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| You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again | 
 enlarge | Author: Julia Phillips
Publisher: Random House Inc (T)
Category: Book
List Price: £14.40
Buy Used: £0.14
You Save: £14.26 (99%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 936792
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 573
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.3
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 6.3 x 2.1
ISBN: 0394575741
Dewey Decimal Number: 791.430232092
EAN: 9780394575742
ASIN: 0394575741
Publication Date: March 1991
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Dispatched from the US -- Expect delivery in 2-3 weeks. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Shipped to over one million happy customers! Your purchase benefits world literacy!
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| Customer Reviews:
 This book needed an editor April 28, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
'You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again' contains fascinating insights into Hollywood and what goes on behind the scenes of major movies. Julia Phillips is ruthlessly honest about the deals and motivations of executives and stars, and just as honest about the sex and drugs of the 70s, including her own experiences.
The book is a bit confusing, however. She will mention a name as if she expects you to know who they are - sometimes because they have been famous in the past (so possibly would have been recognisable at the time of publication), but often because they have popped up in the book 60-odd pages before. The first time I read it I didn't realise it had an index, so I just let the names wash over me, and missed some of the recurring people. This could have been helped with a brief re-cap (or just giving their position).
The book tends to flit backwards and forwards in the past, and from third person to first person, which I found stylistically annoying. She seems to give up on referring to herself-in-the-present as 'she' part way through. The more confusing aspect is when she switches from one point in the past, e.g. editing Taxi Driver, to the casting and filming of it.
There is also lots of repetition of phrases she has found important which just sound like obsessions e.g. 'your brother thinks you are the artist and he is the businessman, but we both know it's the other way round'. There are several different motifs, which don't always seem to make sense in context, and I am left with the impression that she is writing the book as therapy, not necessarily to communicate.
But with all this, I am still reading this wonderfully biased book for the second time for glimpses of the truth behind the mystique of Hollywood.
 An American Dream? November 26, 2007
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
This best selling book when first published in 1991 is based on Julia Philips' autobiography life of her short lived stalled career cut lose by the masculine oriented world of Hollywood. The contradictive title tells all, this is in a sense a revenge of everybody's favourite but rather inpersonal movie town (but much wider a critism of worldwide American traditions and cultures) where an Oscar can either be your breakthrough, peak or comeback and how your personality may be worth investing in, so you can become their favourite typecast they give all the roles to. The title could be suggesting a play-on-words where it should be turning out, you'll never work in this town again-the cruel words of a depective hollywood.
During her time there, she was witness to the American studios where the head reign control over everything they do, how meetings are always the norm, ego movie directors, self centered actors/actresses and businessmen poising as talented movie producers.
Julia percieves her life as troubled, how her childhood as a young Russian jew was confusing spent a lot in New York City trying to understand herself. She thought of herself as an identity crisis who had no purpose to her life; an obbession first with smoking then trigged onto drugs; prone to illness and whom tried desperately to enjoy the works of Emily Bronte and Time, always observant about the world around her and the relationships with men she had with most notably Michael Philips where the relationship just doesn't blossom where on one occassion she went to Disneyland with him just to get over the day being committed to the role of his wife with little freedom not too long before they divorced, later on becoming very unsympahtetic to her. She was also a worrier and fanatic about her weight,looks and clothes and even had a fear of New Year's Day since ironically she never appreciated the passing and beginning of another year of sublime boredom.
The title which i have given to this review is ambigious, because it also analysises on a wider scale a strong criticism of American culture how not everyone is given a chance including herself who cannot understand the greed of corporations and emphasise on an entrapenuar society. Julia slowly begins to build the momentum of a strong voice arguing freedom of speech, politics and young stars being exploited in the media (with her mothers/fathers as their domineering managers) as sickening in her view. She gradually learns to see the ugly truth with wise eyes and her own desatute of her sad experiences in the business.
Although slow and meandering to begin with, Julia builds up a riveting and addictive as she leans from situation to situation from boyfriend to boyfriend to movie producer to drugs to movie directors based entirely on her own values,against the liberalised Hollywood that by the end you feel forgiven she has gone to the bother, that is not only amusing but also shocking, disturbing, somewhat controversial with great care and attention and well written. This was like she was born to do this so she could let others on the secrets of a world behind closed doors. (how she managed to get away with condening so many famous people in severe put downs is a mystery?). A good knowledge of Hollywood from the film people to the actors to the movies is essential which being about Hollywood is expected. Julia does uses a lot of references, for example describing her dad's actions of rubbing his bald patch like Robert Duvall in Network. Only towards the end, do we see her strength as a human being to admit she went in and came out a fierce and independant woman. You could say that the experiences of Hollywood life made her more content with her own private life and not vice-versa, it was as if she needed this, but how she dealt with it afterwards was amazing. She didn't give up her dreams though of being a movie producer which emphasise how she was willing to keep it to herself and maybe amongst her closest associates.
This is ultimate proof of the reality of Hollywood and how you are expected to behave in a town where nothing is certain for too long. Definitally as good as Raging Bulls (even though Raging Bulls tied the whole period up together of all the so-called movie brats on a summary-before and after), maybe even better, i just can't decide and may guarantee to change your opinion of Hollywood's liberalised thinking.
Good, but not as good as the legend (or title) suggests... January 1, 2006
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Pithily written, witty and profound at times, this is nonetheless very hard going in parts. Problem areas are mainly: 1.too many references to movie execs and other people who would be unknown today to anyone other than people trying to get movies made in the 1970s (and probably even less well known today)2.Banal chunks of self-absorbtion/details of clothing purchases etc, of little interest to anyone except the author (and maybe not her either). Even given this is a 'me decade' book doesn't really make this aspect more palatable 3.A style which, given the crystal-like like films the author got made, is pretty dense at times to get through. Quirky phrase styles etc have not worn well.Having said that, it's well worth a look - but those seeking consistent inside-view of the movie world might want to start somewhere else - William Goldman for example. And if it's analysis of movie moments is your thing, start with David Thomsom.
There is quality (but sporadic over the 500 or so pages) insight here no doubt and maybe I'm just not allowing Phillips her free reign in what is afterall a bio/reportage/journal/dark night of the soul epic. Perhaps nothing could ever live up to such a great title. Respect due to Phillips though, who certainly walked the talk.
For those who enjoy hollywood gossip, January 29, 2002
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I was so sad to hear that the author of this book, Julia Phillips recently died. Anyone who reads this will recognise that despite her problems she was such a genuine personality in a business not recognised for such qualities. While the book is full to the brim with gossip and info that the stars would rather you didnt know, you can't help wanting to learn about this woman. The ending genuinely leaves you wanting more. More gossip, more movies, more Julia! But yet this isnt just a dodgy version of the National Enquirer and gives real insight into the internal workings of the business of movies. Read about Spielberg, Goldie Hawn, Warren Beatty to name a few. For those who finish this and want more I suggest reading Easy Rider Raging Bulls for a more "academic" approach to the era. It is worth noting that even though many were quite upset about the content of this book, prior to her death she contacted many of those she wrote about to say no hard feelings - even though she didnt give out any apologies. She may have her faults but this woman is great!!
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