The Great Movies by Roger Ebert
Of all the arts, movies are the most powerful aid to empathy, and good ones make us into better people. – from the introduction of The Great Movies by [...]
Stamped by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
This isn't a history book. ...Instead, what this is, is a book that contains history. A history directly connected to our lives as we live them right this minute. [...]
Movie Speak by Tony Bill
If you walk onto a set, you have to talk the talk. – from Movie Speak: How to Talk Like You Belong on a Film Set by Tony Bill [...]
Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
True belonging is not passive. It’s not the belonging that comes with just joining a group. It’s not fitting in or pretending or selling out because its safer. It’s [...]
The Actor’s Life by Jenna Fischer
You cannot possibly get every role you audition for, so don't put that kind of pressure on yourself. ... Your job is to go in, time and time again, [...]
Fascinate by Sally Hogshead
The most fascinating option wins. Everything else goes extinct. – from Fascinate: How to Make Your Brand Impossible to Resist by Sally Hogshead I [...]
Wait, What? by James E. Ryan
In almost every instance, it is better to ask clarifying questions first and to argue second. – from Wait, What?: And Life's Other Essential Questions by James E. Ryan [...]
High Noon by Glenn Frankel
Each generation has read into the film its own politics and values. Yet what has largely been forgotten is that High Noon's original creator set out with a very [...]
The Course of Love by Alain de Botton
Rabih is not marrying – and therfore fixing forever – a feeling. He is marrying a person with whom, under a very particular, privileged, and fugitive set of circumstances, [...]
Bossypants by Tina Fey
Photo belongs to Amazon.com Here's another great bedtime autobiography: Bossypants by Tina Fey. Light, easy, and laugh-out-loud funny, Fey describes her nerdy growing up years to being one of [...]
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
My acting coach went gaga over this book over our Christmas break and strongly encouraged all of the students in her acting studio to read it. I was eager [...]
Born Standing Up by Steve Martin
Photo Credit: Amazon I forget exactly how and why I came across this book on my library's website and downloaded it to my Kindle. Except that I [...]
Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris
Photo Credit: The New York Times I'm the kind of guy who needs substantial wind-down time to end my day. I found long ago that movies, television, [...]
Self-Management for Actors by Bonnie Gillespie
You are who you are, and opportunities are out there. You're in this for the long haul and you can start whenever, wherever you are. Always move forward to [...]
Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris
I've always admired the well-rounded entertainers who crossed the fields of music, film, and stage effortlessly. Entertainers like Gene Kelly, Bing Crosby, and Fred Astaire. And this is why [...]
The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer
To erase the possibility of empathy is to erase the possibility of art. Theater, fiction, horror stories, love stories. This is what art does. Good or bad, it imagines [...]
I Don’t Want to Talk About It by Terrence Real
There is a terrible collusion in our society, a cultural cover-up about depression in men. – Terrence Real I mentioned in a previous post that I'm defeating depression. While [...]
The Power of the Actor by Ivana Chubbuck
Earlier this spring I was working on a scene for the Nashville Acting Studio with fellow actor Hannah Renee Jackson. During our after-rehearsal conversation she recommended this book. I'm [...]
A Community Called Taize by Jason Brian Santos
I first saw the word on a church sign in downtown Nashville. First Presbyterian was advertising their Taize service. I understood it to be the anti-megachurch, production driven, rock [...]
Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin
I recently finished listening to an audiobook by Geoff Colvin titled Talent is Overrated: what really separates world-class performers from everyone else. It's a scientific look – a sometimes very [...]
Letters to a Young Artist by Anna Deavere Smith
Mentors are extremely valuable in any career. Valuable and, in my experience, very hard to come by. In the arts, the people who could potentially be the most helpful [...]
The Acting Bible by Michael Powell
I just finished reading a great book on acting the other day called The Acting Bible: The complete resource for aspiring actors by Michael Powell. It has a hard cover around [...]
Murphy’s Laws of Songwriting by Ralph Murphy
Author, guitarist, and my friend, Chad Jeffers introduced me to this book. Ralph Murphy is a songwriter / producer / publisher and an executive for ASCAP. I've been reading [...]
