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Robert Altman (Abridged): The Oral Biography Audiobook
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(4.04) - 175 listener ratings
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Robert Altman—visionary director, hard-partying hedonist, eccentric family man, Hollywood legend—comes roaring to life in this rollicking cinematic biography, told in a chorus of voices that can only be called Altmanesque. His outsized life and unique career are revealed as never before: here are the words of his family and friends, and a few enemies, as well as the agents, writers, crew members, producers, and stars who worked with him, including Meryl Streep, Warren Beatty, Tim Robbins, Julianne Moore, Paul Newman, Julie Christie, Elliott Gould, Martin Scorsese, Robin Williams, Cher, and many others. There is even Altman himself, in the form of his exclusive last interviews. After an all-American boyhood in Kansas City, a stint flying bombers through enemy fire in World War II, and jobs ranging from dog-tattoo entrepreneur to television director, Robert Altman burst onto the scene in 1970 with the movie M*A*S*H. He revolutionized American filmmaking, and, in a decade, produced masterpieces at an astonishing pace: McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Thieves Like Us, The Long Goodbye, 3 Women, and, of course, Nashville. Then, after a period of disillusionment with Hollywood—as well as Hollywood’s disillusionment with him—he reinvented himself with a bold new set of masterworks: The Player, Short Cuts, and Gosford Park. Finally, just before the release of the last of his nearly forty movies, A Prairie Home Companion, he received an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement from the Academy, which had snubbed him for so many years. Mitchell Zuckoff—who was working with Altman on his memoirs before he died—weaves Altman’s final interviews, an incredible cast of voices, and contemporary reviews and news accounts, into a riveting tale of an extraordinary life. Here are page after page of revelations that force us to reevaluate Altman as a man and an artist, and to view his sprawling narratives with large casts, multiple story lines, and overlapping dialogue as unquestionably the work of a modern genius.
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"This was incredibly well-edited. It's an oral biography; he interviewed hundreds of people who knew Bob Altman, then wove their stories together in such a way that it felt like you were in the room having a conversation with them. Altman is a fascinating person -- I've lined all of his movies up in my Netflix queue."
— Christine (5 out of 5 stars)
Robert Altman Listener Reviews
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" so awesome it left me speechless "
— Sam, 2/14/2014 -
" EXCELLENT biography. I learned how actors ADORED Altman and what a truly unique director he was. You also learn how incredibly difficult it is to finance a film and how Altman bullied his way through the studios and the money. Felt like an honest portrait. Talk about a free spirit.... "
— Randine, 2/2/2014 -
" I love Altman's films - the ones that succeeded and the ones that "failed"; he was a true cinematic artist. This was a quick and entertaining read that reminded me to relook at all the films. "
— Cynthia, 1/24/2014 -
" Like many others, I'm hoping an in depth analysis of O.C. and Stiggs will be found in this book. And I guess The Long Goodbye,too; but if not...well, that's OK with me. "
— Walter, 1/19/2014 -
" Decent oral biography of the man, but suffers by not really going in-depth on some of the work. "
— Robert, 1/1/2014 -
" A biography that manages to be comprehensive AND entertaining, taking on the rhythms and cadences of everyone's memories so as to mimic Altman's greatest works themselves, crammed to the gills with charming, eccentric people - I think I read this in two or three long, happy sittings. "
— Sherrie, 12/27/2013 -
" Maybe the single most inspiring book I've ever read. Failure comes as easily as success. "
— Sean, 12/15/2013 -
" Very comprehensive look at Altman's career. Nobody had neutral feelings about him. Now is time to rewatch some of the great films like Nashville, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Gosford Park and hunt down the few I haven't seen. "
— Karen, 11/30/2013 -
" This book is incredible. I wish I had read it among company and not alone at night and on the bus because I wanted to share some of these very funny and crazy stories. I love oral biographies--this is as good or better than Edie's. "
— K, 11/11/2013 -
" An entertaining read of a more entertaining subject. A fun oral biography. "
— Johnnm, 10/10/2013 -
" A fascinating biography, told appropriately in a chorus of voices, eminently readable. It's a fitting tribute to a brilliant director, maybe the best America has produced. "
— Corey, 7/14/2013 -
" Very nice work. With all the interviews by the people who knew Robert Altman the best, I feel we got a very good picture of the man as well as the artist. He was a fine director who appreciated people who worked hard both in their art and play. "
— M., 4/22/2013 -
" Almost done. A completely absorbing study of Altman - very clever, I thought, to have the multiple voices. Obviously Altmanesque. I wanted more on the making of the movies, but I thought it did a decent job of providing a relatively balanced view (not that I know him at all) of the man. "
— Miriam, 4/22/2013 -
" A very enjoyable read, although oral biographies are my favorite type, so I'm a bit prejudiced. I would have liked an even further in-depth examination of Altman's films. For that reason, I ordered 'Altman on Altman.' "
— Obxboy, 4/10/2013 -
" Easily one of the best film biographies I've ever read, with a cast as star-studded as any Altman film. I couldn't put it down! "
— Rob, 1/26/2013 -
" Great conversational tone. Like sitting at the kitchen table, telling jokes and tales about a legend in American life. "
— Ryan, 7/4/2011 -
" Fascinating book! I really enjoy true heroic stories and this one did not let me down. I always feel bad when 'moderm man' visits 'a primitive tribe' and think that they can make their life better. Usually they can't. "
— Kathy, 5/23/2011 -
" My type of book....amazing TRUE story with a good ending! "
— Amy, 5/20/2011 -
" Fascinating story. Interesting part of the world. "
— Natasha, 5/17/2011 -
" I loved this book. I hope it becomes a movie! "
— Juanita, 5/16/2011 -
" I can't imagine anyone not finding this book interesting - at the very least. It's a well-researched true account of 3 survivors of a plane crash in the New Guinea jungle during WWII. They were rescued but that's the biggest surprise of the book. You'll just have to read it. "
— Karen, 5/16/2011
About Mitchell Zuckoff
Mitchell Zuckoff, a #1 New York Times bestselling author, is the Sumner M. Redstone Professor of Narrative Studies at Boston University. He covered 9/11 for the Boston Globe and wrote the lead news story on the day of the attacks. While at the Boston Globe, he was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize and the winner of numerous journalism awards.
About the Narrators
Erin Bennett is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and a stage actress who played Carlie Roberts in the BBC radio drama Torchwood: Submission. She can be heard on several video games. Regional theater appearances include the Intiman, Pasadena Playhouse, Arizona Theatre Company, A Noise Within, Laguna Playhouse, and the Getty Villa. She trained at Boston University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
Tavia Gilbert is an acclaimed narrator of more than four hundred full-cast and multivoice audiobooks for virtually every publisher in the industry. Named the 2018 Voice of Choice by Booklist magazine, she is also winner of the prestigious Audie Award for best narration. She has earned numerous Earphones Awards, a Voice Arts Award, and a Listen-Up Award. Audible.com has named her a Genre-Defining Narrator: Master of Memoir. In addition to voice acting, she is an accomplished producer, singer, and theater actor. She is also a producer, singer, photographer, and a writer, as well as the cofounder of a feminist publishing company, Animal Mineral.