64 results for "Autobiography"

Call Me Pisher A Madcap Romp Through City Hall

Howard Moscoe
"My grandfather was a horse thief, My grandmother a bootlegger, My father a bookmaker and my brother a scalper; so there was nothing left for me but politics." Thus begins Call Me Pisher: A Madcap Romp Through City Hall, the hilarious, informative and undoubtedly (to some) maddening account of City Councillor Howard Moscoe's 32 years in public office. As you'll discover, Moscoe used the tradecraft of all those questionable vocations to cajole, manipulate and beguile his council colleagues. While he advanced an agenda that often focused on derailing his political opponents, it was always driven by the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life in his ward and in the city as a whole. You will also discover why the name Moscoe elicited widely varying, and sometimes extreme, reactions. Former Mayor Mel Lastman derided Moscoe as "the best excuse for birth control I know." Councillor Adam Vaughan hailed Moscoe's "ability to drive those in power crazy. In fact, if he were on your side he could drive you crazy too. His style could inspire and confound you all at the same time." Toronto Life, marking his retirement from politics in 2010, expressed "hope that the next council can live up to the same level of wit and absurdity." And Toronto Star columnist Royson James offered this assessment: "Moscoe is no angel. He is a blustery, bombastic, hard-nosed advocate for the disabled, the downtrodden, and anyone else that comes up against the wall of bureaucracy that is often erected at city hall. His advocacy often brings him into conflict with the bureaucrats who really run the city. What the councillor lacks in finesse he makes up in integrity." There are bugs under every rock and in 32 years of public office Howard Moscoe managed to turn over a lot of boulders. You can read about them by snagging a copy of this insightful and provocative chronicle. Who knows? You may even be in it.
Yorkland Publishing 2022-10-31 476 pages

Herblock Special Report

Herbert Block
This book obviously does not set out a complete record of the Nixon scandals or of the Nixon career. It doesn't even include all the cartoons about Nixon or relating to him--which probably number more than those Block did on almost any other public figure (good or bad), including such long-in-the-limelight persons as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin. It does include a large number of the Nixon cartoons, along with dates of some incidents, and comments and recollections about their subject--a political career which in some way has affected all of us.
W. W. Norton, Incorporated 1976-09 260 pages

Back, After the Break

Osher Gunsberg
Osher Gunsberg, one of Australia's most loved celebrities, opens up in a powerful, dark, funny and heartwrenching memoir about life, love and living with mental illness. It's hard to remember a time when Osher Gunsberg (or Andrew G as he was then) wasn't on TV - he's just always been there, looking at ease in the spotlight, beaming a big smile, with a questionable haircut. He was there hanging out with The Offspring backstage at the Warped Tour on Channel V; announcing to a national audience of three million people that Guy Sebastian was our first Australian Idol; and later capturing the heart of the nation by hosting every season of The Bachelor, The Bachelorette and now Bachelor in Paradise. But while everything looks great from the outside, the real picture has not always been quite so rosy. Osher has always known he's different to most people. Struggling with anxiety, panic attacks and weight issues since he was young, he tried for years to drink away the anxiety and depression. He ended up unemployed, divorced, suicidal and certifiable on the other side of the world, yet somehow he managed to put the broken pieces of his mind back together and make a life for himself again. He lives with a mental illness - and he's come to terms with it to live an authentic, rich and fulfilling life. A revealing, raw, funny and heartfelt memoir from one of Australia's most well-known and well-liked celebrities.
HarperCollins Publishers 2018 368 pages

The Last Laugh The Final Word from the First Name in Satire

S. J. Perelman
The Last Laugh is, as its title suggests, the very last of S. J. Perelman's twenty books. It contains seventeen pieces never before collected, in addition to the opening chapters of the author's uncompleted autobiography, The Hindsight Saga. The Last Laugh shows the master humorist at his very best, displaying his incomparable gift for ridicule, dazzling verbal effects, polished style, and keen observation. (6 X 9, 192 pages)
Lyons Press 2000 192 pages