Product Description

"To me, bad taste is what entertainment is all about. If someone vomits watching one of my films, it's like getting a standing ovation."

Thus begins John Waters's autobiography. And what a story it is. Opening with his upbringing in Baltimore ("Charm City" as dubbed by the tourist board; the "hairdo capital of the world" as dubbed by Waters), it covers his friendship with his muse and leading lady, Divine, detailed accounts of how Waters made his first movies, stories of the circle of friends - actors he used in these films, and finally the "sort-of fame" he achieves in America. Complementing the text are dozens of fabulous old photographs of Waters and crew. Here is a true love letter from a legendary filmmaker to his friends, family, and fans.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #179890 in Books
• Published on: 2005-03-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781560256984
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

The Filthiest Person Alive
John Waters is fantastic. His true talents are not in his films, but in his writing. He can take the mundane and make it extraordinary, the creepy and strange and make it funny, and the ugliest of the ugly and make them things of beauty. Though he's an old man now, and his movies have gone mainstream, this book is a look back at his hilarious youth and all the mischief making that made him and the Dreamland cast stars.

This book covers the making of all his films, the biographies and interviews with his famed cast members, as well as his inpirations (ex. Rus Meyer). You enjoy their antics and feel as if you are right along side them in the making of their hilarious movies and tasteful adventures in bad taste. You can't put it down and are actually laughing out loud as you read. And he even writes about his family. How punk rock!

One thing he taught me to do was to love my hometown. People never seem to like their hometowns, whether they are in the most flashy of cities or the tiniest one horse town. Life is what you make of it, and John put the hairdo capital of the world (Baltimore) on the map with his hijinx and adoration of all things weird and wonderful. He takes his enemies and makes them into glowing monsters we can all throw rotten tomatos at in his absence. The creepy weirdos aren't monsters, they're glorious, misunderstood creatures we are to embrace. Look for the scariest, craziest places and have the most rip roaring time with the clientele. I've taken his advice and now have the ability to talk to anyone, because there are loads of lonely lunatics out there just dying to be friends with you.

Must-Read For All John Waters Fans
I was hoping to learn more about John Waters, the man, when I bought this book, and I was far from disappointed. This book is a great memoir of his life from start to finish, with lots of juicy inside info on all of his films. Throughout the book the reader meets all of the outrageous and delightfully politically incorrect characters that inhibit his movies and his life. There are lots of inside stories about Mink Stole, Divine, and everyone else ever seen in a Waters film, as well as the sweet low-down on that famous poop scene as well everything else you've ever wondered about. Waters is surprisingly honest about all sorts of rude and criminal acts that I'd never have known about if I hadn't read it. Underneath it all he shines through as a lovable guy who adores his hometown of Baltimore as well as the genre of trashy movies. If you love Waters, or even don't particularly like him but want to know more about him anyway, you must read this book.

Freak Power
Much impressed by the gonzo grotesqueries of "Pink Flamingos," I picked up this book to learn more about the mind behind the madness. I wasn't disappointed-- you get John Waters' strange youth and the stories behind his early freak film experiments in the 1970s. Some of my favorite quotes:

"Parents should worry if their children haven't been arrested by the time they turn sixteen. Being a juvenile delinquent is a birthright and as much a part of a healthy adolescence as smoking cigarettes or getting pimples."

"Whenever I hear a friend casually mention an interest in a sporting event, I immediately reconsider our friendship. . . . All sports are contemptible."

I absolutely love how compleletely unconcerned young Waters was with societal expectations. While most young boys worry about grades, sports, or the pretty girl, young Waters fetishized the street-fighting bad girls and ditched school to drop acid and watch trashy low-budget horror films. And best of all, his alternative education seems to have worked out wonderfully for him, as he gathers an appreciative cult of like-minded freaks around him and takes the world of underground cinema by storm!