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American Prince

A Memoir

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About this listen

 He was the Golden Boy of the Golden Age. Dashing and debonair, Tony Curtis arrived on the scene in a blaze of bright lights and celluloid. His good looks, smooth charm, and natural talent earned him fame, women, and adulation–Elvis copied his look and the Beatles put him on their Sgt. Pepper album cover. But the Hollywood life of his dreams brought both invincible highs and debilitating lows. Now, in his captivating, no-holds-barred autobiography, Tony Curtis shares the agony and ecstasy of a private life in the public eye.
No simple tell-all, American Prince chronicles Hollywood during its heyday. Curtis revisits his immense body of work and regales readers with stories of his associations with Frank Sinatra, Laurence Olivier, director Billy Wilder, as paramours Natalie Wood and Marilyn Monroe, among others.
Written with humor and grace, American Prince is a testament to the power of living the life of one’s dreams. Entertainment & Celebrities

Critic reviews

“[F]illed with fond recollections of [Curtis’s] friendships with the famous and powerful but punctuated, too, by harsh words for Hollywood legends he says did him wrong….Curtis spares few intimate details about his years as a Hollywood lothario, including his teenage affair with a redheaded, ponytailed Marilyn Monroe.”
—USA Today


Praise for Tony Curtis

“When you’re with Tony Curtis, you’re with somebody very alive. He was—and is—one of the most ‘up’ people I have ever known.”
—Sidney Poitier

“Tony Curtis could have just been the beautiful young leading man, handsome, charming as hell . . . [but] he wanted to be a good actor, and he’s the only guy I know wholearned his craft successfully.”
—Jack Lemmon

“For Some Like It Hot, I wanted a straight leading man and a comedian. I was sure Tony was right for it. Tony is so open and animated. . . . It was a huge, wonderful
plus for the picture.”
—Billy Wilder
All stars
Most relevant
I liked this book - Tony Curtis is an engaging and likeable character, and his description of Hollywood and its stars is more than quite interesting; and as other reviewers have commented, the narrator sounds very like him, bringing the tale more alive. But like a lot of show-biz autobiographies, it gets a little repetitive, and it does lack for variation in pace and tone.

Best if you are a Tony Curtis fan - which I am!

Interesting if a tad repetive

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I think one of the best things about this book is that Don Leslie who narrates actually sounds like Tony Curtis so you can easily believe that it is Tony himself telling this life story. Achieving a successful career against the odds, this is a no-holds-barred story that gives an excellent insight into Old Hollywood's studio system where the actors were held under contract and without a good agent could suffer years of poor roles and exploitative contracts.

A colourful character from beginning to end, he talks candidly about his rise to fame, his marriages, family life and tragedies, numerous relationships and "flings", prejudices and achievements. One of Hollywood's true stars and legends. Long live Tony Curtis!

Excellent book, fantastic actor

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