Who knows why they called McCarthy "The Silver Bullet," but with only a hint of nostalgia, McCarthy takes a compelling dash through an exciting but bygone day that makes clear why he became a reporter. Rough edges? Sure. But this is a reporter with a strong ego, not pomposity. No thumbsucking here.It's down on the street.

Finally; a new generation will know what catching a "scoop" is all about! Ed McCarthy, author and newsman, reveals that the best news is often not to be found in the headlines. McCarthy's style captures the innocense of a nation gripped by what was written as well as what was held back from print. You'll enjoy his sharp wit as the author takes you on a tour when the pen was mightier than the picture and the simple story was bigger than the hype. McCarthy has a talent for making you feel like you're right there with him as events unfold. Ed is a great storyteller and quite honestly, you find yourself agreeing and arguing with his point of view. At the end of the book you're ready to meet him and strike up a strong conversation! If HBO gets their hands on this... WORKING PRESS will do for the newsman what ARLISS does for the sports agent. The big advantage with WORKING PRESS is...these stories are real!

A reporter's reporter, Ed McCarthy pulls no punches as he takes readers through some of the most exciting newspaper stories in the 20th century. This personalized account behind the headlines is both fascinating and shocking. The media knew no bounds, no limits, and flexed its muscles that made politicians shrink and the world go around. Those glory days where reporters were reporters, and honor meant more than filing a cheap expose, Ed McCarthy is the one and only silver bullet

This is a simply written book on writing a speech. It is short and easy to read. It includes large margins for adding personal notes for later reference. The book is primarily written for new speechwriters but is a great refresher for seasoned speechwriters. McCarthy has divided the book into two parts-- planning and writing. He states it is necessary to start with good planning rather than jump right into writing. Following his easy steps will make any speech or oral presentation much easier.It should be in the personal library of any leader or future leader.

The Filmmaker's Handbook is a comprehensive guide to the art & science of filmmaking. Though it is currently falling abit behind with it's coverage of digital technology, as this is moving so fast it's hard for any book to stay current.

It has a lot of excellent information though, and goes into detail many other books lack. It's useful as a reference guide, and not so dry that it doesn't make an interesting read. If you are studying film, or want to get into the industry this book is a must have.

I'm getting into film production but don't have time to attend a real film school. And I'm basically interested in the mechanics of filmmaking - so this book The Filmmkaer's Handbook is perfect.

It gets down to all the basics of filmmaking. If you want to know what a line producer does, how light meters work and the ratio of film stock to projection, this is the book for you.

It's thick but easy to read with nice B&W illustrations. As a novice and somebody who wants to know how a movie is made this book is perfect. I was really impressed by how simple and to the point this book was on the mechanics and made it an easy read. I will keep in hand at all times for reference as well!

Very well done and exactly what I was looking for in a filmmaking book!

As an aspiring young filmmaker, the first thing I was told to do was go out and get a copy of the Filmmaker's Handbook. Imagine my surprise when I found out that the book had been updated in March of 1999, and that now it included all kinds of information about the digital age. I have learned so much from this book. The book goes over the entire film process, and does it in a straight-forward manner. It is a great start for beginners, yet it includes a rich amount of information for the professional. Anyone who has ever thought about a career in film really needs to get a copy of this book. Written in a manner that neither patronizes nor confuses the reader, the Filmmaker's Handbook is the best book I have skimmed or read on film, and believe me, I've looked at a lot.

Although not surprising that a collection of essays by different authors should turn out to be a mixed bag, I still had high hopes for this book, but as a fan of the novel and all 3 movie versions, I ended up very disappointed. In no particular order: Stephen King, as usual, goes on too long with his all-too familiar little jokes and brand name references, taking up many more pages than a majority of the essays! Also, if you purport to be a fan and are going to write an essay, make sure your facts are correct, ie: in the Kaufmann movie version, it's Miles' friend at the end who discovers that Miles is now a pod-person...not Miles' girlfriend. Also, two almost identical essays on the fiction of Jack Finney, Tracy Knight's analysis borders on the ridiculous in it's depth. Hey, it's only a novel and 3 movies, Tracy and it's author has already claimed it was written for entertainment value ONLY...that's it...nothing more.. And did almost every essay have to mention the now overused opinions that the novel and/or movies were concerned with McCarthy withhunts or the Red Scare? Seeing it pop up in the majority of the essays was quite annoying....write something NEW, people. Thankfully, as expected, the interviews were enjoyable, with the exception of Kevin McCarthy's. Reading Mr. McCarthy himself was a delight, but one wishes interviewer John McCarty would have taken a more professional approach as opposed to the more amateur/juvenile route he chose. My favorite (NOT) expressions coming from Mr. McCarty: "white men can jump"! AND "yessir-re-bob"! Yessir-re-bob??!! Please! Quite embarrassing for me to even read.

So, I bought this book, mainly becase they had thrown in Stephen King's name on the cover. I was looking forward to a lenghty, irreverent discussion on the book and three movies, knowing King was a died in the wool fan. Why, I had read what he had to say about Finney's novel and the first two movies in his "Danse Macabre"! I thought, "The guy must have lot in his mind in the ten-plus years since he wrote that!" When the book finally made it to my door, I quickly read Dean Koontz's funny foreword and was ready to dig my teeth into King's text...

...Oh-my-Gawd! This cannot be! They just reprinted the old essay from "Danse Macabre"! Oh, the horror, the horror... Having a lot of references to the rest of King's book, and with a lot of footnotes that in this context seem uncalled for, it looses strenght.

On to the rest of the book:

Two similar, very redundant pieces on Jack Finney's ouvre. They even share the same quotes from other people analyzing Finney's books. Yet, I'm thankful for both of them, since this is the first bibliography of Finney's work I come across.

Tracy Knight makes an entertaining analysis on the second movie incarnation of "Body Snathchers". She may go on about the same "Me Decade" overtones that everyone and their brother have already talked about (New Age thinking, cults, pop psychology), but she kept my interest all along.

Then there's the McCarthy/McCarty interview. It just goes on and on! Several pages on McCarthy's beginnings before getting to the point, which is the "Body Snatcher" movies. The sheer lenght of the interview may be a bit of self indulgence on Mr. McCarthy's part, him being the editor of the book. But that John McCarthy guy... I've never read a goofier and blander interviewer before! Where did they get him?

And reading between lines, the book is biased to the second film. The first one is acknowledged as a classic, though one mangled by Hollywood. The third one is shown like a flawed sequel to the second, even taking elements from it.

After finishing this book, I was left feeling it lacked cohesion. Granted, a collection of essays and interviews by different authors is bound to have different points of view. Yet, I never felt the book as a whole said anything about the appeal and persistence of the pod people.

CONCLUSIONS:

If you are a fan of Jack Finney or of the second film, buy this book. Otherwise, you'll fare a lot better reading Finney's novel.

Oh! And if you want to read what Stephen King thinks of it, go get "Danse Macabre". You'll get a much richer insight of it and its place in modern fiction.