Jack Nicholson: The Early Years

by Robert David Crane, Christopher Fryer

Originally published as Jack Face to Face in 1975, Jack The Early Years is the first book written about the enigmatic star and the only one to have Nicholson's participation. In 1975 Nicholson was just becoming a household name in spite of having already starred in, written or produced 25 films including classics such as Easy Rider (1969), Five Easy Pieces (1970), The Last Detail (1973) and Chinatown (1974). To date, Nicholson has been nominated for twelve Academy Awards and won three, has garnered seven Golden Globe awards, and took home the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award at the age of 57. Authors Robert Crane and Christopher Fryer interviewed Nicholson for what began as a thesis for a University of Southern California film class but which quickly morphed into a larger portrait of Nicholson's unique craft. Crane and Fryer conducted their interviews with Nicholson with the intent of showcasing the young star as he saw himself, while also interviewing many of Nicholson's close friends and fellow filmmakers, including Dennis Hopper, Roger Corman, Hal Ashby, Ann-Margret, Robert Evans and Bruce Dern, providing a comprehensive profile of the actor's early years in the industry. The result is a true insider's look at Nicholson not only as a writer, director and actor, but also offers insights into a private man's private life. Jack The Early Years stands as a testament to his incredible success in Hollywood.

248 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Jay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack Nicholson is a very private person, now and in early 1974 when he agreed to grant two interviews to two young innocent student writers. With his permission they ended up speaking to a small group of directors and actors whom he had worked with, some close some not. (Hal Ashby, Bruce Dern, Dennis Hopper, Karen Black) If the year was 1968 (one year before the release of Easy Rider) then nobody would have cared, and those interviewed probably wouldn't have much to say other than he's a struggling talent. Just as if it was one year later after the release of Chinatown and One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest and Jack would have been tired of talking about himself and his friends, co-stars, and directors would only be blowing smoke. The key is they spoke to him after he had landed (Easy Rider), developed (Five Easy Pieces), and was about to explode (Chinatown, One Flew...). To add to that, he had also failed, in his directing debut of Drive, He Said.

The result of this book is a snapshot in time of arguably one of the greatest actors in history. It's truly fascinating what you learn about Jack and how he and his generation approached filmmaking. In the 70's films were an artform and moviegoers were expected to be more patient and thoughtful when watching cinema. Studios hadn't quite clamped down on young Hollywood's creativity and during that time Jack was part of a great movement. A lot of it, just before Jack was vaulted into a pure movie star, is captured in this book.

I would love to read an interview of whomever was booking folk gigs in the Lower East Side before Bob Dylan released his 2nd album.
I would love to read an interview of Tommy Lee Jones speaking about his Yale roommate Al Gore just before they graduated, and vice-versa.
I want to hear about Darren Aronofsky before the release of Pi...kind of a stretch but that is probably just me.
Get what I'm saying here?

In conclusion, this is unique because for whatever reason the stars aligned and two guys conducting interviews for a pet project at the perfect time got some great answers. They were lucky to get there, and when they got there they didn't disappoint (and here is where I'm supposed to say "like Jack").

[Valdon Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

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