A fun read looking back at outrageous events in the author's life. Well written and the photographs were a good addition.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book

‘Too Good to Fact Check’ means: who cares if it’s true when it sounds that good? Not necessarily in a tabloid way, it can just be an anecdote. Jeremy Murphy’s memoir is titled <i>Too Good to Fact Check</i> and the problem is that you must admit an anecdote should be shorter than a memoir.

I think the idea is very original: an editor of a little-known (but interesting – a TV guide that makes itself a glossy) magazine writing about himself like he is not just the star, but never doing that thing where actual celebs get this close to revealing their real selves when their ghostwriter tells them “Kim, here’s where you say you’re a humble, down-to-earth person” and the text gets adjusted accordingly. Murphy’s is the opposite. The self-deprecating remarks come with pictures showing someone who is neither ‘fat’ nor ugly. Lots of pictures. With stars and models and photographers. And, to make it even more over-the-top, the chapters are rounded up with an adoring friend interviewing him to add more of whatever the opposite of excessive modesty is.

So… why three stars? (the actual rating is 5.5/10 rounded up) This would have worked if Murphy was either a comic, or someone I already disliked for their vanity. Or if the magazine was <i>Vogue</i> and Murphy – Anna Wintour. Oh, it would have been delightful to find out that Wintour thought this was a good idea. Michael K of the sadly departed DListed would have been brilliant, although his memoir would not sound like this. Unfortunately, I didn’t know Jeremy Murphy before and I still don’t. ‘Lucy Poo’ (Lucy Liu) is not the worst pun in the book. And it’s not even fiction.

As for Sophia Paulmier’s interviews? I skipped them all. (My score refers to about 60% of the book – it would have been between 7-8/10 without the interviews.) I’ve just learned a lot about someone I knew nothing about. I don’t need deeper understanding or more detail or, frankly, more gushing. Some of Murphy’s vaguely outrageous schemes are fun and he takes the credit, which is vaguely enjoyable, but they’re never that big, the stars never that booooombastic (LL Cool J insists on bringing his entire team of… six people – that’s how many it takes to do Madonna’s hair every morning, I suspect), and the magazine is… well. A TV magazine I’ve never heard about.

I DNFed the book at 55% mark, because this was an idea better in theory than in practice. Murphy’s self-esteem is either too healthy, or very, very much not so – Paulmier’s loving interviews are occasionally longer than the chapters (and every chapter gets an interview). I suspect Kanye West’s memoir would be exactly like this, with Bianca doing the interviews to underscore the level of greatness we’re dealing with here. It would be hilarious in a sad way. I can’t stand Kanye West. As for Murphy, the main thing I’ve learned was not to go out for drinks with him. Oh, and that Celine Dion uses the word ‘jacuzzi’.

(5.5/10, rounded up to 3/5 for Goodreads)

<i>My ratings:
5* = this book changed my life
4* = very good
3* = good
2* = I probably DNFed it, so I don't give 2* ratings
1* = actively hostile towards the reader*</i>

The is a memoir of Jeremy Murphy, editor of the glossy TV magazine Watch. He recounts his high flying days escorting the stars to photo shoots. He does dish some dirt. I liked the behind the scenes dealing with the photographers, set designers, and stylists. I marked one star off because of the Q and A at the end of each chapter. They were self indulgent and unnecessary. They often just recapped the chapter and many questions asked were already answered. Otherwise it was a quick light read about celebrities. I did like it that examples of the photo shoots were included.

Thank you, Netgalley, for allowing me to read and review this book. These opinions are completely my own.

Must read for all pop culture fans. I found myself enjoying the shoot and fashion stories more than the celebrity, which is not like me. It's fascinating and the Q&A with Sophia Paulmier is the icing on the cake that creativity baked

I read this book in a single evening. It is well-written and engagingly frivolous. The book will make one appreciate the efforts of photographers and talent management.

Had high hopes for this one based on the blurb purporting high life and scandalous stories. Started out ok when he was growing up and setting out on a career but rapidly grew repetitive. And the scandalous stories were never that juicy. Maybe because the author couldn't remember the events, just the cost of it afterwards.

So, the editor of a magazine I’ve never hear of before (“Watch” anyone?) wants to impress by showing all the jocks and popular kids that he grew up with that, see, he really DID matter by sharing his incredibly long stories of getting drunk and trashing hotel rooms while traveling with B and C list celebrities while he also makes a nasty, stereotypical joke about the state I live in.

The book is actually even more obnoxious than that as the chapters are typically made up of an anecdote about a photo shoot, gratuitous mention of one very famous photographer (who is likely the only reason any advertiser ever cared about this magazine at all, and Murphy mentions him constantly…you would think he was on the staff of the magazine), stories about how Murphy begged for freebies from choice hotels and airlines (which, don’t get me wrong, is a great grift.)

THEN the chapter ends with a Q&A about what we just read from Murphy’s own friend/fluffer. Sample question: “Your honest humility with writing
‘the magazine was two years old, and it started to feel like TV Guide’ is powerful…”. Dear God.

I don’t give a lot of one star reviews, so congratulations, Mr. Murphy, for really earning it.

My thanks to Post Hill Press and NetGalley for a copy of “ Too Good To Fact Check “ for an honest review.

I quite enjoyed reading this , despite the fact that ,as someone who is from England , I wasn’t really sure who some of the celebrities covered in this book were !
It was interesting to see what is involved when trying to set up a photo shoot, and the antics that the celebs and editorial staff get up to

2.5 stars. Early on he says “Super P put up with me, and I was very happy he put up with me because not a lot of people do”. Presumably this is because he has a tendency to be a bit manic with wild and crazy ideas, and a bit bitchy. See his comments about anything he doesn’t like, such as Berlin or West Virginia (“The Greenbrier is a stately resort in West Virginia steeped in history, tradition, luxury, blah blah blah. The truth is it’s a giant turd”). But that doesn’t stop him using it and staying in comped rooms for his team and the talent (“They’d been kind to us, and I felt obligated to return the favour. I shouldn’t have.”). Well poor little dude, was the free luxury stay not up to your liking?

Also annoying was the way he’d swan around the world (mostly Paris but sometimes elsewhere) on free trips because of advertising, but then he says “I loathe ‘content creators’ and ‘influencers’, more so the ‘influencers’. It’s a paid racket.” DUDE. Are you even hearing yourself at this point? Do you hear the hypocrisy in such a statement?

He intersperses each chapter with photos of the actors from the photoshoots, and yes, some of these are beautiful - Pauley Perrette in Paris as a Degas ballerina stands out. And he was clearly connected in getting photographers, stylists, etc. to deliver the shoots each time. He obviously likes the fun bits of the job - the free travel, luxury stays, fine dining (and lots of drinking… a few black outs are mentioned, and a lifetime ban from one hotel…), but less so the boring bits. Until someone dangles a luxury hotel visit in front of him and then he’s all ears… Take the press check, which required an annual inspection of the printing site. “Truth was, I didn’t give a shit. What was I checking? The ink? Paper? Drug tests for the operators? It always seemed like a useless exercise, which is why I avoided it up to that point. But in 2009, I found out that a five-star hotel and restaurant I’d longed to visit […] was nearby.” Oh well then, now he’s interested…

Or maybe what annoyed me was how he’d then wangle freebies to celebrate his birthday, or put the talent’s room number on bar bills because the bean counters seldom checked or questioned the stars’ bills, allowing the magazine crew to drink free.

Ultimately the book shows how magazines organise photoshoots and just how much expense goes into them (mostly picked up by the airlines and hotels, throwing around first class tickets and suites). It was interesting to see how much work goes into what might only be a few photos in a magazine, but I can’t say I wound up liking the author or the lifestyle you’d lead… sorry. The Q&A between chapters didn’t really add anything either.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.