The Garner Files
Ratings1
Average rating3
15
Ratings1
Average rating3
After suffering physical abuse at the hands of his stepmother, Garner left home at fourteen. He became Oklahoma's first draftee of the Korean War and was awarded with two Purple Hearts before returning to the United States and settling in Los Angeles to become an actor. Working alongside some of the most renowned celebrities, including Julie Andrews, Marlon Brando, and Clint Eastwood, Garner became a star in his own right, despite struggles with stage fright and depression. In The Garner Files, this revered actor and quintessential self-made man recalls "trying to decipher" William Wyler with Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine, breaking Doris Day's ribs, having a "heart-to-heart and eyeball-to-eyeball" with Steve McQueen, being "a card-carrying liberal and proud of it," and much more. - Publisher.
Reviews with the most likes.
It took me over a month to finish reading this book even though it's only a little more than 200 pages long. I don't know why I checked out this book; I didn't consider myself a huge fan, but I can say I'm glad I read it.
My problem with the book was that he left the best stuff for last. I thought he spent too much time explaining and describing what it's like to be a race car driver and a golfer. I thought that stuff could have been edited or put at the end of the book. I appreciated his honesty about being a liberal and I would have liked to have read more about what he did for Civil Rights. I know it's not in his (or men of his generation) to brag about stuff like that, but I think most of us who weren't around would like reading about what it was like from a person who was there.
The book reads like some grandpas tell stories–this is what I did and I did it because we did what was expected of us. He's someone who follows rules and wrote he's proud he never kissed any Hollywood ass.
I also appreciated his honesty with the films he made. He clearly states which ones he's proud of and which ones he's not. Now I want to watch “Maverick” and “Rockford Files.”
