Entertainment Bios

From his humble beginnings in Ohio, to the spark of early fame in Nashville, to a fair share of surprises and setbacks, Jay has learned firsthand that the blessing only comes through the broken road. Shotgun Angels details his path to celebrated heights, as well as the hope instilled in him at a young age that started it all - a hope that sustained him when it looked like his music career was over, and continues to fuel him today.

As lead singer of Happy Mondays and Black Grape, Shaun Ryder was the Keith Richards and Mick Jagger of his generation - one of the last real rock 'n' roll stars. A true rebel, who formed and led not one but two seminal bands, he's had number-one albums, headlined Glastonbury, toured the world numerous times, taken every drug under the sun, been through rehab - and come out the other side as a national treasure.

At its peak, over 8 percent of every household in America was tuned in to Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Mister Rogers' wholesome message inspired millions of kids to do better. Millions knew the TV personality, but few knew the man behind the cardigan. This audiobook gives a glimpse into what inspired the man who captivated so many viewers.

One of America's most influential Hispanics - Maria on Sesame Street - delivers a beautifully wrought coming-of-age memoir. Set in the 1970s in the Bronx, this is the story of a girl with a dream. When listeners meet young Sonia, she is a child living amid the squalor of a boisterous home that is filled with noisy relatives and nosy neighbors. Each day she is glued to the TV screen that blots out the painful realities of her existence and also illuminates the possibilities that lie ahead.

In October 1993, a tiny start-up called the Food Network debuted to little notice. Twenty years later, it is in 100 million homes, approaches a billion dollars a year in revenue, and features a galaxy of stars whose faces and names are as familiar to us as our own family's. But what we don't know about them, and the people behind them, could fill a book.

The Ballad of Bob Dylan is a vivid, full-bodied portrait of one of the most influential artists of the 20th-century - a man widely regarded as the most important lyricist America has ever produced. Acclaimed poet and biographer Daniel Mark Epstein frames Dylan against the backdrop of four seminal concerts - all of which he attended. Beautifully written, The Ballad of Bob Dylan is a unique, eye-opening portrait of an artist who has transformed generations and continues to inspire and surprise today.

Jingjing Xue was born in China in the 1950s, during one of the worst times in the reign of communist leader Mao Zedong, or Chairman Mao. Mao’s extreme five-year industrialisation plan - the Great Leap Forward - left much of the population starving, destitute and gripped with fear. Jingjing, abandoned to an orphanage as a young boy, was destined to a life of hardship before officials singled him out and enlisted him to train with the Shanghai Acrobatics School.

Gli U2 sono uno dei gruppi più importanti del mondo: su di loro sono, ovviamente usciti, decine di libri...

Rolling Stone contributing editor Steve Knopper delves deeply into Michael Jackson's music and talent. From the artist's early days with the Jackson 5, to his stratospheric success as a solo artist, to "Beat It" and "Thriller", "Bad", and "The Man in the Mirror", to his volatile final years, his attempted comeback, and his untimely death, Knopper explores the beguiling and often contradictory forces that fueled Michael Jackson's genius.

Nick Currie, otherwise known as Momus - named for the ancient Greek god of mockery - has recorded more than 30 albums, published half a dozen works of speculative fiction, and written articles for The New York Times, Wired, Artforum, Frieze, and The Wire. Niche isn't any old showbiz memoir. Rather than writing a single sincere, avuncular tell-all in his own voice, Momus has structured the narrative of his life as a typically atypical mockery of the rock-biography oral history.

Gary Craig, actor, singer, and renowned radio personality, amused audiences on stage, film, television, and radio. Hilarious anecdotes, riotous pranks, and sidesplitting stories regale you with the raucous roots of his radio reign from humble beginnings to his current spectacular ratings on Hartford's beloved WTIC-FM morning show, Craig and Company. Follow his footsteps as an underdog struggling to secure a niche career while reaching for the stars to follow his dreams.

In 1971, Newsweek heralded The Last Picture Show as "the most impressive work by a young American director since Citizen Kane." Indeed, few filmmakers rivaled Peter Bogdanovich's popularity over the next decade. Riding the success of What's Up, Doc? (1972) and Paper Moon (1973), Bogdanovich became a bona fide celebrity, making regular appearances in his own movie trailers, occasionally hosting late-night television shows, and publicly advocating for mentors John Ford and Howard Hawks.

John Denver said, “I have a producer who looks like an accountant, and an accountant who looks like a producer”. Soberly dressed, unflashy, and a trained classical musician, in the golden age of the music business, Milt Okun stood out by not standing out. His legacy does that for him. He discovered and launched John Denver, and mentored him throughout his career. He created arrangements for Peter, Paul and Mary that the trio performed for half a century. He brought Placido Domingo a crossover career that made him an international star beyond the world of opera.

Con la sua voce straordinaria, il suo essere una rockstar a dispetto di tutto e tutti, il suo anticonformismo, la sua vita trasgressiva e la sua prematura scomparsa...

Melissa Francis was only eight years old when she won the role of a lifetime: playing Cassandra Cooper Ingalls on the world's most famous prime-time soap opera, Little House on the Prairie. Now, in Lessons from the Prairie, she shares behind-the-scenes stories from the set and lessons learned from the show's dynamic creator, Michael Landon, that have echoed throughout Melissa's adult life.

Un ragazzino cicciottello e un po' tarchiato, un adolescente problematico con gli occhiali spessi, un adulto inquieto che paga a caro prezzo il successo, la fama, il denaro, ma soprattutto un grande autore con una voce stupenda. Questo e molto altro è stato George Michael, un artista spesso incompreso e altrettanto frequentemente inserito a forza in categorie che gli stavano strette come un laccio al collo.

Bob Dylan è un uomo che non ha mai indossato maschere per presentare sempre la parte migliore di sé stesso. Questo audioBook racconta la sua vita e la sua produzione artistica. È un viaggio attraverso la musica e le parole di uno dei mostri sacri della musica, uno dei pochi (forse il solo) che si è sempre rifiutato di cambiare pelle a seconda delle epoche, delle mode e delle tendenze.

Nessuno come Pino Daniele ha saputo costruire un ponte tra l'Italia, l'America e l'Africa. La sua chitarra aveva dei poteri magici: sapeva flirtare con il blues senza tradire la tarantella e convivere con il Sud del mondo, senza abbandonare Napoli. Mentre un suo grande concittadino, Eduardo De Filippo, consigliava ai giovani di fuggire da Napoli per avere successo, lui no.

La parabola di un uomo che per molti è stato un dio e per tutti un re: Michael Jackson. Dalle origini umili, in una piccola casa di un'America ignorata dalle luci della ribalta, ai palcoscenici di tutto il mondo dove quelle luci erano tutte per lui, il divo, il Re del Pop. Dalle tribolazioni insieme ai famelici fratelli, i Jackson 5, e al padre-padrone, a una carriera fulminante dove i record sono all'ordine del giorno.

Rush Limbaugh: A Chronicled Tour captures this media icon’s dedication, passion, influence, and every other aspect of his life, and uses these to help you to pause and reflect on your own lives, ultimatley using these tools to transform your life in the same way.