The Young and Restless Life of William J. Bell


Book Description

Story of the man who created and produced the legendary soap opera, The Young and the Restless.




The Young and Restless Life of William J. Bell


Book Description

Praise for THE YOUNG AND RESTLESS LIFE OF WILLIAM J. BELL "A beautiful dedication to Bill and the pioneering legacy of the Bell family. Their endless commitment, passion, and creativity have left an indelible mark on the genre."—Frank Valentini, executive producer of General Hospital and Emmy-winning director of One Life to Live "Reading this book is like rolling in the arms of soap opera's greatest lover...Bill Bell!"—Bill and Susan Seaforth Hayes, Emmy-nominated actors on Days of our Lives and authors of the novel TRUMPET "An informed, insightful look at the inner workings of the Bell Empire—the most successful dynasty in daytime television history. It's a great read."—Peter Bergman, three-time Emmy-winning actor on The Young and the Restless "Michael Maloney has complied an impressive amount f details into an entertaining and fast-moving book. Read this book if you want a fascinating insight into one of television's original show runners and the legacy he left behind."—Cady McClain, Emmy-winning actress, All My Children and As the World Turns "One of the reasons for Bill Bell's legendary success in daytime drama was his immense respect for the genre and its audience. Longtime daytime journalist Michael Maloney uses the same respect for the genre to reveal the man behind the legend. For any fan of soap operas, this book is a must-read."—Dave Rupel, executive producer, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Emmy-winning writer for Guiding Light "Nobody 'gets' daytime like Maloney! A fascinating read for the dedicated soap fan!"—Michael Bruno, daytime talent manager "A fitting tribute to the man who brought daytime's most memorable characters to life, with great insight into his passion for the genre and dedication to his family...THE YOUNG AND RESTLESS LIFE OF WILLIAM J. BELL honors the legacy of daytime's 'Drama King.'"—Angelica McDaniel, senior vice president, CBS, Daytime "I cannot remember the last biography I enjoyed reading as much as THE YOUNG AND RESTLESS LIFE OF WILLIAM J. BELL. Together with Lee Phillip Bell, Michael Maloney has done a masterful job of weaving private family memories, never-before-told anecdotes, and an insider's knowledge of the soap industry together to create a tapestry as rich and colorful as Bill Bell himself. A must-read for any soap opera fan!"—Roberta Caploe, former managing editor of Soap Opera Digest and author of MELROSE CONFIDENTIAL "The carefully selected photographs alone are worth this beguiling trip down memory lane."—Lynette Rice, Entertainment Weekly Millions of fans worldwide know his soap opera and his characters, but few know the story of the man who brought them to life. William J. Bell, television's most prolific writer, reinvented the soap opera genre with his groundbreaking serial The Young and the Restless in 1973 and went on to co-create The Bold and the Beautiful with his wife and successful TV host Lee Phillip Bell, which debuted in 1987. The Young and Restless Life of William J. Bell tells the inside story of daytime's greatest storyteller, including his role as an advertising executive in the era of Mad Men, working for legendary serial creator Irna Phillips, and his move from Chicago to Los Angeles, which resulted in Y&R taking the top spot in the rating. This book offers an unprecedented look into the life of the man who defined the soap genre and draws readers behind the scenes into the captivating world of the daytime soap they know and love.




My Seven Sons and How We Raised Each Other


Book Description

Soap star Don Diamont's most interesting storyline to date is being the real-life father and ringleader of his seven rambunctious boys. Called a "daytime deity" by Soap Opera Digest, Don Diamont is best known as the dashing publishing titan with steel abs, "Dollar Bill Spencer," on the most-watched daytime drama in the world, The Bold and the Beautiful. But all of that takes second place to his most important role to date: father to seven boys. By turns hilarious and poignant, My Seven Sons and How We Raised Each Other is a family memoir for our time. Don writes with openness and courage about the ways his family came together: by marriage, divorce, the death of his sister, and marriage again. Today's blended families might look different from the households of even a few decades ago, but the first dates, first cars, busting curfew, talking back, grounding, broken hearts, laughs, tears, and the love are the same. From his childhood growing up in LA, to his Zoolander phase as a model in both Paris and Los Angeles, to the iconic place he now occupies in daytime television, Don also gives us a glimpse into a life that at times could have been scripted for a soap opera. And, with brutal honesty, he tells of the personal devastation he suffered after the deaths of his father, brother, and sister. My Seven Sons is required reading for everyone who is a parent, and all those who have one.




Restless


Book Description

It is 1939. Eva Delectorskaya is a beautiful 28-year-old Russian émigrée living in Paris. As war breaks out she is recruited for the British Secret Service by Lucas Romer, a mysterious Englishman, and under his tutelage she learns to become the perfect spy, to mask her emotions and trust no one, including those she loves most. Since the war, Eva has carefully rebuilt her life as a typically English wife and mother. But once a spy, always a spy. Now she must complete one final assignment, and this time Eva can't do it alone: she needs her daughter's help.




I'll Be Damned


Book Description

In this startling candid and poignant memoir, the legendary Emmy Award-winning star of The Young and The Restless, America's #1 soap opera, chronicles his amazing life, from his birth in World War II Germany to his arrival in America to his rise to humanitarian and daytime superstar for the past thirty-five years. For nearly four decades, fans have welcomed the star of television’s number-one daytime show, The Young and the Restless, into their living rooms. While they’ve come to know and love the suave Victor Newman, few truly know the man behind the character, the supremely talented Eric Braeden. I'll Be Damned is his story—a startling and uplifting true tale of war, deprivation, determination, fame, and social commitment that spans from Nazi Germany to modern Hollywood. Braeden’s journey from a hospital basement in Kiel to the soundstages of Los Angeles has taught him more about joy, heartbreak, fear, dignity, loss, love, loneliness, exhilaration, courage, persecution, and profound responsibility to the global community than he could have hoped to learn in several lifetimes. Growing up in the years after Germany’s defeat, Braeden knew very little about the atrocities of his parents’ generation, until he arrived in America as a teenager—a discovery that horrified and transformed him. Trying to redress the wrongs of his homeland, he has dedicated his life to humanitarian work—even forming the German American Culture Society—working for decades to show the world that what we share as humans is far more important than what separates us from one another. Told with openness, candor, humor, heart, and occasional raw vulnerability, I’ll Be Damned reveals a man committed to making the world a better, more loving place. Filled with sixteen pages of photos from his decorated life and career, I’ll Be Damned will be a treasured keepsake for Y&R fans, and is an inspiring testament to the goodness within us all.




My True Hidden Hollywood Story


Book Description




Always Young and Restless


Book Description

The renowned actress who played Nikki Newman on The Young and the Restless opens up about her sixty-year career in this scintillating memoir. Melody Thomas Scott admits she is nothing like her character on The Young and the Restless, who’s seen it all in her forty-year tenure on America’s highest-rated daytime serial. But there’s plenty of drama beyond her character’s plotlines. In this captivating memoir, Melody reveals the behind-the-scenes saga of her journey to stardom and personal freedom. As Nikki went from impoverished stripper to vivacious heroine, Melody underwent her own striking transformation, becoming a household name in the process. Raised by her abusive grandmother, Melody acted in feature films with Alfred Hitchcock, John Wayne, and Clint Eastwood—and endured abuse of industry men before taking control of her life and career in a daring getaway move. Melody shares all this, plus juicy on-and-off-set details of what it’s like to be one half of the show’s most successful supercouple, “Niktor.” In witty, warm prose, readers meet the persevering heart of an American icon. Prepare to be moved by a life story fit for a soap opera star.




Pearl in the Mist


Book Description

One of the most popular storytellers of all time, V.C. Andrews (Flowers in the Attic, My Sweet Audrina) continues an engrossing saga of psychological suspense with this second book of the Landry Family series—soon to be a Lifetime movie! Fate has whisked Ruby away from a simple life in the Louisiana Bayou but her new riches bring more treachery than happiness in this unputdownable and darkly evocative novel. Even a year removed from living in the bayou, Ruby still wonders at the splendor of her family’s New Orleans mansion. She rejoices in the love of the father she had never known, even as true happiness remains as elusive as swamp mist. Her stepmother sneers at her backwater upbringing, and while discovering she has a twin sister should be a cause for joy, Gisselle has greeted Ruby with nothing but a bitter heart. When Ruby’s father chooses an idyllic boarding school for his daughters’ senior years, a fresh start with Gisselle seems possible. But Ruby’s kind isn’t welcome at Greenwood, and the legendarily strict headmistress plots with her stepmother to make life miserable. Worse, with her twin on a mission to break every school rule, Ruby is left to suffer the humiliating punishments. So when a terrible tragedy leaves Ruby alone in a world that never really wanted her, only her Cajun strength can give her daring escape plan any hope of success. The weather on the bayou was nothing compared to the storm about to tear through her family.




Desert Queen


Book Description

The life of Gertrude Bell is now the subject of the major motion picture Queen of the Desert, starring Nicole Kidman, James Franco and Damian Lewis Turning away from privileged Victorian Britain, Gertrude Bell explored, mapped and excavated the world of the Arabs, winning the trust of Arab sheiks and chieftains along the way. When the First World War erupted and the British needed the loyalty of Arab leaders, Gertrude Bell provided the intelligence for T.E. Lawrence's military activities. After the war, she played a major role in creating the modern Middle East, and was generally considered the most powerful woman in the British Empire. In this major reassessment of Bell's life, Janet Wallach reveals a woman whose achievements and independent spirit were especially remarkable for her times, and who brought the same passion and intensity to her explorations as she did to her rich and romantic life.




The Black Man


Book Description