Up Till Now: The Autobiography by William Shatner, David Fisher
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Book Reviews of Up Till Now: The Autobiography
Book Review: Not bad, except for the Star Trek V part
Summary: 4 Stars
The whole book has kind of an ironic overtone, because, for several years before Star Trek, Bill Shatner kept turning down network TV series offers because he didn't want to be typecast!!
And, he wasn't the first choice for James Tiberius Kirk when Jeffrey Hunter didn't pan out as Christopher Pike. But for another actor's decision, we could have had Jack Lord's pompadour on the bridge saying, "Book em, Spocko," or something like that.
Instead, Shatner got his big break and went on to write this book, and many others before.
Ultimately, the book is a good summer read. It's as over-the-top, and ultimately self-spoofing, as Bill Shatner is in the rest of his life. And, it's told in Bill Shatner's own cut-and-forward, Priceline-ish style.
Left unanswered, though puckishly referenced on the last page? The Shatner toupee.
But, Shatner is serious about many things, too -- marriages and relationships, his work as an actor and more.
However, he can get defensive at times. Yes, Paramount may have slashed his budget for directing Star Trek V and tinkered with the plot, but the plot was probably an even bigger turkey as he originally conceived it. Sorry, Bill, but you should have listened to Roddenberry when he said the "search for God" deal had been tried and flopped before. Paramount could have let you have the original script with 5x the special effects money you originally wanted PLUS 500 monkeys flying out Nimoy's butt and it still would have been a bomb.
Book Review: William Shatner, the actor, the man.
Summary: 4 Stars
William's Shatner autobiography Up Till Now, goes well beyond his role as Captain Kirk. While most Star Trek fans are likely aware that Shatner was an established television actor before Star Trek, most fans will learn a good deal about Shatner's pre-Star Trek roles. A good number of his pre-Star Trek stories are quite funny, the others are just good "human interest" tales.
Shatner also writes a good deal about his non-actor life. The women he has loved, the wife he lost, his love for horses. You seem as him as a man, beyond actor, beyond husband, beyond father.
William Shatner writes as who he is, a celebrity with a bigger-than-life persona. Yet, Shatner is well aware of his persona and isn't afraid to laugh at himself.
However, in the introduction to the book, Shatner reaches too far, too fast to look at himself. He has too many false starts for the reader to just start enjoying the book. The introduction by itself would merit a generous one star. There are also far too many digressions in the rest of the book.
However, don't fail to buy this book because of its Introduction and excessive digressions. Up Till Now simply has too many fresh and funny anecdotes and genuine humanity to pass up.
Book Review: For 342 pages it went fast, and I'm not a Trekkie!
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a thick book but the reading went fast because of the author's writing style.
I appreciated his honesty and self-deprecation (a trait he is know for). He lays it all out, his upbringing, his romantic relationships, his relationships with the cast and crew of his various TV shows and movies. Because I dabbled in the Esperanto artificial language years ago, and own his Incubus movie (all done in Esperanto), I liked hearing the details about the making of that movie.
I'm always admire people who enjoy what they do and you can tell by his writing that he is definitely in that group! He has always wanted to be an actor and stuck to his guns. I was amazed by all the twists and turns that his career took. He really puts his all into his craft.
Above all, I think William Shatner is a master storyteller. There are many stories in the book, and that is the main reason the reading went so quick. I was actually disappointed when I was done - I wanted more stories!
Book Review: Entertaining for fans but far too much self-congratulation
Summary: 4 Stars
William Shatner - or Shatner as he continually refers to himself - had the good fortune to be in the most successful TV series of all time, otherwise he would be long forgotten. Nevertheless he turns in an entertaining autobiography. The first thing that you learn about him is that he will do anything for a buck. Secondly that he has no concept of quality control - to him a Shakespearean play, a TV commercial, or a lurid movie are all pretty much on the same level. Thirdly, he has a rather high opinion of his own (limited) creative abilities - one can easily see why his Star Trek co-stars grew to despise him. Now that he has found success in "Boston Legal" he can even look back and find merit in such atrocities as "The Transformed Man". One thing you cannot accuse him of is being lazy. Even now is his 70s he is working hard, nor can you doubt his irrepressible self-belief. Well worth reading for fans but the self-congratulation does grate after a while.Book Review: Not Just for Star Trek Fans
Summary: 4 Stars
The theme of this enjoyable autobiography might best be captured by the classic Robert Hunter lyric, "what a long strange trip it's been." This is not a book full of anecdotes from Star Trek, although there are a few, but rather the story of a hard-working stage and screen actor who worked for years in times when most actors didn't make very much, and who succeeded, failed, made great and poor career decisions until he found himself in a role that started out as "another job" and ended up changing his life forever. Shatner has lots of interesting, and funny things to say about a life in entertainment and about fame. He has a healthy sense of humor and introspection about himself and his life. That sense of humor, while a delight, does not detract from the message that he is a far more interesting and serious person than many people give him credit as being.