First to Leave the Party
My Life with Ordinary People... Who Happen to Be Famous
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Narrated by:
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Ann-Marie MacDonald
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Written by:
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Salah Bachir
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Jami Bernard - contributor
About this listen
INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER
A marvelous and compulsively enjoyable collection of stories from the life of Salah Bachir—philanthropist, art collector, movie industry insider—who, through his sheer joy of life, art, giving back, and human interaction, has endeared him to some of the most famous and creative people in recent times.
Salah Bachir’s encounters with stars who have passed through his beloved Toronto over the years opens on a backyard garden barbecue with Marlon Brando, and bread continues to be broken with icons as fascinating and seemingly disparate as Muhammad Ali and Liberace, Margaret Atwood and Cesar Chavez, Andy Warhol and Princess Margaret, to name just a few. But the true literary coup is that the biggest, brightest star we encounter is the author himself. Alan Cumming
Salah is the patron saint for all of us who are full of curiosity, hungry for celebration, horny for fun, and who won’t stop until every need is fulfilled. His appetite and passion for life is voracious. His ability to transform those passions into making life better for others is even more impressive. Atom Egoyan
Salah Bachir, who immigrated to Canada from Lebanon in the 1960s, has been a gay activist who has worked in the film world for over four decades. While this has given him undeniable front-row access to Hollywood’s biggest stars, it is Salah’s personal charm and kindness, his philanthropy, his overall style (think hats, scarves, brooches, pearls, diamonds) and deep involvement in the art world that has made him a friend, companion, confidante, and/or lover to so many—including Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Joan Rivers, Mary Tyler Moore, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Edward Albee, Orson Welles, Aretha Franklin, Norman Jewison, and Elizabeth Taylor—although it’s true that Katharine Hepburn once turned him down, very nicely.
Collected here in this wonderful book are personal stories of them all—some short, some long, some surprising, others juicy, and all fascinating. Through them we get to know Salah, a larger-than-life character that embodies the many worlds he shapes—the kind of person it would be hard to make up if he didn’t already exist.
©2023 Salah Bachir (P)2023 SignalWhat the critics say
"Sweetly and directly, Salah recounts his amazing life, entwined with so many amazing lives. I'm honoured to be included! (And happy that Marlon Brando comes out of it well!)" —Margaret Atwood
"Salah Bachir's encounters with stars over the years opens on a backyard garden barbecue with Marlon Brando, and bread continues to be broken with icons as fascinating and seemingly disparate as Muhammad Ali and Liberace, Margaret Atwood and Cesar Chavez, Andy Warhol and Princess Margaret, to name just a few. But the true literary coup is that the biggest, brightest star we encounter is the author himself." —Alan CummIng
"Why would so many great and powerful people warm to Salah Bachir? Clearly, for comfort in the personal warmth that permeates this lovely memoir of his life among the famous, as well as the sensitivity and intelligence that make this something extraordinary: a celebrity book without fawning or hype." —David Hajdu, New York Times bestselling author of Lush Life and Positively 4th Street
What listeners say about First to Leave the Party
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- DG
- 2023-12-28
Fun Stories
This is a great collection of fun stories about famous people who are seemingly just like the rest of us. Then sprinkle in a bit of the authors Lebanese heritage, stories about the film & video industry, and being a proud LGBTQ+ person. I loved every minute.
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- Margaret Lawson
- 2024-05-20
Such amazing stories about so many incredible people
I liked everything about this book. The way it was written and how I Iearned so much about all these people and about Salah’s life and his incredible generosity towards so many important causes. I will highly recommend this book to all my friends and relatives
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- Roy Dean
- 2024-01-10
How self obsessed the writer is.
The constant swing between humility and bravado was nauseating, the title should include hyperbole mixed with arrogance, not something demure as it is.
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