You Never Know
A Memoir
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4.4 • 291 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
***THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER***
There are many miles from the business school and basketball court at the University of Southern California to 50 million viewers for the final episode of a TV show called Magnum P.I. Tom Selleck has lived every one of those miles in his own iconoclastic and joyful way.
Frank, funny and open-hearted, You Never Know is an intimate memoir from one of the most beloved actors of our time, the highly personal story of a remarkable life and thoroughly accidental career. In his own voice and uniquely unpretentious style, the famed actor brings readers on his uncharted but serendipitous journey to the top in Hollywood, his temptations and distractions, his misfires and mistakes and, over time, his well-earned success. Along the way, he clears up an armload of misconceptions and shares dozens of never-told stories from all corners of his personal and professional life. His rambunctious California childhood. His clueless arrival as a good-looking college jock in Hollywood (from the Dating Game to the Fox New Talent Program to co-starring with Mae West and escorting her to black-tie social functions). What it was like to emerge as a mega-star in his mid-thirties and remain so for decades to come, an actor whose authenticity and ease in front of the camera connected with audiences worldwide while embodying and also redefining the clichés of onscreen manhood.
In You Never Know, Selleck recounts his personal friendships with a vivid army of A-listers, everyone from Frank Sinatra to Carol Burnett to Sam Elliott, paying special tribute to his mentor James Garner of The Rockford Files, who believed, like Selleck, that TV protagonists are far more interesting when they have rough edges. He also more than tips his hat to the American western and the scruffy band of actors, directors and other ruffians who helped define that classic genre, where Selleck has repeatedly found a happy home. Magnum fans will be fascinated to learn how Selleck put his career on the line to make Thomas Magnum a more imperfect hero and explains why he walked away from a show that could easily have gone on for years longer.
Hollywood is never easy, even for stars who make it look that way. In You Never Know, Selleck explains how he’s struggled to balance his personal and professional lives, frequently adjusting his career to protect his family’s privacy and normalcy. His journey offers a truly fresh perspective on a changing industry and a changing world. Beneath all the charm and talent and self-deprecating humor, Selleck’s memoir reveals an American icon who has reached remarkable heights by always insisting on being himself.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Magnum, PI actor Selleck delivers a breezy autobiography that covers his path from college basketball player to Hollywood heartthrob. While warming the bench for the USC Trojans in the early 1960s, Selleck harnessed his good looks to book a handful of appearances on The Dating Game. His agent then landed Selleck a meeting with Universal head Darryl Zanuck, who was so starstruck by Selleck's position on the Trojans that he offered him a slot in the studio's training program. There, Selleck befriended Sam Elliott and Lyle Waggoner, and fell in love with acting, stopping only briefly to serve in an Army reserve unit during Vietnam. With a gleeful propensity for name-dropping, Selleck describes his guest roles on shows including The Rockford Files and The Sacketts; his breakthrough on Magnum, PI; and his run-ins with showbiz royalty including Mae West and Frank Sinatra. The memoir's opening chapter, which recounts a bone-crunching Mulholland Drive car accident Selleck was in at 17, is a bit of a bait and switch: there's little gravity here, mostly glitzy recollections from a Hollywood stalwart. For the actor's fans, it's an ideal beach read.
Customer Reviews
You never know
I will have to watch Magnum now.
Interesting read
A Great Disservice
As someone who has enjoyed a fair amount of Tom’s career and wanted to learn more about its facets, this book wasn’t it. Ellis Hennican, who wrote this book, tells a story that would give the impression that either he has ADD or thinks you do. This book is best described as a hodgepodge of memories, scene recitals from shows and movies (many of which are the definition of obscure), quotes from people who have little to no bearing on the material, and chapters broken up by three asterisks with no memory going more than 3 pages before those familiar asterisks. It’s loosely connected on the timeline, and gives the impression that you’re watching a YouTube clip playlist. It’s a shame that a man with such an interesting career gave it to Hennican to tell.
Magnum, Not PI!
A fast and interesting read that’s more than just dates and names. I enjoyed Tom Selleck’s perspective on life and lessons he’s learned. I highly recommend this book!