Having just started watching Deadwood, I needed to read this book. It touches on the author's life with drinking, gambling, and dementia - writing in the morning when his mind is at its sharpest. Definitely an emotional read, I would recommend this to everyone I know!

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House for access to this in return for an honest review.

David Milch is one of the great artists of the last fifty years. His life story is emotionally a lot. But a great read.

First off, just for the record, I was a HUGE fan of "NYPD Blue" for a couple/few years in the mid-to-late 90s, during the Jimmy Smits years. Even though technicaly I only watched a year or two when those episodes were actually airing on TV (I never really watched NYPD Blue before 1997 or so, and stopped watching within a season or so after he left the series in 1998) I watched the rest of the episodes/seasons that Jimmy Smits appeared on the show in reruns, or on video streaming and/or DVD. But even though I was a pretty big fan of [[ASIN:B07Y5M9FSN NYPD Blue]] during the Jimmy Smits years, I never knew much (if anything!) about David Milch, other than seeing his name listed in the show’s credits as a co-creator of the series (along with the late Steven Bochco), and reading an article in the late 90s or early 2000s about the many cast members who were leaving the show, allegedly because of Milch’s erratic behavior. I too had stopped watching the series around that time since I had mainly watched it for Jimmy Smits (I had a HUGE crush on him!) and after he left the show, and then others I'd liked (Sharon Lawrence, Andrea Thompson, Kim Delaney, Nicholas Turturro, James McDaniel, etc.) started leaving in droves as well, I mostly lost interest in the series myself, with all of the cast changes. But I still LOVED Season 2-5 of NYPD Blue, and thus, when I came across this book "Life's Work" by David Milch on the Netgalley website, available for free, in exchange for an honest and unbiased review, I requested it, curious & wanting to learn more about the creator (or co-creator!) of one of my favorite TV series in my late teens & early 20s.

Unfortunately, this book turned out to be a huge disappointment and I'm REALLY glad that I did NOT buy it to read, but rather got a free e-ARC (advance reader copy) from Netgalley. Because, even though I'm only on the 2nd chapter, actually a little bit into Chapter 2 (and about 13% into the book according to my Kindle meter) I literally cannot sustain any interest to keep going, especially when there are so many great books out there I've yet to read (and so little time!). This book is just SO boring to me — and while I understand that Mr. Milch has dementia/Alzheimer's as well as bipolar disorder, and as a result, his memory loss, and other issues may account for some or even a lot of his stream-of-consciousness rambling, I don't know or I'm not sure that it accounts for all of the problems that I have with this "memoir”………………………..for example, in one part I read, David Milch divulges that growing up, he was sexually abused at a summer camp in the Adirondacks and as I myself was also molested but as a preschooler, I was hoping that Mr. Milch would talk more about that. But that was not the case. While he spent several pages (maybe more?) talking about his childhood friend, Judge (or was it Judgy? I don't remember, and don't care enough to look it up!) and even Judge/Judgy's father, Jim, merited barely more than a couple lines. I mean, David talked more about his father's gambling, and working as a doctor for mobsters, as well as his childhood friend Judge/Judgy and even Judge/Judgy's alcoholic & child-abusing father, Jim, than he did about himself and HIS OWN childhood!

But I didn't get this book to read about Judge/Judgy or his father Jim, or even about David's father, Elmer Milch or Elmer's underworld connections, I got this book to read about David Milch, and there was very little that was truly about him in the chapter and a half or so that I read. It was mostly all about other people who I had/have ZERO interest in. Now as I said, I know that Mr. Milch has dementia/Alzheimers, but instead of spending time telling the reader how he had to travel to the Canadian side of the Peace Bridge in order to rescue Judgy's drunk father Jim, from a bar (I think!) when I couldn't care less about even Judgy, let alone his drunk, child-beating father, Jim, I would've much rather preferred it if David had conserved his time and limited energy & memory and actually shared more about HIMSELF. I kept hoping that that's what would happen, but it never did. Or at least it never did up to 13% into the book when I got to the part about David Milch talking about dropping acid, and manufacturing drugs in Mexico, in an almost boastful kind of way, and then I was DONE. This book MIGHT have gotten better later on, but I wasn't willing to take the chance and I bailed.

Furthermore, it really angers me how David Milch talked about his father’s and his own gambling and alcohol and drug use/abuse with an almost air of pride. Especially after reading a New York Times article (www dot tinyurl dot com/davidmilch) which mentioned that in 2011, Milch’s wife found out that he’d spent $23 MILLION at racetracks in 10 years and that they had $5 MILLION in unpaid taxes, and were $17 MILLION in debt, I was even more infuriated. I can’t stand that, while selfish, self-centered, egotistical and shallow narcissists like David Milch are FRITTERING AWAY $23 MILLION (an amount that is EXPONENTIALLY more than most people would make in MULTIPLE LIFETIMES of labor!) AT THE RACETRACK, there are MILLIONS of people literally living on the streets, sleeping in doorways, and eating out of dumpsters, and even DYING needlessly because they cannot afford insulin or other essential life-saving medical care — and rather than going after people like this (those who HAVE millions of dollars to squander) who owe MILLIONS in unpaid taxes, instead the government wastes time, money & resources going after the “little guy”, as chronicled in books like David Kirby’s "When They Come For You", and documentary films like "Farmageddon", and "America: Freedom to Fascism", and "Freedom from Choice". Meanwhile, MILLIONS even BILLIONS of dollars is lost in revenue from both these unpaid taxes & “corporate welfare” to multi-millionaires and billionaires, and yet, the US government, and even the American people still ask “who’ll pay for” and/or claim there’s no money to pay for universal healthcare, tuition-free public college and other services & programs for the public good that every single other industrialized nation, and even many developing nations manage to ensure for its populace……………….all because the American masses prefer to scapegoat and blame immigrants, minorities, and/or the poverty-stricken & low-income workers struggling to survive on the measly amount of government assistance, rather than hold those TRULY responsible for all the problems accountable. People like David Milch run through TENS OF MILLIONS of dollars without a second thought, while not only NOT paying their fair share, but not even paying what they actually DO owe, amassing MILLIONS of dollars in unpaid taxes at the expense of the rest of the population. 


On top of that, based on the attitudes in the media coverage of this book, as well as the comments of other reviewers, its seems that the public is expected to laud & commend David Milch for being a “recovered” substance abuser (and gambler!) just because of his career, and his dementia/Alzheimer’s diagnoses, when, according to his own words, he himself even MANUFACTURED drugs (albeit in Mexico), and not just relatively harmless drugs like marijuana, but HARD DRUGS, and helped spread that poison to others. But whaddya want to bet that if it hadn’t been a white upper middle-class guy (and later, a famous TV screenwriter) but a poor, disadvantaged African-American or Latino kid from the inner-city manufacturing hard drugs, and shooting out a police car siren with a shotgun that they’d have spent years, even DECADES behind bars for the stuff that David Milch basically got away with — and even now, just because he’s aging and has dementia, we’re supposed to give him a free pass??

Yet ultimately that’s what we’re all doing. Even me, by giving this book a higher rating (2 stars) than the one (1 star) that I was really tempted to give. But both because of David's mental state and dementia/Alzheimers diagnoses AND because, seeing as how I only read about about a chapter and a half of the book before I gave up, and it might have improved in subsequent chapters (especially considering all the positive reviews of it!), I’m allowing for that possibility and adding ½ a star for each of those things ( ½ star accommodation based on his mental status, and another ½ star as a “benefit of the doubt” that the book could have gotten better after the point where I left off). Which adds up to the final rating of two stars.


⭐️⭐️ 2 STARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When I first watched David Milch’s Deadwood, I confess I was shocked and dismayed by the rampant profanity. It was not until I had seen it the second and successive times that I came to appreciate the lyricisms of the language, including the profanity. As he explains in the book, it was the way people spoke and it also was used to put others on notice that the speaker was not one with whom one should denigrate nor disparage. The book is also filled with lots of profanity. If that offends, avoid the book but I do suspect if you want to read this memoir, you are likely aware of this factor.

Milch is not an easy man to love. The traumas of his youth and the lack of expectations from his father drove much of his aspiration but it also fed his self destructive tendencies. As an addictive personality, he pushed his wife and children, and those with whom he worked, to the limits. Drugs and gambling were his two greatest vices and threatened many times to bring him down. But it was not his vices that would defeat him but Alzheimer’s and dementia. One wonders how much input he had in the final stages of the book. Thankfully, he was able to bring his Deadwood cast back to do one final film that tied up the series and the characters well. His own decline was mirrored in the decline of Al in the show. There was a lovely documentary that was included in the disks of the movie that was very moving. To read it in his own words is even more so.

For all his faults, his body of work shows his genius and is here for future generations to enjoy. It is well worth a look, as is this book. Four purrs and two paws up.

This memoir recounts the life of a very complex man, written to capture his memories before dementia steals them all away. The introductory chapters present a man of great intellect and corruption. I almost gave up then. His academic accomplishments as a student and teacher did not interest me enough to cancel the revulsion I felt for all the poor moral choices he made.
When he began recounting his work as a screenwriter and turned the spotlight away from himself, I got caught up in his story. His analysis of the powerful tv drama NYPD Blue compelled me to dig up this 20 year old series again on Hulu. The stories are as fresh and gripping today as when they were first written, and Milch’s commentary enhances them further.
The next section of the book describes how he came to write the HBO hit Deadwood and does a similar analysis. Not having watched this series of the Old West, it was hard to stay focused, but it did make me want to try the series for myself.
Throughout the book he continues to describe the demons with which he wrestled and his personal and professional relations. All I can say about this is his wife is truly a saint.
Would I recommend this memoir? The man is clearly a deeply flawed creative genius. It is a combination frequently found in the arts. If this kind of drama appeals to you, Life’s Work will provide plenty of food for thought.

Milch has so many excellent thoughts on art and storytelling, but I did find large portions of this book fairly dull. The stuff about NYPD Blue and Deadwood were very interesting, but then he does weird tangents about gambling and why that lead to Luck, which I understand, but was just bored by. However, the final chapter, when he is dealing with Alzheimer's and also trying to finish a Deadwood film, was EXCELLENT. I'd probably recommend reading the book just for the final chapter.

David Milch, one of the great writers of dialogue in screen history, gives us an odd finale of a memoir, akin to Bowie's final album, Blackstar--which to say I didn't always understand what he hoped to convey, but I never doubted I was in the hands of a genuine artist. As he moves forward into what must be the constant confusion of dementia and letting go, Life's Work is a great insight into an unusually gifted writer who is also an irascible addict.

David Milch is a monumental talent. I became aware of him through the DVD commentaries of the brilliant HBO “Deadwood” series he created. His actors sang his praises and spoke of him in reverential tones. He voiced a number of the features himself and brought insight into the characters and plotting. It was fascinating to hear him break down the creative process behind the arc of the show.

Like all die-hard fans, I was crushed by the premature cancellation after only three seasons. Skip thirteen long years to 2019 and word came out that finally, against all odds, HBO had greenlit a special “Deadwood: The Movie”, maybe giving closure to the fans. The announcement was bittersweet, however, as the joy was tempered with the news that David Milch was suffering with Alzeimers, news that was only released when it was obvious his condition could not be hidden with all the press surrounding the new movie.

“Life's Work: A Memoir” opens with Milch describing the unbalanced state his world is in now, a tricky memory and distorted sense of reality. He worked on it with the help of his family, relying on recollections they have of stories Milch had relayed in the past .Especially helpful were writings his wife had been composing for years about his writing process.

David Milch is a man of extremes. He graduated at the top of his class at Yale. He was praised by Robert Penn Warren who said, “No one writes dialogue better than you.” While in the Iowa Writers’ Workshop he dropped down to Mexico to manufacture acid. He developed a heroin addiction. Attending Yale Law School passed the time until he was arrested for shooting out street lights with a shotgun and then turning his sights on the flashing lights of a police car. All this before he was even out of school.



“Hill Street Blues,” “NYPD Blue,” and “Deadwood” are just some of the projects his writing has given us. Milch goes into great detail about struggling to instill depth into each character. He often worked out personal issues in the scripts, including his own molestation as a child by a family friend. A racehorse owner, his love for the track was reflected in “Luck,” a series he created for HBO. Again, his extreme nature is stressed when his wife discovers his gambling has blown up– he had spent twenty-three million dollars at the track during a ten year period.

Much like William Goldman’s wonderful “Adventures in the Screen Trade,” this book gives tremendous insight into the nuts and bolts of the writer’s art. In “Life’s Work” we see the author striving to make his craft personal, weaving his world into the script to reflect truth. A captivating read by an amazing man.

Thank you to the Random House Publishing Company and NetGalley for providing an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. #LifesWork #NetGalley

LIFE’S WORK: A MEMOIR is a fascinating compilation of memoir, stories from a Hollywood life, possible reflections of a troubled second son, and profound comments by a writer slipping into dementia. Any one of those reasons would be sufficient to read this book; together they practically grab readers and compel them to read. And the book is filled with fascinating anecdotes, insights, dramatic scenes and weird and sundry tidbits. David Milch is first and foremost a writer with an exceptional sense of the dramatic. The only difficulty with this book is whether or not the reader believes what is written as truth or nonfiction or even, memoir. And there the author often demurs. He shares that he know longer knows the truth, if he ever did. Does it matter much? Readers will need to decide on their own; the book is a good one. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Gosh I loved this. The memoir works it’s way through David Milch’s life and then into his television writing show by show, or rather pitch by pitch as some of these sadly never made it to light. Of note to longtime fans like myself will be the detailed insight into NYPD Blue stories as well as the story behind John From Cincinnati. It’s heartbreaking to know that Milch is suffering from dementia. Some of Milch’s own life and anecdotes told in this memoir would make good tv themselves. Imagine a series about young Milch at Yale.

My thank to both NetGalley and the publisher Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an advance copy of this memoir/ confession of a writer looking back at what he can remember.

At the end I guess it all comes down to balance. A skill at writing balanced by an addictive personality. A great friend, with a bad father, success at his art, with millions lost to gambling. A love of words and family, that slowly become forgotten as the day goes on. David Milch,writer and creator of acclaimed shows like NYPD Blue and Deadwood, has written a memoir of his life in Hollywood, growing up damaged and forgetting everything and everyone he knows. Life's Work is a book that is haunting, beautiful, annoying hopeful and full of creativity and hope, just like the man who wrote it.

The book begins with his family, a father who was a doctor, but addicted to pills and gambling, a bond that the son would share with his father. Alcohol came early as was betting the ponies with his father, a feeling Milch would spend most of his life chasing. Attending Yale he was mentored by the writer Robert Penn Warren, who would become a second father to Milch, and began an association with the writer Richard Yates which was never friendly, even though Milch tried to get him jobs in Hollywood, later. Fireworks, shotguns, run- ins with the cops were part of his college career, but so was learning to write. Soon he found love with a wife who must have the patience of a saint, and Hollywood came calling with script work, more gambling, more pills and more drugs. His show NYPD Blue broke new ground, his later show Deadwood was loved and acclaimed, unlike later shows which brought his old demons back with great cost. And his health began to fail, and his memory began to lapse.

The book is extraordinarily written, balanced between a guy who loves his family, friends, and his art, but loves drugs, being a jerk, and gambling. Milch has his reasons, I won't ruin anything, and his extracurricular activities hurt really don't matter, or shouldn't but to him everything seems to have a reason. For a man who seems so real and now, he is very spiritual, and it comes across in the writing. At points readers will not like this selfish jerk, in others readers won't see the page with the tears they have. Especially in writing about his health now. The worst part is reading about all the things Milch would like to have done, but knows he will not, an the pain he has caused his family, a pain he knows at this time he can never fix. One of the best memoirs I have read in awhile. Draining and beautiful.

This is a book that is a lot deeper than I expected, even though I knew some of the health issues Milch was suffering. He loves words, how to put them together to tell a story, and make a stranger across the country wipe their eyes even while typing a review. A book for a lot of people. Creative types wanting to learn the art of being creative. Hollywood types who should learn not to give their Vicodin dealer points in a show, and how Hollywood accounting works, gamblers who might like the tales of the raceways. Children of parents who are dealing with dementia, and for people facing a time when sundown means that everything they thought they knew is suddenly gone. A really wonderful book I can't recommend enough.

First off, thank you Random House for granting my wish on Netgalley. I'm so glad I was able to read this book before it's publication.

I'm glad David Milch was able to write this book, even in the midst of declining health. His story is fascinating and this is the kind of warts and all memoir that I like to reads. There are few people better at what they do than Mr. Milch and it was frustrating to read about his battles with addiction and gambling. But we are all humans just trying to muddle through and the fact that he was able to leave behind such an amazing body of work is inspiring. I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in "prestige television" or fans of memoir in general.

David Milch is the creator and producer of several of the most important programs in television history. As a fan of both NYPD Blue and Deadwood, his stories of leading those programs while dealing with addiction issues was hard to put down. I will recommend this book to my students who are interested in getting into the TV business. While dark, the book is very instructive.

Oldh is obviously a great writer and creator of tv shows. Deadwood alone places him in the pantheon. But I didn’t live this book. I,found the parts about his life, growing up and addictions fascinating. Same with how,Deadwood was created. And NYPD Blue. But the lengthy discussions about the art and philosophy of creative writing were not that interesting, at least to me. So a mixed bag.

David Milch was a difficult person to like in this memoir. He seems to revel in his drug addiction (even though he is a husband and parent.) Milch also gambles away thousands upon thousands of dollars, despite pleas from family to change his ways. He writes about his years writing scripts for Law and Order and.NYPD Blues, but I found his writing style in this book to be very off putting.

If you are a fan of classic Television series such as Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue and Deadwood then portions of Life's Work by David Milch will be of great interest to you. At times, Milch's memoir is detailed to the point of tedium, for example, when he takes several pages to explain why the vulgar language in Deadwood is authentic.
The behind the scenes information is interesting and Milch is generous in his praise for the myriad contributions of the all the crew members and actors involved in his career.

The real star of this book and Milch's life is his wife Rita Stern. Rita saw Milch through personal and financial challenges, dealing with addictive behavior that might have sent a weaker individual screaming towards a divorce lawyer.

While I understand the author has Alzheimers, I felt the book could have used a little more editing in the beginning and yes I'm aware that might be intentional. I enjoyed the stories on how he created the shows, I'm always fascinated about the process.

Incredibly thought provoking work here. His scenes are so well drawn out, that I truly felt like I was living the narrative alongside the author. The writing is beautiful, and evocative and makes the pages fly, Can't wait to sell this!

Milch has written a remarkable book. Not only is it an amazing story--NYPD Blue, Deadwood, gambling addiction, booze and drugs--he is currently suffering from dementia. He explain to the reader that he is forced to write this book in the morning when his mind is at its sharpest.

A wonderful book showcasing the power of storytelling.

I received a free e-galley from Netgalley in return for this review.

David Milch's memoir, Life's Work, is a unique glimpse into the thoughts of a storytelling genius facing the loss of his mind to Alzheimer's and dementia. He knows and observes what is happening, then lets us in on the experience from the inside in much the same way he illuminated his inimitable characters over the years. Those include Deadwood's Al Swearengin, NYPD Blue's Andy Sipowicz, and many more, each of whom contains a dash of Milch.

In his memoir, Milch shares his faults and missteps without apology or bravado. He is what he is and built his writing process and personal life around his failures, addictions, and illnesses, from early OCD to his latest diagnosis.

Milch's love of storytelling and the workings of his writer's mind infuse every page of his book. It's very nearly a masterpiece on how to write character but never reads like a textbook. Rather, Life's Work is a gripping read that avoids the slough of sentimentality that often pervades the "illness memoir." This is no authorial attempt at redemptive wrap-up and we are all the better for it. Milch finds his way through life by the art of storytelling and continues to do so with Life's Work, a superbly-written, frank, and generous memoir of a life of the mind from beginning to...