Fiasco: A History of Hollywood's Iconic Flops

By James Robert Parish

Book Overview

A longtime industry insider and acclaimed Hollywood historian goes behind the scenes to tell the stories of 15 of the most spectacular movie megaflops of the past 50 years, such as Cleopatra, The Cotton Club, and Waterworld. He recounts, in every gory detail, how enormous hubris, unbridled ambition, artistic hauteur, and bad business sense on the parts of Tinsel Town wheeler-dealers and superstars such as Elizabeth Taylor, Clint Eastwood, and Francis Ford Coppola, conspired to engender some of the worst films ever.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471691593
• ISBN13: 9780471691594
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Trade Paper Press
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Murdered: Who Killed 14 Films?

Ever wonder why some of those Hollywood extravaganzas touted in advance as "sure-fire hits" turn into abysmal flops? James Robert Parish's new book "Fiasco: A History of Hollywood's Iconic Flops" details why. Parish turns his keen eye and strong writing style on how over-paid, egotistical stars, meddling studio execs, directors whose vision has the opaque clarity of a tennis ball, and just plain "bad-timing" can sink a strongly...

The Price of Hubris

The great screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky once said, "You start out to make a great movie. Then you settle for a good movie. Then you just want to get it finished." That's what happened to almost every cinematic disaster chronicled in "Fiasco." James Robert Parish, who is known for his fine attention to detail, reveals the tortuous path taken by fifteen of Hollywood's iconic flops-from concept to crash landing. He reveals...

A Must Read

James Robert Parish's FIASCO is a breezy, fact-filled look at some of Hollywood's biggest boxoffice flops over the past few decades. The reasons for the failure of these movies are many but essentially come down to super-sized egos be it producers, directors or stars. The book's timely publication is pertinent since 2005 was a year in which the most lauded movies were small budget wonders like Brokeback Mountain, Capote, and...

Detailing the Flops

Fifteen big buget movie failures are detailed in this well researched and entertaining volume. It covers the era after the collapse of the big studios and starts with CLEOPATRA in 1963 and closes with TOWN AND COUNTRY in 2001. Each film gets its own detailed chapter and there is also a filmography and a very interesting list of box-office disappointments between the years 1960-2004. This is a very good and informative ...

Everyone Loves a Fiasco

Is there anyone on earth who knows more about Hollywood - past and present - than James Robert Parish? Through dozens of books spanning more than three decades, Mr. Parish has recorded both the good and the bad of moviedom. Now, with Fiasco, he adds the ugly. Fifteen of the worst film disasters of the last fifty years (with an additional "worst of the worst" appendix briefly listing many more) . Films not only blatantly...