Howard Hughes (1905-1976) was a true American original: legendary lover, record-setting aviator, idiosyncratic film producer, talented inventor, ultimate eccentric - and, for much of his lifetime, the richest man in the United States. His desire for privacy was so fierce and his isolation so complete that even several decades after his death, inaccurate stories continue to circulate about him. Richard Hack explodes the illusion of Hughes' life and...

In American Rebel, Marc Eliot examines the ever-exciting, often tumultuous arc of Clint Eastwood's life and career, from his days as a disaffected college dropout to his rise to fame as the archetypal loner to his acceptance into the pantheon as a multiple Academy Award winner.

With fourteen HBO specials, five Grammys, a critical Supreme Court battle over censorship, and countless appearances on the international comedy circuit, George Carlin saw it all and made fun of most of it. Carlin's journey to stardom began in the rough-and-tumble neighborhoods of New York in the 1950s, where class and culture wars planted the seeds for some of his earliest material including the infamous Seven Dirty Words routine. Carlin describes...

In "Paul Newman: A Life," film critic and pop culture historian Shawn Levy gives readers the ultimate behind-the-scenes examination of the actor's life, from his merry pranks on the set to his lasting romance with Joanne Woodward to the devastating impact of his son's death from a drug overdose.

Acclaimed biographer Charlotte Chandler draws on a series of interviews she conducted with legendary actress Mae West just months before her death in 1980. From their first meeting, where West held out a diamond-covered hand in greeting and lamented her interviewer's lack of jewels, to their farewell, with the star still gamely offering advice on how to attract men, West and Chandler developed a warm rapport that glows on every page of this biography....

Shares insights into the iconic rock-and-roll performer's life, from his substance abuse challenges and his bisexual history to his connections to the British royal family and the secret attempt on his life.

"A revelatory biography of the enduringly popular John Wayne that draws on more than 100 interviews as well as exclusive access to the files of Wayne's film production company to answer the question why he became and remains an iconic American figure"--

Acclaimed poet Elizabeth Alexander finds herself at an existential crossroads after the sudden death of her husband. Channeling her poetic sensibilities into a rich, lucid prose, she tells a love story that is, itself, a story of loss. Reflecting on the beauty of her married life, the trauma of her husband's death, and the solace found in caring for her two teenage sons, Alexander universalizes a very personal quest for meaning and acceptance in the...

Best known for his work among our nation's poorest children, Jonathan Kozol now tells the story of his father's life and extraordinary career as a noted specialist in neurological and psychiatric disorders of the brain.