NEW YORK (AP) — Prince the musical auteur is becoming an author.
21 Nights, a ‘‘photographic essay’’ that offers ‘‘a rare glimpse into the life, lyrics, and mystique’’ of the maker of such hits as ‘‘1999’’ and ‘‘Purple Rain,’’ will be published worldwide come fall, according to Atria Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.
The book, his first, is based on Prince’s 21 sold-out concerts in as many nights at London’s O2 Arena in 2007.
‘‘Juxtaposing his dueling worlds of music and solitude, [the book] will incorporate Prince’s evocative poetry and lyrics to new songs and other selections, and 124 full-color, sumptuous, never-before-published images by celebrated photographer Randee St. Nicholas,’’ Atria announced Monday.
21 Nights will include a CD of after-hours jams, ‘‘Indigo Nights,’’ unavailable from any other outlet.
Former tennis champ Monica Seles — who can currently be seen dancing with the stars Monday and Tuesday nights on ABC-Channel 7 — is working on a memoir, to be published in 2009. She hopes ‘‘to share how I found balance, strength and happiness in my life after a rollercoaster ride of exhilarating accomplishment and sometimes overwhelming tragedy,’’ she said in a statement Wednesday.
Seles, 34, was the top-ranked women’s player for three years in the early 1990s. In 1993 she suffered a setback when a man attending a tournament in Hamburg, Germany, climbed out of the stands and stabbed her in the back. She came back two years later to reach the U.S. Open finals and in 1996 won the Australian Open. She officially retired last month.
Monica Seles with her
"Dancing With the Stars"
partner Jonathan Roberts.
(AP photo)
Today's book celebrates that time of year that avid moviegoers love: Oscar season. It's that month or so leading up to the presentation of the Academy Awards on live television. (Tune in at 7:30 tonight on WLS-Channel 7 to watch the awards and check out Richard Roeper's Red Carpet Diaries online).
Veteran entertainment reporter Mary McNamara has spent much of her 17 years at the Los Angeles Times covering Oscar season, so she's well-schooled in the behind-the-scenes drama that goes along with it. In her debut novel, Oscar Season (Simon & Schuster, 325 pages, $24), McNamara takes what she knows — the parties, the stars, the PR machinery, the tantrums, the back-stabbing, the indiscretions and, of course, the gift baskets — and throws a murder mystery into the mix.
I doubt Rolling Stone guitarist Ronnie Wood got the $7 million that bandmate Keith Richards is reportedly getting for his upcoming autobiography, but at least fans don't have to wait till 2010 to get Wood's story, Ronnie (St. Martin’s Press, 358 pages, $25.95), in bookstores now.
You know you're a Lebowski if you can answer the question, "What's Shabbos?"
The complete Lebowskian answer is: "Saturday, Donny, is Shabbos, the Jewish day of rest. That means I don't work, I don't get in a car, I don't f---ing ride in a car, I don't pick up the phone, I don't turn on the oven, and I sure as sh-- don't f---ing roll!"
I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, 'The Big Lebowski,' and What Have You (Bloomsbury, $16.95) is 234 glorious pages of fan-book heaven for those who know, appreciate and understand the genius of the Coen Brothers' 1998 masterpiece, "The Big Lebowski."
Like a rug that ties a whole room together, this book has a little bit of everything ...
Remember Robby Benson? He of the big, blue eyes, baby-smooth skin and sensitive voice? He of the big screen tear-jerkers "Ice Castles," "One on One," "Ode to Billy Joe" ... TV's "The Death of Richie," anyone?
Benson disappeared from the public eye after a while and spent most of his post-Tiger Beat years behind the camera, doing voiceover work and directing sitcoms. Now he's gone and written a novel, Who Stole the Funny? (Harper Entertainment, 349 pages, $13.95) ...
In this day and age of celebrity-oriented magazines, gossip-driven Web sites and partying starlets trying to stay out of jail, we sometimes forget there are folks out there in show business — be it acting, singing, dancing, what have you — that take it seriously.
Just as an advertising executive prepares a speech and formulates ideas before presenting to a client, serious actors read scripts, research roles, memorize lines, show up for work and do their jobs.
In Actors at Work (Faber and Faber, 369 pages, $16, paperback), authors Rosemarie Tichler and Barry Jay Kaplan, interviewed 14 working actors about the ways they work.
