LIFE, LIBERTY & THE PURSUIT OF HOLLYWOOD: MORE OF MY WACKY ADVENTURES IN TINSELTOWN (paperback)
ISBN 9781593937386
“The only people who should try to ‘make it’ in Hollywood are the young.
Because the young are stupid!
They cannot conceive of the possibility that they can fail,
and a person needs to possess that kind of stupidity in order
to face and, hopefully, overcome the tremendous obstacles
that one runs up against in the motion picture business.”
— Jack Lemmon
Michael B. Druxman followed his dreams to Hollywood and, although he may not have “reached the stars,” his persistence made it possible for the vast majority of those dreams to come true.
His new book, Life, Liberty & The Pursuit of Hollywood, continues the story of that remarkable adventure, which he began relating in his first memoir, My Forty-Five Years in Hollywood…And How I Escaped Alive (2010). Returning to his boyhood in Seattle, this new work explores with greater depth Druxman’s journey to Los Angeles where, without any show business contacts whatsoever, he was able to create a successful career for himself as a publicist, playwright, screenwriter, director and Hollywood historian.
From Rock Hudson and Christopher Lee to George Raft and Frank Sinatra to playwright Tennessee Williams and legendary producer Roger Corman, the work is filled with amusing stories of Druxman’s encounters and lessons learned from Hollywood’s rich and famous.
Hollywood historian Annette Lloyd reports: "Druxman's style flows so beautifully, that you don't realize that what you are, indeed, reading is a contribution to film history! His interactions with so many of the Hollywood elite (and not so elite) really do contribute to a fuller and deeper understanding of them...Some of the stories are predictably humorous....Some are jaw-droppers....Some were sad. ALL - and I mean all - were well framed, beautifully developed, and word-to-word dynamite. I did NOT want this book to end."
And, according to biographer Beverly Gray (Roger Corman: Blood-Sucking Vampires, Flesh-Eating Cockroaches, and Driller Killers): “Michael Druxman’s new book is like taking a time machine back to those thrilling days of yesteryear, a time when there was a real Hollywood with real movie stars and the kind of class that no longer exists in that place they call Hollywood today. The tales of his days as a ‘publicist for a price’ are endearing and droll, and the celebrities he handled make for a grand cast of characters in this very affectionate memoir. Add to that the stories of writing and directing for Roger Corman, as well as his childhood memories, and you have a book that’s a fun, fast read.”