Synopses & Reviews
An outrageous autobiography published to coincide with the Miramax film starring Drew Barrymore, George Clooney, and Sam Rockwell, directed by George Clooney.
Suspense, excess, danger, and exuberant fun come together in Chuck Barris's unlikely autobiography the tale of a wildly flamboyant 1970s television producer, better known as the infamous host of The Gong Show. What most people don't know is that Barris allegedly spent close to two decades as a decorated covert assassin for the CIA.
Barris, who achieved tremendous success as the creator and producer of hit TV game shows such as The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game, claims to have joined the CIA as an agent in the early 1960s, infiltrated the Civil Rights movement, met with militant Muslims in Harlem, and travelled abroad in order to kill enemies of the United States.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind has now been turned into a movie directed by and starring George Clooney, with Sam Rockwell as the author, but the original story reissued here in paperback is a wild and gripping read, spiced with intrigue, sex, bad behavior, and plenty of great one-liners. It deserves to become a classic.
Review
"After two decades of relative obscurity, Barris's memoir may finally find an eager audience....Even though Barris's reputation as a wacky TV show host doomed this literary venture when it was originally published, it is in fact a remarkably well-crafted and entertaining book, both unflinchingly personal and at times laugh-out-loud funny. Twenty years later, it reads like a classic." Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Chuck Barris is a former television executive and host of The Gong Show. He is the author of several books and is currently writing a sequel to his memoir. Chuck Barris and his wife, Mary, live in Manhattan.