Deconstructing Sammy
Written by Matt Birkbeck
Narrated by Peter Jay Fernandez
3.5/5
()
About this audiobook
Equal parts cultural history, celebrity biography, and brilliant investigative journalism, Deconstructing Sammy by Matt Birkbeck is a behind-the-scenes look at the disastrous fall of one of the brightest stars of Hollywood and Las Vegas: Sammy Davis, Jr. A member of the infamous Rat Pack, a compatriot of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, and one of the most popular performers of his day, Sammy Davis, Jr. was an entertainment icon and a national treasure who earned more than $50 million over the course of his career yet ended up nearly destitute. Deconstructing Sammy tells the whole sad, sordid, fascinating true story.
Matt Birkbeck
Matt Birkbeck is an award-winning investigative journalist and author of Deconstructing Sammy, The Quiet Don, and A Deadly Secret. He is also the executive producer of the hit Netflix film Girl in the Picture, which is based on his books A Beautiful Child and Finding Sharon. A former newspaper reporter and correspondent for People magazine, he’s also written features for Reader’s Digest, Playboy, The New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Boston Magazine, among others. He lives in Pennsylvania.
Related to Deconstructing Sammy
Related audiobooks
Furious Cool: Richard Pryor and The World That Made Him Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In Black and White: The Life of Sammy Davis Junior Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Garner Files: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rhapsody in Black: The Life and Music of Roy Orbison Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Behind the Candelabra: My Life With Liberace Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Andy and Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic American TV Show Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Temptations: Revised and Updated Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Soundtrack of My Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Just Getting Started Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sinatra and Me: In the Wee Small Hours Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dynomite!: Good Times, Bad Times, Our Times -- A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Frank Sinatra: An American Legend Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Shining Star: Braving the Elements of Earth, Wind & Fire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5After the Dance: My Life with Marvin Gaye Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Aretha Franklin: The Queen of Soul Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5There Was a Time: James Brown, The Chitlin' Circuit, and Me Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pryor Convictions: And Other Life Sentences Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Life with Earth, Wind & Fire Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Rat Pack Confidential: Frank, Dean, Sammy, Peter, Joey and the Last Great Show Biz Party Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hello, Lied the Agent: And Other Bullshit You Hear as a Hollywood TV Writer Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRemembering Whitney: My Story of Love, Loss, and the Night the Music Stopped Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cary Grant: Dark Angel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pieces of My Heart Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5King Cohn: The Lfie and Times of Hollywood Mogul Harry Cohn Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Letterman: The Last Giant of Late Night Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rebel: My Life Outside the Lines Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Purpose: An Immigrant's Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dig If You Will the Picture: Funk, Sex, God and Genius in the Music of Prince Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Biography & Memoir For You
From Blood and Ash Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come: One Introvert's Year of Saying Yes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Divine Rivals: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fairy Tale Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Bell Jar Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The House in the Cerulean Sea Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Leave the World Behind: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5And Then There Were None Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Institute: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sure, I'll Join Your Cult: A Memoir of Mental Illness and the Quest to Belong Anywhere Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Twisted Love Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dutch House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Local Woman Missing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ivy League Counterfeiter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Overstory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nothing to See Here Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good Girls Don't Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Series of Unfortunate Events #1 Multi-Voice, A: The Bad Beginning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Paris Apartment: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Later Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dead Zone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In Five Years: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Year of Magical Thinking Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5See You on the Way Down: Catch You on the Way Back Up! Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5If He Had Been with Me Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How Y'all Doing?: Misadventures and Mischief from a Life Well Lived Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Deconstructing Sammy
26 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is an very interesting book I stumbled upon I knew little about SDJ until reading this book.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Whoa. Talk about finding out more than you wanted to know via a biography...at least more than you could possibly imagine. Unlike many celebrity bios, this well-researched book doesn't sell sensationalism. That's because it doesn't need to, as Sammy Davis Jr.'s life wasn't something that could even be expanded any further. After reading this book, I promptly found a yellow pages (thought they were obsolete) and started scouring for tax attorneys, even though I don't have any tax issues. If nothing else, this biography taught me to never ever mess with the IRS.
The story uses a different approach to the typical life story, and that is by focusing the book on someone who isn't Sammy. Instead, we learn the story of Sonny Murray, an attorney who ends up picking up the pieces of Sammy's final days. We also have the second main character, Altovise Davis, Sammy's widow. She is quite the character. That's where the "whoa" comes in at the beginning of my review. And finally, there's Davis himself, really the third character.
If you're a fan of Sammy Davis Jr., you'll still get a good view of his background in music, his Rat Pack friendships, and his wacked-out world. You may not like it, but it's there, including a separate section listing all of the court documents involved in the telling of this book. I think the author has done a very good job of getting the reader involved and not trying to create different personas for the cover subject.
Sinatra does NOT come off well here, but Dino does. In fact, Dean Martin and his longtime manager, Mort Viner, are the only ones who seem to have lived in reality. Yeah, it's that kind of book. Whoa.
Book Season = Winter (prepare your taxes) - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Deconstructing Sammy: Music, Money, and Madness is not an actual biography in the traditional sense. Author Matt Birkbeck shares the stories and memories of those that were closest to the iconic entertainer as well as the findings of Sonny Murray, whose investigation into Sammy’s debts encompasses the bulk of the book. This is not a glamorous portrait of a man who was, and still is, a loved entertainer. This is a look at a man who wanted fame and fortune at almost all costs. He spent without reserve, dabbled heavily in drugs and alcohol, married for convenience, neglected his wife and children, had numerous affairs, made deals with the mob, and surrounded himself with an entourage of mostly self-serving individuals. Those around him could see his decline but few, very few, attempted to put a stop to the disaster that was inevitable – they were being paid to say yes.This was a truly fascinating book. There are so many stories and recollections of other household names. Frank Sinatra “discovering” Sammy and supposedly introducing him to the ways of the mob. Dean Martin was actually a quiet homebody who did not partake in the over-the-top partying of the Rat Pack crew. Sammy ran with a powerful crowd, in the entertainment industry as well as politically. There is even a hint that Sammy knew the true story who shot JFK. What really struck me was how massive the fall from fame and fortune. From buying Chinese carry-out for an entire commercial airliner that was stranded on the runway all the way to his “friends” sneaking into his home and stealing his belongings (furniture, clothes, heirlooms from his friends in the entertainment industry, jewelry) while Sammy Davis laid in bed stricken with cancer. There is also the story of Sonny Murray’s attempts to deal with the largest individual IRS debt on record in 1994 and revitalize Sammy’s name and reputation. The obstacles in dealing with the wife (Altovise), Sammy’s children, the IRS, and Sammy’s former accountants and financial advisors makes for an interesting read.Reading this book was like peeling back layers with a new revelation in each chapter. Entertaining read!
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5What a sad book this is. I almost didn't want to finish it, but couldn't put it down. The book is about Sammy, but it is also about the people in his life and what a life it was. I was shocked by what I was reading and saddened that this was the life of one of the most talented men in the entertainment business. There are so many details my head was spinning and my jaw was dropped. It was like a traffic accident. You don't want to look but you can't help yourself. I'm still a fan of Sammy Davis Jr. but will never think of him in the same way as I did before I read the book.