- Have the next big idea for a movie? Submit a 2-15 min. concept video to Amazon Studios for a chance to have your movie made. Learn more.
Joss Whedon: The Biography
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more
Flip to back
Flip to front
Joss Whedon: The Biography Hardcover – August 1, 2014
$19.31
FREE Shipping on orders over $35.
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Gift-wrap available.
NO_CONTENT_IN_FEATURE
Start reading Joss Whedon: The Biography on your Kindle in under a minute.
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?.
|
Editorial Reviews
From Booklist
Pascale offers a biography of television auteur Joss Whedon, who is perhaps the first celebrity television show-runner. The son of a history teacher and a television writer, Whedon began his television career with a staff writing job on the sitcom Roseanne, but once that job experience soured, he turned to features, penning the script for Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Though disappointed with the final cut of the film, Whedon enjoyed a prosperous stint writing and rewriting films such as Speed and Toy Story before returning to the small screen to resurrect his slayer. The show was a modest hit, but the passionate fan base it cultivated led to an active online community that Whedon participated in as well as further groundbreaking television offerings (Angel, Firefly, etc.) that cemented Whedon’s status as an icon even before he was tapped to direct Marvel’s high-profile flick, The Avengers. Though Whedon’s many fans are fairly familiar with the ups and downs of his career, the many frank quotes from Whedon, his friends, family, and coworkers make Pascale’s absorbing bio a must-read. --Kristine Huntley
Review
"Amy Pascale delves deep behind the scenes of Joss Whedon's myriad film and television projects, covering Avengers, vampire slayers, and everything in between. This thorough and engaging biography is a must-read for everyone who loves Whedon's work, from the casual fan to the most hardcore Browncoat.” —Tim Hanley, author of Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World’s Most Famous Heroine “The material is jam-packed with all sorts of behind the scenes trivia. Perhaps that means an update will be needed after Avengers: Age of Ultron. Amy Pascale has written an interesting, well-written take on the life and art of Joss Whedon; any true fan should take a look.” —CliqueClaque
“Pascale collects enough fascinating details and candid anecdotes to surprise even the most devoted of Whedonites." —Maclean's Magazine
“If you think you know everything about Joss, you haven’t read this thoroughly entertaining and well-researched treasure trove.” —Josh Horowitz, MTV News
“Now that I’ve read this and feel like I know Joss as a person rather than merely a hit-making, critically adored peer, my schadenfreude has been reduced to completely manageable levels.” —Rob Thomas, creator of Veronica Mars
“When art hits us, it’s fun and possibly necessary to look behind the scenes and see what drove it. Amy Pascale gives great insight into Whedon’s work that will interest and surprise even seasoned fans.” —Alan Kistler, author of The Unofficial Game of Thrones Cookbook and Doctor Who: A History
“Like a series of great tales told during a boozy night of friends reminiscing, Pascal’s biography of Joss Whedon does what the great artistic biographies do — it makes you want to go back and re-experience his work.” —Patton Oswalt
“Though Whedon’s many fans are fairly familiar with the ups and downs of his career, the many frank quotes from Whedon, his friends, family, and coworkers make Pascale’s absorbing bio a must-read.” —Booklist
“An informative and readable book.” —Kirkus
“For the story behind one of the hottest writer/directors of the moment, fans will want to pick up this biography.” —SheKnows.com
Pascale has done a tremendous amount of research; the sheer number of interviewees and sources
is impressive. The book is at its most compulsively readable when the author is writing about the
period when Whedon was running three different shows at once. It’s comprehensive, entertaining
and thoughtful and, perhaps most importantly, it will send you running to your box-sets to relive his
work.” —SciFi Now
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful
By
C. A. Bridges
on July 31, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Comment
Sending feedback...
For the casual fan of the writer-director, “Joss Whedon -- The Biography” by Amy Pascale may be overkill. Sure, you liked “The Avengers,” but do you really need to know what pen Whedon prefers?
For the fans who happily follow him from project to project because they’ve seen their lives changed because of something he wrote, the answer may be yes, absolutely.
But even casual readers will enjoy Pascale’s look at the life of the man behind “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Angel,” “Firefly,” “Dollhouse,” “Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” “The Avengers,” “Cabin in the Woods,” “Much Ado About Nothing” and more, and his gift for taking cliched genre formats and subverting them to tell meaningful stories about love, death, family, and redemption with humor and chilling drama, often in the same scene.
Whedon’s father was a second-generation TV writer who wrote for “The Dick Cavett Show” and “The Electric Company” and his mother was a performer and teacher who created feminist course studies and held Shakespeare readings in the home. Humor and artistic expression were baked into him at an early age. Yet as Pascale explains, the driving force behind everything he did was loneliness and a hatred for bullying.
“If Joss Whedon had had one good day in high school,” according to Buffy executive producer and Angel co-creator David Greenwalt, “we wouldn’t be here.”
From exhaustive research and multiple interviews with Whedon, his wife Kai, and their friends and coworkers, Pascale provides a thorough look at Whedon’s life from his ancestry and childhood to his time in boarding school in England and his influences in the film department of Wesleyan University, to his early struggles in writing for the screen.Read more ›
For the fans who happily follow him from project to project because they’ve seen their lives changed because of something he wrote, the answer may be yes, absolutely.
But even casual readers will enjoy Pascale’s look at the life of the man behind “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Angel,” “Firefly,” “Dollhouse,” “Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” “The Avengers,” “Cabin in the Woods,” “Much Ado About Nothing” and more, and his gift for taking cliched genre formats and subverting them to tell meaningful stories about love, death, family, and redemption with humor and chilling drama, often in the same scene.
Whedon’s father was a second-generation TV writer who wrote for “The Dick Cavett Show” and “The Electric Company” and his mother was a performer and teacher who created feminist course studies and held Shakespeare readings in the home. Humor and artistic expression were baked into him at an early age. Yet as Pascale explains, the driving force behind everything he did was loneliness and a hatred for bullying.
“If Joss Whedon had had one good day in high school,” according to Buffy executive producer and Angel co-creator David Greenwalt, “we wouldn’t be here.”
From exhaustive research and multiple interviews with Whedon, his wife Kai, and their friends and coworkers, Pascale provides a thorough look at Whedon’s life from his ancestry and childhood to his time in boarding school in England and his influences in the film department of Wesleyan University, to his early struggles in writing for the screen.Read more ›
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By
Robert Averell
on July 31, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Verified Purchase
Comment
Sending feedback...
I thought I knew a fair amount about Joss Whedon... and now I do. If you are a fan of Joss, this is a must. If you are a fan of TV and/or movies in any form, you should still get a great deal of enjoyment out of this book. Ms. Pascale interposes history, facts, interviews and quotes in a very entertaining manner. There are times I felt the interviewees were talking to me. I couldn't put it down, yet didn't want it to end.
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By
Judy @ Musings and Ramblings
on August 1, 2014
Format: Kindle Edition
Comment
Sending feedback...
I am not generally a biography kind of girl. However, that being said, I am a huge geek at heart and let's face it, Joss Whedon knows exactly how to speak right to us geeky type people; probably because he himself is one. So when I saw this book on Netgalley, I just had to try to get it. I was thrilled when I was accepted.
Since I don't read many (any) biographies, I honestly can't tell how it stacks up to others of its genre. I can say that reading about Joss Whedon's life, from a history of his grandfather and father all the way up to his recent success with the Avenger's movie was done in such a way, that I felt like I really got to understand what drives him. The stories, quotes and interviews with his friends, family and co-workers shared the many sides of the man. It was told in such a way that it was very easy to follow his journey to the top of the geek mountain. I learned so many interesting things, and though some myths were debunked, finding out others just made him more interesting.
As a fan, I thought I knew quite a bit about him. I learned that what I did accurately know, was just the surface. After reading about the struggles and obstacles throughout his career, it gives his successes and victories that much more meaning. Reading this biography has simply made me a bigger fan. I can't imagine telling the story of a world-class storyteller would be easy, but Amy Pascale did it with grace and aplomp. This was a fantastic read, worthy of 4 stars.
Since I don't read many (any) biographies, I honestly can't tell how it stacks up to others of its genre. I can say that reading about Joss Whedon's life, from a history of his grandfather and father all the way up to his recent success with the Avenger's movie was done in such a way, that I felt like I really got to understand what drives him. The stories, quotes and interviews with his friends, family and co-workers shared the many sides of the man. It was told in such a way that it was very easy to follow his journey to the top of the geek mountain. I learned so many interesting things, and though some myths were debunked, finding out others just made him more interesting.
As a fan, I thought I knew quite a bit about him. I learned that what I did accurately know, was just the surface. After reading about the struggles and obstacles throughout his career, it gives his successes and victories that much more meaning. Reading this biography has simply made me a bigger fan. I can't imagine telling the story of a world-class storyteller would be easy, but Amy Pascale did it with grace and aplomp. This was a fantastic read, worthy of 4 stars.
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By
Bunny
on August 19, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Comment
Sending feedback...
I'll be the first to admit, I am super biased to the subject matter. I like to joke that I was a fan of Joss Whedon before I even knew I was a fan. I was a big fan of the first Toy Story, so finding out he'd been involved in that process, bam. Early Joss fan.
Then I found out his father wrote for the Golden Girls. HUGE fan of the Golden Girls growing up. I've always been a Whedon fan! Grandfather wrote for what?! Jesus, that's my entire Nick at Nite childhood!
Cut to a few years ago, reading a book about Sesame Street, and Captain Kangaroo. Guess whose name appears one more time.
And I was one of those 10 people who adored the movie version of Buffy.
Then in this book, I actually find out which episodes of Roseanne were written by Joss himself, one of which being one of my favorites, the episode where Darlene has to write a poem and read it for class.
Yeah. I'm a three generation Whedon fan. I apparently was destined to fall in love with a spunky blonde with a pointy stick, and follow her creator through hell and cancellation.
I did go into the book hesitant, though. The trouble with biographies is the same trouble Joss had when making Serenity. The biggest draw will be the people who are already invested. Those of us who have followed Joss, who railed against the WB, railed against Fox, took part in the campaigns. We are the readers.
But what about everyone else? What about the people who see this book while passing their eyes over a shelf full of biographies, and say, "Who's this guy? Oh, The Avengers? Yeah, that movie kicked ass. Okay, I'll read it." Will this biography hold the interest of someone who's never heard the term Browncoat?
I think it will.Read more ›
Then I found out his father wrote for the Golden Girls. HUGE fan of the Golden Girls growing up. I've always been a Whedon fan! Grandfather wrote for what?! Jesus, that's my entire Nick at Nite childhood!
Cut to a few years ago, reading a book about Sesame Street, and Captain Kangaroo. Guess whose name appears one more time.
And I was one of those 10 people who adored the movie version of Buffy.
Then in this book, I actually find out which episodes of Roseanne were written by Joss himself, one of which being one of my favorites, the episode where Darlene has to write a poem and read it for class.
Yeah. I'm a three generation Whedon fan. I apparently was destined to fall in love with a spunky blonde with a pointy stick, and follow her creator through hell and cancellation.
I did go into the book hesitant, though. The trouble with biographies is the same trouble Joss had when making Serenity. The biggest draw will be the people who are already invested. Those of us who have followed Joss, who railed against the WB, railed against Fox, took part in the campaigns. We are the readers.
But what about everyone else? What about the people who see this book while passing their eyes over a shelf full of biographies, and say, "Who's this guy? Oh, The Avengers? Yeah, that movie kicked ass. Okay, I'll read it." Will this biography hold the interest of someone who's never heard the term Browncoat?
I think it will.Read more ›
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
Most Recent Customer Reviews
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
