Oh boy! Memoirs are my favorite genre and celebrity memoirs in particular. Ed Begley Jr. is an actor I’ve seen on screen for years, so reading about his life kept me riveted. It does seem as though he knows everybody in the entertainment business with a whole slew of “dear friends”. Good for him, I say. Here’s hoping his memoir sells a gazillion copies.

Synopsis: (from Netgalley, the provider of the book for me to review)
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Beloved actor and environmental activist Ed Begley Jr.—known for countless roles over the last five decades, most recently in Better Call Saul and Young Sheldon—shares hilarious and poignant stories of his improbable life, focusing on his relationship with his legendary father Ed Begley Sr., adventures with Hollywood icons, the origins of his environmental activism, addiction and recovery, and his lifelong search for wisdom and common ground.
Ed Begley Jr. is truly unique, a performer known equally for his prolific film and television career and his environmental activism. From an appearance on My Three Sons to a notable role in Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman to starring in St. Elsewhere—as well as films with Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep, and mockumentarian Christopher Guest—Begley has worked with just about everyone in Hollywood. His "green" bona fides date back to 1970 and have been the topic of two books, a reality show, countless media appearances, and even repeated spoofs on The Simpsons (in one episode, Begley's solar‑powered car stalls out on train tracks, but is saved when the train is revealed to be an "Ed Begley Solar‑Powered Train”).
In To the Temple of Tranquility...And Step On It!, Begley shares a fountain of hilarious and poignant stories throughout his life. The memoir is candid and endearing; in one chapter, he is summoned to Marlon Brando's house to discuss the practical uses of electric eels. In another, he tells the story of taking Annette Bening to the Oscars in “an oddball kit car that had gull-wing doors, and was nearly impossible to get in or out of, unless you were a yoga master, which fortunately she was.” Not to mention insightful and surprising tales about The Beatles, Monty Python, Richard Pryor, Cesar Chavez, Jeff Goldblum, Tom Waits, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carrie Fisher, and so many more luminaries.
Begley’s unmistakable voice is honest and revealing in a way only a comic of his calibre can accomplish. Behind all the stories, Begley has the wisdom to impart. This is a book about family, friends, addiction, failure, and redemption.

I always remember the joke "ED BEGLEY AND HIS STUPID ELECTRIC CAR".. on Firends, In 1995!!! Ed surely saw the future and has lived it for DECADES. He is also witty, smart and one of those actors who I have loved since the days of "St. Elsewhere"...did you know that he had dinner with Norman Lloyd every week until Norman died at age 106?? (He has great range as I hated him on "CSI: Miami"!

A fun autobiography to read that is witty and full of hope for our future and what we can do to save the environment: I will recommend this book far and wide to my biography lovers, book clubs and tree huggers as it is entertaining (to say the least) and rather profound.

#shortbutsweetreviews