Couldn’t stop reading, incredibly informative and enjoyable. ( )

This biography, unlike so many I have read, mostly kept the pages turning as well as a good novel. Much of that has to do with the subject, a complicated person who never stopped working for long, and whose work was mostly very good. He certainly had faults, and his struggles with those add to the books interest. In addition, the book provides a terrific revisitation of the worlds of theater and the movies from mid-20th century into the 21rst century. Why not five stars? At times the pace lags a bit, especially later in the book. And the name dropping gets a bit much, even if that's probably more a function of Nichols than of the author. ( )

The world around us, when viewed in retrospect, is so deceptively simple. Take the career of Mike Nichols for example. He burst out of Second City, partnering with Elaine May and becoming a best-selling comedian. He did some Neil Simon on Broadway, met Richard Burton there, and directed him and Liz Taylor in his first film. His next three films, as well, were popular and critical successes, and then he disappeared. I cannot thank Mark Harris enough for rescuing Mike Nichols from this reductionism.

I'm not sure I've encountered Mr. Harris previously (his name almost screams anonymity), but this is a master work of interpretive biography. I did not live Mike Nichols' life, but after reading this I feel I might have. Whether Mr. Harris has overstepped his remit, and created a fictional Mike Nichols, I will never know; I only know that not an observation has rung false for me yet.

Mike Nichols, the Mike Nichols without this history, is one of the touchstones of my life. Comedic lines delivered with a detached desperation will immediately bring him and Elaine May to mind. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf and Catch-22 remain among the best-directed movies ever, demanding dozens of rewatches. To admit that this book has enriched my appreciation of him is the greatest praise I can give. ( )

Absolutely terrific. If you are a fan of theater and movies this is the one book that will transport you back to those magical experiences of attending a live show or going to see some of your favorite flicks! ( )

Born Igor Mikhail Peschkowsky in Germany, a cousin of Albert Einstein, Nichols wasn’t much on my radar but I’ve enjoyed many of his films and kept seeing the enthusiastic reviews this biography was getting.

It’s an engaging, chronological tome of his career as comedian/ actor/ writer/ producer/ director for stage and film, with some attention to his childhood, friends, marriages and children. I’m stunned by two aspects: 1) the sheer quantity of creative work Nichols accomplished in his life, and 2) the number of sources Harris consulted to quote so many of Nichols’s colleagues and friends about the dozens of films and stage productions -- so many wonderful (some haunting) anecdotes about actors and writers and Nichols’s innovative approaches to storytelling and filmmaking.

As Nichols aged and declined, I began each chapter dreading his death (yet still he worked!), and when it finally came it made me teary. ( )

Why this book? Author Mark Harris tweet on 8/29/21 - "One of the joyous things about writing the Mike Nichols bio was the chance to interview people whose work I've always loved. When I found out that Mike, at 20, directed Ed Asnwer, at 22, I had to talk to him. He was my gravelliest interviewee ever, and worth every minute."