Review by Booklist Review
Legendary director Mike Nichols (1931-2014) refused to write his memoirs, but this scintillating oral history fills the gap splendidly, with wry and heartfelt commentary by ""150 of his closest friends,"" from Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, and Meryl Streep through Candice Bergen and Christine Baranski, all of whom cherished their professional and personal relationships with a man who seemingly impressed everyone he met as being the smartest and most charming person in the room. Authors Carter and Kashner skillfully arrange the commentary in a roughly chronological manner that follows the Berlin-born Nichols from escaping the Nazis in 1939 through a career that encompassed success as a comedian, first with the Compass Players in Chicago (the predecessor to Second City) and then on Broadway with Elaine May, and finally to directing: his first three Broadway plays, beginning with Barefoot in the Park, all won him Tony Awards for Best Director, and his film career was launched in equally spectacular fashion, with Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and The Graduate. We learn much here about the making of all those hits and many others, including the landmark HBO production of Angels in America, but what comes through most forcefully is Nichols' ability to get the most out of his actors. And, of course, his unparalleled ability to tell a story, punctuated always by self-deprecating wit (""Tomorrow I am directing my first film, with Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor,"" he said to the great Billy Wilder. ""What should I wear?""). An exquisite oral history that will leave readers convinced that they, too, were among Nichols' closest friends.--Bill Ott Copyright 2019 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
This is the first portrait of director Mike Nichols (1931--2014) to be published since his death, and it's a marvelous oral biography with recollections from actors, filmmakers, and friends. The breadth of Nichols's career in comedy, theater, and film is staggering, so Carter (senior editor, Esquire) and Kashner (contributing editor, Vanity Fair; When I Was Cool: My Life at the Jack Kerouac School) have wisely focused on key periods, such as Nichols's early days with comedian and actor Elaine May, films ranging from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Silkwood to Working Girl and Angels in America, and the stage productions of Barefoot in the Park and Spamalot, among many others. As the thoughts recorded here are clearly from close friends, such as Meryl Streep, Wallace Shawn, Buck Henry, and Tony Walton, there is nary a negative word to be found. Yet many stories of Nichols's personal life, his midcareer depression, and his internal struggles as an artist provide a well-rounded sense of a man who excelled in his field and was truly loved by those around him. VERDICT A wonderful biography of a unique and memorable man, and a worthy addition to all libraries. [See Prepub Alert, 5/5/19.]--Peter Thornell, Hingham P.L., MA
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Actors, writers, directors, critics, and producers remember a beloved friend.Esquire editor Carter and Vanity Fair contributing editor Kashner (When I Was Cool: My Life at the Jack Kerouac School, 2004, etc.) bring together reminiscences about filmmaker, director, and comedian Mike Nichols (1931-2014), gleaned from interview transcripts and conversations with more than 100 of his famous friends, including Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Bob Newhart, Jules Feiffer, Cynthia Nixon, and Tom Hanks. Their remarks and anecdotes, organized to chronicle Nichols' life and career, cohere into a candid, intimate portrayal of a man they loved and admired. "I was always in awe of Mike," Woody Allen admitted, for both his talent and charm. Many echoed Anjelica Huston in remarking on his "incredible capacity for friendship that makes you think you're absolutely unique." Candice Bergen, who found him intimidating at first, praised him for trying to make everyone feel comfortable: "He paid attention to you, which people of success and achievement and intellect rarely do." Nichols long struggled with feeling like an outsider. Born Igor Mikhail Peschkowsky, he left Germany with his family in 1939, knowing no English. When he was 5, probably in response to illness, he lost all his hair, an affliction that deeply embarrassed him; as an adult, he wore specially made hair and eyebrow pieces. His career began as an entertainer; friends recall his synergy with Elaine May, who "liberated Mike's unconscious" to inform their "side-splitting and irresistible" comedy improvisations. "God, they're amazing," Robin Williams once remarked. Nichols fell into depression after their split, until he was lured into directing, teaming with Neil Simon for Barefoot in the Park and The Odd Couple. "Mike had a fabulous gift for staging, an instinct for what would work on Broadway," Allen recalled, and a sure eye for choosing scripts and casts: Elizabeth Taylor in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, for example, and Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate. Nichols' attitudes about money, fame, art, and marriage all emerge from the contributors' wide-ranging recollections.A warmhearted, revelatory composite portrait. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
