Up Till Now

Road trip audiobook!

I'm always happy to listen to William Shatner's voice as I drive. But a little bit into this audiobook, I realized some of the stories from his life sounded very familiar. He tends to cover the same ground in a lot of his autobiographical books, but at a certain point I knew I had read this in text, back before I started listening to audiobooks regularly (in 2008, I later verified). But, hey, Shatner works in reruns just as well as he did the first time around, so I kept on listening instead of switching to a different book.

You either love the Shatman and his self-promoting, egotistical spiel or you don't. I would not recommend this to anyone who isn't a fan. But if you love the big buffoon, you'll be happy to revel show more in all his anecdotes and merchandising. show less

Deliberately cheesy, funny, forthright memoir of a cheesy, hammy, funny, Falstaffian character / person / actor. I cannot imagine reading this as a book; hearing it as a Shatner-narrated audiobook is just right, with lots of out-loud laughs.

William Shatner provided a surprisingly candid and detailed portrait of his life. He reveals his insatiable desire to continuously work as an actor, no matter how strange the parts may be. He freely admits that many of his stage, television, movie, and singing/talking recordings were, not only panned by the critics, but were actually awful. However, he recognizes that even these kept his work in the public eye (and ear) and resulted in other opportunities, some of which turned out to be very well-received and lucrative. He provides very interesting coverage of the Star Trek phenomenon and his relationships with Leonard Nimoy and the other actors, some who were not particularly friendly toward him. Likewise his coverage of his other show more television series hits, T.J. Hooker, Rescue 911, and Boston Legal is also interesting. In addition to his career, he provides much candid information about his personal life, including his four wives. He interjects many humorous stories and thoughts throughout the book. I believe this book reveals that Shatner is not the characters he has played over the years. However, perhaps his insecurity about the possibility of being unemployed has made him fearless about taking chances with his career, and his persistence and actual talent eventually made him very successful. I found it to be a very enjoyable and interesting look at a very unique person. show less

I opted for the audiobook version of this, rather than reading it myself, because it's read by William Shatner himself. And nobody delivers a line like William Shatner. I think it was the right call.

If you're looking for unexpected insights, deep introspection, or new revelations about Shatner's work, probably best to move along. But if you just want a fun read (or listen) tracing one of the most eclectic careers in Hollywood, I recommend this.

The book is a lot like Shatner's persona: it maintains deadpan seriousness in the most ludicrous of situations. From the multiple opening scenes to the commercial interruptions in every chapter, Shatner maintains a playful, engaging tone as the narrative meanders through his life story. A life show more story which includes shooting a bear at close quarters, doing stunts on top of a fast-moving train without a safety harness, the Twilight Zone, Priceline commercials, a recording of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, James T. Kirk, T.J. Hooker, and Denny Crane. show less

A totally off the wall biography by William Shatner. When you first start reading this book you are not quite sure whether Shatner has an over inflated ego, or his tongue is wedged firmly in his cheek. It soon becomes clear that self-deprecation is the name of the game. Whether poking fun at his own 'B' movies or his 'singing' ability, it is clear that Shatner does not take himself too seriously. There are some good behind the scenes references on Star Trek and Boston Legal, and some genuinely moving personal recollections, but mostly is a wonderful comedic ride and is great fun

Absolutely loved listening to this in the car on my way home from work. Shatner is warm, humble, self-effacing and fully aware of his foibles and more arrogant personality traits. Stand-out parts include his arguments with other Star Trek actors and the painful yet touching description of his doomed second (I think) marriage that ended in such an appalling tragedy. Some people would consider Shatner to be a bit of a ham and a media whore but I hope I can have half the career sucess this guy's had.
As an aside, I would also recommend getting a copy of Shatner's last musical album 'Has Been' as an accompaniment to this book. That CD is much better than I thought it was going to be as well!

What did I think? I thought it was boring. I had high hopes of some Capt Kirk insights or some Denny Crane odd-ball humor or some scoop on James Spader or Leonard Nimoy. But no. It was ..... boring. It read like a resume of his career and it's been a full career. I swear he's appeared in every TV show, every play, every C movie! So the reader gets a list of programs, complete with synopsis and maybe, if you're lucky, an anecdote or two.

The chapters are interspersed with 'commercials' referring you to his website where any number of Shatner things are available for purchase. (this IS done with tongue-in-cheek, but ultimate does send you to his website)

There were a few gems of thoughtful quotes scattered here and there: "I’ve come to show more realize that among those things I most value about life is the joy of discovery. Whether it’s the taste of food or wine, the taste of friendship, of the woman I love, of an adventure, or the taste of the thrill – all are wonderful tastes of life. I know that the people who live the longest and the richest lives are looking ahead and not behind. So I immerse myself in new experiences; I dive as often as possible into the river of life. I don’t understand the concept of retirement. It’s not a bad thing to savor your memories, it can be wonderful and warming, but not at the cost of losing your excitement about the future." I happen to really like this quote and the feeling behind it. More people should embrace this philosophy!

I read this for the 'autobiography' category of my 2015 reading challenge and wouldn't recommend it unless you *REALLY* want to know every show/play he's ever appeared in! :) show less