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Shayne's memoir covers 100 years of his remarkable life. His parents wanted different things for him: his mother wanted fame so it would reflect on her, while his father felt he needed to be grounded and find steady employment, like in the insurance business. It also recounts early sexual trauma, which forever changed his view of his older brother. We learn of Shayne's sexual curiosity and his confusion about his own sexual orientation and what that might mean for him in the mid-1900s. We see the courage it takes for him, as a teenager, to go to New York and pursue an acting career, through the highs and lows, and the amazing cast of Hollywood's elite he would meet. His interactions with young Marlon Brando are fantastic and help highlight both of their flaws and personalities. He speaks about his marriage and near-marriage with women he dearly loved, but the passion was never what it should be between a couple. He also describes the moment someone he respects tells him he'll always be able to get acting jobs, but he'll never have what it takes to make it big, which hurts him but helps him change direction in his career. This move will lead him to help create some of the biggest shows on television. But more than anything, we seem him try to find work he respects, and a love that can last.
One of the best things about Shayne's book is that he focuses on his personal life and the desires everyone has. Rather than continual name-dropping or listing all his incredible accomplishments, he shows us his life outside the office, his vulnerabilities, heartaches, and triumphs. He takes the reader on his 100-year journey of transition and transformation as his perspectives change and youth's ambitions are replaced with maturity's wisdom. The early portion of the book is reminiscent of Stephen Daedalus' struggles from Joyce's classic, The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. The two are struggling with different things; Stephen is battling the life of the flesh and art versus a life of faith, whereas Shayne's is more about his own sexual orientation, but, at the core, both are struggling with how they are going to define themselves in a world that may not accept their decisions. Each also left the comfort of home to define themselves artistically in a new environment. Also, there is an authenticity and honesty in his work that is found in many good memoirs. Shayne had often lived a double life, hiding his relationship with Norman so it wouldn't close doors they needed to keep open. This book feels so genuine in part because you can see how satisfied and relieved Shayne is to be able to tell the whole story without hiding anything.
Shayne's book is quick and easy to get through, and the writing is professional and well-edited. The book isn't explicit, but sexual activity is discussed with enough frankness that it is for a mature reader. Readers who particularly like memoirs, and those interested in the acting scene, will enjoy this most, but other readers may also find Shayne's quest for authentic work and lasting love engaging.