(Bought at Time and Space Limited Used Bookstore in Hudson, NY for $7): Charles Busch's wildly entertaining memoir is as funny as his dozens of stage comedies (I've seen 13 of them as well as two musicals for which he wrote the book, his cabaret act and two of his movie screenplays.) He alternates a straightforward narrative of his career from childhood, college and stage and film triumphs with amusing later encounters with the likes of Joan Rivers, Valerie Harper, Linda Lavin, Beatrice Arthur, Patrick Swayze, Liza Minnelli, Milton Berle, Esther Williams, Debbie Reynolds, Ann Miller, and many others. Busch came to prominence with Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, which he wrote and starred in and which ran for over 2,000 performances Off-Broadway. (The long run is attributed to the salacious title which brought in curious theatergoers.) Rather than relying on waiting for a big break that might never come, he created his own vehicles. He realized his strength and passion was for playing female roles in tribute to great stars like Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. He wrote his own plays to star himself. The book joyfully chronicles his self-made journey to cult-goddess status.
I recently encountered Busch at the Broadway Flea Market. We chatted about a Bette Davis film I caught on TCM called Payment on Demand, one of the few screen appearances by Broadway star Jane Cowl. I loved that he knew who I was talking about and that he celebrates classic film divas.
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