The Method
How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act
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Narrated by:
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Isaac Butler
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By:
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Isaac Butler
About this listen
Bloomsbury presents The Method written and read by Isaac Butler.
National Book Critics Circle Award Winner, Nonfiction
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2022 BY THE NEW YORKER, TIME MAGAZINE, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE, VOX, SALON, LIT HUB, AND VANITY FAIR
“Entertaining and illuminating.”—The New Yorker * “Compulsively readable.”—New York Times * “Delicious, humane, probing.”—Vulture * “The best and most important book about acting I’ve ever read.”—Nathan Lane
The critically acclaimed cultural history of Method acting—an ebullient account of creative discovery and the birth of classic Hollywood.
On stage and screen, we know a great performance when we see it. But how do actors draw from their bodies and minds to turn their selves into art? What is the craft of being an authentic fake? More than a century ago, amid tsarist Russia’s crushing repression, one of the most talented actors ever, Konstantin Stanislavski, asked these very questions, reached deep into himself, and emerged with an answer. How his “system” remade itself into the Method and forever transformed American theater and film is an unlikely saga that has never before been fully told.
Now, critic and theater director Isaac Butler chronicles the history of the Method in a narrative that transports readers from Moscow to New York to Los Angeles, from The Seagull to A Streetcar Named Desire to Raging Bull. He traces how a cohort of American mavericks—including Stella Adler, Lee Strasberg, and the storied Group Theatre—refashioned Stanislavski’s ideas for a Depression-plagued nation that had yet to find its place as an artistic powerhouse. The Group’s feuds and rivalries would, in turn, shape generations of actors who enabled Hollywood to become the global dream-factory it is today. Some of these performers the Method would uplift; others, it would destroy. Long after its midcentury heyday, the Method lives on as one of the most influential—and misunderstood—ideas in American culture.
Studded with marquee names—from Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, and Elia Kazan, to James Baldwin, Ellen Burstyn, and Dustin Hoffman—The Method is a spirited history of ideas and a must-listen for any fan of Broadway or American film.
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Ayn Rand is the author of two phenomenally best-selling ideological novels, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, which have sold over 12 million copies in the United States alone. Through them, she built a right-wing cult following in the late 1950s and became the guiding light of Libertarianism and of White House economic policy in the 1960s and '70s. Her defenses of radical individualism and of selfishness as a "capitalist virtue" have permanently altered the American cultural landscape.
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Great history of both Rand and her era
- By Mark on 08-07-10
By: Anne C. Heller
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American Rebel
- The Life of Clint Eastwood
- By: Marc Eliot
- Narrated by: Marc Eliot
- Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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From the New York Times best-selling author Marc Eliot comes the definitive biography of one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful actors, producers, and directors in the history of American motion pictures. Marc Eliot examines the ever-exciting, often tumultuous arc of Eastwood's life and career, from his days as a disaffected college dropout, to his rise to fame as the archetypal loner, to his acceptance into the pantheon of the Academy as a multiple Oscar Award winner.
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I learned the hard way.
- By Ty Pritchard on 07-23-10
By: Marc Eliot
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Empire of Self
- A Life of Gore Vidal
- By: Jay Parini
- Narrated by: John Lescault
- Length: 16 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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The product of 30 years of friendship and conversation, Jay Parini's Empire of Self probes behind the glittering surface of Gore Vidal's colorful life to reveal the complex emotional and sexual truth underlying his celebrity-strewn life. But there is plenty of glittering surface as well - a virtual who's who of the American Century, from Eleanor Roosevelt and Amelia Earhart through the Kennedys, Princess Margaret, and the creme de la creme of Hollywood.
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Well done!
- By Christopher on 03-22-16
By: Jay Parini
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Sidney Poitier
- Man, Actor, Icon
- By: Aram Goudsouzian
- Narrated by: J. D. Jackson
- Length: 20 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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In the first full biography of actor Sidney Poitier, Aram Goudsouzian analyzes the life and career of a Hollywood legend, from his childhood in the Bahamas to his 2002 Oscar for lifetime achievement. Poitier is a gifted actor, a great American success story, an intriguing personality, and a political symbol; his life and career illuminate America's racial history.
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The Man, the Star, the Lightning Rod
- By Susie on 01-28-13
By: Aram Goudsouzian
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Robin Williams
- By: Emily Herbert
- Narrated by: Marston York
- Length: 6 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Through roles in cherished films such as Mrs. Doubtfire, Jumanji, Aladdin and Hook, he became the genial face of family comedy. His childlike enthusiasm was infectious, sweeping viewers away. Allied to his lightning-quick improvisation and ability to riff lewdly off any cue thrown at him, Robin was that rare thing - a true comic genius who appealed to adults and children equally. He could also play it straight, and empathetic depth came to him naturally.
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Good... but too many quotes
- By DDub on 11-09-18
By: Emily Herbert
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Without Lying Down
- By: Cari Beauchamp
- Narrated by: Holly Palance
- Length: 20 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Cari Beauchamp masterfully combines biography with social and cultural history to examine the lives of Frances Marion and her many female colleagues who shaped filmmaking from the early teens through the 1940s. Frances Marion was Hollywood's highest paid screenwriter - male or female - for almost three decades, wrote almost 200 produced films and remains the only woman to win two Academy Awards for original screenwriting (The Big House and The Champ).
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A Must Read
- By Robert Wallace on 03-19-19
By: Cari Beauchamp
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High Society
- The Life of Grace Kelly
- By: Donald Spoto
- Narrated by: George K Wilson
- Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins
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In just seven years---from 1950 through 1956---Grace Kelly embarked on a whirlwind career that included roles in 11 movies. From the principled Amy Fowler Kane in High Noon to the thrill-seeking Frances Stevens of To Catch a Thief, Grace established herself as one of Hollywood's most talented actresses and iconic beauties.
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Find a better Grace Kelly biography, I'd skip this
- By Daniel on 08-20-12
By: Donald Spoto
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Street Gang
- The Complete History of Sesame Street
- By: Michael Davis
- Narrated by: Caroll Spinney
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Abridged
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When the first episode aired on Nov. 10, 1969, Sesame Street revolutionized the way education was presented to children on television. It has since become the longest-running children's show in history, and today reaches 8 million pre-schoolers on 350 PBS stations and airs in 120 countries. Street Gang is the compelling and often comical story of the creation and history of this media masterpiece and pop culture landmark.
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An important subject, but hardly gripping
- By Scott T. Hards on 09-24-10
By: Michael Davis
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Can I Go Now?
- The Life of Sue Mengers, Hollywood's First Superagent
- By: Brian Kellow
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 13 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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A lively and colorful biography of Hollywood's first superagent - one of the most outrageous showbiz characters of the 1960s and 1970s, whose clients included Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Faye Dunaway, Michael Caine, and Candice Bergen. Before Sue Mengers hit the scene in the mid-1960s, talent agents remained quietly in the background. But staying in the background was not possible for Mengers.
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A little long.
- By Doris on 11-29-15
By: Brian Kellow
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Shock Value
- How a Few Eccentric Outsiders Gave Us Nightmares, Conquered Hollywood, and Invented Modern Horror
- By: Jason Zinoman
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Much has been written about the storied New Hollywood of the 1970s, but while Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Francis Ford Coppola were making their first classic movies, a parallel universe of directors gave birth to the modern horror film - aggressive, raw, and utterly original. Based on unprecedented access to the genre's major players, New York Times critic Jason Zinoman's Shock Value delivers the first definitive account of horror's golden age.
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A good listen, but narrow in scope
- By Billy on 01-31-13
By: Jason Zinoman
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The Speed of Sound
- Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution 1926 - 1930
- By: Scott Eyman
- Narrated by: Adams Morgan
- Length: 13 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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In this mixture of cultural and social history that is both scholarly and vastly entertaining, Eyman dispels the myths and gives us the missing chapter in the history of Hollywood, the ribbon of dreams by which America conquered the world.
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Better than nothing!
- By Colin Barton on 08-31-11
By: Scott Eyman
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The Collaboration
- Hollywood's Pact with Hitler
- By: Ben Urwand
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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To continue doing business in Germany, Hollywood studios agreed not to make films attacking Nazis or condemning persecution of Jews. Ben Urwand reveals this collaboration and the cast of characters it drew in, ranging from Goebbels to Louis B. Mayer. At the center was Hitler himself - obsessed with movies and their power to shape public opinion.
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Making mountains out of molehills
- By M. S. Cohen on 11-05-13
By: Ben Urwand
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What listeners say about The Method
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Andrew Park
- 12-29-22
Tremendous
This book is an entertaining and comprehensive history of “The System” and subsequent “Method.” I am a professional stage director and student of the theatre. This is the most enjoyable theater book I’ve listened to on audible—a true delight!
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- Wendy
- 10-15-22
METHOD TO MY MADNESS
I'm usually not a fan of authors reading their own material but this one did well. The narrator stuck to the text and did not riff or improvise as so many author narrators often do.
The narrator was also evenly paced. So many of the author narrators I have heard in the past rush the passages of important text to read one of their more august sentences in their most sonorous pretentious voice. This isn't fair to the listener. I paid good money to listen to complete texts not to indulge the author narrator's fanciful whims of what a real narrator should sound like.
I am also pleased the author narrator did not introduce material from past works as so many author narrators will do if you are not listening carefully. After listening to so many audiobooks I am adept at picking out intentionally misplaced text, i.e. advertising unpublished works.
My biggest pet peeve with the narrator was with the pronunciation of certain key names in the book like Lee Strasbergs last name. It's Strasbourg--BOURG...like THE UMBRELLAS OF CHER--BOURG. Wasn't there an editor or director in the recording studio with him? Shouldn't they have told him the correct pronunciation?
Another small problem I had with the author narrator were some of the long pauses he took to drink water. These long pauses occurred toward the end of the book as his voice became more and more strained and occasionally cracked. Isn't there a way to stop the recording process long enough to allow the narrator to have some water without me having to hear him reach for it, pour it, and swallow it during certain crucial parts of the book? I'm just glad these long breaks did not happen at the beginning of the book or I would have stopped listening. I'm also glad the narrator sounded did like a nonsmoker.
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- Peter Riley
- 06-27-23
Fascinating and Immensely Entertaining
For years I have wondered what was different about the great actors of the 30’s and 40’s such as Hepburn, Tracy or Davis and the great actors we began to see in the 50’s and 60’s such Brando, Kim Stanley and Newman. This book explains, what to me was this mystery. Going back to the Moscow Art Theatre and Stanislavsky and the creation of “the system” and its migration to America, the author traces this rich history, the revolution in acting and the creation of the Method in America. Beautifully read by the author, if you live theatre and movies you MUST read this book!
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- jb
- 05-31-22
Highly illuminating
Terrific to have an inside view of the mechanics of acting from when it became a bona fide thing. Isaac Butler post back the curtain on what motivates actors over the ages, not in a gossipy way, but in more of a factual and academic style. It really puts a lot into perspective.
Worth the read if you’re interested in the mechanics of this craft.
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- Meedo
- 12-17-22
Highly recommended.
A riveting biography of the Method, this is also a deeply observed, comprehensive study of American realism, starting from its roots in Stanislavsky, through its divergent proponents in Strasberg, Adler, and Meisner (among others), to its aftermath and legacy in the present moment. I first picked up the ebook then transitioned to the audiobook, which I highly recommended for the author’s clear and impassioned narration. I will be returning to this book again and again.
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- Chevis F. Horne, Jr.
- 09-10-22
Brilliant
Compelling and well written. A history of acting but also of memorable personalities and our culture. A “real page turner.”
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- monica rosenthal
- 03-11-23
Comprehensive History, Great Storytelling
So grateful for this book! Isaac Butler’s engaging research and storytelling fleshes out history I’d studied as an undergrad majoring in theatre, but was too young and inexperienced to fully grasp or put into context. Highly recommend for anyone interested in acting in and theatre history.
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- Alessio Cappelletti
- 07-04-24
Thr Most comprehensive
amazing and the most comprehensive book on the history of acting in the US but also The Method and histories of the most famous people influenced by it
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- Jesse Dukes
- 06-05-22
thorough and inspiring
I very much enjoyed this long comprehensive history of the method, beginning 19th century Russia and proceeding to the early 20th century. it was particularly helpful understanding the differences between the American method acting teachers, Adler, Meisner, and Strasburg.
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- P. Jackson
- 12-07-22
Surprisingly Good
I’ve never had much interest in the art of acting and don’t remember why i even bought this book, but it turned out to be well-written, highly engaging and well-narrated with only a couple of clunky mispronunciations (ie. Franchot Tone’s name). It provides a broad and interesting history of The Method. I recommend it.
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