Motherhood and Hollywood: How to Get a Job Like Mine
by Patricia Heaton
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Book Summary Information
Author: Patricia HeatonEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-09-17
ISBN: 0375508716
Number of pages: 207
Publisher: Villard
Book Reviews of Motherhood and Hollywood: How to Get a Job Like Mine
Book Review: another amazing success for Ms. Heaton
Summary: 5 Stars
The world of Hollywood is one that introduces our current society to an array of different people. The choices they make, the behaviors they express and the dispositions conveyed are all contributing factors to this world. Unfortunately, it has become somewhat of a norm to come across Hollywood actors and actresses with negative messages that do not impact others the way they should.
I am sure that Patricia Heaton is not perfect, but by reading her memoir I was introduced to a person who seems like she may have something special--something just a little bit different. Heaton's role as a devoted wife and very loving mother on the sitcom "Everybody Loves Raymond" has helped her establish herself as a positive role model in the often dysfunctional world of Hollywood. She has humor and a great deal of class, both of which are terrific qualities that aided her in penning a worthy book.
"Motherhood and Hollywood" is a memoir that works very well for itself. It is basically 207 pages of Patricia Heaton tossing out various little stories from her childhood and offering a humorous commentary on many events in her life. She probably figured that people would love just reading a book about her human side and the everyday human stuff she does on a regular basis, and she was right. She acknowledges early on that much of what she wrote about her childhood was inspired from her former diaries, and you can tell by the way she writes it that it was clearly pulled right from the pages of a little girl's diary (which does, in a sense, make it all the more endearing).
That being said, there are a few very important elements that make this particular actress's story worth reading. For starters, she is a genuinely funny person, incorporating a lot of personal anecdotes and ideas about her life without grappling with wordy sentences or complicated storylines. She simply tells everything as it is, not sugar-coating anything or hiding behind any kind of facade. Too many Hollywood figures out there tend to play along into something fake in an attempt to tap the public into something that doesn't really exist, but Patricia Heaton doesn't go there. She is honest in her words about her family and career, and she displays gratitude for it without going way over the top. This indicates someone who is telling a story openly and using her own voice without worrying what other people are going to think about it.
I do agree with another reviewer here in that it would have been nice to read more about Patricia's experiences on "Everybody Loves Raymond." Given that this show's 9-year run was clearly a large part of her life, I would have loved to see how she related to all her fellow castmates, especially the three kids who played her children. One thing I have to say is that I have never heard Patricia (or any of the "Raymond" cast, for that matter) talk much about the Sweeten kids. Granted, they were not a huge part of the show at all and did not even appear in every episode, but the formula used with them worked quite nicely on the show, and it would be nice to read about the interactions that went on behind the scenes with everyone involved.
Maybe it was important, though, for Patricia not to go into too much depth in her book about "Raymond." Maybe by generally keeping quiet about it and only mentioning it briefly a couple of times, she was illustrating something very important. After all, a lot of people who drone on and on about certain things and talk about how "amazing" they were are trying to hide something. It seems that Patricia had a great experience working on this show, and she doesn't need to go on about it at great length in a memoir to show that. She doesn't have anything to prove to anyone, and that is a sign of a truly classy person.
Another huge factor in Patricia's book that I liked is how well she combined several emotional parts of her life with a humorous edge to prevent it from being too corny or unbelievable. Take her mother, for example, who died when she was about 12. She gives a beautiful tribute to her mom in one chapter, recalling some of those most special things about her without feeling the need to go overboard with it. The same went with her father--she expresses a genuine affection and admiration for him while keeping it real in her method of expressing it. Her four sons and her husband, too, are discussed at various points in the book, but never once does Patricia resort to the cliche "I have this perfect, amazing family and nobody is better than them" line. Essentially, she conveys more power and love in what she does not say, and in that she manages to put together something that can make you laugh while also shedding light on her position as a happy, normal, and well-adjusted individual.
As another reviewer on this site also said, I did notice that Heaton's writing style occasionally indicates some sarcasm and even a bit of superficiality, like she's bragging a little about how she was raised by normal parents and had a normal, happy childhood. On the other hand, though, I think she is just trying to get some humor across, not really meaning to be rude, but just trying to convey the fact that not every Hollywood star is a fixed "statistic." In a lot of ways, it is very refreshing to get the perspective of a person who was brought up by what seems to be a very normal and well-adjusted family.
Perhaps the single aspect of this book that I enjoyed more than anything else is the major reason I recommend it so highly to fans of Patricia Heaton. Toward the end, she discusses her two Emmy wins for her role on "Raymond." Keeping up her tradition of being wholly honest, she admits that these accomplishments were among the most incredible and surreal experiences in her life, but in the end it was just a matter of having 15 minutes of fame. The flame doesn't burn forever; the limelight does not hold for more than a couple of weeks. New people are coming up with personal successes every day, and those preceding them are, in a sense, overshadowed. It's not a matter of being pessimistic: it's REALITY. I give Patricia an amazing amount of credit for writing that; I applaud her for admitting that she enjoys those earthly things but acknowledges that some things are just plain MORE IMPORTANT. When all is said and done, she has her family, friends, and other people in her life who mean more than an Emmy award ever could.
Yes, believe it or not, there are still people in this world who are promoting that kind of beautiful message, and there are some Hollywood figures who are worth listening to and respecting.
If you are seeking to find out exactly what Patricia Heaton's book is about, it can pretty much be summarized with that sole piece of information.
But at the same time, don't expect it to be too cheesy or sticky sweet. Patricia uses the perfect blend of sincerity and humor here, not unlike her Debra character on "Raymond," and I feel priveleged to have come across her book. Any fan will enjoy reading it and feel good in knowing that while this actress inevitably has her own imperfections like everyone else, she also has something special and admirable in her own right that nobody can take away.
Summary of Motherhood and Hollywood: How to Get a Job Like Mine
?The really important things in life are your family and friends. And what will people say about you at your funeral?that you won an Emmy once, or that you were a good person, kind and generous? Well, as for me, I hope it's the latter. And the fact that I recently commissioned an Emmy-shaped coffin just eliminates the need for anyone to bring it up.?Everybody knows that Patricia Heaton plays the hilarious, wise, and tempestuous married-with-kids everywoman on Everybody Loves Raymond. What they might not know is that in real life she is married, has four boys under eight years old, and is just as funny offscreen as on.
Motherhood and Hollywood is Patricia Heaton?s humorous and poignant collection of essays on life, love, marriage, child-rearing, show business, having parents, being a parent, spousal rage, surviving fame, success, and the shame of underarm flab. She is warm, witty, and refreshingly irreverent.
Heaton grew up in suburban Cleveland, one of five children of devout Roman Catholic parents. Her father was a noted sportswriter for The Plain Dealer; her mother died suddenly and unexpectedly when Heaton was twelve. Love, fast food, and an unflagging sense of humor held the clan together and propelled Patricia on a showbiz career that began with hilariously nightmarish struggles in New York, eventually leading to a triumphant move to Los Angeles.
In Motherhood and Hollywood, Patricia Heaton pours out her heart and minces no words. She?s taking all prisoners for cookies and a glass of Jack Daniel?s and diet ginger ale. Laughter ensues.
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