Close-Up
by Len Deighton
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Description
Deighton's incendiary novel of the film industry back in print after 20 years. A Hollywood Babylon for our time. Marshall Stone, international superstar and charismatic member of Hollywood's elite. Abundantly blessed with charm, genius and wealth, the one gift he most desires - everlasting youth - seems within his grasp when an eminent writer begins the star's biography. But painful memories and suppressed scandals threaten to expose the fiction of his life. Dazzled by flattery and numbed by show more threats, the biographer is caught up in the big-daddy world where books are properties, films are investments, ratings are rigged, and stars and directors are bought and sold like slaves at an auction. The rituals, the wheeler-dealing politics, and back-stabbing tactics of the richest industry in the world have never been more effectively portrayed. And at the heart of this glittering machine, a brilliant star who will do almost anything to remain untarnished. This new reissue includes a foreword from the cover designer, Oscar-winning filmmaker Arnold Schwartzman, and a brand new introduction by Len Deighton, which offers a fascinating insight into the writing of the story. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
A great read for people of a certain age. Mr. Deighton said it was his favorite book to write.
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648 works; 1 member
Author Information
79+ Works 24,258 Members
Len Deighton was born in London, England on February 18, 1929. He served in the Royal Air Force Special Investigations Branch and graduated from the Royal College of Art in 1955. Before becoming the master of the modern spy thriller, he worked as an airline steward and as an illustrator. His first novel, The Ipcress File, was published in 1962. show more His other novels include Funeral in Berlin, Berlin Game, Mexico Set, London Match, Spy Hook, Spy Line, and Spy Sinker. He also writes television plays and cookbooks. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Close-Up
- Original title
- Close-Up
- Original publication date
- 1972
- People/Characters
- Marshall Stone; Leo Koolman
- Important places
- London area, England, UK; Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
- First words
- The heavy blue notepaper crackled as the man signed his name.
- Quotations
- "... I've said to you how I rejoice when I see or hear of a politician saying something extremist, foolish or ill timed, because I know that show business has not yet taken over the whole world."
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)The signature was a diagram of the man.
- Blurbers
- Burgess, Anthony
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 177
- Popularity
- 184,534
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.04)
- Languages
- Dutch, English, German
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 23
- ASINs
- 11
