- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Broadway; Reprint edition (May 9 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0767903633
- ISBN-13: 978-0767903639
- Product Dimensions: 14 x 1.3 x 21.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 263 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (114 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #434,396 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon.com
You already know Camryn Manheim can act. She won the Emmy Award as the don't-mess-with-me attorney Ellenor Frutt on The Practice. Manheim made the ceremony itself entertaining by hoisting her trophy and hollering, "This is for all the fat girls!"
But can she write? Yes. This memoir is by turns funny ("If Barbie were a real woman, she'd have to walk on all fours due to her proportions") and excruciating. It helps that the material was honed in a one-woman show that sold out at New York's big-deal Public Theater, but the subject matter was strange and interesting in the first place. Manheim could not possibly be a less likely candidate for artistic and commercial success on TV. Born Debi Manheim in Peoria, the very metaphor for mainstream culture, Manheim re-created herself as a dozen-earringed California biker chick, a Renaissance Faire wench, a protester who helped drive the Miss California Pageant out of Santa Cruz, and one of 28 actors in America accepted at NYU's exclusive graduate school. In her book, Manheim gets even with her cruel, fat-bashing teachers; credits the director who gave her her first ingenue lead role (Tony Kushner, who cast her in Fen); and tells how the same temper that got her booted from school and arrested also won her the TV role that made her name.
There's good gossip for drama buffs. Manheim ribs her famous boss David Kelley within an inch of her livelihood; rips into Celeste Holm for cattiness backstage in Clare Boothe Luce's The Women; and opines that Bridget Fonda, whom she got naked next to in a movie, "could use a sandwich." But it's the private-life stuff that sticks with you. Read her touching, hilarious account of a personal-ad date from hell, and how she got even by picking up the hunky model who plays the Marlboro Man. She is not making this up! --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
"This is for all the fat girls!" Manheim proclaimed, as she hoisted up her 1998 Emmy statuette for all the world to see. The award for her work as Ellenor Frutt on the television drama The Practice was also sweet recompense for a lifetime of fighting prejudice about her weight, of coming to terms with her insecurities and of feeling that she had finally made her parents proud. Manheim's passion and honesty are evident throughout her accessible narrative. No subject is off-limits, from family conflicts to professional discrimination, from her sexuality to what goes on behind the scenes at the Emmys. Always irreverent, witty and compassionate, Manheim talks openly of her experiences as a fat teenager dealing with her family's disapproval of her weight and of using drugs, including crystal meth, to keep her weight down and gain acceptance with her peers. She details her struggle to become an actor, of standing up to prejudice among drama teachers and directors and of demanding more realistic portrayals of fat women through her characters. In the end, her size has helped shape her politics and feminism: "My fat... taught me not to be average, not to conform, not to go quietly. It made me a fighter." Not just for all the fat girls, Manheim's story holds appeal for everyone who has ever let insecurity hold them back from realizing their dreams. Agent, Alexander Smithline of Vigliano Associates. $100,000 ad/promo; author tour; 22-city TV satellite tour; 20-city radio satellite tour.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
I remember the fabric on the ceiling of that old jalopy drooping down over my father's head, obscuring his view of the road. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
I remember the fabric on the ceiling of that old jalopy drooping down over my father's head, obscuring his view of the road. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very funny,
By
This review is from: Wake Up, I'm Fat! (Hardcover)
Camryn Manheim ("The Practice," "Ghost Whisperer," etc.) tells her life story in a humorous memoir about her long battle of the bulge. Stories of her teenage drug use, grad school tribulations, dating woes, and eventual successes in TV are told with wit and sassy charm.
I've never seen Manheim in movies or TV, but that didn't diminish my enjoyment of her book. She's an excellent writer. In the nineties, she wrote and starred in a one-woman show called, "Wake up, I'm Fat!," and much of the show's material is in the book so it reads like a good stand-up comedy routine. She balances humor with the sadness and frustration of being overweight and a plea for fat acceptance. This is an entertaining and eye-opening book.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful book by a strong, intelligent, beautiful woman,
By COBRA123 (Las Vegas, NV) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Wake Up, I'm Fat! (Paperback)
After reading the past reviews, I wonder if I'm the only man who read this book. The first thing that caught my eyes, I'll be honest, was the cover picture. Camryn is a gorgeous woman with very nice legs. She is also a person of deep character, who has persevered and triumphed despite the prejudices of our shallow society. She relates her struggles in a moving way, but avoids the whining, "why is the world so unfair?" tone that unfortunately characterizes some similiar works. If you want a glimpse into the mind of a powerful, beautiful and intoxicatingly magnificent woman, then you will enjoy this book.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very inspiring,
By Kayleigh W (Toronto) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Wake Up, I'm Fat! (Paperback)
Like the author of this book, I have had a weight problem all of my life and have only recently managed to come to terms with the fact that I will likely always be a plus-sized woman. Thanks to this funny and inspiring book, I now realize that being large doesn't have to get in the way of achieving my dreams. Who says being skinny is a prerequisite for happiness anyways?
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Arts & Literature > Actors & Actresses
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Arts & Literature > Entertainers
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Historical > United States
- Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Specific Groups > Women
- Books > Entertainment > Humor
- Books > Entertainment > Movies > Biographies > Actors & Actresses
- Books > Entertainment > Television > Shows
- Books > New & Used Textbooks
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
