As he did in Urban Legends and Hollywood Urban Legends, and as he has done in dozens of columns for the Chicago Sun-Times over the last decade and a half, Richard Roeper lays out the basics of the conspiracy theory, quotes some of the true believers—and then tears the theory apart with his bare hands. 9/11 was an inside job. Lady Di and JFK Jr. were murdered. Heathens are winning the war on Christmas. American Idol is rigged. Barack Obama is a radical Mu...

During the course of 30 days in early 2009, Richard Roeper risked more than a quarter million dollars on practically every method of gambling currently available in America. Chronicling his wild ride in a breezy, humorous manner, this entertaining exploration both celebrates and details the many pitfalls and lures through Roeper's stories about his lifelong affair with gambling. With insight and aplomb, the narrative answers the questions What is it like to bet money you don't have, kn...

A hilarious collection of essays, riffs, and lists that celebrate the insanity of Hollywood--for anyone who loves the movies.Richard Roeper, like the rest of us, adores the movies. In this uproarious, off-beat book, he gives us a whole new set of critical lenses for assessing the movies and the people and the industry that make them. With his characteristic acerbic wit, he weaves short essays with lists that work together to explain where Hollywood succeeds -- and w...

The New York Times Bestseller“A lovely autobiography, equal parts dish and pathos.” —Vanity FairActor Rob Lowe's breakout memoir presents a wryly funny and surprisingly moving account of an extraordinary life lived almost entirely in the public eye.A teen idol at fifteen, an international icon and founder of the Brat Pack at twenty, and one of Hollywood's top stars to this day, Rob Lowe chronicles ...

A biography elucidating the Academy Award–nominee's meteoric rise, his tragic end, and his legacy.At the dawn of the 1990s, a new crew of leading men—Johnny Depp, Nicolas Cage, Keanu Reeves, and Brad Pitt—was rocketing toward stardom. River Phoenix, however, stood in front of the pack. But behind Phoenix's talent and beautiful public face was a young man who had been raised in a cult by nonconformist parents, who was burdened with supporting his family from a young ...

The true account of a nerdy girl from New England who fought her way to the top of the highly-competitive, male-dominated entertainment field.Foreword by Sheryl SandbergJust the Funny Parts is a juicy and scathingly funny insider look at how pop culture gets made. For more than thirty years, writer, producer and director Nell Scovell worked behind the scenes of iconic TV shows, including The Simpsons, Late Night with D...

The longest-serving Simpsons writer and all-around funnyman delivers the ultimate fan guide to the most popular animated show in American history.Semi-Finalist for the 2019 James Thurber Award * One of Vulture 's Top-ten Comedy Books of 2018 * A "Must" pick by Entertainment Weekly * An A.V. Club...

**“Being directed by the Jimmy Burrows, while on Friends, was like hitting the jackpot. I’m delighted that everyone can now share in his incredible insight with this book.”—JENNIFER ANISTONFrom the director of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Taxi, Cheers, Frasier, and Will & Grace comes an insightful and nostalgic behind-the-scenes memoir that’s “as difficult to put down as a Friends marathon is to turn off” (The Washington Post).**

Is The Wire better than Breaking Bad? Is Cheers better than Seinfeld? What's the best high school show ever made? Why did Moonlighting really fall apart? Was the Arrested Development Netflix season brilliant or terrible?For twenty years-since they shared a TV column at Tony Soprano's hometown newspaper-critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz have been debating these questions and many more, but it all ultimately boils down ...

A phenomenal account, newly updated, of how twelve innovative television dramas transformed the medium and the culture at large, featuring Sepinwall’s take on the finales of Mad Men and Breaking Bad.In The Revolution Was Televised, celebrated TV critic Alan Sepinwall chronicles the remarkable transformation of the small screen over the past fifteen years. Focusing on twelve innovative television dramas that changed the medium and the cult...

Uncle John channel-surfs through America’s favorite pastime: television.What does Homer Simpson call “friend…mother…secret lover?” Television, you meathead! Here comes your wacky neighbor Uncle John to present TV the way only he can. From test patterns to Top Chef, from My Three Sons to Mad Men, as well as TV news, advertising, scandals, sitcoms, dramas, reality shows, and yadda yadda yadda, Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Tunes into TV

"More fun to read than the movie was to watch… a scene-stealing book."— The Washington PostAn Entertainment Weekly "Must List" selectionCaddyshack is one of the most beloved comedies of all time, a classic snobs vs. slobs story of working class kids and the white collar buffoons that make them haul their golf bags in the hot summer sun. It has sex, drugs and one very memorable candy bar, but the movie we all ...