Sam Wasson Popular Books

Sam Wasson Biography & Facts

Sam Wasson is an American author and publisher, who often writes about the history of cinema in Hollywood. His works include the biography Fosse, the history books Improv Nation: How We Made a Great American Art and The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood and the co-authored Hollywood: The Oral History. Early life and education Wasson was born in Los Angeles. His maternal grandfather was former Variety executive, Hal “Lew” Scott. Wasson attended Wesleyan University, and USC School of Cinematic Arts. Career During the writing of a biography about Bob Fosse (titled Fosse) researcher Jane Klein and Wasson unearthed lost footage of Fosse's 1961 ABC television show "Seasons of Youth”. In 2014, Fosse was one of six books shortlisted for the $10,000 Marfield Prize and received the Special Jury Prize at the George Freedley Memorial Award. Production rights for a limited television series based on the book were purchased by television channel FX in 2018. In 2020, Wasson published a book about the making of the 1974 movie Chinatown, titled The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood. Later that year, a film adaptation of The Big Goodbye was announced, with Lorne Michaels attached as producer and Ben Affleck as director. Also in 2020, Wasson co-founded a publishing house with producer Brandon Millan. Wasson was a visiting professor at Wesleyan University and Emerson College. In 2021, Wasson and William Rempel filed a lawsuit to unseal a 2010 deposition transcript of Roger Gunson, a former deputy district attorney, in relation to the Roman Polanski sexual abuse case. In July 2022, the court ruled for the transcripts to be unsealed. In 2022, Wasson and Jeanine Basinger wrote an oral history book titled Hollywood: The Oral History. Bibliography Books A Splurch in the Kisser: The Movies of Blake Edwards. Wesleyan University Press. 2006. ISBN 978-0-8195-6977-6. Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman. HarperCollins. 2010. ISBN 978-0-0620-0013-2. Paul on Mazursky. Wesleyan University Press. 2011. ISBN 978-0-8195-7144-1. Fosse. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2013. ISBN 978-0-5475-5329-0. Improv Nation: How We Made a Great American Art. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2017. ISBN 978-0-5445-5720-8. The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood. Flatiron Books. 2019. ISBN 978-1-2502-6629-3. Hollywood: The Oral History. HarperCollins. 2022. ISBN 978-0-0630-5696-1. References External links Official website Sam Wasson at IMDb. Discover the Sam Wasson popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Sam Wasson books.

Best Seller Sam Wasson Books of 2024

  • Singular Sensation synopsis, comments

    Singular Sensation

    Michael Riedel

    “Fun and gossipy.” The Wall Street Journal “A masterful history.” Publishers Weekly (starred review) “Engaging.” NewsweekA “brisk, insightful, and deliciously detailed take” (Kir...

  • The Way They Were synopsis, comments

    The Way They Were

    Robert Hofler

    Coinciding with its 50th anniversary, this intriguing and impeccably researched book is the first ever exploration of the movie that has earned an annual spot in the AFI’s Top 10 m...

  • ROAR synopsis, comments

    ROAR

    Bruce Wagner

    A new novel by Hollywood’s "master of satire."The myth of an epic, public lifeits triumphs and tragediesis a particularly American obsession. ROAR is a metafictional exploration of...

  • Razzle Dazzle synopsis, comments

    Razzle Dazzle

    Michael Riedel

    “A vivid pageturner” (NPR) detailing the rise, fall, and redemption of Broadwayits stars, its biggest shows, its producers, and all the drama, intrigue, and power plays that happen...