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Adventures in the Screen Trade

4.14 of 5 stars 4.14 · rating details · 1,810 ratings · 119 reviews

Now available as an ebook for the first time!

No one knows the writer's Hollywood more intimately than William Goldman. Two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter and the bestselling author of Marathon Man, Tinsel, Boys and Girls Together, and other novels, Goldman now takes you into Hollywood's inner sanctums...on and behind the scenes for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance...more

Paperback, 594 pages

Published March 10th 1989 by Grand Central Publishing (first published 1983)

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Jul 22, 2008 Scurra rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

Nobody Knows Anything.

Goldman could almost have saved us the 400-pages of what is still one of the most insightful books about the movie-industry, and just printed his Law on a single page at the front.
But then we'd have missed a glorious roller-coaster ride through Tinseltown stuffed to the gills with anecdotes of such toe-curling detail that you believe every word.
And even now, 25 years later, it still all rings true. Read it, and you too might understand how lucky we are to get the occasiona...more

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Dec 05, 2008 Michael rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is perhaps the best book about screenwriting and the film business ever written.

Oscar winner William Goldman, who wrote such classic films as HARPER, BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID, MARATHON MAN and ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN shares his unique, often difficult, experiences working with top directors, producers and stars like Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman and Laurence Olivier.

If survival in the Hollywood film industry is possible, then there is no better "survival guide" than...more

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Mar 18, 2013 Molly rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a true insider's look at the screenwriting business (from the writer of All the President's Men, Marathon Man and – interestingly, the novel of Princess Bride) and interesting for anyone who writes or likes movies because - yes, there are fun gossipy asides about Hollywood (Robert Redford had ego!), but it's focus is on what makes a good story and how to write one that sells as a screenplay. They're not always the same thing.

Two big bonuses of this book: Goldman provides his entire scre...more

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Dec 13, 2012 Justin rated it 4 of 5 stars

I don't think I have much to say that hasn't been said repeatedly below but yes, this is an excellent behind-the-scenes look at the craft of screenwriting and yes, it's kind of crazy how well it holds up 30 years after it was written. I live in Los Angeles, in the heart of the filmmaking industry, and it seems all I ever hear about is how that industry is going down the toilet. Well, in this book Goldman also laments how the industry is going down the toilet, how they are making fewer and fewer...more

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Mar 21, 2011 Heather rated it 5 of 5 stars

I really loved this book. Although it was written in the early 80s, so much of what he says about the film industry still seems to hold true.

The first section explains how a project is put together, including some horror stories of projects that took a lot of everyone's time, effort and money and still didn't end up getting made.

The middle, main section deals with some of his screenplays - massive hits such as 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' and 'A Bridge Too Far' - and explains how each fi...more

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Sep 25, 2010 Mike Hankins rated it 5 of 5 stars

I once met Mark Waid (prolific DC comics writer) and asked him if he had any advice for aspiring writers. He told me anything he would say was in this book, that he reads this book once a year, and any aspiring writer would do well to do the same. So I took his advice and immediately picked it up. While I don't read it every year, this most recent reading was my third time, not counting the numerous times I've gone over certain sections for reference.

This book is a treasure, not just for writers...more I once met Mark Waid (prolific DC comics writer) and asked him if he had any advice for aspiring writers. He told me anything he would say was in this book, that he reads this book once a year, and any aspiring writer would do well to do the same. So I took his advice and immediately picked it up. While I don't read it every year, this most recent reading was my third time, not counting the numerous times I've gone over certain sections for reference.

This book is a treasure, not just for writers, but anyone interested in Hollywood and filmmaking. Goldman is one of the better writers of the last generation, and the perfect man to analyze the craft of writing, it's specific application for the screen, and to shed an unbiased light into the dark, mysterious, and hilarious corners of the film industry.

Since it was written in the early 80's, some of the references are a bit dated, but his points ring true. He spends equal time analyzing the filmmaking process as a whole, talking about the craft of writing (his points apply well to writers of prose for the most part, only occassionally going into things that are unique to screenwriting) and discussing several important films he's worked on in detail. The latter section especially is an interesting section, as each film he choses to discuss holds an incredible and often weird story. Of special interest to me are the sections on "The Right Stuff," "The Great Waldo Pepper," "All the Presidents Men" and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid."

In fact, this book presents the entire script to Butch, and an in-depth discussion of what works, what doesn't, and why. Also included is a short story by the author, which he proceeds to adapt to a screenplay, taking the reader through the process of writing a script start to finish. The processes he goes through are great to see, and very helpful for aspiring writers out there.

If you're a writer, you should definitely have this on your shelf, but even if you're not into writing, this is a great and hilariously entertaining look at Hollywood and the film industry as a whole, and worth a read for any movie fans out there.(less)

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Jun 11, 2009 Rickeclectic rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: film folks, writing folks

Recommended to Rickeclectic by: noone

Shelves: film

Good, chatty, casual book about screenwriting by someone who has done very well at it. The book may seem a bit long but it is actually sort of 3 books. One about Goldman's history with screenwriting. One that is the Butch Cassidy screenplay and one that is an actual effort to adapt a short story to a screenplay and then get it critiqued by film folks.

Goldman wrote Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Marathon Man, All the Presidents Men, etc. etc. He is an insider and has very good insights and a...more

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Dec 30, 2010 Ed rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've had this on my shelf since I was a teenager but never really read it all the way through. Truth be told, I didn't this time either. But I think it's okay to skip a published script to a movie I've seen and another for a short I could care less about. I've read all of Goldman's other books which I highly suggest. This was his first book about screenwriting written in 1982 and his observations about the industry are obviously outdated when they aren't frighteningly predictive. What's nice is...more

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Jul 20, 2012 Paul Lyons rated it 4 of 5 stars

Very much enjoyed William Goldman's honest take on Hollywood and screenwriting. It was interesting to read ADVENTURES IN THE SCREEN TRADE 30 years after it was written, as the entertainment business has changed so dramatically since 1982. Goldman's prose is fun, educational and entertaining. There is no doubt that he is a great writer...as evident not only in the book he has written, yet also in the BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID screenplay that comes with the book, as well as an excellent s...more

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Sep 23, 2010 Kevin rated it 4 of 5 stars

I started reading this book 25 years ago and finally got around to finishing it. Funny how dated the references feel. (The biggest Hollywood stars at the time of writing were Burt Reynolds and Dudley Moore). And now with the internet and TMZ and cable "inside entertainment" shows, the book's behind-the-scenes reveals seem quaint. But it's still an entertaining read full of great Hollywood stories by one of my favorite authors, Williams Goldman, who wrote my favorite book of all time, The Princes...more

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Jul 07, 2010 Denis Farley rated it 5 of 5 stars

I borrowed this dog eared, twenty year old copy from a friend in the film industry. He wants it back. Enterprise Car Rental company has a nice perk in that they will "pick you up" when renting at a non-airport location. I don't know, maybe they'll pick you up at the airport too but I tend to doubt it. So the agent that picked me up last week was a recent graduate of USC film school, starting out as a screenwriter. He read it too. The Daily Mail, hyping the book on the cover got good cross promot...more I borrowed this dog eared, twenty year old copy from a friend in the film industry. He wants it back. Enterprise Car Rental company has a nice perk in that they will "pick you up" when renting at a non-airport location. I don't know, maybe they'll pick you up at the airport too but I tend to doubt it. So the agent that picked me up last week was a recent graduate of USC film school, starting out as a screenwriter. He read it too. The Daily Mail, hyping the book on the cover got good cross promotion with this quote, "William Goldman's book is the best I have read on Hollywood."

I've met some writers on current sitcoms and have read quite a few of their scripts. Not knowing much about this end of the business I found it all quite fascinating. Recently I read a feature screenplay from a source with a proven track record with an eye to dabble in the film production business. The events that followed weren't anything I could have predicted or imagined. This book has helped put some of those events into perspective.

Probably the most meaningful exchange in the book for me was when Goldman took a meeting with Robert Redford after writing the script which had been accepted by Redford and declared a "go" project (funded) by the studio. The project later became the hit movie, 'All The President's Men.' At that pre-production meeting, Mr. Redford, I believe the producer and one of the lead actors on the project, suggested to Mr. Goldman that he read a new script just written by Carl Bernstein and Nora Ephron, Carl having been one half the reporter/author team of the best selling book (same title as the movie), Woodward & Bernstein. Nora Ephron, then Bernstein's writer/girlfriend would later marry and divorce him. A stunned Goldman recalled that he said something like, "I couldn't read a word of it until I am told I can by my lawyers." With that he quickly left the meeting.

I believe I have read a few of Goldman's novels and certainly have seen quite a few of the movies for which he has written scripts. I enjoyed this, took a long time reading it between other endeavors and recommend it to anyone contemplating an 'adventure in the screen trade.'

(less)

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Jan 21, 2011 Twobusy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Bill Simmons has been raving about this book for years, and so my expectations were high when I finally picked up this take on a life in screenwriting by the man responsible for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Princess Bride, All The President's Men and many other screen classics. And did he deliver? Absolutely. While I have no interest in screenwriting per se, the book offers incredible insight into the filmmaking process — providing not just terrific and memorable behind-the-scenes sto...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Joshua rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

I've wanted to read William Goldman's account of what it has been like as a screenwriter [Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid, All the President's Men, Marathan Man] for Goldman and it didn't disappoint. In fact, what makes this such a delight is the fact that Goldman is surprisingly blunt with his opinions regarding individuals he's worked with on these films. How refreshing! The book isn't gossippy, it's just matter of fact as Goldman talks about his opinions on what it was like to work on th...more

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May 31, 2012 Seth Madej rated it 2 of 5 stars

Man, William Goldman makes himself out to be a real asshole. He's so irritating, in fact, that after a two-week break away from Adventures in the Screen Trade I cashed in with over 100 pages left, because I couldn't stand the thought of going back to have him bitch at me like my worst film school instructors used to, bitter that a lack of work forced them into talking about their job instead of doing it.

Goldman launches his first fart rocket within the opening 20 pages, tattling four anecdotes t...more Man, William Goldman makes himself out to be a real asshole. He's so irritating, in fact, that after a two-week break away from Adventures in the Screen Trade I cashed in with over 100 pages left, because I couldn't stand the thought of going back to have him bitch at me like my worst film school instructors used to, bitter that a lack of work forced them into talking about their job instead of doing it.

Goldman launches his first fart rocket within the opening 20 pages, tattling four anecdotes to illustrate that movie stars are bad people. He mentions that, out of courtesy, he's only naming two of the actors in question because some of them have recently died. But then he goes on to redact the identities of the deadies, while going right ahead and smearing the two performers who still have careers left to ruin.

That strange blend of bitterness and false modesty permeates the rest of this farrago of a -- what is it, a memoir? A handbook? A two-inch thick advance check? Whatever it is, it's macramed into a few dozen short sections seemingly based on the order of the manuscript pages after a passing bus blew them across Goldman's parquet floor. Each of those section manages to take a swipe at individuals, groups, or imagined coteries of robed gnomes William perceives of having wronged him, the targeted loogies flying from behind a shield forged of "Oh well, what do I know? I'm just a regular guy who fell into a wacky business full of crazy Hollywood types [that also made me rich and famous and got me a book deal to write all about it, but trust me I'm just like you]."

BIll's such a regular guy that, when he came to LA for his first movie biz meeting, he couldn't stand the thought of being picked up at the airport by a chauffeur-driven car and insisted on riding up in front with driver, because that's what regular guys like him and me and you do. I assume that Goldman, so proud of his New York City heritage, had never been in a cab before. Nor realized that lots of regular guys dream of being in a position where rich people send expensive cars to drive them around. But Will shares that story and others like it throughout the book to casually note what a humble, normal person he is, despite the fact that humble, normal people avoid constantly pointing out how humble they are in their books published by Time Warner.

Anyway, Goldman goes on to cheerfully disparage studio execs, actors, directors, actors, audiences, and also actors. He finds page space to belittle the auteur theory and anyone who subscribes to it, insisting that all movies are a team effort, while still blaming his failed movies on everybody else that worked on them. Billy also loves to explain other people's decisions and character traits he dislikes by ascribing thought processes to them, while managing to ignore the fact that he's making shit up out of boogers and ego. Dustin Hoffman refused a scene in Marathon Man that required his character to keep a flashlight in his nightstand, Goldman insists, because Dustin thought it would make him look weak on screen, and every male movie star, deep down, will never allow himself to look weak on screen. I'm curious as to what Goldman thought of Hoffman's Oscar-winning performance six years later as an almost helpless savant in Rain Man.

Between all the self-aggrandizing and payback that Willy skillfully disguises as friendly banter, he throws in some screenwriting advice. As a screenwriter myself, I can say that some of it's quite good, while some is just objectively crappy. He devotes a section to subtext but doesn't seem to have a clear idea of the difference between subtext and basic cinematic storytelling techniques. He writes a lousy four-page movie opening to demonstrate how to write a lousy movie opening and then, of all the scene's lousy features, pinpoints as lousy the only reasonably acceptable one.

Luckily I doubt many writers ever end up taking much advice from Adventures in the Screen Trade, because the book isn't written for them. Actually, I have no idea who it's written for. I can't imagine that the same readers who want mouthfuls of dirt about starlets having affairs with directors or a prison guard's testimony that his wife would crawl on her knees just for a chance to fuck Robert Redford also want to read a glossary of screenplay slug lines or the entire script for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. But if you're interested in the movie industry and are willing to weed through 600 pages (and twice as many ellipses), it's sometimes fun to watch the spray of Goldman's vindictive bloodletting. Too bad he leaves you to clean up the mess.(less)

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Dec 26, 2010 Mark Harding rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well worth the read, even if you have only the slightest interest in Hollywood screen writing.

Flavours:

* An intelligent Hello! Magazine
* Goldman knowing better than anyone else (may, or may not, be true)
* Lots of fun
* Terrific vignettes
* Chapter 14 to 17 - very interesting section on turning a short story into a film script and getting comments from people in the industry. Weirdly:
they come up with some whithering criticisms
the eventual script isn’t as good as the original short story because...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Remy Grillo rated it 5 of 5 stars

...

I really enjoyed this book because it helped me to understand the business behind the movie industry and how hard it is to make a movie. I personally would like to be in the film business and I felt that this book helped me learn what i needed to know about the movie industry and how complicated it can be with budgets and Actors. The actors are a huge part of the film and when something doesn't work out between the actor and the director there can be many problem that will be encountered. I...more

...

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Aug 14, 2012 Kara rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-2012

I thought this book was brilliant! It was insightful and told of a not unglamorous view of the perils of Hollywood, but more of a realistic take on the stars, directors, producers, and a vast number of technicians and artists that people the sets of the movies. This from the point of view of Mr. William Goldman, the man who wrote the screenplays to such classics as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "A Bridge Too Far", and "All the President's Men".

There isn't a whole lot of gossip, which I a...more I thought this book was brilliant! It was insightful and told of a not unglamorous view of the perils of Hollywood, but more of a realistic take on the stars, directors, producers, and a vast number of technicians and artists that people the sets of the movies. This from the point of view of Mr. William Goldman, the man who wrote the screenplays to such classics as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "A Bridge Too Far", and "All the President's Men".

There isn't a whole lot of gossip, which I am fine with, but there are a few tales that were intriguing and helped explain the relationships between screenwriters and directors, screenwriters and producers, producers and directors, directors and stars, directors and everyone else, and stars and stars.

The book was hopeful as well as depressing in that it gave many warnings about the pitfalls of being a screenwriter. Many people view screenwriters as a necessary evil because, as Mr. Goldman says, many screenwriters are not actually that good at screenwriting....BUT he also says that NOBODY KNOWS ANYTHING. Which means what it says: nobody knows how the movie is going to do until it has been sold to theaters and pushed in front of an audience. Because then it is most definitely out of their hands.

Of the whole book, while the first two sections of it detail Mr. Goldman's experiences, the last part may be the most inspiring to aspiring screenwriters, like myself. This last section discusses a short story that Mr. Goldman had written many eons ago, which he found again, which inspired him to write a short screenplay based on it. Then he goes into detail about how one goes about adapting a written story into a piece meant to be seen. He discusses different ways to go about doing certain characters and certain scenes and even certain sounds. The most important part of this exercise was when he showed the subsequent screenplay to an editor, cinematographer, director, and composer for their views on how it should be filmed. That was very interesting because even Mr. Goldman didn't know what was going to happen because this sort of dialogue doesn't happen in real life. The screenwriter writes the script, hands it to a producer or a director, and that's it. Sometimes he's asked to make some changes or edits, but they never discuss the intentions of each scene, which might be more helpful to the industry if they provided the time to do that.

Overall, this was very interesting and I suggest it to many people and not just screenwriters or writers, but also anyone interested in the movies at all. Here's the book that will tell you in one way or another why some films were dead before they got to the theater. And how they are made which is fascinating. You almost forget that it's work for these people after you see the final product.(less)

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Jun 26, 2010 Travis McClain rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

William Goldman may not be familiar by name, but you're bound to recognize his work. The subtitle, "A Personal View of Hollywood and Screenwriting," would suggest that this is Goldman's memoirs. In truth, this is really more of an introduction for laymen to how movies are made, told from a screenwriter's perspective. There are three sections, each distinctive in its offerings.

The first section is an introduction of the key roles in films, complete with anecdotes illustrating each's ability to in...more William Goldman may not be familiar by name, but you're bound to recognize his work. The subtitle, "A Personal View of Hollywood and Screenwriting," would suggest that this is Goldman's memoirs. In truth, this is really more of an introduction for laymen to how movies are made, told from a screenwriter's perspective. There are three sections, each distinctive in its offerings.

The first section is an introduction of the key roles in films, complete with anecdotes illustrating each's ability to influence the outcome of the project. Studio people with power of approval, directors, writers, actors, stars, agents; Goldman's thesis is that each is insecure and paranoid, and that everything one does is strictly to better his own idea of what his own self-interest might be. A star encounters an agent at a gathering, and the latter scoffs at the former having to take a taxi on the way, rather than a limousine being sent for him; the star switched agents not long after. Sound petty? Sure it is; but petty by which party? The agent who poached a client, the star who was talked into being upset about taking a taxi...or the original agent, who saw fit not to pamper his star client? What of Dustin Hoffman deliberately making an aged Lawrence Olivier go through a series of physically demanding takes just to wear out the acting legend? Olivier's graceful compliance--with nary a registered complaint--underscores not only Hoffman's insecurity and pettiness, but exposes the difference between a star and a real actor.

The second portion of Goldman's book is chock full of anecdotes from his film work up to the date of writing, on a film-by-film basis. How's this for a filmography: Charly, Masquerade, Harper, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Thing of It Is..., The Stepford Wives, The Great Waldo Pepper, All the President's Men, Marathon Man, The Right Stuff, Great Hotel and A Bridge Too Far. Of these, only Butch and Bridge are written glowingly. In point of fact, Goldman spent five years working to make Great Hotel...and ultimately removed himself from the project; the rest, he completed and the results varied.

What makes this volume so fascinating, though, is the third act: "Da Vinci." The title refers to a short story published by Goldman in 1960, which is included in its entirety. Goldman then walks us through how he would approach adapting his short story as a screenplay. Once that's finished, he presents a screenplay (again, in its entirety). These three pieces (story, screenplay and notes about the adaptation process) were then sent to key movie-makers for their thoughts on how each would approach this were it an actual film. Production designer Tony Walton, cinematographer Gordon Willis, editor Dede Allen, composer David Grusin and director George Roy Hill each weigh in about not only how each works in general (expanding the scope of Goldman's book in the process), but questions and remarks concerning this specific screenplay.

Anyone who has seen or heard Goldman speak on a DVD feature will expect the salty language that permeates this work. This is a guy that is entirely in love with movies, and largely frustrated by participating in the making of them. (Small wonder, once you've read these "adventures.") Very few people named in this account come off very well; Olivier and Richard Attenborough are the only two that come to mind as I write this. Even Robert Redford, with whom Goldman collaborated several times, fails to come out of this unscathed.

Be advised that there is a streak of sexism throughout--key personnel, when not named, are called "he;" there are "copy girls" and other such titles. These are not necessarily to be taken as Goldman's sexism, though, but rather a reflection of the industry at the time. Even today, there are few women directors, studio executives or producers. For those who aspire to change that, I would strongly suggest they start by reading this account of the dangers and frustrations that lie ahead.

Note: A subsequent edition includes the complete screenplay for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. This is noted on the cover of such printings.(less)

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Aug 01, 2011 Michael Mcclelland rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Though in some regards dated (written in the early 80s, many of the movies I haven't even heard of), I suspect that much about the U.S. movie industry remains the same. By William Goldman, one of the more successful screenwriters going around, it's perhaps no surprise that these musings on the cinema industry make for a good read. There's a bit of gossip, a bit of an education, and a bit of advice from an old hand. Of interest to any movie buff or aspiring writer (though you may not stay the lat...more

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Jan 15, 2011 Diana180 added it

Shelves: read2011

My officemate Susan, a huge Redford fan, insisted I read this book in 1987 or 88 and I'll always be grateful to her. The opening explanation of stardom is classic and the analysis of Butch and Sundance is a classic of narrative study. The final experiment in converting a rote short story of the type taught in high schools to a screenplay is disappointing, but something can be learned from the discussions with different craft professionals about why it fails.

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Aug 02, 2009 Eric rated it 5 of 5 stars

Goldman's a raconteur, telling great stories of his (early) years as a writer of screenplays. He gives a great sense of why movie development people are in constant fear, why stars are insane and what their function is (namely, to get people to come to the movie the first weekend; job done), where the real work in making a film is (shooting it is just a small facet), and many other insights about how movies get made & how many flop despite people's best efforts.

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Oct 20, 2009 Fionnuala rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: twentieth-century

A wonderfully funny, honest, humble, cynical, inspiring look at Hollywood and the role of the screenwriter - part anecdote, part memoir, part how-to book on screenwriting. Be warned, though: I read most of this while in bed with the flu and despite being almost too weak to focus on the print and having no interest in emulating Mr. Goldman's career, I finished it and immediately wanted to start writing a screenplay.

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May 19, 2012 Jeff Silvey rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: writing-books

William Goldman is the man. Great perspective on Hollywood and the film-making process. This book was written in 1982 (published in 83), so it's a little dated, but there's still a lot of great info here. The edition I got contains the entire script for "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," which is awesome. He goes into detail about the choices he made while writing the screenplay.

This is mostly about screenwriting, but there are great tidbits about writing in general salt and peppered through...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Dan Humphrey rated it 3 of 5 stars

Entertaining, but almost proudly anti-intellectual and shallow. The chapter on the making of THE RIGHT STUFF, which Goldman walked out on, is particularly revealing. The film turned out to be a masterpiece, but our man Bill quits when it becomes clear that the director--Phil Kaufman--isn't interested in making a simple flag-waving piece of feel-good patriotism.

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Oct 15, 2008 Unbridled rated it 3 of 5 stars

Wasn't sure what this was before I started reading it but I quickly remembered the buzz from its original release (early 80s), notably his (now famous) quote about Hollywood: 'Nobody Knows Anything' - which is directed to executives particularly, but everyone in the business generally. And if you've seen an M. Night Shyamalan movie recently, you'd probably find it hard to refute that this is still the case in Hollywood. The book is entertaining, the 1st 2 parts being reflections on the business...more

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Jul 29, 2011 Ernest rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is an interesting book filled with insights and anecdotes about the author’s experiences as a screenwriter in Hollywood. This book is not a technical book, and perhaps is starting to date as the films described may not be readily familiar with current readers (certainly I got more enjoyment and interest out of films I recognised or knew).

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Feb 03, 2013 Christian rated it 5 of 5 stars

Changed this from four to five stars because of the last ~100 pages. Wonderful stuff. Goldman takes a short story of his and turns it step by step to a screenplay, then runs it by a group of filmmakers for feedback. It's the kind of thing that I could probably read about every day for the rest of my life... heck, I could DO it every day for the rest of my life.

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Oct 22, 2011 George Anders rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a Hollywood classic -- which is a great rarity. Lots of funny stories. Some great insights about managing in an environment of enormous uncertainty.

The commentary on stars of 30 years ago is obviously quite dated, but it isn't hard to think of new names that still fit his template.

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Dec 26, 2009 Alexander Evans rated it 4 of 5 stars

I loved it, and paged through this in a few days. Goldman is charismatic and charming, knowledgeable and insightful without ever being condescending. I do wonder how this book would read if you weren't as interested in the subject matter (hollywood) as I, but for my tastes it was great.

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Sep 26, 2008 Thompson rated it 5 of 5 stars

Although the book's time of publication is apparent throughout, what with the references to Burt Reynolds's considerable star power and the immediacy of Watergate in the public consciousness, etc., AiSC is a deeply insightful and at times painfully honest accounting of one genius's rough road through the Hollywood development process. Goldman is rightfully revered for his gift in composing tightly structured narratives that never fail to realize the human element of the players on the screen. He...more

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About William Goldman

Goldman grew up in a Jewish family in Highland Park, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, and obtained a BA degree at Oberlin College in 1952 and an MA degree at Columbia University in 1956.His brother was the late James Goldman, author and playwright.

William Goldman had published five novels and had three plays produced on Broadway before he began to write screenplays. Several of his novels he later used...more

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“Writing is finally about one thing: going into a room alone and doing it. Putting words on paper that have never been there in quite that way before. And although you are physically by yourself, the haunting Demon never leaves you, that Demon being the knowledge of your own terrible limitations, your hopeless inadequacy, the impossibility of ever getting it right. No matter how diamond-bright your ideas are dancing in your brain, on paper they are earthbound.” — 103 people liked it

“You don't want to be rude but you have to be careful - there are a lot of strange people out there.

(Goldman attributes this quote to Cliff Robertson.)” — 32 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/459744.Adventures_in_the_Screen_Trade?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344268974l/459744.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/459744.Adventures_in_the_Screen_Trade?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman[/url]

Adventures in the Screen Trade

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