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Title: Dino: Living High in the Dirty Business of Dreams
ISBN: 038533429X
Author:
Nick Tosches
Publicate Date: 1999-04-13
Publish: 1999-04-13
List Price: $15.00
Average Customer Rating: 4.0
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $8.88
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $5.99
Amazon Merchant Price: $10.20
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| Customer Review: |
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1: An honest look
As someone who is originally from the Steubenville, OH area, I can tell you that there are a lot of old guys back home who don't like Mr. Tosches very much. His extensive research and willingness to nonchalantly describe certain families' criminal endeavors were not well received. His book, however, is a well-written bio of one of the more compelling personalities in American entertainment.
As a fairly young guy, I only knew Dean Martin as an aging Rat Packer. Tosches does a good job of describing Dino's roots and the enigmatic manner in which he formed relationships. The pace of the book works well, taking you smoothly from his humble beginnings to his ascent into celebrity and his eventual death.
I didn't really find any problems with the research or conclusions drawn. I've read different accounts of the relationship between Dino and Jerry Lewis and how that ended, and it's hard to discern exactly what happened. Nonetheless, Tosches appears to make an honest attempt to tell the story (though maybe from Martin's perspective).
If you're a fan of Dino and the Rat Pack, this is an informative must read. Note that the book doesn't digress too much into the lives of other Rat Packers. This is a book about Dino, and the others all take a backseat.
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2: Dino, just didnt care
Growing up with his music I could not believe the life this man led. He saw it all and nothing seemed to bother him. Just too cool even for his own good from his early days in NYC to his partnership with Jerry Lewis to the break up. Nothing seemed to matter. Forget the broads and booze his real love was golf and cowboy movies who would have thought? His indifference to the Mob, to the Kennedy's and even Sinatra, is priceless. GREAT BOOK!!! Didnt want it to end.
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3: Too much filler
Great book if you want to know the history of Steubenville, Ohio. Seriously, this book is tough going in terms of keeping your interest. It is clear the author had very little information on Dean's formative years so he goes off on tangents about his home town, its political environment, business, and stories about Dean's relatives that really don't have any major relevance.
I understand the need to provide context so we understand the subject and his motivations, but there is a point where it becomes too much and comes off as filler. The first couple of chapters could have been condensed into a couple of well-written and concise paragraphs.
I found myself skipping ahead to chapters that actually had anecdotes and such about DEAN MARTIN, the supposed subject of the book. In short the book is overlong and could have used some serious editing. The author's writing style is also quite irritating at times and he makes the common mistake of speculating about what Dean may have been thinking when of course he has no way of knowing that.
For a book about Dean that will keep you interested, I would suggest "Dean and Me (A Love Story)" by Jerry Lewis
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4: Sad but fascinating
What a sad story. I had always thought Dean Martin had more talent than he used - he chose crummy material while others, like Sinatra, chose the best songs to sing. If only Dean had given a da#n - about himself, and about others. I was really fascinated by his ability to navigate the seedy side of show business and glad to hear he was admired for this professionalism. The author really seems to knows his story and the entertainment industry; the reader is bombarded with facts and dates that almost overwhelm but at the same time reinforce the complexities of show business. I recommend this highly.
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5: Gold from Dreck
To spin gold from such low material--the life of a minor pop figure who was huge and rich as a king in his tasteless time--shows Tosches' genius as a writer. The book is self indulgent, overwritten at times, but generally entertaining and often hilarious and brilliant. Right up there with his biography of Jerry Lee Lewis, it tells us more about what we are as Americans than most of us want to know.
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