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Kate Remembered by A. Scott Berg
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Kate Remembered (edition 2004)

by A. Scott Berg

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1,0951618,331 (3.75)26
For seven decades Katharine Hepburn played a leading role in the popular culture of the twentieth century - reigning as an admired actress, a beloved movie star, and a treasured icon of the modern American woman. She also remained one of the most private of all the public figures of her time. In 1983 - at the age of seventy-five, her career cresting - the four-time Academy Award winner opened the door to biographer A. Scott Berg - then thirty-three - and began a special friendship, one that endured to the end of her illustrious life. From the start, Scott Berg felt that Katharine Hepburn intended his role to be not just that of a friend but also of a chronicler, a confidant who might record for posterity her thoughts and feelings. Over the next twenty years, Kate used their many hours together to reveal all that came to mind, often reflecting on the people and episodes of her past, occasionally on the meaning of life. Here are the stories from those countless intimate conversations, and much more. In addition to recording heretofore untold biographical details of her entire phenomenal career and her famous relationships with such men as Spencer Tracy and Howard Hughes, Kate Remembered also tells the amusing, often emotional story of one of the most touching friendships in her final years. Scott Berg provides his own memories of Katharine Hepburn offstage - quiet dinners in her town house in New York City, winter swims (she swam, he watched) in the Long Island Sound at Fenwick, her home in Connecticut, weekend visits with family members and dear friends...even some unusual appearances by the likes of Michael Jackson and Warren Beatty. Finally, Kate Remembered discusses the legendary actress's moving farewell, during which her mighty personality surrendered at last to her failing body - all the while remaining true to her courageous character. Kate Remembered is a book about love and friendship, family and career, Hollywood and Broadway - all punctuated by unforgettable lessons from an extraordinary life.… (more)
Member:Underfoot
Title:Kate Remembered
Authors:A. Scott Berg
Info:Berkley Trade (2004), Paperback, 384 pages
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Kate Remembered by A. Scott Berg

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English (15)  Spanish (1)  All languages (16)
Showing 1-5 of 15 (next | show all)
A. Scott Berg was already a well-known biographer when, after a long series of requests, he finally got an interview with Katharine Hepburn in 1983. Hepburn was 75 and Berg was 33. The idea was to interview Hepburn for a piece that would run in Esquire Magazine's 50th Anniversary issue. It was a rare occasion for the very private Hepburn to grant an interview in those days. But the two immediately hit it off and began a friendship that last until Hepburn's death in 2003. This book is a memoir of Berg's relationship with the iconic Hepburn in which he provides a picture of the star, gathered during his many dinners and weekends with her both in her New York City apartment and at her longtime family home in Connecticut. During many of these years, Berg was working on a biography of Samuel Goldwyn, and provided Berg background and anecdotes about Goldwyn himself and those early days of Hollywood. Hepburn also made possible the biography of Charles Lindberg for which Berg would go on to win a Pulitzer Prize by providing him a crucial introduction to Lindberg's widow, Anne Morrow Lindberg.

Hepburn also opened up to Berg about her own life, astonishingly long career and romantic relationships, including, of course, the great love of her life, Spencer Tracy. Berg also provides a picture of Hepburn herself: funny, opinionated, often imperious and sometimes more than a little bit of a bully. But it also the picture of a fiercely independent woman, an artist with the highest of standards when it came to acting and the productions she appeared in, whether in movies or in theater. The book alternates between Berg's accounts of his many conversations and experiences with Hepburn and passages that provide a more standard biography of her life. Because Hepburn was such an intriguing figure and Berg is such a fluid and entertaining writer with an enormous amount of affection for his subject, here, Kate Remembered was for me a rewarding reading experience. I would not call it an authoritative biography of Katharine Hepburn, but then neither does Berg. ( )
1 vote rocketjk | Dec 8, 2019 |
EXCELLENT memoir of the author's time spent getting to know the fabulous Katherine Hepburn. A love story of sorts. ( )
  BookConcierge | Feb 29, 2016 |
The author was a great fan of Ms. Hepburn, and good fortune introduced them. She was a notoriously reclusive person, but for some reason--a great friendship, an induction into her family--almost took place, and the two stayed close for decades. He notes that this is not a critical biography but rather his reporting of Hepburn's views on a wide range of topics shared with him on countless one-on-one sessions at her NYC townhouse or her Connecticut weekend home. Other Hollywood legends befriended the author as well, including Irene Selznick. Warren Beatty chased him to get Hepburn to accept a role in a film Beatty was making. Kate emerges as a committed artist, someone to whom stretching and challenging her creative abilities were very important; for example, throughout her career she continued to work in the theater as well as film. As a fly on the wall you learn which directors she liked and which she loathed, as well as her feeling about her own movies and co-stars. The book is well written and candy for anyone who has ever loved the movies. ( )
  neddludd | Sep 17, 2013 |
I remember I was showering at a hotel in Vegas when my then-boyfriend knocked on the bathroom door to tell me that Katharine Hepburn had died. I was pretty sad. When I went to visit my parents later that year, I was in Costco with my mom and she offered to buy me this book. I have read it many times, and lent it out. It's not a biography of Hepburn in the traditional sense - but if you enjoy her work it is a must read. ( )
  AmberTheHuman | Aug 30, 2013 |
This biography is a little unusual, as it is really A. Scott Berg's story about a woman he knew, admired, and even loved -- Katherine Hepburn. This particular angle on biography was new to me and it seemed to work very well. Berg makes no pretense about impartiality, but he's also a professional biographer, so he avoids fulsome praise or prurient detail to hold the reader's interest. Instead, we get to see a very interesting woman through the eyes of a person well situated to watch her.

The book was surprisingly moving, too, as it follows Hepburn through her later years up to the time of her death, interrupting the current timeline with stories from her past, almost like a novel. No dry recitation of vital statistics here. ( )
  Murphy-Jacobs | Mar 30, 2013 |
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For seven decades Katharine Hepburn played a leading role in the popular culture of the twentieth century - reigning as an admired actress, a beloved movie star, and a treasured icon of the modern American woman. She also remained one of the most private of all the public figures of her time. In 1983 - at the age of seventy-five, her career cresting - the four-time Academy Award winner opened the door to biographer A. Scott Berg - then thirty-three - and began a special friendship, one that endured to the end of her illustrious life. From the start, Scott Berg felt that Katharine Hepburn intended his role to be not just that of a friend but also of a chronicler, a confidant who might record for posterity her thoughts and feelings. Over the next twenty years, Kate used their many hours together to reveal all that came to mind, often reflecting on the people and episodes of her past, occasionally on the meaning of life. Here are the stories from those countless intimate conversations, and much more. In addition to recording heretofore untold biographical details of her entire phenomenal career and her famous relationships with such men as Spencer Tracy and Howard Hughes, Kate Remembered also tells the amusing, often emotional story of one of the most touching friendships in her final years. Scott Berg provides his own memories of Katharine Hepburn offstage - quiet dinners in her town house in New York City, winter swims (she swam, he watched) in the Long Island Sound at Fenwick, her home in Connecticut, weekend visits with family members and dear friends...even some unusual appearances by the likes of Michael Jackson and Warren Beatty. Finally, Kate Remembered discusses the legendary actress's moving farewell, during which her mighty personality surrendered at last to her failing body - all the while remaining true to her courageous character. Kate Remembered is a book about love and friendship, family and career, Hollywood and Broadway - all punctuated by unforgettable lessons from an extraordinary life.

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