Audition

I try to force myself to read one non-fiction book for every fiction book, partially as not to allow my brain to atrophy. I admit that this is a habit I picked up during my shameless chick-lit phase. But equally shameless is my fondness for bios and autobiographies. Instead of going for something to expand my mind, I go for (let’s face it) gossip.

I think part of it is a long-standing, innate curiosity about the famous, infamous, and anyone else who managed to put their lives on the bestseller lists. Long before pinkisthenewblog, I’ve devoured everything from Mommie Dearest to Elvis and Me, to books on Sinatra, Monroe, and Hepburn. So when I heard Barbara Walters was writing a memoir, I added it to the must-read list. Especially because it would have to include at least SOME celebrity dish! And I wasn’t disappointed. The book is long (nearly 600 pages!), but I read it in about two days. There you have it.

I used to watch 20/20 when Hugh Downs was still hosting, and really enjoyed her interviews, as well as her celeb-packed specials. It was fun to get the “scoop” on so many of the interviews I missed by reading the book. I especially love the part where she met the Dalai Lama, and he told her the purpose of life is to be happy, and advised warmheartedness and compassion as the best ways to be happy. How simple and lovely is that?

Conversely, the theme of guilt ran heavy through the book, from not doing enough to help her parents and disabled sister, to that tricky work/children balance so many women have to face. Walters also expressed a lot of insecurity, and the feeling that she always had to prove herself (hence the title) and boy, did she. She has been a major part of the golden age of television.

Personal trivia I didn’t know include the mental handicap of her sister, Jackie, and that her daughter (also Jackie) is adopted. She seemed to have quite a difficult time with her daughter… I suppose in those days, one would never know what is going on behind closed doors. What a different world it must have been. She also dated Ed Brooke, the first African-American voted to the Senate. Who was married. And a republican from Massachusetts, no less.

One thing I didn’t expect was the friendship between her and Roy Cohn, the powerful Anti-Communist lawyer who helped McCarthy put the Rosenbergs to death. Perhaps it was Karma that he was a closeted homosexual and died relatively young from AIDS. Both of which he denied, to the grave. If you haven’t already seen Angels in America, you should check it out. A large part of the plot is Cohn (played by Al Pacino) being haunted by the spirit of Ethel Rosenberg (played by a barely recognizable Meryl Streep). Walters admits the portrayal is pretty accurate. I understand Cohn wrote an autobiography. I should check that out…