Andy Dougan draws on first-hand interviews with some of De Niro's closest friends and colleagues. The result is a revealing and sometimes startling account of an intensely private man. While previous biographies of De Niro have only scraped the surface of his complex character, this sensitive and perceptive portrayal lays bare the psychological and emotional scars that De Niro has sought to hide for so long.

From Mean Streets to Casino, Robert De Niro has dominated Hollywood for nearly a quarter of a century. Dynamic & electrifying, his performances have been consistently memorable, & the films he has made with director Martin Scorsese (including Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, & Goodfellas) make a roll-call of some of the greatest cinema of our times. But despite his fame & success, De Niro's private existence is little known & has seldom been explored. Now, for the first time, here is the full story of this astonishing actor's life. Drawing on first-hand interviews with De Niro & some of his closest friends & colleagues, Untouchable is a revealing-and sometimes startling-account of an intensely private man. While previous biographer of De Niro have only scraped the surface of his complex character, Andy Dougan's sensitive & perceptive portrayal lays bare the psychological & emotional scares which this consummate Method actor has sought to hide for so long. Compelling & full of insight, Untouchable: A Biography of Robert De Niro is the definitive account of a great actor's career, & a fascinating view of his complex inner world. Andy Dougan is a respected film reviewer & broadcaster.

From his amazing feature film performances to his roles as producer and director to his many notable guest appearances, De Niro started his career as early as 1965 and has since dominated the world of Hollywood. Untouchable will take you inside the life of this astonishing actor to provide a revealing and sometimes startling account of an intensely private man. Dougan provides information on actual life events that seemed to have had a profound effect on De Niro emotionally, and discusses De Niro's working and personal relationships with personalities such as Martin Scorcese, Jack Nicholson, Jodie Foster, and Sharon Stone. With an updated epilogue and filmography, this new edition will also include De Niro's entrepreneurial and behind-the-scenes role in co-founding Tribeca Productions in 1988 and the works he has since produced and directed. Although De Niro continues his work as an actor, it is his vision for Tribeca to be the axis of the film industry and the heart of New York City's film community that currently takes up most of his time. 24 black-and-white photos are included.

In 1973, early in their careers, Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro collaborated for the first time. Over the next few decades, they worked together on seven more movies, many of which brought them both acclaim and awards. And while successful director and actor pairings have occurred throughout the history of film, few have fashioned so many works of enduring value as these two artists. In little more than two decades, Scorsese and De Niro produced eight features, including the classics Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and GoodFellas. In The Films of Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro, Andrew J. Rausch examines the creative output of this remarkable pair, from their initial offering, Mean Streets, to their most recent film together, Casino. Rausch looks at their relationship as individual artists who worked together to create cinematic magic, as well as the friendship that was forged nearly 40 years ago. Drawing upon interviews and other sources, Rausch goes behind the scenes of their eight films, providing insi

John Fair and David Chapman tell the story of how filmmakers use and manipulate the appearance and performances of muscular men and women to enhance the appeal of their productions. The authors show how this practice, deeply rooted in western epistemological traditions, evolved from the art of photography through magic lantern and stage shows into the motion picture industry, arguing that the sight of muscles in action induced a higher degree of viewer entertainment. From Eugen Sandow to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, muscular actors appear capable of performing the miraculous, and with the aid of stuntmen and filming contrivances, they do. By such means, muscles are used to perfect the art of illusion, inherent in movie-making from its earliest days.

Drawing on never-before-seen material, this definitive biography exposes the true extent of the Jackson family's dysfunctionality -- evidence of which is still in the public eye as they dispute the star's will Jackson was the most talented, richest, and most famous pop star on the planet. But the outpouring of emotion that followed his loss was bittersweet. Dogged by scandal for over fifteen years, and undone by his own tendency to trust the wrong people, Jackson had become untouchable in many quarters, a fact that wounded him deeply. Now, drawing on unprecedented access to friends, enemies, employees, and associates of Jackson, Randall Sullivan delivers an intimate, unflinching, and deeply human portrait of a man who was never quite understood by the media, his fans, or even those closest to him. Untouchable promises to be a profound investigation into the enigma that was Michael Jackson.

In this book, Lorraine York examines the figure of the celebrity who expresses discomfort with his or her intense condition of social visibility. Bringing together the fields of celebrity studies and what Ann Cvetkovich has called the “affective turn in cultural studies”, York studies the mixed affect of reluctance, as it is performed by public figures in the entertainment industries. Setting aside the question of whether these performances are offered “in good faith” or not, York theorizes reluctance as the affective meeting ground of seemingly opposite emotions: disinclination and inclination. The figures under study in this book are John Cusack, Robert De Niro, and Daniel Craig—three white, straight, cis-gendered-male cinematic stars who have persistently and publicly expressed a feeling of reluctance about their celebrity. York examines how the performance of reluctance, which is generally admired in celebrities, builds up cultural prestige that can then be turned to other purposes.

Some acting careers are made by one great role and some fall into obscurity when one is declined. Would Al Pacino be the star he is today if Robert Redford had accepted the role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather? Imagine Tom Hanks rejecting Uma Thurman, saying that she acted like someone in a high school play when she auditioned to play opposite him in The Bonfire of the Vanities. Picture Danny Thomas as The Godfather, or Marilyn Monroe as Cleopatra. This reference work lists hundreds of such stories: actors who didn't get cast or who turned down certain parts. Each entry, organized alphabetically by film title, gives the character and actor cast, a list of other actors considered for that role, and the details of the casting decision. Information is drawn from extensive research and interviews. From About Last Night (which John Belushi turned down at his brother's urging) to Zulu (in which Michael Caine was not cast because he didn't look "Cockney" enough), this book lets you imagine how different your favorite films could have been.