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(More customer reviews)I guess I could say the pages turn themselves. That's a reviewer's cliche. They almost do. At least I didn't notice myself turning any pages, and yet I breezed through the first 48 pages in a few minutes, enthralled.
Allan Rich is one of Hollywood's most beloved and respected actors, a veteran of 68 films, someone who has obviously honed his craft to the kind of perfection we admire in great actors. But he is also an excellent writer. He knows that it is concrete detail, straightforward expression, and a deep sense of honesty that compels those pages to turn themselves.
Frankly I was surprised. After all, actors are not known for their writing ability. But after reading his mini-autobiography that covers the first 48 pages I am surprised no more. Allan Rich is multi-talented. He has done in addition to those 68 movies, a slew of TV shows, theater, both on and off Broadway, sold stock on Wall Street, sold the paintings of the modern masters on Madison Avenue, where he had his own gallery (a shot of Salvador Dali outside the "Allan Rich Galleries" appears on page 39), and then in what might be his retirement years he has become an acting coach. It is said in some cultures--and I believe it--that to round out a life truly lived it is a good thing to teach.
This book is itself a teaching instrument. Here's how Rich describes his leap from the Method:
"I sit on the back of Stanislavsky's idea that acting is organic and comes from the imagination of the actor. While there may be many myths and misconceptions complicating matters, whether as an acting coach or as a performer, I always strive for a simple, direct approach. That's my leap from the Method..." (p. 57)
He says that the first thing he does as a coach is dispose of the three myths of acting. The first myth is talent. He writes, "Talent is merely desire combined with the drive and ability to work hard. Desire is the key. Desire combined with hard work can fulfill your promise." (p. 61)
The second myth is "You must tell the truth." Rich quotes Stanislavsky to the contrary: "Performances are lies." What he means is that you, the actor, must create the character based on the text and the author's intent. (p. 61) I like to think that the psychological truth of character and story is a kind of lie that is truer than true.
The third myth has to do with "finding the character." Rich believes that the key is to take what the author has written. Include the entire work. And then dig into the author's intentions as revealed in the play or the script, and the character will find the actor. (p. 62)
Rich follows this with what he calls "an approach to an organic technique." There are five focuses. The first is to focus on your reason for beginning an acting career. The fifth focus is experiencing the "back-story," a catch phrase that Rich elucidates very well.
Rich began his life as an actor as a child who just naturally assumed the role he was playing, allowing him to achieve a quick success, typically in bratty, smart-talking kid roles. But then as he became a man a crisis developed. He no longer had the confidence. It had gone somewhere, perhaps the way a choir boy loses his soprano voice. At any rate, Rich realized that he would have to study and work and study and work to gain his confidence back so that he could develop the skill he would need to succeed in what he loved to do. What is especially interesting is the detours that his life has taken. He went for years without parts. He got turned down again and again. He acquired and lost agents. He made easy money on Wall Street. He discovered that he could sell stocks or works of art as well as he could sell a character on the stage.
This is the sort of book that any actor would be thrilled to read. It is authentic and filled with wisdom and Rich's warm and witty personality. And it is inspirational in a way that might surprise you. But that is what great teachers do, they inspire.
Here's an inspirational moment from his career. He has landed the part of District Attorney Tauber in Sidney Lumet's Serpico (1973) starring Al Pacino. In a confrontational scene with Al Pacino's Serpico, Rich suggests to Sidney Lumet that he needs someone to take his hat and coat while he's talking to Serpico. Lumet asks why. Rich answers, "It will give my character more power." Lumet doesn't blink. He shouts, "Get this man an extra." Rich writes, "With that additional detail, the moment clicked for me. It made my character seem important and added tension to my interaction with Al Pacino." (p. 43)
Here's another: Rich is a young man playing a prisoner in the stage adaptation of Arthur Koestler's novel Darkness at Noon. Claude Rains is playing the lead. Rich writes, "I waited for the moment every night when he said the line, 'As a boy, I loved to study the stars.' He conveyed so much with the tone and energy of that one line that it seemed to sum up the depths of his character's despair...That moment moved me to tears almost every night. And I was only listening to him--I couldn't see his face from my cell!" (p. 28)
This is a beautiful book graced with many black and white photos from Rich's career showing many of the great actors and personalities of our times (as we watch Rich age!). The artwork, especially on the cover by Sid Maurer is outstanding, and whoever did the editing did a bang-up job.
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AllanRich's new book, A Leap from the Method, is an entertaining must readfor anyone in the arts, especially actors." -- Larry King 'A very clear and readable introduction to the nuts andbolts of acting and I think a really down-to-earth look at the art." -- Robert Redford 'Allan Rich has found a way to put into words the insightsand techniques that have made him such a fine and interesting actor." -- Alan Alda'The book is a wonderful guide to an actor building amind. Simple yet very complete." -- Jamie Lee Curtis 'I now understand what makes [Rich] the great actor that heis. He transcends technique,re-digesting and transforming life experience, knowledge and wisdom into a poolof resources from which the actor can draw." -- Fran Drescher 'Allan introduced me to the craft of acting. He inspired, educated and encouraged. I shall be forever grateful." -- Rene Russo 'The book presents an organic method that is filled withinside information. And, there is anadded plus: it's fun to read." -- Jack Lemmon 'I was fascinated by it's simplicity, common sense and itswisdom. It's also very comfortablereading." -- WalterMatthau'Allan Rich's book should be on every actor'sbookshelf'" -- DinLuboviski, Owner of Larry Edmunds Theatrical Book Shop 'Plain and simple, this book is terrific." -- Arthur Friedman, Producer of 'BeyondThe Sea" the Bobby Darin story
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