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86th out of 183 books
—
261 voters
My Mother Was Nuts
Most people know Penny Marshall as the director of Big and A League of Their Own. What they don’t know is her trailblazing career was a happy accident. In this funny and intimate memoir, Penny takes us from the stage of The Jackie Gleason Show in 1955 to Hollywood’s star-studded sets, offering up some hilarious detours along the way.
My Mother Was Nuts is an intimate backst...more
My Mother Was Nuts is an intimate backst...more
Hardcover, 326 pages
Published
September 18th 2012
by New Harvest
(first published 2012)
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While I enjoy reading biographies of all types because I find it interesting to learn what motivations people had to get to where they are in life, this book simply made me turn away in disgust. Why?
In brief:
Penny complains non-stop about her mother and what a terrible person she was -probably true- but then she leaves her daughter behind to be raised by others. There are brief mentions of the daughter here and there, but no discernible mother-daughter bond.
Drugs, drugs, drugs, more drugs, Joh...more
In brief:
Penny complains non-stop about her mother and what a terrible person she was -probably true- but then she leaves her daughter behind to be raised by others. There are brief mentions of the daughter here and there, but no discernible mother-daughter bond.
Drugs, drugs, drugs, more drugs, Joh...more
17 likes · like · see review
view 1 comment
May 01, 2013
Kaethe
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
age-adult,
contemporary,
dance,
drugs,
feminism,
friendship,
humor,
memoir,
movies,
music,
nonfiction,
romance,
sex-positive,
social-issues,
theater,
usa
Her mother was nuts, somewhat. But that's beside the point. What Marshall and her co-writer have managed to do is give a fairly straightforward account of the big moments, people, and formative experiences in Marshall's life, in what sounds like her voice. It's not a tell-all (thank goodness, that would have been exhausting) but it fills in the major players. Play is the appropriate word here, because Marshall's entire life seems based on being in the moment and having fun with it. What they hav...more
5 likes · like · see review
As a child, 'Laverne and Shirley' was one of my favorite TV shows. As an adult, I can now appreciate even more the talent and determination of actress/director/producer Penny Marshall.
In her candid memoir, Ms.Marshall covers it all - her upbringing in Brookyn, her early struggles in Hollywood (typecast repeatedly as 'the homely girl'could not have been fun), the phenomenal success of her hit TV show and her movies, as well as her battle with cancer.
Her stories read like a Hollywood Who's Who: Ri...more
In her candid memoir, Ms.Marshall covers it all - her upbringing in Brookyn, her early struggles in Hollywood (typecast repeatedly as 'the homely girl'could not have been fun), the phenomenal success of her hit TV show and her movies, as well as her battle with cancer.
Her stories read like a Hollywood Who's Who: Ri...more
Okay, so I would love to give this four and a half stars, just for the fact that it made me "bark laugh" out loud more than a few times!! I did this book on audio and it is read by Penny Marshall, her inflections and dry delivery are just wonderful. I laughed out loud so many times that at one time I looked up and coworkers were laughing AT me and how much I was enjoying this book.
Even when she talks about her mother and other issues that can be uncomfortable, the sarcasm and wit that she uses...more
Even when she talks about her mother and other issues that can be uncomfortable, the sarcasm and wit that she uses...more
This is a good autobiography that is flawed by its positive portrayal of illegal drug use and its incomplete nature. Marshall seems to have had a pointless, meandering life that she has learned nothing from. Her constant positive promotion of heavy drug usage as normal makes her an unsympathetic character, especially when so many of her friends died so young from it. She also had an abortion (claiming she didn't know who the father was), had a miscarriage (not knowing she was pregnant and unsure...more
A candid, funny memoir in which Penny Marshall tells stories about her life that reveal her to be a fun-loving, hard-working person with problems just like the rest of us. While complaining about her mother during her childhood in the Bronx, Penny also admits that while she often secretly wished her mother would have a heart attack, her mother was a popular dance teacher who was successful enough to get her students on the Jackie Gleason Show in 1955 and who was adored by her students. Marshall...more
Her books starts like this: "I'vealwaysbeencrazybutit'skeptmefromgoinginsanewaylonjennings." Except, slowly, like this: "I ' v e a l w a y s b e e n c r a z y b u t i t ' s k e p t m e f r o m g o i n g i n s a n e w a y l o n j e n n i n g s."
It doesn't get better.
This is the second worst audio book I have ever purchased, and it's all because of Penny Marshall. I was hoping for a quirky, funny book. I got a firky, qunky book instead. First, and this is probably going to sound horrible, but......more
It doesn't get better.
This is the second worst audio book I have ever purchased, and it's all because of Penny Marshall. I was hoping for a quirky, funny book. I got a firky, qunky book instead. First, and this is probably going to sound horrible, but......more
This book would have gotten one star but I gave it two because I lived in the same part of the Bronx she grew up in and I liked reading about the area. Other than that this book was'nt good. She continuously complains about her mother but she has others raise her child and describes no remorse about it. There was so much name dropping I got sick of it. She pretty much brags throughout the book about all the people she knows and how popular she is. I also don't like the way she glamorized her dru...more
Penny Marshall tells about her career and her many many celebrity friends, but she shares few insights about what she has experienced in life.
After reading this memoir, I know she's athletic, likes to have fun, and likes to hang out with other celebrities. She did a lot of drugs, had a lot of sex, and is embarrassed about her appearance. She is very frank and even blunt about her life, but much of it's like reading a comedy script--lots of funny lines, but not much depth.
The book tends to skim...more
After reading this memoir, I know she's athletic, likes to have fun, and likes to hang out with other celebrities. She did a lot of drugs, had a lot of sex, and is embarrassed about her appearance. She is very frank and even blunt about her life, but much of it's like reading a comedy script--lots of funny lines, but not much depth.
The book tends to skim...more
I've seen and loved a number of her films, as well as her one-liners during press junkets, and I was interested in hearing more of her voice and perspective through this memoir. Overall, okay. Lots of names. Lots of famous friends. Fun "inside Hollywood"-type feel.
I enjoyed the last chapter the most. It created a great arc and through-line for the entire narrative. However, the sentiments and ideas written in the last chapter were not fully utilized throughout. In a way, it felt as though the b...more
I enjoyed the last chapter the most. It created a great arc and through-line for the entire narrative. However, the sentiments and ideas written in the last chapter were not fully utilized throughout. In a way, it felt as though the b...more
1 like · like · see review
I was disappointed in this book. I decided to read it as I have been a fan of Penny Marshall since her Laverne and Shirley days. I have also noticed she produced a few good movies, so therefore I thought it would be an interesting read.
As I stated previously, I was disappointed. I don't feel she positively portrayed her family, which is her own right. However, I know that I wouldn't think of writing anything for the public to read that would be a bad reflection of my family. I learned her idea...more
As I stated previously, I was disappointed. I don't feel she positively portrayed her family, which is her own right. However, I know that I wouldn't think of writing anything for the public to read that would be a bad reflection of my family. I learned her idea...more
3 likes · like · see review
I listened to the Audible download, read by Penny Marshall herself. I was once a big fan of "Laverne and Shirley." This autobiography is truly funny, from its descriptions of her mother's dance studio when she was a kid in the Bronx and sharing a room in a small apartment with her senile grandmother to her hospital stay with a brain tumor and lung cancer, Penny Marshall cannot utter a single sentence without being funny. I have read many books which supposedly were comedies, but few books that a...more
Hmm. I want to give this book 3.5 stars. It's not quite a 4 but not as bad as a 3. This book made it quite clear that Penny Marshall is NOT a writer. Her stories are great but the writing itself leaves a lot to be desired. It's odd because I always thought directing, writing, producing, etc. were interchangeable roles. Clearly, they're not. Her directing is brilliant. As her acting and gift for comedy. In this way, I almost wish she had made this book as a documentary; I think I'd have enjoyed i...more
This is an excellent autobiography. Despite what some of the reviews would have you believe, Ms Marshall seems completely aware of the mistakes she made, she just doesn't come across as needing to beat herself up publicly to receive public approval for her contrition. Anyone with two brain cells to run together to make a mental spark could tell, while reading the first two chapters, that Ms Marshall did not hate her mother. She saw her mother as flawed, but she didn't see herself as perfect. She...more
FIFTEEN THINGS I LEARNED ABOUT PENNY MARSHALL FROM HER NEW MEMOIR “MY MOTHER WAS NUTS.”
As a child, Penny Marshall danced on “The Jackie Gleason Show.”
June Taylor told Marshall that she had the potential to become a June Taylor dancer if she took ballet. But she didn’t because she hated ballet.
Her grandfather died while she was at summer camp, but her folks didn’t tell her because they didn’t want to ruin her summer.
Early in her career, she was in a Head and Shoulders commercial with Farrah Faw...more
As a child, Penny Marshall danced on “The Jackie Gleason Show.”
June Taylor told Marshall that she had the potential to become a June Taylor dancer if she took ballet. But she didn’t because she hated ballet.
Her grandfather died while she was at summer camp, but her folks didn’t tell her because they didn’t want to ruin her summer.
Early in her career, she was in a Head and Shoulders commercial with Farrah Faw...more
I see the majority of reviews on Amazon's were disappointed in this but I felt quite differently. As I've made my way through her audiobook, which is read by her, I sense that hearing her voice provides a sense of depth and sincerity that perhaps others can't possible grasp in a book or on a screen. Her intonation lends tremendous expression and comes off with complete sincerity. Throughout, she notes how important honesty is to her and she certainly seems to mean it given the numerous examples...more
3 likes · like · see review
2.5 stars
I know why I wanted to read this book - Penny Marshall was someone I had seen on tv and whose movies (the ones she directed) I had enjoyed, plus the title is a grabber. The question I can't answer is just why I continued to read the entire book. Ms. Marshall certainly lived an eventful life and she seems to have no hesitation in presenting all of it, good and bad. She characterizes herself as a person who doesn't react emotionally in a crisis, but she came off as someone who has troubl...more
I know why I wanted to read this book - Penny Marshall was someone I had seen on tv and whose movies (the ones she directed) I had enjoyed, plus the title is a grabber. The question I can't answer is just why I continued to read the entire book. Ms. Marshall certainly lived an eventful life and she seems to have no hesitation in presenting all of it, good and bad. She characterizes herself as a person who doesn't react emotionally in a crisis, but she came off as someone who has troubl...more
I’m not ashamed to say I loved Laverne and Shirley. History may look back on the show as some screwball sitcom that introduced a number of forgotten trends to the pop culture lexicon (milk and Pepsi, anyone?), but I theorize the show was more feminist than people might believe. Think about it: it’s set initially in the fifties and focuses on two women who – unlike other female TV characters from actual 1950s shows – are not well-coiffed housewives rushing to greet Hugh Beaumont at the door after...more
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I loved Laverne & Shirley. When my friend Heather and I would play that we were Laverne and Shirley, we fought over who would play what. Of course, Shirley was the coveted role at the time - she was all girlie and chaste and prim. But I would have to say that Laverne is much more my style now.
Penny Marshall writes in a very easy-to-read, conversational style. I enjoyed that she shared a good deal of her childhood, especially the difficulties in her parents' marriage, her mother's lack of in...more
Penny Marshall writes in a very easy-to-read, conversational style. I enjoyed that she shared a good deal of her childhood, especially the difficulties in her parents' marriage, her mother's lack of in...more
I like Penny Marshall! I've only known her as an actor and director and the sister of Garry Marshall. So when I saw that she'd written an autobiography, I was already inclined to read it and like it. I didn't expect to come away with a real admiration for this multi-talented woman. From her life in New York as the 3rd (and unexpected) child of a mother who was nuts and a father who was boring - her words, not mine - Penny Marshall lived a life of dance classes in the basement studio her mother p...more
Penny Marshall may have convinced me to read this book because I got her confused with Penelope Spheeris, but there's a surprising amount of overlap in their lives (well, they both hung out with Saturday Night Live people). Laverne has written a memoir about a family that the traditional fictional poor Italian-American New Yorker family was based on.
There's a lot of interesting material here, but Marshall's touch is light and she goes into some detail but not near enough for most of it to stick...more
There's a lot of interesting material here, but Marshall's touch is light and she goes into some detail but not near enough for most of it to stick...more
Would have been 3 stars, except that in the acknowledgments at the back, we find the ghostwwriter thanked. With a ghost, it should have been better. What happened to putting "written with" on the cover? I'd have passed. OK. Now I know why no writer credit on the cover. This is a celebrity bio. Marshall has celebrity friends, and celebrities helped her along the way, and every celebrity she had a problem with is now her lifelong friend. Her parents were weird, although the title inspires a best 2...more
I decided to read this book because I have always like Penny Marshall,and like her, my mother was nuts! Penny Marshall has had a remarkable life. The people she met and worked with, and also been friends with brings back the nostalgia of "those good old days". Penny Marshall's book did not let me down. I knew so little about Penny Marshall and found her writing and story utterly fascinating.
Perhaps it's because of our age. She is approximately 10 years older than me and the 60's was a very long...more
Perhaps it's because of our age. She is approximately 10 years older than me and the 60's was a very long...more
If you were a fan of Laverne and Shirley, then you will enjoy this book about Penny Marshall. It was funny, entertaing and even sad at some points. Penny's beginnings are told in a very laid back style, very much like she presents herself to the world. This was a look back at her childhood, family, friendships and career. From the first page you knew that she came from a dysfuntional family and really who isn't? She described her decisions made about marriage, children and career very candidly a...more
Insightful and engaging read from the always quirky and funny Penny Marshall. The stories about her career were interesting even with the over the top name dropping. It is obvious that she values heavily her connections and enjoys her popularity, but her deep love of her close friendships also come through loud and clear.
I see that many reviews criticized her lack of apologies for the fact that she was not a better mother and some call her a hypocrite because she criticized her mother's parenti...more
I see that many reviews criticized her lack of apologies for the fact that she was not a better mother and some call her a hypocrite because she criticized her mother's parenti...more
Caveat lector. Let the reader beware. Penny Marshall’s memoir, “My Mother Was Nuts,” provides the proverbial “Penny” for your thoughts. She lays bare her life as a child, young adult, mother, actress, and director in this starkly candid first-person account. Much of the narrative’s early chapters adopt a sarcastic attitude that almost verges on indifference but which simultaneously employs humor, which forms a mainstay throughout the book. As Penny herself states, she “didn’t stop for nothing.”...more
I should stop reading showbiz memoirs. Invariably, I tend to find them boring and self-serving and the authors self-centered name-dropping control freaks. But probably that's the kind of person that makes it to the top of the showbiz career ladder (Joan Rivers, if you're reading this, you're the exception - I loved your latest book. But then you didn't exactly make it to the very pinnacle of showbiz, did you). In this case, I disliked Penny Marshall and her book even more than usual. Almost ever...more
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i bought this book by accident. i read an except somewhere that piqued my interest, so i tried to get a sample on my kindle. i mistakenly pressed the "buy" button instead. oh, well. i'm glad i decided to go ahead and read it because it was a fun read. i'm probably one of the few people who thinks of Penny Marshall as a director first (and not as "Laverne.") i enjoyed her "League of Their Own" and "Big," and think of her primarily in those terms. she's also directed other movies that i hadn't bee...more
I don’t know what compelled me to read Penny Marshall’s autobiography, “My Mother Was Nuts,” as I was not a fan of Laverne and Shirley, and have only seen a handful of the movies that she has directed. Reading her memoir, I learned that she parlayed nepotism (her brother is the television director, Garry Marshall) into a long and satisfying career. There are some charming anecdotes, like when she pitched Jack Klugman, the role of Oscar in “The Odd Couple,” when she let Arlyn Dunetz crash on her...more
Penny Marshall's memoir, My Mother Was Nuts, is the easy-to-read and humorous story of Penny's life starting with childhood up until today. She tells the story of growing up on the Bronx's Grand Concourse, playing with friends of all colors and ethnicities, the insanity of her home life, and then how she developed into the successful woman she is today.
Penny is not a particularly good writer, but her story is engaging and well-edited, making it an enjoyable read. Her tales of stardom, famous fri...more
Penny is not a particularly good writer, but her story is engaging and well-edited, making it an enjoyable read. Her tales of stardom, famous fri...more
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