One of the most hotly anticipated memoirs in recent memory is Barbara Walters' “Audition.” Walters, who among her many other jobs, hosts “The 10 Most Fascinating People” special each year, and after reading this book, she could have easily been chosen as one of the 10 this past year.
Many people don't know that “Lou Walters Way,” a street in Times Square in New York City, is named for her father. He owned and operated one of the most successful nightclubs in the country, the Latin Quarter. Famous stars of the day, including Carol Channing and Frank Sinatra, performed there.
The Latin Quarter was a huge success, and Walters followed it with a club in Miami Beach. But show business is fickle, and the advent of television hurt the nightclub business. Eventually, Walters lost all of the money he made in the clubs.
This roller coaster ride of having money then losing it, moving from a big apartment to a smaller one, from New York to Miami Beach and back to New York again had a big effect on Barbara's life. She always knew that what she had could be lost in a heartbeat. It was what made her so driven to succeed.
She felt responsible for the care of her parents and her developmentally challenged sister Jackie. They relied on her to support them financially, as well as emotionally. Growing up, Barbara alternately felt sorry for her sister, who had no friends of her own, and resented her sister because her condition monopolized their mother's attention.
She repeatedly discusses her guilty feelings about her sister. In fact, she mentions it so often that it dominates the first section of this book. Her guilt overwhelmed her life.
Walters ended up working as a writer and producer on the fledging “Today Show.” Her description of the working conditions for women in television broadcasting seems almost unbelievable, and shows how far we have come as a society.
Women were allowed to write and work on segments about women's issues only - fashion, food and beauty. Eventually Walters worked her way up to becoming an on-air correspondent, and after many years of hard work, she was promoted to co-host. This was a huge step; the women before her were called “Today Show Girls.”
When First Lady Jackie Kennedy went to India and Pakistan, Walters covered the trip for NBC. She tried hard to get an interview with Mrs. Kennedy, but Kennedy was elusive. She did, however, write to Indira Gandhi, the daughter of India's Prime Minister, and ask if she could interview her. Gandhi agreed, and this started Walters on her road to interviewing interesting foreign leaders, a signature hallmark of her career.
Walters did great work for “Today,” traveling the world, covering major events and interviewing international newsmakers. After 13 years on “Today,” and hosting a morning talk show “Not For Women Only,” a precursor of sorts to “The View,” ABC wooed Walters away to co-host the evening news show with Harry Reasoner.
She would be the first woman to co-anchor a nightly network newscast. In addition, Walters would host four interview specials per year, something she longed to do. Anyone who remembers this time in the '70s, recalls what a huge deal this was - a woman anchoring the news.
Alas, things did not go well. Reasoner did not want to co-anchor the news with a woman, and his disdain for Walters was obvious to the viewer. Walters wondered if she did the right thing leaving NBC as things went from bad to worse.
One of the reasons Walters left NBC was her daughter was getting older and she wanted to spend more time with her. Having to be at the studio at before 5 a.m. meant that she was not home in the morning when Jackie (named for Walters's sister) was getting ready for school. All of the traveling kept her from her daughter as well.
With her now-grown daughter's permission, Walters shared the difficulties they went through during Jackie's adolescence. Jackie used drugs, skipped school and even ran away. While successful in her career, Walters felt like a failure in her personal life.
She had been married and divorced three times, and her daughter was in serious trouble. Walters says more than once that she believes it is impossible for a woman to have it all - marriage, successful career and motherhood - at the same time.
While the entire book is fascinating, the best chapters recount Walters's interviews with presidents, foreign leaders, movie stars and criminals. She gives her insights on some of the most famous and notorious people of the last 30 years.
Walters had an interesting relationship with Richard Nixon. He persuaded Prince Philip of England and Henry Kissinger, both reluctant to speak to the press, to talk with Barbara. She shares remembrances of a very private Pat Nixon - dancing with her husband at their daughter's White House wedding and speaking with schoolchildren on a visit to China.
One chapter highlights her involvement in the Iran-Contra scandal. American hostages were being held in Lebanon, and Walters found herself smack in the middle of a secret mission to save their lives. Reading like a spy novel, she recounts a meeting with a man who claimed he was the middleman in the sale of arms to Iran in order to get the hostages released.
He asked Walters to get an important message directly to President Reagan, a message that would save this man's life and lead to the release of a hostage. Walters was torn; she was supposed to be an impartial journalist, but she could not be responsible for the loss of life if she did not get the message to the president.
Her involvement in this incident led to a public censure by her bosses at ABC because she did not alert them to her actions as required. She felt that she was treated unfairly in this incident, that she used her best judgment as required by the rules of ABC.
“Audition” is an amazing look at a woman who has had a tremendous impact on our culture. She has interviewed the most important people of the last 30 years, and paved the way for women working in television news. Her insights are fascinating, and she is honest about the price she has paid as a trailblazer. I give it four and a half stars.
Diane La Rue is a member of the National Book Critics Circle. Her lifelong goal is to read one book per week. She can be reached at
laruediane2000@yahoo.com
The Latin Quarter was a huge success, and Walters followed it with a club in Miami Beach. But show business is fickle, and the advent of television hurt the nightclub business. Eventually, Walters lost all of the money he made in the clubs.
This roller coaster ride of having money then losing it, moving from a big apartment to a smaller one, from New York to Miami Beach and back to New York again had a big effect on Barbara's life. She always knew that what she had could be lost in a heartbeat. It was what made her so driven to succeed.
She felt responsible for the care of her parents and her developmentally challenged sister Jackie. They relied on her to support them financially, as well as emotionally. Growing up, Barbara alternately felt sorry for her sister, who had no friends of her own, and resented her sister because her condition monopolized their mother's attention.
She repeatedly discusses her guilty feelings about her sister. In fact, she mentions it so often that it dominates the first section of this book. Her guilt overwhelmed her life.
Walters ended up working as a writer and producer on the fledging “Today Show.” Her description of the working conditions for women in television broadcasting seems almost unbelievable, and shows how far we have come as a society.
Women were allowed to write and work on segments about women's issues only - fashion, food and beauty. Eventually Walters worked her way up to becoming an on-air correspondent, and after many years of hard work, she was promoted to co-host. This was a huge step; the women before her were called “Today Show Girls.”
When First Lady Jackie Kennedy went to India and Pakistan, Walters covered the trip for NBC. She tried hard to get an interview with Mrs. Kennedy, but Kennedy was elusive. She did, however, write to Indira Gandhi, the daughter of India's Prime Minister, and ask if she could interview her. Gandhi agreed, and this started Walters on her road to interviewing interesting foreign leaders, a signature hallmark of her career.
Walters did great work for “Today,” traveling the world, covering major events and interviewing international newsmakers. After 13 years on “Today,” and hosting a morning talk show “Not For Women Only,” a precursor of sorts to “The View,” ABC wooed Walters away to co-host the evening news show with Harry Reasoner.
She would be the first woman to co-anchor a nightly network newscast. In addition, Walters would host four interview specials per year, something she longed to do. Anyone who remembers this time in the '70s, recalls what a huge deal this was - a woman anchoring the news.
Alas, things did not go well. Reasoner did not want to co-anchor the news with a woman, and his disdain for Walters was obvious to the viewer. Walters wondered if she did the right thing leaving NBC as things went from bad to worse.
One of the reasons Walters left NBC was her daughter was getting older and she wanted to spend more time with her. Having to be at the studio at before 5 a.m. meant that she was not home in the morning when Jackie (named for Walters's sister) was getting ready for school. All of the traveling kept her from her daughter as well.
With her now-grown daughter's permission, Walters shared the difficulties they went through during Jackie's adolescence. Jackie used drugs, skipped school and even ran away. While successful in her career, Walters felt like a failure in her personal life.
She had been married and divorced three times, and her daughter was in serious trouble. Walters says more than once that she believes it is impossible for a woman to have it all - marriage, successful career and motherhood - at the same time.
While the entire book is fascinating, the best chapters recount Walters's interviews with presidents, foreign leaders, movie stars and criminals. She gives her insights on some of the most famous and notorious people of the last 30 years.
Walters had an interesting relationship with Richard Nixon. He persuaded Prince Philip of England and Henry Kissinger, both reluctant to speak to the press, to talk with Barbara. She shares remembrances of a very private Pat Nixon - dancing with her husband at their daughter's White House wedding and speaking with schoolchildren on a visit to China.
One chapter highlights her involvement in the Iran-Contra scandal. American hostages were being held in Lebanon, and Walters found herself smack in the middle of a secret mission to save their lives. Reading like a spy novel, she recounts a meeting with a man who claimed he was the middleman in the sale of arms to Iran in order to get the hostages released.
He asked Walters to get an important message directly to President Reagan, a message that would save this man's life and lead to the release of a hostage. Walters was torn; she was supposed to be an impartial journalist, but she could not be responsible for the loss of life if she did not get the message to the president.
Her involvement in this incident led to a public censure by her bosses at ABC because she did not alert them to her actions as required. She felt that she was treated unfairly in this incident, that she used her best judgment as required by the rules of ABC.
“Audition” is an amazing look at a woman who has had a tremendous impact on our culture. She has interviewed the most important people of the last 30 years, and paved the way for women working in television news. Her insights are fascinating, and she is honest about the price she has paid as a trailblazer. I give it four and a half stars.
Diane La Rue is a member of the National Book Critics Circle. Her lifelong goal is to read one book per week. She can be reached at
laruediane2000@yahoo.com
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