Tuesday, May 31, 2016

But Enough About Me by Burt Reynolds on Compact Disc

But Enough About Me
by Burt Reynolds [Compact Disc Biography Reynolds] 

While I’ve never been what you would call a “huge” Burt Reynolds fan, I’ve definitely seen my share of his movies–being a child of the 70’s. I can remember watching “Smokey & the Bandit”, along with just about every other living human I knew…there was something free, uninhibited about Burt’s laugh during that movie–I always remembered it and felt like he must really know how to have fun! Years later, when he was in “Boogie Nights”, I was impressed that he had such a serious side (despite the often funny, hokey parts of the film). He proved himself to me as a solid actor.
So when I saw that Burt had written a memoir, I knew I had to read it at some point. I saw the opportunity to check out the audiobook (read by Burt himself) and I seized it! It must first be pointed out that Burt Reynolds is now 80 years old, and you can hear it in his voice. But I loved this book all the more because it was read by him!

I am constantly amazed and impressed by the vast amount of people Burt has worked with and made friends with over the years. Of course, I knew about Dinah Shore, Angee Dickinson, Sally Field, Loni Anderson, and Jon Voigt, etc. But there are so many other famous people that he knows or knew, well. Johnny Carson, Frank Sinatra, Bette Davis, Ossie Davis, Dom DeLouise and many more. After describing his childhood and his relationship with his parents, Reynolds spends the rest of the book going over his many friendships, as they evolved and as he evolved as an actor. He mentions movies he’s grateful he was a part of, as well as films he passed on or was passed over for. He dishes on a few celebrities that he does not respect or just never got along with (think Joan Crawford, Raquel Welch, Marlon Brando). I suppose the whole book reads like a “Who’s Who” of Hollywood, but because many of the people mentioned are from a time when I was growing up, it appeals greatly to me.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try If You Ask Me (and Of Course You Won’t), by Betty White, and Wishful Drinking, by Carrie Fisher]

[ publisher’s official But Enough About Me web site ] | [ Wikipedia page for Burt Reynolds ]

Recommended by Tracy T.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Have you read this? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?  
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