Product Description

"An extraordinarily entertaining look inside the film industry ."-Pierce Brosnan, award-winning actor and producer

A veteran of over fifty years in the film industry, Robert E. Relyea gives a behind-the-scenes, first-person look into Hollywood's moviemaking landscape during the pre- and post-Kennedy years in America.

Not So Quiet on the Set is Elvis Presley wishing for a normal life during a break in recording the soundtrack for Jailhouse Rock. It's dealing with street gangs and studio politics while making West Side Story. It's trying to stay alive while working side by side with John Wayne on The Alamo. It's crashing an authentic Nazi warplane against a hillside in Germany during The Great Escape. It's getting fired by the studio while filming Bullitt in San Francisco and it's battling runaway budgets and Steve McQueen's demons in France while making Le Mans.

Not So Quiet on the Set presents rare insights into the mechanics and politics of filmmaking and helps define a dynamic period in Hollywood history. A unique collaboration between father and son, it is a real-life adventure that not only illustrates how the movie industry really works but provides a revealing portrait of Hollywood's loss of innocence.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #872441 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 348 pages

About the Author
Robert E. Relyea?s career spans a half century in American cinema. A graduate of UCLA, he partnered with Steve McQueen in Solar Productions, held top production posts at Paramount and MGM/UA, and served as chairman of the California Film Commission. He lives with his wife, Dorothy, in Westlake Village, California.Craig Relyea is a graduate of UCLA and Arizona State?s W. P. Carey School of Business. He has spent twenty-five years in entertainment marketing, holding executive posts at Universal, DreamWorks, and Disney. He lives with his wife, Tammi, and their son, Taylor, in Glendale, California.

Customer Reviews

ROBERT E. RELYEA -THE MAGNIFICENT, ICONIC ASSISTANT!
JAILHOUSE ROCK, THE ALAMO, THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN, WEST SIDE STORY, THE GREAT ESCAPE for starters. To be associated with such iconic and classic movies -well thats what Robert E. Relyea's career in HOLLYWOOD is all about. Rising from the lowly ranks of 2nd assistant directors, Relyea became the most sought out "can-do" guy for the greatest films of the 1960's and beyond.

ROBERT WISE, JOHN STURGES, WILLIAM WYLER these are some of the iconic directors Relyea has assisted in his some fifty year career. And in his book NOT SO QUIET ON THE SET, he reveals just what it was like working with them or for them in some cases. Assisted by his son Craig, he presents a side of cinematic history that is all too rare. In candid and entertaining style, we get to see the naked reality of day to day film making from the winding down of the HOLLYWOOD studio system to the revving up of the independent producers.

ELVIS, JOHN WAYNE, YUL BRYNNER and STEVE McQUEEN, Relyea has known them all. But none more than McQueen, who's SOLAR production company he ran from the mega-hit BULLITT to the total crash of LE MANS. You'll discover what riding along with the "King Of Cool" was really like. Again, Relyea pulls no punches and gives us facts that you'll not find anywhere else. For THE GREAT ESCAPE, they really wanted to shoot it over by Palm Springs. On WEST SIDE STORY it was not as easy as dancing in the streets, they had to get gang protection to prevent them from being hounded out of the neighborhood. On JAILHOUSE ROCK, recording all twelve songs from the soundtrack in a single four hour session. Let's just say, you'll be able to amaze your friends at the great movie trivia this fascinating book has to offer. My only complaint is, I wanted MORE, much MORE! And thats how Relyea has quietly chosen to leave the set...

Extra ordinary road.
Reviewed by Carol Hoyer for Reader Views (10/08)

What a captivating read! Mr. Relyea has given us a great look at the inner workings of Hollywood and making movies. As we look at movies in the theater and at home we have no idea of what it really takes to make a movie.

One cannot imagine how hard it is to work with temperamental actors and actresses, trying to stay in budget and be politically correct at the same time. The author did a great job on comparing how movies were made early on as compared to today. After having worked with them, Relyea talks about the temperaments, wild requests and affairs of such great talents as Steve McQueen, Audrey Hepburn and Charles Bronson.

Can you imagine working at remote locations where bugs bite, snakes are in the water and the heat is unbearable? The creative descriptions of many great movies put the reader on the set and in tune with the actors. "Not So Quiet on the Set" by Robert E. Relyea is a great read for anyone who remembers the great stars and how wonderful old movies were without the digital enhancements.

An enlightening and wholly entertaining read.
This is a tremendous book that flows like a classic novel. Robert Relyea gives you a front row seat into the making of some of the greatest films made during an era before digital editing and effects were available. Where the media seems to use the phrase "Hollywood Elite" with wild abandon and some bizarre air of negativity, Robert reveals the incredibly demanding and arduous roles that create the final product. These artists put their lives on the line to get the right shot. They work countless hours in very dangerous working conditions in order to tell a story in the best way possible. Robert takes you all over the world to describe these efforts in very entertaining detail. He's a wonderful narrator.

Craig embellishes this fine work by describing the impact a life in film had on the family. His is the voice of a son who is very proud of his dad. It's a marvelous collaboration.

This book is intense, very funny, and humanizes so many of the cast and crew who jointly created so many renowned films during 4 decades of filmmaking. It's a great insight into many of the crew-members responsibilities. He's also very honest as he describes interactions with some of the many recognizable people he's worked with over the years. The book takes you through the full gamut of emotions associated with balancing a very difficult job with family, friends, business associates. He relays some great and eye-opening moments with some of the most brilliant and popular actors of that era as well.