Wannabe: My Hollywood Experiment

by Jamie Kennedy

August 1989: Jamie Kennedy arrives in Los Angeles from his home in suburban Pennsylvania with grand plans of becoming a professional extra. He's determined to make it in Hollywood even if it kills him - which it very nearly does. Soon he's caught up in the desperate underbelly of playing Bart Simpson at kids' birthday parties while they pelt him with apples; appearing as a Jerry Lewis strip-a-gram; and auditioning for the part of a dancing yolk in the California Fresh Eggs campaign. But there's even worse to come. After a disastrous stint at RADA (during which he is forced to steal food from the buttery), having his kidney removed, being mugged for his trousers and sharing a flat with a homicidal nutcase, Jamie winds up sleeping in his car. He's got two quit and go back to Pennsylvania, or come up with a cunning plan. Ingeniously, Jamie invents fictional agent "Marty Power" in a last-ditch attempt to kickstart his acting career; Jamie plays the roles of agent, personal assistant and even courier, and incredibly the trick pays off. Soon, half the casting agents in Hollywood are claiming to be old friends of Marty's. His big break - a small role in Baz Luhrman's "Romeo + Juliet" - leads to a string of appearances in hit films such as "Scream", "As Good As It Gets" and "Three Kings". Now Jamie has producers knocking on his door, rather than the other way round, and he's commissioned to write and star in his own hidden camera show, "The Jamie Kennedy Experiment". He's made it at last - after ten long, painful years. "Wannabe" is the story of how he survived.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Humor, Comedy

273 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Jarvis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this! Never really thought much about Kennedy, I liked him in the movies I've seen him in, but after youtube started recommending me his podcast I started listening to it and I found out he's a great storyteller. If you enjoy comedian autobiographies or just Kennedy in general, I highly recommend it.

[Marilyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This seems to be an honest memoir, that reveals the writer to be self-absorbed fame hound. It's written in a casual style, but has a weird thread of homophobia running through it that left a sour taste in my mouth. If nothing else, it confirms everything I have ever thought about Jamie Kennedy.

[LD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and entertaining. Maybe a bit inspirational.

[Randall Christopher]

Some of it is hard to believe actually happened the way it's depicted, but pretty entertaining nonetheless

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my all time favorite books. Obviously it isn't a serious, deep auto-biography - but it's fun. I actually catch myself smiling upon reading it at times. Jamie is extremely like-able, and I'm easily annoyed by even some of my favorite actors/singers. You don't need to be a big fan to enjoy it. It's funny, charming, and it's good to pass the time. Sometimes after reading some serious books I'll go back and re-read this one to just relax and take a breather. Nothing in here is boring, his entire life is random and hilarious. It also tells of how he became an actor by creating a fake manager (himself) that actually started his career. All in all it's fun, witty, and light. I highly recommend.

[Kurtbg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Struggling actor/comedian discovers the best person to sell himself is himself. After being dependent on agents and others to get him opportunities his epiphany comes when he discovers a talent for telemarketing - and if he can sell ink cartridges well why not himself? Perseverance and dedication gets him a show.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so funny. Jamie Kennedy tells us how he got his start in Hollywood--from a flat-broke nobody to where he is today. This guy has a lot of chutzpah. I loved where he pretended to be his own agent and then didn't know how he should answer his phone. I laughed a lot reading this book.