A revealing glimpse of a multifaceted entertainer who defies easy labeling.
A professional wrestling champion and cable news personality shares his road to notoriety.
Born George Murdoch in 1973, biracial performer and political commentator Tyrus grew up in an abusive, dysfunctional home where it was “chaos all the time.” In the schoolyard, Tyrus became confused and defensive when other kids “would make fun of the color of my skin,” which made him “good with my fists.” After his parents separated, he relocated with his mother to California, where football dominated his high school and junior college years. His obsession with wrestling led him toward multiple attempts at reinvention, including becoming a club bouncer, a member of Snoop Dogg’s bodyguard team, and eventually, contracts with World Wrestling Entertainment. The author relates all of his adventures through a series of vividly memorable anecdotes. One of the most memorable stories is about Snoop’s loopy yet rewarding world tour and a particularly packed night at the club where he ejected two unruly “midgets,” one in each hand by their belt buckles, using a move he dubs “the suitcase.” Seizing opportunities as they sprouted, Tyrus capitalized on his physically imposing presence; in 2006, he made his WWE debut as a street-thug superstar named “G-rilla.” He gained immense popularity in the ring and sustained a reputation as a No. 1 contender for years. After a somewhat turbulent relationship with both global and then independent wrestling corporations, he paused for movie roles and social commentary opportunities only to return to wrestle for the National Wrestling Alliance in 2021. Throughout, the author displays his thoughtful outlook on race, from his childhood through his initial attempts at joining the WWE, when comments about his skin color dug deep. The memoir is supercharged with the kind of verve and vitality fans of the wrestling champion will savor, but Tyrus never skimps on the personal details and outspoken opinions that have made his stint on Fox News endure.
A revealing glimpse of a multifaceted entertainer who defies easy labeling.Pub Date: April 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-63758-066-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Post Hill Press
Review Posted Online: May 12, 2022
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.
Documenting perilous times.
In his most recent behind-the-scenes account of political power and how it is wielded, Woodward synthesizes several narrative strands, from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel to the 2024 presidential campaign. Woodward’s clear, gripping storytelling benefits from his legendary access to prominent figures and a structure of propulsive chapters. The run-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is tense (if occasionally repetitive), as a cast of geopolitical insiders try to divine Vladimir Putin’s intent: “Doubt among allies, the public and among Ukrainians meant valuable time and space for Putin to maneuver.” Against this backdrop, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham implores Donald Trump to run again, notwithstanding the former president’s denial of his 2020 defeat. This provides unwelcome distraction for President Biden, portrayed as a thoughtful, compassionate lifetime politico who could not outrace time, as demonstrated in the June 2024 debate. Throughout, Trump’s prevarications and his supporters’ cynicism provide an unsettling counterpoint to warnings provided by everyone from former Joint Chief of Staff Mark Milley to Vice President Kamala Harris, who calls a second Trump term a likely “death knell for American democracy.” The author’s ambitious scope shows him at the top of his capabilities. He concludes with these unsettling words: “Based on my reporting, Trump’s language and conduct has at times presented risks to national security—both during his presidency and afterward.”
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668052273
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024
IN THE NEWS
PERSPECTIVES
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.
A former New York City dancer reflects on her zesty heyday in the 1970s.
Discovered on a Manhattan street in 2020 and introduced on Stanton’s Humans of New York Instagram page, Johnson, then 76, shares her dynamic history as a “fiercely independent” Black burlesque dancer who used the stage name Tanqueray and became a celebrated fixture in midtown adult theaters. “I was the only black girl making white girl money,” she boasts, telling a vibrant story about sex and struggle in a bygone era. Frank and unapologetic, Johnson vividly captures aspects of her former life as a stage seductress shimmying to blues tracks during 18-minute sets or sewing lingerie for plus-sized dancers. Though her work was far from the Broadway shows she dreamed about, it eventually became all about the nightly hustle to simply survive. Her anecdotes are humorous, heartfelt, and supremely captivating, recounted with the passion of a true survivor and the acerbic wit of a weathered, street-wise New Yorker. She shares stories of growing up in an abusive household in Albany in the 1940s, a teenage pregnancy, and prison time for robbery as nonchalantly as she recalls selling rhinestone G-strings to prostitutes to make them sparkle in the headlights of passing cars. Complemented by an array of revealing personal photographs, the narrative alternates between heartfelt nostalgia about the seedier side of Manhattan’s go-go scene and funny quips about her unconventional stage performances. Encounters with a variety of hardworking dancers, drag queens, and pimps, plus an account of the complexities of a first love with a drug-addled hustler, fill out the memoir with personality and candor. With a narrative assist from Stanton, the result is a consistently titillating and often moving story of human struggle as well as an insider glimpse into the days when Times Square was considered the Big Apple’s gloriously unpolished underbelly. The book also includes Yee’s lush watercolor illustrations.
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.Pub Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-27827-2
Page Count: 192
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2022
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