At age seven, Frank Rich became addicted to the theater. Living in D.C. he saw a lot of shows on their way to Broadway, and ones that never got there. To me, watching a boy find his niche so early and pursue it so ardently was fascinating. His interest in theater also saved him during his parents' divorce and subsequent remarriages. His stepfather is a brute in some respects, but he also loved the theater and supported Rich's ardor for it. Rich's ambivalence becomes ours.
Although the memoir ends before Rich found his way to reviewing plays for the New York Times, most people who picked this book up in 2001 and later know that. It is too bad he didn't write about that in a second volume but maybe it is not as gripping a story as this one. Highly recommended for theater lovers.
6 comments:
How do you like Rich's theater critiques? And his subsequent political and general commentary? A mixed bag for me, but how much of life isn't.
I haven't read a lot of memoirs lately, Patti, and they can be really good. Glad you reminded me of this one.
I have not really kept up with him as a political commenter. And I can't say his theater critiques stayed with me as much as some of his contemporaries. He was very much fixated on musicals as a kid. I wonder if that was the genre he mostly reviewed. We only began getting the NYT when they introduced a teacher's discount so I missed a lot of his heyday.
It seems like I read mostly memoirs lately.
I liked GHOST LIGHT when I read it 20 years ago. Frank Rich shows up on MSNBC from time to time. I found his theater reviews to be detailed and insightful even when I didn't agree with his opinions. Rich impresses me as a very bright guy who loved his job.
Early on, Rich seemed way too negative, but maybe mellowed somewhat over the years. I also read the way more acerbic John Simon in New York for years. Now he could be very offensive, especially in his gratuitous comments about women's looks.
I find Richard Brody, THE NEW YORKER, way too negative about many movies. Also Dwight Garner the NYT book reviewer can really go for the jugular.
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