From the Publisher
A frothy collection of stories and gossip from the comedic actress....Names drop like snowflakes, glistening in the sunny terrain of this exuberant memoir.” — Kirkus Reviews
“If I learned nothing else from my mom—and I learned quite a bit, though her sex tips left something to be desired, so to speak—it was this: ‘Life is hilarious—especially when it’s not—because that’s the only time it truly has to be.’” — Carrie Fisher
“Debbie Reynolds is one of our country’s most gifted and original actresses . . . literally a force of nature.” — Carl Reiner
“This book is just like Debbie—affectionate, unforgettable, and laugh-out-loud funny. I loved it and I love her.” — Mitzi Gaynor
“These rich, often illuminating, anecdotes read much like a catalogue of the memorabilia that Reynolds sold off over the last few years. The stories not only augment the gaps left in Unsinkable but also act as an elegy to the ever-fading memories of Hollywood’s golden era.” — Washington Post
“Debbie is my favorite woman on earth - and again, I apologize for breaking her rib!” — Roseanne Barr
“Who knew Debbie Reynolds could take down a running back like me? Incidentally, I enjoyed it. She is great.” — Regis Philbin
“Anyone who loves Hollywood and movies is bound to enjoy this lively, funny book, filled with candid recollections. Debbie was a movie-struck kid who experienced the last days of Hollywood’s Golden Age, and I love her clear-eyed memories.” — Leonard Maltin
“[Reynolds is] indisputably a grand dame of show business.” — NPR on UNSINKABLE
“Lively.” — People on UNSINKABLE
“Debbie Reynolds knows exactly how to steal the scene, wring tears, and most important, how to leave the audience feeling thoroughly entertained.” — New York Journal of Books on UNSINKABLE
“Nothing could sink this lady.” — New York Post on UNSINKABLE
Carrie Fisher
If I learned nothing else from my mom—and I learned quite a bit, though her sex tips left something to be desired, so to speak—it was this: ‘Life is hilarious—especially when it’s not—because that’s the only time it truly has to be.’
Regis Philbin
Who knew Debbie Reynolds could take down a running back like me? Incidentally, I enjoyed it. She is great.
Carl Reiner
Debbie Reynolds is one of our country’s most gifted and original actresses . . . literally a force of nature.
Roseanne Barr
Debbie is my favorite woman on earth - and again, I apologize for breaking her rib!
People on UNSINKABLE
Lively.
Leonard Maltin
Anyone who loves Hollywood and movies is bound to enjoy this lively, funny book, filled with candid recollections. Debbie was a movie-struck kid who experienced the last days of Hollywood’s Golden Age, and I love her clear-eyed memories.
NPR on UNSINKABLE
[Reynolds is] indisputably a grand dame of show business.
Mitzi Gaynor
This book is just like Debbie—affectionate, unforgettable, and laugh-out-loud funny. I loved it and I love her.
Washington Post
These rich, often illuminating, anecdotes read much like a catalogue of the memorabilia that Reynolds sold off over the last few years. The stories not only augment the gaps left in Unsinkable but also act as an elegy to the ever-fading memories of Hollywood’s golden era.
New York Post on UNSINKABLE
Nothing could sink this lady.
New York Journal of Books on UNSINKABLE
Debbie Reynolds knows exactly how to steal the scene, wring tears, and most important, how to leave the audience feeling thoroughly entertained.
Washington Post
These rich, often illuminating, anecdotes read much like a catalogue of the memorabilia that Reynolds sold off over the last few years. The stories not only augment the gaps left in Unsinkable but also act as an elegy to the ever-fading memories of Hollywood’s golden era.
FEBRUARY 2016 - AudioFile
In the latest in a recent series of entertainers’ memoirs and career celebrations, Debbie Reynolds is at her most informal and funniest as she takes an enthusiastic look at the industry’s great and near-great. Actress Judith Ivey is dead-on narrating Reynolds. Ivey also does Reynolds impersonating Barbra Streisand as well as Eva and Zsa Zsa Gabor, all of which is pure fun. Anecdotes, chats, and reminiscences abound, deftly written both for the earbuds and the page. Especially touching are reflections on the second-string character actors Reynolds knew and respected, such as Max Showalter. This is a delightful romp. Don’t miss the experience. W.A.G. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2015-10-04
A frothy collection of stories and gossip from the comedic actress. Reynolds (Unsinkable, 2013, etc.), aided by co-author Hannaway, former late-night programming director for CBS, looks back happily at her 65-year career on stage, screen, and TV. Calling herself "a vaudevillian, a baggy-pants comedian," she confesses she'll "do anything to get a laugh": pretending to ravish TV host Jack Paar under his desk ("Debbie Goes Wild!" exclaimed the next day's headlines); tackling Regis Philbin ("a cute young thing…small and wiry and fit"); dancing so energetically with Johnny Carson that he ended up sweating and winded. Although she regrets not having had "more sex" and confesses to a "lack of passion" that "probably cost me dearly in my marriages," Reynolds delights in revealing some of her aristocratic admirers. Newly divorced from Eddie Fisher, she caught the eye of 28-year-old King Baudouin of Belgium, whom she spirited away to a day at the beach; in London for a celebration of Bob Hope's 82nd birthday, Prince Philip progressed from holding her hand to caressing her backside; and the shah of Iran, whose wife invited her to perform at their palace, was so enchanted that he wouldn't let her stop singing. At a post-performance dinner, "I kept looking around, hoping for some rich, single prince to take an interest in me," Reynolds writes. Instead, she received a gift from the shah of a handmade Persian rug. The bubbly Reynolds has a kind word for almost everyone: Howard Hughes, "the most polite, southern Texas kind of gentleman"; Elizabeth Taylor, with whom Reynolds had "a very unusual friendship"; her personal assistant, who had been one of her most ardent fans; and her many hairdressers. Only the "obnoxious" Milton Berle and the "pain in the ass" Shelley Winters merit her scorn. The rest is pure frosting. Names drop like snowflakes, glistening in the sunny terrain of this exuberant memoir.
