Includes Certificate of Authenticity
Personally Signed by Gene Wilder, one of the great comic actors who defined the movies in the 1970s and 1980s.
SIGNED FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINTING W/COA.
New York, St. Martins Press (March 2007). Gene Wilder "My French Whore: A Love Story" Signed First Edition, First Printing. Personally signed by Gene Wilder directly onto the title page of the book. Hardcover book with original unclipped dust-jacket. Bookseller issued COA. Fine/Fine without any flaws.
Gene Wilder (1933-2016) began acting when he was thirteen and writing for the screen in the early 1970s. After a small role in "Bonnie and Clyde" pulled him away from a career onstage, he was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for his role as Leo Bloom in "The Producers", which led to "Blazing Saddles" and then to another Academy nomination, this time for writing "Young Frankenstein". Wilder appeared in twenty-five feature films and a number of stage productions. His first book, about his own life, was Kiss Me Like A Stranger. It was followed by the novels My French Whore, The Woman Who Wouldn’t, and Something to Remember You By and a book of stories, What Is This Thing Called Love?.
The beloved actor and screenwriter Gene Wilder's first novel, My French Whore, set during World War I, delicately and elegantly explores a most unusual romance. It's almost the end of the war and Paul Peachy, a young railway employee and amateur actor in Milwaukee, realizes his marriage is one-sided. He enlists, and ships off to France. Peachy instantly realizes how out of his depth he is―and never more so than when he is captured. Risking everything, Peachy―who as a child of immigrants speaks German―makes the reckless decision to impersonate one of the enemy's most famous spies.
As the urbane and accomplished spy Harry Stroller, Peachy has access to a world he could never have known existed―a world of sumptuous living, world-weary men, and available women. But when one of those women―Annie, a young, beautiful and wary courtesan―turns out to be more than she seems, Peachy's life is transformed forever.
My French Whore: A Love Story
My French Whore is a 2007 comedic spy romance novel written by the American actor, director, screenwriter and author, Gene Wilder.
Plot summary
Set towards the end of World War I, in 1918, it tells the story of a shy young railway employee and amateur actor from Milwaukee named Paul Peachy. Having realized that his wife no longer loves him, Paul enlists as a private in the U.S. Army and boards a ship for the trenches of France.
Peachy finds temporary solace in friendship amid horrors of war, but is soon captured by the enemy Germans in no man's land. His only chance of survival is to impersonate one of the enemy's most famous spies (as a child of immigrants, he is a fluent German speaker).
As the urbane and accomplished spy Harry Stroller, Peachy is feted as a hero by the German top brass and gains access to a previously unimagined world of sumptuous living. But his new role also reveals inner reserves of courage and ingenuity he never knew he possessed, as the mounting suspicions of his German hosts force Peachy into ever more outrageous deceptions.[1]
In this atmosphere of smoke and mirrors, Paul Peachy falls in love with Annie, a beautiful French courtesan who seems to see through his artful disguise.
Reviews
“Gene Wilder has written a remarkable period piece. It's an elegantly woven story of intrigue, danger, sex and comedy –but for me the big surprise is that it's a truly moving and eloquent love story.” ―Mel Brooks
“A…touching debut novel…(it) takes the form of the final, eloquent notebook of a man still finding out who he is.” ―Publishers Weekly
“Slender…nimble…satisfying.” ―Kirkus Reviews
“It's unavoidable: the hero of MY FRENCH WHORE simply must be imagined as a young Gene Wilder. The talented actor who wrote this enjoyable novella…makes an easy transition from stage to page.” ―The Seattle Times
“Sweet fluff. If you loved ‘Young Frankenstein,' you'll be awfully fond of this.” ―The Washington Post
“Wilder's delightful fiction debut (is) a novel so witty, dramatic and romantic that the reader is left with an indelible mental movie.” ―Los Angeles Times
Gene Wilder
Gene Wilder (né Jerome Silberman, June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016) was an American actor, comedian, writer and filmmaker. He was mainly known for his comedic roles, but also for his portrayal of Willy Wonka in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971). He collaborated with Mel Brooks on the films The Producers (1967), Blazing Saddles (1974) and Young Frankenstein (1974), and with Richard Pryor in the films Silver Streak (1976), Stir Crazy (1980), See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) and Another You (1991).
He began his career on stage, and made his screen debut in an episode of the TV series The Play of the Week in 1961. His first film role was that of a hostage in the 1967 motion picture Bonnie and Clyde. His first major film role was as Leopold Bloom in the 1967 film The Producers, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. It was the first in a series of collaborations with writer/director Mel Brooks, including Young Frankenstein, which Wilder co-wrote, garnering the pair an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. He also starred in Woody Allen's Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) (1972).
Wilder directed and wrote several of his own films, including The Woman in Red (1984). With his third wife, Gilda Radner, he starred in three films, the last two of which he also directed. Her 1989 death from ovarian cancer led to his active involvement in promoting cancer awareness and treatment, helping found the Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Detection Center in Los Angeles[1] and co-founding Gilda's Club. After his last acting performance in 2003—a guest role on Will & Grace, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series—Wilder turned his attention to writing. He produced a memoir, Kiss Me Like a Stranger (2005) and five other books.
Publicity photo of Gene Wilder for film Start the Revolution Without Me (1970), also known as Two Times Two.
Features
Includes the classic Easton Press qualities:
* Premium Leather
* Silk Moire Endleaves
* Distinctive Cover Design
* Hubbed Spine, Accented in Real 22KT Gold
* Satin Ribbon Page Marker
* Gilded Page Edges
* Long-lasting, High Quality Acid-neutral Paper
* Smyth-sewn Pages for Strength and Durability
* Beautiful Illustrations
- Publisher:
- St. Martins Press
- Edition:
- Signed First Edition
- Binding:
- Hardcover book
- Author:
- Gene Wilder
- Title:
- My French Whore
- Publication Date:
- 2007
- Certification:
- COA
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