The Ragman's Son; An Autobiography
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988. First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. 510, [2] pages. Illustrations. Index. Slight wear to rear DJ. Signed by the author on the title page. Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Douglas soon developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1950s, known for serious dramas, including westerns and war films. During his career, he appeared in more than 90 films and was known for his explosive acting style. He was named by the American Film Institute the 17th-greatest male star of Classic Hollywood cinema. As an actor and philanthropist, Douglas received an Academy Honorary Award for Lifetime Achievement and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He wrote ten novels and memoirs. A centenarian, Douglas was one of the last surviving stars of the film industry's Golden Age. The Ragman's Son is the title of the first autobiography by American actor Kirk Douglas, published in 1988. In this book, Douglas chronicles his life story, from his beginnings as the only son in a family of six girls born to a poor Jewish immigrant, to his lust to become an actor. He writes about studying drama at college, to getting his big break in Hollywood and of his later years where he jokingly remarks that he is now best known as the father of actor Michael Douglas. In The Ragman's Son, Douglas described himself as a "son of a bitch," adding, "I'm probably the most disliked actor in Hollywood. And I feel pretty good about it. Because that's me... . I was born aggressive, and I guess I'll die aggressive." Co-workers and associates alike noted similar traits, with Burt Lancaster once remarking, "Kirk would be the first to tell you that he is a very difficult man. And I would be the second." Douglas's brash personality is attributed to his difficult upbringing living in poverty and his aggressive alcoholic father who was neglectful of Kirk as a young child. Douglas' discipline, wit and sense of humor were also often recognized. Derived from a Kirkus review: Charming autobiography by the intense actor who would not buy a Van Gogh for his home because he would think he'd painted it. He was the Russian-Jewish son of an illiterate rag-picker in Amsterdam, N.Y., and it is this background that has sharpened his Dostoevskian glitter of submerged humiliation, insult, and injury. He began acting in high school and later found himself worked to death playing leads in summer stock, Served in the during WW II, landed on Broadway after discharge, was lured to Hollywood. Douglas' story has many highlights. On the erotic side are his pursuit of widespread infidelity, at least in his younger days. Financially, he was taken to the cleaners by his longtime agent, whose office also stripped Doris Day to the bone. Artistically, he thinks Lonely Are the Brave, Paths of Glory, and Lust for Life are his best performances, but only as Van Gogh did he cross over into total absorption by the character he was playing--a role he did not easily recover from, During his own company's production of Spartacus, he broke the unwritten Hollywood rule of ten-years standing about not hiring blacklisted writers and hired Dalton Trumbo. Winning pages that turn occasionally sharp-tongued. Condition: Very good / Very good.
Keywords: Hollywood, Academy Awards, Tony Curtis, Michael Douglas, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster, Stanley Kubrick, WWII
ISBN: 0671637177
[Book #90751]
Price: $375.00