Footnotes: A Memoir

by Tommy Tune

The Tony-award winning Broadway dancer and choreographer shares his memoirs of his entertainment career, from his childhood in Texas to his rise to stardom in such hits as The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and My One And Only. 60,000 first printing. Tour.

Genres: Nonfiction, Theatre, Music, Biography, Memoir

240 pages, Hardcover

First published November 6, 1997

Reviews

[J. Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grabbed a copy of this autobiography as soon as I ran across a copy of it, and discovered a close connection with Tommy Tune I'd never realized existed until he told me about his part.

51 years ago, sometime this week or next, possibly today, I saw my first BROADWAY musical.
It only played a week, but I was there!
Previews began on the 28th of November, ran a week until opening night. It closed Christmas eve, 1966, according to IDBD.com
All right- I swear this is the truth, I have no need of making this stuff up - and I don't have that kind of imagination anyway, but one hell of a memory.
The show closed Christmas eve. The way I remember it, one of the chorus boys who worked in the show with Michael Bennett (choreographer) and Tommy Tune (in the dance corps), was married to one of my Grandfather's "West Virginia cousins", AND THEY CAME TO DINNER AT MY GRANDFATHER'S for Christmas!!!!
I, of course, knew the play had closed that quickly - John Raitt killed it on The Tonight Show with Jack Paar, he hated the show so much - but I was under STRICT orders NOT TO SPEAK to him about it, or Broadway or acting in plays.
Oh, Opportunities Missed!

It's in here, actually (well, not the part about my Grandfather's Christmas dinner, but the Michael Bennett/John Raitt/Tommy Tune parts. That's where I had confirmation that I'd not been making much of this up in the first place, and how significant that matinee was, in the overall arc of my life. Wouldn't I love to tell Tommy Tune about THAT?

Most of the personal stuff, and especially the stuff around sex and sexuality seemed rather self-protective, to me. I mean, what's the point if you're going to hide? But I loved that I read about my first Broadway adventure in Tommy Tune's book.

[Em · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not have a clear recollection of seeing Tommy Tune dance for the first time, I think it may have been during a Tony Awards broadcast, he is tough not to notice. Seems appropriate that as I write this I'm watching this years Tony's but so far haven't seen him either on stage or in the audience. And I've never able to see him dance live on stage.

This memoir is very sketchy and jumps around quite a bit and by his own admission at the end he didn't tell a lot of the show biz stories he could have told about so many great talents he had known. But he revealed a great deal about himself and some of it isn't very flattering and for that I give him props. This book really isn't as long as its page count suggests (lots of photos and white space). But it seems he used the writing of this book as an exercise to get over a palpable depression he has been living with for some time. He could have attributed it to the recent loss of his lover and also his manager to AIDS (well, he does a bit) or his broken foot (he blames that too) and being unable to dance and express himself through his art.

But then he surmises he may have a genetic link to suicide because so many relatives either attempted or succeeded in killing themselves. Whatever it is I'm grateful he used his 'footnotes' to vent his sorrows and survive. One thing he said of himself very particularly resonated with me - he said he feels like a detached soul, but wants to much to be attached and give love.

[Leonel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Someone somewhere (I can't remember where now) recommended Tommy Tune's memoir "Footnotes," from 1997, saying it was juicy and when I looked on Amazon it was selling for a penny (!) so I ordered it. It took the longest time to arrive (I am guessing media mail) so I almost forgot about it when it did. Whoever it was that recommended it, I thank you a million times - because I can't remember the last time something worth a penny brought me such joy. It's a poignant, joyous, and yes gossipy little book. It doesn't follow the structure of a normal memoir - it's as if the whole thing was written like a stream of consciousness. He would start to tell a story about something, then remember something so he would continue with that, and then go back to his original thought. It's immensely personal - imagine you are having dinner with him, and then he tells stories from his life, and you can continue as you clear the table, wash the dishes, and end up at his sofa as he wistfully reminisces loves of his life. This book is funny, emotional,. touching - and it gives you a glimpse behind one of the greatest minds ever to hit Broadway. Highly recommended

[Sue Bridehead (A Pseudonym) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this for work reasons, as research. I was only vaguely aware of who Tommy Tune was when I picked it up off the shelf, but I needed to read a dance autobiography, and he was one of two available.

The structure to this book is meandering, which limits it to readers with a keen interest in dance and Broadway history (which ain't me). Nevertheless, Tune is a charming narrator and has a sweet outlook on life. I enjoyed a number of his stories. And the first few paragraphs of his opening chapter are killer. (There's a pun there.)

[Guy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tommy Tune meanders all over his story. Reading this felt a little like going out to coffee with someone who is a little high on something and can't keep their train of thought. He sounds friendly, but he doesn't go much below the surface.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tommy Tune's memoir written almost 30 years ago. It gave short shift to Whorehouse and Will Rodgers but a lot of ink to MY ONE AND ONLY - which I appreciated after seeing it in the late 70's on Broadway.
There were a lot of behind-the-scenes stories about many co-starts but I was left wanting more especially after he listed all the names of people he worked with at the end of the book.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

He definitely has a unique writing style!

[Dan Blackley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This autobiography is on the theatrical, great Tommy tune. Besides being a phenomenal performer, he is a choreographer and a dancer and a director. He did lots of things for the community of the Broadway. His shows best little her house in Texas, nine stepping out and grand hotel are some of the best that he did during his lifetime although he is still alive at this time, he has stopped doing most of theatrical stuff because of money

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

That Tune is a superbly talented dancer, choreographer, director, and so on, is a given, and these memoirs contain some interesting anecdotes about his career. But this book is all over the place. It's clear that someone told him he had to write a book, so he jotted down whatever random stories came to mind...and they published that.

[Aimee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in one afternoon....just loved it.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dancer/Singer/Actor/Choreographer Tommy Tune tells his story. I found it both interesting and fun. I've always liked Tommy and his book was definitely a good read.

[Sue Kozlowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Non-fiction. My first introduction to Tommy Tune - that's his real name! Broadway dancer, producer, in Will Rogers Follies.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

enjoyable read, ok writing.

[Brian McCann · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh. My. Goodness.