Synopses & Reviews
Irresistibly magnetic on stage, mesmerizing in movies, seven times an Academy Award nominee, Richard Burton rose from humble beginnings in Wales to become Hollywood's most highly paid actor and one of England's most admired Shakespearean performers. His epic romance with Elizabeth Taylor, his legendary drinking and story-telling, his dazzling purchases (enormous diamonds, a jet, homes on several continents), and his enormous talent kept him constantly in the public eye. Yet the man behind the celebrity faand#231;ade carried a surprising burden of insecurity and struggled with the peculiar challenges of a life lived largely in the spotlight.
This volume publishes Burton's extensive personal diaries in their entirety for the first time. His writings encompass many yearsand#8212;from 1939, when he was still a teenager, to 1983, the year before his deathand#8212;and they reveal him in his most private moments, pondering his triumphs and demons, his loves and his heartbreaks. The diary entries appear in their original sequence, with annotations to clarify people, places, books, and events Burton mentions.
From these hand-written pages emerges a multi-dimensional man, no mere flashy celebrity. While Burton touched shoulders with shining lightsand#8212;among them Olivia de Havilland, John Gielgud, Claire Bloom, Laurence Olivier, John Huston, Dylan Thomas, and Edward Albeeand#8212;he also played the real-life roles of supportive family man, father, husband, and highly intelligent observer. His diaries offer a rare and fresh perspective on his own life and career, and on the glamorous decades of the mid-twentieth century.
Review
andquot;Diaries? Autobiography? Time will tell, and may surprise.andquot;andmdash;Emlyn Williams, at Richard Burton's Memorial Service, London, August 1984
Review
"Full of surprises and revelations."—The Bookseller Emplyn Williams
Review
“Fun, fascinating, and sad.”—
Liz Smith The Bookseller
Review
andquot;The inspiring, salacious, sad, materialistic, insecure, arrogant, hilarious and dull ruminations of a most gifted actor. . . . A text that thrums with life and assures the rest is not silence.andquot;andmdash;Kirkus Review, starred review
Review
andquot;The words reveal someone who is reflective and thoughtful and someone who engaged intellectually with the world around him. It's not just the ale-and-women kind of imageandhellip; His diaries reveal a man who thought deeply about the world - past, present and future. Richard Burton was in search of 'what it all meant', but found little comfort in the lessons of historyandhellip; In 1970 he wrote: 'I love the world but if I take it too seriously I shall go mad.'andquot;andmdash;Simon de Bruxelles, The Times (London)
Review
andquot;Richard Burton's private diaries are being published for the first time, including passionate descriptions of Elizabeth Taylor as 'a wildly exciting lover-mistress' and 'beautiful beyond the dreams of pornography.'andquot;andmdash;Sam Marsden, Daily Mail (London)
Review
andquot;Richard Burton diaries reveal actor's passion and shame. He was the boy from the Welsh valleys whose rugged looks and voice of gold made him a star of stage and screenandhellip; He is frank about his drinking, his ambivalent feelings towards his own talent and the career that brought him such success.andquot;andmdash;londonwired.co.uk
Review
andquot;Stand back! Sally Burton just lit a literary firecracker and tossed it into the room. The widow of Britain's greatest film actor is presiding over the long-awaited publication of her late husband's diaries and they are beyond explosive.andquot;andmdash;Christopher Wilson, Daily Telegraph (London)
Review
and#8220;One might well suppose that Mr. Burton had no interests other than gossip, money, drink and sex. In fact, there's quite a bit more to and#8216;The Richard Burton Diariesand#8217; than that. Among other things, Mr. Burton turns out to have been an exceedingly literate man who had shrewd opinions about the many books that he read.and#8221;and#8212;Terry Teachout, Wall Street Journal
Review
and#8220;I have to say that, even in this culture when we seem to get too much information on celebrities, thereand#8217;s something about the words on these pages thatand#8217;s really fascinating.and#8221;and#8212;Matt Lauer, NBC TODAY
Review
andldquo;How many other working actors, epic drinkers and chronicled jet-setters would have offhandedly used the word andldquo;sanguicolusandrdquo; (living in the blood) in a diary? Here in what is, hands down, one of the great entertainment books of 2012, youandrsquo;ve got the enthralling results of more than two years of hard labor by editor Chris Williams melding the on-again, off-again diary of his eraandrsquo;s most fascinating failure, a man almost universally lamented by peers for never fulfilling his extraordinary gifts, simultaneously a genuinely poetic intellectual and just as genuine vulgarian.andrdquo;andmdash;Jeff Simon, Buffalo News (Editors Pick)
Review
andquot;So many lurid and appalling books have been written about Burton and Taylor that itandrsquo;s hard to see them plain.
The Richard Burton Diaries is, however, true to why tabloid writers flocked to them: Itandrsquo;s a love story so robust you can nearly warm your hands on its flames.andquot;andmdash;Dwight Garner,
The New York TimesReview
"Come to this volume for the love story, stay for the lit talk."—Dwight Garner, The New York Times Dwight Garner - New York Times
Review
"Come to this volume for the love story, stay for the lit talk.
andnbsp;. . .Burtonand#8217;s diaries, published now for the first time, are filled with . . . pocket-size delights. . . But I admired this complicated and fairly remarkable book for its deeper and more insinuating qualities as well.and#8221;and#8212;Dwight Garner,andnbsp;
The New York Timesandnbsp;
Review
“Unpretentious and aphoristic.”—Dwight Garner,
The New York Times Dwight Garner - New York Times
Review
andldquo;Itandrsquo;s hard to imagine a midcareer actor working today whose diaries will be half as literate or lemony.andrdquo;andmdash;Dwight Garner,
The New York TimesReview
and#8220;Burton kept a private journal for four decades; the entries show him to be smart, kind, slyly funnyand#8212;and utterly besotted with costar and wife (twice) Liz Taylor.and#8221;and#8212;Good Housekeeping, December Book Pick
Review
andldquo;[Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor] made andlsquo;a lovely charming decadent hopeless couple,andrsquo; as Burton notes, in a characteristically wry and graceful phrase. . . . A captivating story of misplaced success: Burton was a voracious and astute reader who nurtured unfulfilled literary ambitions. Even his greatest acting triumphs were a blow, representing andlsquo;the indignity and the boredom of having to learn the writings of another man.andrsquo;andrdquo;andmdash;The New Yorkerand#160;
Review
"The Richard Burton Diaries.and#160;Just great fun, and written out of an engaging, often comical bewilderment: How did a poor Welshman become not only a star, but a player on the world stage that was Elizabeth Taylorand#8217;s fame? As a kind of celebrity Pilgrimand#8217;s Progress, it is very tender without missing the fact that show business is hard."and#8212;Hilton Als, NewYorker.comand#160;
Review
and#8220;Of real interest is that Burton was almost as good a writer as an actor, read as many as three books a day, haunted bookstores in every city he set foot in, bought countless books on every conceivable subject and evaluated them rather shrewdly. . . Apt writing abounds. . . His love of language is also displayed dazzlingly in the recurrent loving tributes to Elizabeth. True, he also records their fights, but these are quickly forgotten by him after a good walk, and by both of them after a nightand#8217;s sleep. Much more frequent and pertinent are the love declarations.and#8221; and#8212;John Simon, The New York Times Book Reviewandnbsp;
Review
"The broody Burton was ambivalent about acting and really wanted to be a writer. He was.” —Judith Stone,
More magazine
Frederic Raphael - Times Literary Supplement
Review
andldquo;A natural storyteller who didnandrsquo;t care much for getting dates or punctuation exactly right, [Burton] offers a heartfelt inside view of the glamour and tumult that was Liz and Dick.andrdquo; andmdash;People magazineand#160;
Review
andldquo;He left just this partial, riveting diary, one of the great book left behind by anyone in the acting profession, and piercing evidence that the very famous, the very rich, the men with jewels and yachts may be haunted outcasts who recognize their own type.andrdquo;andmdash;David Thomson, The New Republicand#160;
Review
andldquo;His diaries are not those of a man afraid to take a harsh look at himself . . . he is much more likely, in dealing with his fights with Taylor, to record his own bad behavior than hers. Conversely, the diaries are remarkably free of self-congratulation, either for his achievements as an actor or for his great generosity with money.andrdquo; andmdash;Fintan Oandrsquo;Toole, The New York Review of Booksand#160;
Review
andquot;What was [Burton] thinking, this man widely considered his generation's pre-eminent interpreter of Shakespeare? His thoughts come alive in The Richard Burton Diaries, an epic ofand#160;erudition;andrdquo; andmdash;Carrie Rickey, The San Francisco Chronicleand#160;
Review
and#8220;The Richard Burton who emerges from these diaries is a far better man than even his wildest fan might have expected. Heand#8217;s so sensitive, intelligent, deeply well-read and supremely well-informed that you can almost kid yourself heand#8217;d have been fun to have to dinner. It would be absurd, of course, to call his a model life. But nobody who has read this book could call it a wasted one.and#8221; and#8212;Christopher Bray, The Wall Street Journalandnbsp;
Review
andldquo;These diaries offer a delightfully unvarnished glimpse at the actor's life, from his reading habits and jet-setting to his tumultuous relationship with Elizabeth Taylor.andrdquo; andmdash;The Los Angeles Timesand#160;
Review
andquot;Burton's charisma comes across clearly inand#160;The Richard Burtonand#160;Diaries, a lively collection of the star's diary entries written between 1939 and 1983 and compiled by Chris Williams. . . . The daily musings of Taylor's hubby Nos. 5 and 6 also reveal a profound thinker who read as heartily as he drank, was devoted to his family and loved politics.andrdquo; andmdash;Daniel Bubbeo, Newsdayand#160;
Review
andldquo;This mammoth, unsanitized, and handsomely presented collection of Burtonandrsquo;s innermost thoughts, along with the fascinating minutiae of a huge starandrsquo;s day-to-day existence, should restore his reputation as one of the most original Hollywood stars of all time.andrdquo; andmdash;Booklist, Starred Reviewand#160;
Review
andquot;It reveals somebody who is much more reflective and thoughtful and someone who 'engaged intellectually with the world around him. It's not just the ale-and-women kind of image.'andquot;andmdash;Michael Seamark, Daily Mail
Review
"Often melancholy and frequently funnyand#8230; It is a voice to make you fall in love with the man."and#8212;Sarah Crompton, Belfast Telegraph
Review
"Irresistibleand#8230; [Burtonand#8217;s] diaries offer a rare and fresh perspective on his life and career, as well as on the glamorous decades of the mid-20th century."and#8212;Sight and Sound
Review
"Burton loved literature, and how proud heand#8217;d have been to know that in his diaries he demonstrates considerable literary gifts. His observations about his peers are brilliantand#8230; This indispensable book is meticulously edited by Professor Chris Williams."and#8212;Roger Lewis, The Financial Times
Review
"These memoirs reveal remarkable new detail about two of historys most enigmatic stars."—Matt Warren, The Lady Roger Lewis - The Financial Times
Review
"The new publication of [Richard Burtons] diaries, the first-ever single volume… leads us to the heart of Burton, as a warm, passionate man of deep insecurity and powerful perception emerges."—Good Book Guide Matt Warren - The Lady
Review
"The Richard Burton Diaries… offers a compelling insight into the mind of a major film star."—Christopher Silvester, Daily Express Good Book Guide
Review
"There is plenty of red meat here for anyone interested in cinema, the phenomenon of fame and gigantic riches, or even in delicious, high-grade gossip."—Frank McLynn, Literary Review Christopher Silvester - The Daily Express
Review
"Forensically detailed, uncynical and unsentimental… The Richard Burton Diaries is an addictive, articulate compendium that dazzles and delights throughout its immense length… Most present day actors would read this and weep at the level of sheer damned glamour and sexiness flooding his daily life… Every page provides a glittering revelation. It is the cinema book of the year."—Christopher Fowler, Independent on Sunday Frank McLynn - Literary Review
Review
"This is an absolute treat. Burtons mass of meditations is swamped by his love for Elizabeth Taylor." —Jonathan Dean, The Sunday Times Christopher Fowler - The Independent on Sunday
Review
"The Richard Burton Diaries… will fascinate a wide range of readers. These journal jottings are, in their way, highly articulate and will thrill people who are captivated by the way the mystery of private life can be illuminated by the intimate voice of one of the more notable performers in recent memory, one who was equally famous as a lover, a drinker and a classical actor." —Peter Craven, Weekend Australian Jonathan Dean - The Sunday Times
Review
"Burton records his life like a gripping drama, where ‘tomorrow is always a surprise. You miss him when you put the book down. His is a voice that lingers."—Sarah Crompton, The Daily Telegraph Peter Craven - Weekend Australian
Review
"Oh, what a pleasure reading Richard Burtons diaries has proved! Not only packed with soundbites… they also demonstrate what we first knew from Melvyn Braggs 1988 biography: that if Burton had not chosen to be an actor he could easily have enjoyed a flourishing career as author, critic or even academic… Chris Williams, the editor, is a Welsh academic, and it shows… He nails even the most obscure Welsh allusion."—Finches Quarterly Review New Yorker
Review
"Vivid and curiously touching, Burtons diaries are a telling, often painfully truthful addition to the social history of the years between 1960 and 1974."—Frederic Raphael, Times Literary Supplement Finches Quarterly Review
Review
and#8220;The most salient part of The Richard Burton Diaries (now out in paperback from Yale University Press and a far superior 'beach read' to any Revenge Wears Prada folderol) is not the great Welsh actorand#8217;s fabled love of language, his stage fright or his splurges on private airplanes and pedigreed jewels for the love of his life, Elizabeth Taylor.and#8221;and#8212;Alexandra Jacobs, The New York Times
Review
“Inevitably, theres a ton of ego in these journals, but also intelligence, tenderness, good taste (‘Ive always refused to talk to Jeffrey Arthur), keen observation and honesty.”—The Independent Alexandra Jacobs - The New York Times
Review
and#8220;In these pagesand#8212;which Burton began when he was fourteen and continued until the year before his deathand#8212;he strips away the larger-than-life abstraction that he became for the public to reveal a human dimension more complex than any biographer could ever hope to capture. He is sensitive, intelligent, literary, outwardly and inwardly curious, tender, sometimes boorish and spiteful but conscious of fair play, wickedly discerning and funny, surprisingly modest, wildly generous, a delightful gossip, and virtually never boringand#8212;something that would have frightened and appalled him.and#8221;and#8212;Mary Hawthorne, The New Yorkerand#8217;s and#8220;Page-Turnerand#8221; blog
Review
andquot;Full of surprises and revelations.andquot;andmdash;The Bookseller
Review
andldquo;Fun, fascinating, and sad.andrdquo;andmdash;
Liz SmithReview
andldquo;Unpretentious and aphoristic.andrdquo;andmdash;Dwight Garner,
The New York Timesand#160;
Review
andquot;The broody Burton was ambivalent about acting and really wanted to be a writer. He was.andrdquo; andmdash;Judith Stone,
More magazine
Synopsis
The irresistible, candid diaries of Richard Burton, published in their entirety for the first time
Synopsis
The irresistible, candid diaries of Richard Burton, published in their entirety for the first time Irresistibly magnetic on stage, mesmerizing in movies, seven times an Academy Award nominee, Richard Burton rose from humble beginnings in Wales to become Hollywood's most highly paid actor and one of England's most admired Shakespearean performers. His epic romance with Elizabeth Taylor, his legendary drinking and story-telling, his dazzling purchases (enormous diamonds, a jet, homes on several continents), and his enormous talent kept him constantly in the public eye. Yet the man behind the celebrity fa ade carried a surprising burden of insecurity and struggled with the peculiar challenges of a life lived largely in the spotlight. This volume publishes Burton's extensive personal diaries in their entirety for the first time. His writings encompass many years--from 1939, when he was still a teenager, to 1983, the year before his death--and they reveal him in his most private moments, pondering his triumphs and demons, his loves and his heartbreaks. The diary entries appear in their original sequence, with annotations to clarify people, places, books, and events Burton mentions. From these hand-written pages emerges a multi-dimensional man, no mere flashy celebrity. While Burton touched shoulders with shining lights--among them Olivia de Havilland, John Gielgud, Claire Bloom, Laurence Olivier, John Huston, Dylan Thomas, and Edward Albee--he also played the real-life roles of supportive family man, father, husband, and highly intelligent observer. His diaries offer a rare and fresh perspective on his own life and career, and on the glamorous decades of the mid-twentieth century.
Synopsis
The irresistible, candid diaries of Richard Burton, published in their entirety
"Just great fun, and written out of an engaging, often comical bewilderment: How did a poor Welshman become not only a star, but a player on the world stage that was Elizabeth Taylor's fame?"--Hilton Als, NewYorker.com "Of real interest is that Burton was almost as good a writer as an actor, read as many as three books a day, haunted bookstores in every city he set foot in, bought countless books on every conceivable subject and evaluated them rather shrewdly. . . . Apt writing abounds."--John Simon, New York Times Book Review
Irresistibly magnetic on stage, mesmerizing in movies, seven times an Academy Award nominee, Richard Burton rose from humble beginnings in Wales to become Hollywood's most highly paid actor and one of England's most admired Shakespearean performers. His epic romance with Elizabeth Taylor, his legendary drinking and story-telling, his dazzling purchases (enormous diamonds, a jet, homes on several continents), and his enormous talent kept him constantly in the public eye. Yet the man behind the celebrity fa ade carried a surprising burden of insecurity and struggled with the peculiar challenges of a life lived largely in the spotlight. This volume publishes Burton's extensive personal diaries in their entirety for the first time. His writings encompass many years--from 1939, when he was still a teenager, to 1983, the year before his death--and they reveal him in his most private moments, pondering his triumphs and demons, his loves and his heartbreaks. The diary entries appear in their original sequence, with annotations to clarify people, places, books, and events Burton mentions. From these hand-written pages emerges a multi-dimensional man, no mere flashy celebrity. While Burton touched shoulders with shining lights--among them Olivia de Havilland, John Gielgud, Claire Bloom, Laurence Olivier, John Huston, Dylan Thomas, and Edward Albee--he also played the real-life roles of supportive family man, father, husband, and highly intelligent observer. His diaries offer a rare and fresh perspective on his own life and career, and on the glamorous decades of the mid-twentieth century.
Synopsis
In his personal diaries Richard Burton is a man quite different from the one we familiarly "know" as acclaimed actor, international film star, and jet-set celebrity. From his private, handwritten pages there emerges a different person—a family man, a father, a husband, a man often troubled and always keenly observing. Understood through his own words, day to day and year to year, Burton becomes a fully rounded human being who, with a wealth of talent and a surprising burden of insecurity, confronts the peculiar challenges of a life lived largely in the spotlight.
This volume publishes for the first time the surviving diaries of Richard Burton (born Richard Jenkins, 1925-1984). The diaries were written between 1939 and 1983—throughout his career and the years of his celebrated marriages to Elizabeth Taylor. Diary entries appear in their original sequence, with annotations to clarify the people, places, books, and events he mentions. At times Burton struggles to come to terms with the unfulfilled potential of his life and talent. In other entries, he crows over achievements and hungers for greater challenges. He may be watching his weight, watching his drinking, or watching other men watch his Elizabeth. Always he is articulate, opinionated, and fascinating. His diaries offer a rare and fresh perspective on his own life and career, Elizabeth Taylor's, and the glamorous world of film, theater, and celebrity that they inhabited.
About the Author
Chris Williams is professor of Welsh history, director of the Research Institute for Arts and Humanities, and deputy director of the College of Arts and Humanities, Swansea University. He lives in Swansea, Wales.