- Hardcover: 362 pages
- Publisher: Oxford University Press (Sep 1 1997)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0195411951
- ISBN-13: 978-0195411959
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.7 x 3.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 431 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #342,499 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
Book Description
This delightful collection is the only work to bring together first-hand stories form Canada's acting community. Funny, shocking, embarassing and poignant, these are the stories actors tell each other, providing an intimate glimpse into the world behind the camera and beyond the footlights. Arranged thematically, it starts with "The BUg Bites", a chapter that focuses on early acting experiences ranging from William Shatner's first stage appearance and the evolution of Martin Short's "EdGrimley" character, to Wayne and Shuster's initial meeting with Ed Sullivan. Other chapters look at mentor's, directors and producers, working with kids and animals, missed cues and lines, touring, audiences and fans, pranks and escapades, and live radio and T.V. performances. "Big Wigs and Legends" contains anecdotes starring names like Paul Newman, Henry Fonda, Sir John Gielgud, Julie Andrews, Vanessa Redgrave, Steven Spielberg, Richard Burton, Barbra Streisand, Laurence Olivier, and Katherine Hepburn. Included are many stories from the Stratford Festival: Scott wentworth cracking up during Richard III, an actor on stage catching fire during a production of Othello, and William Hutt's dying in an unconventional manner when Christpher Plummer's Hamlet could not get his sword out of the scabbard (Polonius' death did not look accidental). Along the way you'll find "Bare Bods and Bodily Functions", which includes an anecdote by Bruce Breenwood that begins intriguingly "Standing naked in the wings before an entrance...," as well as "Stunts and FXS", which includes Timothy Findley's story from the first season of Stratford in 1953, when he had to make a ten-foot leap (from the balustrade) through the dark...and not land on Alec Guiness, whose single spotlight was the only light there was." Brought together by two veteran Canadian actors, An Actor, Eh? features a star-studded cast giving the performances of their lives.
About the Author
Lynda Mason Green has made a successful living as an actor in Canada for 20 years, best known for her work in series such as "War of the Worlds" and "Night Heat", as well as movies and mini-series, including "Amerika", "If You Could Hear What I See", "Improper Channels", and "North of Chang Mai". In the past few years, she has been writing, directing, and producing corporate video under the auspices of her own company LMG Productions. The daughter of author and producer Mavor Moore, and granddaughter of Dora Mavor Moore (after whom "the Dora" theatre award was named), Tedde Moore has been part of the theatre/television/film/radio scene in Canada since 1947. Most recently she has appeared in "The Road to Avonlea" and the film "My Summer Story". She has also worked as Story Editor or Creative Consultant for three feature films and has been an associate producer for the Nothing Sacred Corporation.
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Customer Reviews
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Actors Shine While Naked on Stage, Nov 12 1998
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Standing Naked In The Wings : Anecdotes from Canadian Actors (Hardcover)
Although I was reading a book, I felt like a fly on the wall of a cocktail party attended by Canadian actors. I buzzed around the room eavesdropping on groups of actors telling hilarious, intimate stories of life on the stage and before the cameras.Standing Naked in the Wings is a book of actors' anecdotes written by 250 contributing actors including Jenifer Dale, Al Waxman, Dave Broadfoot, Gordon Pinsent, Sarah Polley, Frank Shuster, Michael Ironside, Martin Short, Lynne Griffin, Gordon Clapp, Christopher Plummer, Sonja Smits.
Editors Lynda Mason Green and Tedde Moore have woven the 450 contributions into 17 chapters covering themes such as auditions, mentors, kids and animals, missed cues and other mistakes, bodily functions, tours, early days, and the moving "Family Album". This chapter includes the letter Nicholas Pennell, a veteran of 23 seasons at the Stratford Festival, delivered to the Shakespearean company two days before his death.
The book's title is taken from a story in which Bruce Greenwood describes how he was literally standing naked in the wings while performing in Bent at the Arts Club in Vancouver. The Comedy of errors that transpired "bears an uncanny similarity to nightmares I've had," Greenwood writes.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fun behind-the-scenes look at actors in theatre, TV & film, Dec 9 1997
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Standing Naked In The Wings : Anecdotes from Canadian Actors (Hardcover)
What a fun book! It's like being the fly on the wall, listening to your favorite actors telling stories, on themselves, their friends and contemporaries. It captures many great (and not so great) moments in Canadian film, TV and theatre. They share their joys, fears, embarrassing moments, poignant memories and a wonderful sense of history. I had read some of the tales online over the last year or so, and the finished product is truly a treat. The only thing, in my opinion, that would make it better, is to have more of the contemporary actors we're seeing on TV, but perhaps there's a sequel there. :)
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