I also learned a lot of great things about Sinatra. I felt that this book was well researched and well written. The author sited hundreds of sources. He was very good a presenting all sides of a story, telling you what he feels is the truth and then letting you decide.
Sinatra led a very interesting life. He really did do it his way (as his popular song would say). He was married 4 times, had 3 children, was one of the greatest singers the world has ever known, an academy award winning actor, a loyal friend, caused several media scandals and so much more. He was a fascinating man.
As a caution; DO NOT read this book if learning of his down falls will hinder your enjoyment of his music. It's not worth it. Sinatra is an incredible talent, his poor judgement in life doesn't change that.
If you have never watched an episode of Secrets of the Dead episode, you should. It's a fantastic series that uncovers mysteries of history. Here is the website. My favorite one so far is Executed in Error.
This one is really cool. I didn't know much about Blackbeard, and this one gives you his history. It also follows some awesome archeologists who discover what could be Blackbeard's lost ship; the Queen Anne's Revenge. We get to watch as the extract and inspect the evidence to decide if it is indeed the Queen Anne's Revenge.Very interesting.
"Three years before the Gold Rush, 87 pioneers took a shortcut westward
to California, only to get caught in the snows of the Sierra Nevada. The
emigrants' fateful journey culminated in death and cannibalism."
That is the description from the website. It's a tragic story from history. Kristi and I were pretty disturbed after watching it.
I did some more research today on the Donner Party and found out that this documentary on the pioneers' experience has several false statements. So do some reading after you watch it so that you know all of the truth.
So Kristi decided we should watch something a little happier before we went to sleep, so we watched several skits for The Carol Burnett Show. I REALLY love The Carol Burnett Show. It's so brilliant. Much better than Saturday Night Live, if you ask me.
Here are some clips for you to watch:
If those didn't satisfy your need for hilarity go to YouTube and search "The Carol Burnett Show." You know you want to!
Oh and watching The Carol Burnett Show was fun, but Kristi and I still fell asleep thinking about cannibalism. Needless to say I didn't not fall asleep very fast.
I didn't know anything about Billy the Kid except that he was an outlaw. Turns out he was a pretty good guy. Also he was very young.
The first time he killed a man he was 16 and it was self defense. The next time he killed was to avenge the death of his boss who was murdered by crooked lawmen.
When he was finally caught at 21 he was able to escape by killing his two guards. He went back to his home to be around the girl he loved, Paulina. Paulina's brother told the authorities where to find Billy and he was murdered shortly after.
A very compelling story. There is a lot more to it and it's absolutely worth your time. To watch the video and learn more about Billy the Kid check out the video at pbs.org.
