Guilty Pleasure Reading - Jamie's Reading List

<script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-MLWNSTF5Y9"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-MLWNSTF5Y9'); </script> # Guilty Pleasure Reading Often in the winter, I'll sneak in some "[guilty pleasure" reading](https://jamierubin.net/2015/12/18/reading-for-guilty-pleasure/), which in my case are things like Hollywood bios, celebrity memoirs, and books about entertainers, preferrably those from days past. Here is a list of my guilty pleasure reading over the years. Items in **bold** are books that I'd recommend. After some of these books, I've included links to posts I've written about them. Below the Guilty Pleasure Reading List is [[#My absolute favorite Hollywood/entertainer reads|a list of my top 5 favorites]] in this genre. ## The Guilty Pleasure Reading List - **Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams** by Gary Giddins; 767pp (1.87 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 02/03/2005. See also "[Bing Crosby and Me](https://jamierubin.net/2011/11/22/bing-crosby-and-me/)." - Never Have Your Dog Stuffed by Alan Alda; 234pp (0.57 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 11/08/2005. See also "[My Favorite Place to Read Is In Hindsight](https://jamierubin.net/2021/11/28/my-favorite-place-to-read-is-in-hindsight/)" - **Living It Up (Or, They Still Love Me in Altoona)** by George Burns; 246pp (0.6 BEq); memoir, entertainers, humor; finished on 05/13/2006 - The Third Time Around by George Burns; 218pp (0.53 BEq); memoir, entertainers, humor; finished on 05/15/2006 - Rickles' Book by Don Rickles; 255pp (0.62 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 08/25/2007 - **Born Standing Up** by Steve Martin; 205pp (0.5 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 08/01/2012. - Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe; 320pp (0.78 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 04/19/2014 - Love Life by Rob Lowe; 271pp (0.66 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 04/21/2014 - Kiss and Make Up by Gene Simmons; 287pp (0.7 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 07/11/2014 - **Hope: Entertainer of the Century** by Richard Zoglin; 574pp (1.4 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 11/30/2014 - **My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business** by Dick Van Dyke; 287pp (0.7 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 12/28/2015 - Keep Moving, and Other Tips and Truths About Aging by Dick Van Dyke; 263pp (0.64 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 12/31/2015 - **I Remember Me** by Carl Reiner; 304pp (0.74 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 01/01/2016. See also "[R.I.P. Carl Reiner](https://jamierubin.net/2020/06/30/r-i-p-carl-reiner/)" - **I Just Remembered** by Carl Reiner; 333pp (0.81 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 01/01/2016 - This Time Together by Carol Burnett; 226pp (0.55 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 01/02/2016 - Even This I Get to Experience by Norman Lear; 464pp (1.13 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 01/10/2016 - **What's So Funny?** by Tim Conway; 271pp (0.66 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 02/03/2016. See also "[Tim Conway's Elephant Story](https://jamierubin.net/2021/01/10/tim-conways-elephant-story/)" - **As You Wish** by Cary Elwes; 259pp (0.63 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 08/20/2016 - Leonard: My Fifty-Year Relationship with a Remarkable Man by William Shatner; 279pp (0.68 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 08/25/2016 - Up Till Now by William Shatner; 357pp (0.87 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 09/20/2016 - The Magnolia Story by Joanna Gaines and Chip Gaines; 210pp (0.51 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 12/16/2016 - **Born to Run** by Bruce Springsteen; 529pp (1.29 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 12/29/2016. See also "[The Best Book I Read in 2016: Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen](https://jamierubin.net/2017/01/03/best-book-read-2016-born-to-run/)" - The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher; 259pp (0.63 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 01/02/2017 - **Bing Crosby: Swinging on a Star: The War Years, 1940-1946** by Gary Giddins; 726pp (1.77 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 12/24/2018. See also "[The 17-Year Itch: Or, Waiting for the Sequel](https://jamierubin.net/2018/10/30/the-17-year-itch-or-waiting-for-the-sequel/)" - **The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers** by Maxwell King; 415pp (1.01 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 02/11/2019 - **Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls** by Lauren Graham; 226pp (0.55 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 06/30/2019 - **Disney's Land: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusment Park that Changes the World** by Richard Snow; 431pp (1.05 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 12/14/2019 - George Lucas: A Life by Brian Jay Jones; 550pp (1.34 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 12/29/2019 - Anything You Can Imagine: Peter Jackson and the Making of Middle-Earth by Ian Nathan; 591pp (1.44 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 01/01/2020 - My Anecdotal Life: A Memoir by Carl Reiner; 255pp (0.62 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 07/06/2020 - **Is This Anything?** by Jerry Seinfeld; 480pp (1.17 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 10/08/2020 - **Walt Disney: Triumph of the American Imagination** by Neal Gabler; 882pp (2.15 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 02/13/2021 - **The Boys: A Memoir of Hollywood and Family** by Ron Howard and Clint Howard; 394pp (0.96 BEq); memoir, hollywood, entertainer; finished on 10/16/2021. See also "[Ronnie, Reacher and the Babe](https://jamierubin.net/2021/10/29/ronnie-reacher-and-the-babe/)" - **All About Me! My Remarkable Life In Show Business** by Mel Brooks; 480pp (1.17 BEq); entertainers, memoirs; finished on 12/24/2021. See also "[Visiting with Mel Brooks in Florida](https://jamierubin.net/2021/12/04/visiting-with-mel-brooks-in-florida/)" - **My Dad's Funnier Than Your Dad: Growing Up with Tim Conway in the Funniest House in America** by Kelly Conway; 263pp (0.64 BEq); entertainers, memoirs; finished on 12/25/2021 ## My absolute favorite Hollywood/entertainer reads 1. **Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams** by Gary Giddins; 767pp (1.87 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 02/03/2005 2. **Bing Crosby: Swinging on a Star: The War Years, 1940-1946** by Gary Giddins; 726pp (1.77 BEq); biography, entertainers; finished on 12/24/2018 3. **Born to Run** by Bruce Springsteen; 529pp (1.29 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 12/29/2016 4. **The Boys: A Memoir of Hollywood and Family** by Ron Howard and Clint Howard; 394pp (0.96 BEq); memoir, hollywood, entertainer; finished on 10/16/2021 5. **As You Wish** by Cary Elwes; 259pp (0.63 BEq); memoir, entertainers; finished on 08/20/2016