Gavin Edwards has 4 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 3 narrators, with an average listener rating of 3.8★ across 14 ratings. The most-rated is Last Night at the Viper Room.
Last Night at the Viper Room
Summary
Hollywood was built on beautiful and complicated matinee idols: James Dean and Marlon Brando are classic examples, but in the 1990s, the actor who embodied that archetype was River Phoenix. As the brightly colored 1980s wound down, a new crew of leading men began to appear on movie screens. Hailed for their acting prowess and admired for choosing meaty roles, actors such as Johnny Depp, Nicolas Cage, Keanu Reeves, and Brad Pitt were soon rocketing toward stardom while an unknown Leonardo DiCaprio prepared to make his acting debut. River Phoenix, however, stood in front of the pack. Blessed with natural talent and fueled by integrity, Phoenix was admired by his peers and adored by his fans. More than just a pinup on teenage girls' walls, Phoenix was also a fervent defender of the environment and a vocal proponent of a vegan lifestyle—well on his way to becoming a symbol of his generation. At age 18, he received his first Oscar nomination. But behind his beautiful public face, there was a young man who had been raised in a cult by nonconformist parents, who was burdened with supporting his family from a young age, and who eventually succumbed to addiction, escaping into a maelstrom of drink and drugs. And then he was gone. After a dozen films, including Stand by Me and My Own Private Idaho, and with a seeminily limitless future, River Phoenix died of a drug overdose. He was 23 years old. In Last Night at the Viper Room, best-selling author and journalist Gavin Edwards toggles between the tragic events at the Viper Room in West Hollywood on Halloween 1993 and the story of an extraordinary life. Last Night at the Viper Room is part biography, part cultural history of the 1990s, and part celebration of River Phoenix, a Hollywood icon gone too soon. Full of interviews from his fellow actors, directors, friends, and family, Last Night at the Viper Room shows the role he played in creating the place of the actor in our modern culture and the impact his work still makes today.
©2013 Gavin Edwards (P)2013 HarperCollins Publishers
The Tao of Bill Murray
Summary
Perfect for the Bill Murray fan in all of us, this epic collection of “Bill Murray stories” - many reported for the first time here - distills a set of guiding principles out of his extraordinary ability to infuse the everyday with surprise, absurdity, and wonder. No one will ever believe you. New York Times best-selling author Gavin Edwards, like the rest of us, has always been fascinated with Bill Murray - in particular the beloved actor's adventures offscreen, which rival his filmography for sheer entertainment value. Edwards traveled to the places where Murray has lived, worked, and partied, in search of the most outrageous and hilarious Bill Murray stories from the past four decades, many of which have never before been reported. Bill once paid a child five dollars to ride his bike into a swimming pool. The star convinced Harvard's JV women's basketball team to play with him in a private game of hoops. Many of these surreal encounters ended with Bill whispering, "No one will ever believe you" into a stranger's ear. But The Tao of Bill Murray is more than just a collection of wacky anecdotes. A sideways mix of comedy and philosophy, full of photo bombs, late-night party crashes, and movie-set antics, this is the perfect audiobook for anyone who calls themselves a Bill Murray fan - which is to say, everyone. Praise for The Tao of Bill Murray: “When confronted by life’s challenges and opportunities, we should all be asking ourselves, ‘What would Bill Murray do?’ This book actually has the answers.” (Jay Duplass, writer, director, actor, fan of Bill Murray) “Rib-tickling.” (Newsday) “If you are among the multitudes who have a Bill Murray story (viz: ‘I was in the airport bar, and who sat down next to me but Bill Murray?’), The Tao of Bill Murray will speak to you.” (Elle) “Murray is an endless delight, and his knack for bons mots and non sequiturs will keep readers laughing before revealing an unexpectedly poignant vision for happiness.... A fun and revealing look behind the charm and mythos of Bill Murray that will only strengthen his legend.” (Kirkus Reviews) “This book is bursting with anecdotes that underline Murray’s unconventional and fun-loving life.... Murray’s fans are sure to savor [it] and walk away with a deeper appreciation of the actor and his work.” (Publishers Weekly [starred review]) “I just can’t fathom how anyone could not like the man. He lives as much as possible by his own rules; this is a guy who doesn’t buy round-trip airline tickets because he prefers to make decisions on the fly. That old question of the three people you’d most like to have dinner with? I’d pick Bill Murray and leave the other two chairs empty just to see who he pulls over to join us.... You will love The Tao of Bill Murray. Period.” (GeekDad) “A hilarious read - occasionally heartwarming, sometimes head-scratching.... Sure to please Murray fans.” (Library Journal)
©2016 Gavin Edwards (P)2016 Random House Audio
Kindness and Wonder
Summary
A pop culture celebration of Fred Rogers and the enduring legacy of his beloved, award-winning PBS show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood that offers essential wisdom to help us in our troubled times. Won’t you be my neighbor? For more than 30 years, Fred Rogers was a beloved fixture in American homes. Warm and welcoming, he spoke directly to children - and their parents - about the marvels of the world, the things that worried them, and above all, the importance of being themselves. Dressed in his cardigan and sneakers, Fred Rogers offered a wholesome message of generosity and love that changed the landscape of television and shaped a generation of children. Kindness and Wonder pays tribute to this cultural icon: the unique, gentle man who embodied the best of what we could be. Today’s audiences will be reminded of Mr. Rogers’ uplifting persona in the upcoming TriStar Pictures film, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (November 2019), where Tom Hanks stars as the real-life Fred Rogers. Looking back at the history of the show and the creative visionary behind it, pop culture aficionado Gavin Edwards reminds us of the indelible lessons and insights that Mister Rogers conveyed - what it means to be a good person, to be openhearted, to be thoughtful, to be curious, to be compassionate - and why they matter. Beautifully crafted, infused with Mister Rogers’ gentle spirit, and featuring dozens of interviews with people whose lives were touched by Fred Rogers - ranging from Rita Moreno to NFL Hall of Famer Lynn Swann - Kindness and Wonder is a love letter to this unforgettable cultural hero and role model and the beautiful neighborhood he created.
©2019 Gavin Edwards (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers
The World According to Tom Hanks
Summary
An entertaining and insightful homage to Tom Hanks, America's favorite movie star, from The New York Times best-selling author of the cult sensation The Tao of Bill Murray. In The World According to Tom Hanks, through deep research and interviews, Gavin Edwards will explore and celebrate how Tom Hanks lives his life, mirroring the way that he embodies optimism and integrity in his movie roles. This book will give insight into the actor by collecting the best stories about how he behaves in the world, providing a loving retrospective of his film career, and putting it all into the context of his all-American philosophy.
©2018 Gavin Edwards (P)2018 Hachette Audio