I Said Yes to Everything

May 26, 2014
In this wonderful memoir, actor Grant charts her life from a childhood in New York City through her performance in Shampoo and beyond. In short vignettes (some chapters are only two pages long), Grant tells a story filled with innumerable twists and turns—from her wayward adolescence as Lyova Haskell Rosenthal to her early successes in the theaters of 1950s New York; her 12-year battle on Hollywood’s blacklist; to the reclamation of her career in the 1970s, while living in Malibu. Whether recalling the traumas of her first marriage to screenwriter Arnold Manoff or sharing entertaining memories of her famous friends—Marlon Brando, Mia Farrow, and Warren Beatty among them—Grant does so with a with a lively, approachable tone. Though famous for her achievements as a multi-award winning actor, director, and documentarian, Grant reveals herself to be woman unafraid of continual self-reinvention. These pages tell a gripping story full of drama, humor, and hardship, offering an intimate look into the singular life of one indefatigable protagonist.

June 15, 2014
Academy Award-winning actress Grant recounts the ups and downs of her professional and personal lives.Grant (born Lyova Haskell Rosenthal) was practically raised on the stage. Beginning at the Metropolitan Opera House, 4-year-old Grant was chosen to play a kidnapped child in L'Oracolo, but she broke scene during the opera's climax as the star tenor was killed onstage. Grant's precocious and heartwarmingly earnest attempt to warn the actor that he was about to be stabbed in the back won the affection of the audience. The author's misstep, however, proved that she had a natural stage presence and that she was fearless and headlong, even if, as in this instance, it was foolhardy. After an unsuccessful attempt at a singing career, Grant truly found her footing at the Neighborhood Playhouse, where she learned method acting from Herbert Berghof, a student of Sanford Meisner. She even did a stint at the famed Actors Studio. Though Grant may not be a household name today, the resilience of her career outlasted the 12-year period when she was blacklisted by HUAC for her political affiliations (her first husband, playwright Arnold Manoff, was a registered communist), and she became one of the most respected actresses of her generation. Among her most well-known roles were in Valley of the Dolls, In the Heat of the Night, Portnoy's Complaint and Shampoo, which earned her an Oscar for best supporting actress, though she'd previously been nominated for her motion picture debut, Detective Story, in 1951. Rife with appearances from some of Hollywood's biggest names, including an unsuccessful date with Marlon Brando, Grant's career proves that the elusive and oft-sought-after second chance can not only be had, it can be triumphantly redeeming.An insightful, sharp Hollywood memoir that will appeal to fans and newcomers alike.

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from June 1, 2014
Grant, the Academy Awardwinning actor who segued into directing in the 1980s, was fired weeks into directing a Bruce Willis movie in the late 1990s (the movie was subsequently shut down). While it definitely wasn't the blow to her professional life as was being blacklisted for a dozen years, thanks to HUAC's Communist witch hunt in the 1950s, readers of this no-holds-barred autobiography can tell that it really rankled. That's the thing: Grant doesn't make us read between the lines here; it's all right there, on the page. When she was jubilant after winning an Oscar for her supporting role in Shampoo, we know it; when she was disgusted, as when a television network canceled her series without telling her, we know it, too; and, of course, when she was dismayed and bewildered and depressed when she couldn't find work during her 12-year blacklisting, we know it for sure. The title, incidentally, comes from a piece of career advice she once received and which she followed with great enthusiasm once the blacklist era was over, advice that led her to take on such diverse projects as the TV series Peyton Place (for which she won an Emmy) and such films as In the Heat of the Night, Valley of the Dolls, and Portnoy's Complaint. An excellent show-business autobiography.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

February 15, 2014

Not your standard actress memoir, and not because Grant is an Academy Award winner. Just as her career was taking off, Grant found herself blacklisted during the McCarthy era and fought for 12 years to exonerate herself. Lots of Hollywood insider stuff, too, plus memoirs of her rise to fame at the Actors Studio and as a Broadway star and Vogue "It Girl."

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2014

Just as Academy Award-nominated actress Grant (b. 1926) was working her way up into the leagues of the Hollywood elite, she fell victim to a political witch hunt. The television and film roles may have stopped coming but Grant was nowhere near throwing in the towel on her artistic dreams. Working her way up from the bottom, she won roles on stage, then landed back on screen, defying the odds with style and class. Her memoir gives film fans and others a no-holds-barred glimpse into the life of one of Hollywood's most talented and passionate actor-directors. Unapologetic and unafraid, the author reveals all the juicy details of a woman who lived in the spotlight--and on the Hollywood blacklist. VERDICT Perfect for those who enjoyed Katharine Hepburn's memoir, Me (1991) and more recently, Judy Greer's I Don't Know What You Know Me From (2014), the book is fun, emotional, exciting, and full of all the glitz and wit you'd expect from Grant. [See Prepub Alert, 2/15/14.]--Melissa Culbertson, Homewood, IL

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.