Author: J. Julian Payne

Publisher: Anecdotage Press

ISBN: 0973622105

The following review was contributed by: NORM GOLDMAN:  Editor of Bookpleasures. CLICK TO VIEW  Norm Goldman's Reviews 

It would probably be very difficult to write a dull book about the witty quotes, anecdotes, and tidbits pertaining to some of the most well-known celebrities, whom many of us read or hear about in the print or the television media.

Celebrity Anecdotes- Volume 1 does not disappoint, providing us with many amusing moments pertaining to approximately forty eight personalities that are arranged alphabetically from Jennifer Aniston to Renee Zellweger. In addition, the author inserts cameo appearances from many more movie and entertainment idols.

While it is not the first book that deals with this kind of information, it nevertheless offers fascinating glimpses into what makes these individuals tick. As Payne points out, anyone who lives an extraordinary life is bound to get bruised and make embarrassing mistakes along the way. However, what is important is that very often they poke fun at themselves on a regular basis- debunking the belief that these humans are somewhat extraordinary, who don’t cry or laugh like the rest of us. In fact, in many instances, these celebrities never forget who they are-just human beings who happened to have become famous.

Gathering material from newspapers, magazines, books, websites, DVDs, television shows, and other sources, the author devotes a few pages to each celebrity, wherein we learn about their origins, nicknames, rumored romances, family life, key credits, life in their quotations, and the anecdotes or amusing stories about each one.

Reading about Cher we learn that she was born Cherilyn Sarkisian after Lana Turner’s lesbian daughter, Cheryl Crane. According to a quote attributed to Cher, she once stated that “I’d wake up and have this fear of not knowing where I was.”-on learning that she had spent time in an orphanage and lived with foster parents until the age of three.” Her frankness and candor come across very clearly when clashing with director Peter Bogdanovich while filming Mask, when she said “I’m only difficult if you’re an idiot.”

You may hate Simon Cowell of American Idol, however, you have to admit his one line zingers can be quite creative, although downright nasty.

Cowell has been given the nicknames, Mr. Nasty, Mr. Mean and Judge Dread as he utters such insults as “you don’t need a judge-you need an exorcist.”

However, Cowell is not immune from experiencing some embarrassing moments. One evening, a couple approached him outside of an exclusive restaurant in Los Angeles, while he was smoking a cigarette and sheltering himself from the rain. Cowell was sure they were about to ask him for his autograph, however, apparently they thought he was a beggar and offered him a couple of bucks.

This is a fun book and at times an utterly engrossing read providing us with a window into the zany lives of some of our favorite actors and actresses.

You may ask, as the author mentions in the introduction, is all of the material really true? Perhaps, however, as pointed out, none of the book’s major sources has been sued in court on a regular basis. I look forward to reading the next volume in the series.