Putting the Rabbit in the Hat
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-01-26 11:21:08
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Brian Cox
- ISBN：1668606763
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Andy Walker
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I really enjoyed this autobiography of leading thespian， character actor and all-round decent Dundonian， Brian Cox。 Famous these days for his role in the HBO drama/satire series Succession， Cox has seen his popularity rise late in his career。 Before taking on the role of Logan Roy in the US-based series， Cox already had a solid career in theatre， TV and films behind him。 His autobiography Putting the Rabbit in the Hat is a warts and all gallop through his life， from the streets of Dundee to the I really enjoyed this autobiography of leading thespian， character actor and all-round decent Dundonian， Brian Cox。 Famous these days for his role in the HBO drama/satire series Succession， Cox has seen his popularity rise late in his career。 Before taking on the role of Logan Roy in the US-based series， Cox already had a solid career in theatre， TV and films behind him。 His autobiography Putting the Rabbit in the Hat is a warts and all gallop through his life， from the streets of Dundee to the boulevards of New York。 Cox never loses his working class voice on that journey and comes across as a guy you’d be happy to have a beer or a coffee with。 It’s a shame he doesn’t talk more about his time in Succession but perhaps he doesn’t want to be defined too much by his most recent role。 And maybe， he might have another book in him in future。 All in all， a great read。 。。。more
John Mainieri
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By the time I first saw Scottish actor Brian Cox on stage， I had probably seen him in a number of character roles in films and had never noticed him。 When I saw him in the 5 hour Broadway production of “Strange Interlude in the winter of 1985， I was transfixed by everything he did on that stage with co-star Glenda Jackson， and vowed never to forget his name。 What I didn’t realize then， was his long stage career in Scotland and England， working with greats the likes of Olivier， Finney， and Gielgu By the time I first saw Scottish actor Brian Cox on stage， I had probably seen him in a number of character roles in films and had never noticed him。 When I saw him in the 5 hour Broadway production of “Strange Interlude in the winter of 1985， I was transfixed by everything he did on that stage with co-star Glenda Jackson， and vowed never to forget his name。 What I didn’t realize then， was his long stage career in Scotland and England， working with greats the likes of Olivier， Finney， and Gielgud。 These days， as billionaire Logan Roy on HBO’s “Succession”， everyone knows who Brian Cox is， and notice him， but know very little about the actor’s life。 Born in Dundee， Scotland in 1946， Cox grew up enraptured by the movies， where he could take in as many as 8 films a week， there being 21 movie houses where he lived。 He became an apprentice at a local theatre at the age of 15 and knew in his bones this is what he wanted to do。 And he’s been doing it for the last 60 years。 In that time， I’ve seen him onstage here in NYC in everything he’s done-“Rat In The Skull”， St。 Nicholas”， “Art”， and “The Great Society”。 I relish seeing him in whatever medium he appears。He is a very persuasive and direct storyteller， and you can imagine him speaking in that deep Scottish burr as you read。 He’s also very opinionated on a whole range of topics， from other actors to politics。 Of Steven Seagal-“（He’s） as ludicrous in real life as he is on screen。 Seagal suffers from that Trump syndrome of thinking himself far more capable and talented than he actually is。。。”Of Michael Caine-“an institution。 And being an institution will always beat having range”。Of Johnny Depp-“so overblown， so overrated “。Of Kevin Spacey-“a great talent， but a stupid， stupid man”。He also has savage takedowns of various people like Margaret Thatcher， Quentin Tarantino， Princess Margaret， and a number of directors he’s worked with。His praise， though， throughout the book， for those he admires is effusive。 Michael Gambon， Paul Scofield， Nigel Terry， John Osborne， and others too many to mention。This is a very entertaining read for anyone who relishes tales of theatre， both endearing and catastrophic， shooting a movie， with all its comforts and horrors， and of raising a family， and sometimes failing at that。 One lovely bonus in this book for me was discovering Brian’s son Alan played young Dr。 Watson in the much-admired “Young Sherlock Holmes”， directed by Barry Levinson， which remains one of my favorite 80s films。In other words， if you only know Brian Cox as Logan Roy， this probably isn’t the book for you。 But if you want straight shooting from a master of his craft， go for it。 。。。more
Sarah Allen
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As a fan of Succession and celebrity gossip， I naturally gravitated toward this book。 What I expected to be hot takes on shitty actors in Hollywood turned out to be an interesting look into Brian Cox’s childhood that inexplicably paved the way for a robust career in the theater as well as the big screen。 Did I get Succession details？ Some。 Were there plenty of hot takes on everyone from Daniel Day Lewis to Sir Ian McKellen？ Absolutely。 But more than this， learning about the wild ride Brian Cox h As a fan of Succession and celebrity gossip， I naturally gravitated toward this book。 What I expected to be hot takes on shitty actors in Hollywood turned out to be an interesting look into Brian Cox’s childhood that inexplicably paved the way for a robust career in the theater as well as the big screen。 Did I get Succession details？ Some。 Were there plenty of hot takes on everyone from Daniel Day Lewis to Sir Ian McKellen？ Absolutely。 But more than this， learning about the wild ride Brian Cox has been on since being a “wee lad” in Scotland was an unexpected joy。 *audiobook was narrated by the author which adds tremendously to the story 。。。more
Tonwallast
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Bij tijd en wijle vermakelijk en geestig。 Maar uiteindelijk is hij net teveel bezig met het beeld dat hij van zichzelf wil creëren om echt te boeien。
Ksenia
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lold at the 'it seems that everybody in this book is either dead or cancelled' line because yeah。。。 it is just like that。anyways the excerpts from this circulating in the media make it look like he's a certified hater who disses everyone he has ever worked with but he's actually quite reasonable about that。 lold at the 'it seems that everybody in this book is either dead or cancelled' line because yeah。。。 it is just like that。anyways the excerpts from this circulating in the media make it look like he's a certified hater who disses everyone he has ever worked with but he's actually quite reasonable about that。 。。。more
Ryan
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Brian Cox was saved by films。 He had a grim childhood。 Born in 1946， the youngest of five children from a working-class Catholic family， tragedy struck early on。 Cox was eight when his kindly father died of stomach cancer。 His frail Mum， scarred by five births and five miscarriages， would suddenly vanish for weeks on end， frequently leaving Cox in his unmarried sister’s care。 He remembers the night he returned home to find Mum with her head in the oven。 Her hurried excuse （‘it is a hell of a dut Brian Cox was saved by films。 He had a grim childhood。 Born in 1946， the youngest of five children from a working-class Catholic family， tragedy struck early on。 Cox was eight when his kindly father died of stomach cancer。 His frail Mum， scarred by five births and five miscarriages， would suddenly vanish for weeks on end， frequently leaving Cox in his unmarried sister’s care。 He remembers the night he returned home to find Mum with her head in the oven。 Her hurried excuse （‘it is a hell of a duty’） set him on the road to realisation: ‘knowing what had caused the already fragile vessel to smash but not really knowing what to do with the shards。’Unsurprisingly， his favourite boyhood game was Lone Wolf （hide and seek）。 He became so good that having found a perfect hiding place， he once stayed there until 1 a。m。 It seems he acquired an early talent for absence。 It led him to films and perhaps underlies his wide range as an actor。 Dundee had twenty-one cinemas and soon Cox was a regular at all of them， often devouring eight films in a week。 If he liked the film enough， he would stay in the cinema to watch it again， only to drop off to sleep and later fumble his way home in the tram-lined dark。 American films were his favourites: the twee， middle-class British films of the day never delivered the same thrills as A Streetcar Named Desire or East of Eden。 British films were simply too distant from his world to resonate。Then， one afternoon， he saw Albert Finney in Saturday Night and Sunday Morning， and the impact changed him ‘at a cellular level。’ That working-class life could be the subject of art hit him with the force of revelation - ‘proper， eye-opening stuff。。。a transformative moment。’ From then on， he knew exactly what he had to do with his life。If the English Midlands stoked the urge to act， it also gave Cox his first big break when the Birmingham Rep offered to sign him up。 He recalls the sage advice of Sir Laurence Olivier， who also started his career there: ‘Oh， well then， what the f*** are you doing here？ I can tell you now that you’ll only understudy here。’ Soon Cox married his wife in the city’s registry office， holding the registration at the Albany Hotel。 Everyone from the Rep turned out for the occasion， led by the young Michael Gambon。 Despite an early start， and the fact they were due to appear in an afternoon performance of Othello， the cast proceeded to get well and truly plastered。Booze seems to fuel the actors’ life。 Most of Cox’s stories， some funny only in retrospect， dwell at length on the demon drink。 Male actors - John Hurt， Richard Burton - seem more prone than others， perhaps dogged by the suspicion of effeminacy and dodging ‘real’ work。 The male ego seems a likelier explanation， and the worst specimens on display are all raging egomaniacs。 These tales make up the book’s liveliest parts and， if there’s any justice， these will be the most quoted by readers。 Cox， while never cruel， insists on telling the truth， even when his candour is blunter than a block of granite。 Reputation offers no protection。 Michael Caine’s status as a national institution works against him - ‘being an institution will always beat having range。’ Edward Norton is ‘a pain in the arse’; director Michael Caton-Jones ‘a complete arsehole’。 Gary Oldman’s film Darkest Hour is ‘cobblers。。。a crowd-pleasing farrago。’ Canny film-goers， of course， will recall that Cox also starred as Churchill that year to far less fanfare。 This， he avers， was the second instance of The Brian Cox Curse: he plays one role， then another actor plays the same part to bigger rewards。 As noted in a thousand and one pub quizzes， the first instance was when he was cast as the original Hannibal Lecter （spelled ‘Lecktor’ for copyright reasons） in Manhunter。 ‘Nuff said。 Reading on， one gets a powerful sense of the acting life's sheer randomness。 I doubt many other actors have played Agamemnon， Captain Ahab， King Lear， Goering， Trotsky， Stalin， J。 Edgar Hoover and tried to wipe out the X-Men。 He was also hired （and fired） as the voice of Aslan， and turned down the Governor’s role in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise。There is much here and there about Cox’s acclaimed role in Succession， which I have yet to watch。 Though some may find his memoir too digressive and freewheeling， that’s to say it sounds more like speech than writing， which is high praise indeed。 Not to be missed。 。。。more
Ewan
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Fascinatingly blunt and does live up to the fun quotes that poured out in the previews and early reviews。 A real pleasure to read not just because Brian Cox has had an interesting career but because he doesn't want to boast about it。 He is happier with this theatre work than the great performances he provided on screen。 Cox admits his misgivings and his wrongdoings， his frank and honest opinions on this actor or that director， this stage or that moment in life， are rewarding。 He speaks straight Fascinatingly blunt and does live up to the fun quotes that poured out in the previews and early reviews。 A real pleasure to read not just because Brian Cox has had an interesting career but because he doesn't want to boast about it。 He is happier with this theatre work than the great performances he provided on screen。 Cox admits his misgivings and his wrongdoings， his frank and honest opinions on this actor or that director， this stage or that moment in life， are rewarding。 He speaks straight to the reader， involves them in the throes of his personal and professional life and writes it well enough to make for a thoroughly engaging bit of autobiographical content。 。。。more
Aaron
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Brilliant book， and coming from a superb actor like Cox， as entertaining to read for the anecdotes as for his self-deprecating humor--most of it sounding damn free of false self-modesty。 Or， if there is any， Cox is too good an actor （and writer） to leak any。 It's especially helpful a book to working actors discovering their own flaws/merits and entering new phases of their careers。 And the recommended book and film and philosophy citings comprised a huge list for me。 Lastly， having memorized the Brilliant book， and coming from a superb actor like Cox， as entertaining to read for the anecdotes as for his self-deprecating humor--most of it sounding damn free of false self-modesty。 Or， if there is any， Cox is too good an actor （and writer） to leak any。 It's especially helpful a book to working actors discovering their own flaws/merits and entering new phases of their careers。 And the recommended book and film and philosophy citings comprised a huge list for me。 Lastly， having memorized the "speak the speech" monologue from Hamlet， Cox's observances resonate for me in their interpretations of Shakespeare and how important it is to not be a "robustious， periwig-pated fellow， tearing a passion to tatters。" 。。。more
Neli Kamenska-Hristova
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One word - unputdownable ！
Ben
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Our greatest living actor。
dw marshall
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A FABULOUS BOOKThe kind of autobiography you always hope will emerge from an actor who has your respect。 So often we're let down， aren't we？ Not here。 It's a superlative experience。 Wonderfully lucid in its writing and rivetingly informative about the inner creative turmoil of the actor。 It's tone has the honest voice of Brian Cox's persona and is always entertaining。 Great book， Mr Cox。 Great book。 A FABULOUS BOOKThe kind of autobiography you always hope will emerge from an actor who has your respect。 So often we're let down， aren't we？ Not here。 It's a superlative experience。 Wonderfully lucid in its writing and rivetingly informative about the inner creative turmoil of the actor。 It's tone has the honest voice of Brian Cox's persona and is always entertaining。 Great book， Mr Cox。 Great book。 。。。more
Mary
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Enjoyable read
Ross Maclean
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Just a hugely enjoyable book to read。 Cox’s style is engaging and unfussy， and it strikes the right balance between serious meditation on the craft of acting and conspiratorial —but not uncharitable— whispers about himself and those who populate the field he works in。 There’s a big career to take in and， of course， it’s disappointing that everything can’t be covered （the lack of Adaptation， Rushmore and even Super Troopers are the sticking points for me） but the bulk of his career is accounted f Just a hugely enjoyable book to read。 Cox’s style is engaging and unfussy， and it strikes the right balance between serious meditation on the craft of acting and conspiratorial —but not uncharitable— whispers about himself and those who populate the field he works in。 There’s a big career to take in and， of course， it’s disappointing that everything can’t be covered （the lack of Adaptation， Rushmore and even Super Troopers are the sticking points for me） but the bulk of his career is accounted for from Steven Seagal to Lynn Redgrave， and Fulton Mackay to Kieran Culkin。 It’s clear that his recall is fantastic and there’s never a sense that he doesn’t remember every single thing， emotional or factually — even if the odd minor embellishment seems par for the course in summarising 73 years。 Early family life is well accounted for and his family becomes somewhat of a sticking point that drifts in and out of his story， reflective of ways that he readily acknowledges as failings。 Naturally， it’s mostly told chronologically but there’s joy to be had in protracted asides when he feels the moment is right or teases of things to come; all of which serves the purpose of keeping it entertaining and illuminating， which is all you can ask of it。 。。。more
Bill Boswell
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Brian tells of his love of acting and shares stories of the films he made and the people he's worked with whilst sharing his love of the craft Brian tells of his love of acting and shares stories of the films he made and the people he's worked with whilst sharing his love of the craft 。。。more
Adam Murphy
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Probably one of the most criminally underrated actors of all time has finally written a memoir！ Putting The Rabbit In The Hat by Brian Cox is a rags-to-riches memoir that I have been waiting to read。 We get a fascinating account of his filmography on film， stage and television。 I'm also glad he mentioned Manhunter， which was a very underrated movie。 Anthony Hopkins might have made Hannibal Lecter iconic， but Brian Cox played him with nuance and 'normality' which is true to life and much more chi Probably one of the most criminally underrated actors of all time has finally written a memoir！ Putting The Rabbit In The Hat by Brian Cox is a rags-to-riches memoir that I have been waiting to read。 We get a fascinating account of his filmography on film， stage and television。 I'm also glad he mentioned Manhunter， which was a very underrated movie。 Anthony Hopkins might have made Hannibal Lecter iconic， but Brian Cox played him with nuance and 'normality' which is true to life and much more chilling。Growing up in Dundee， Scotland， Mr Cox lost his father when he was just eight years old and was brought up by his three elder sisters after his mother's nervous breakdowns and highest hospitalisation。 After joining the Dundee Repertory Theatre at the age of fifteen， you could say the rest is history – but that is to overlook the enormous graft that has gone into the making of the legend we know today。 At seventeen， while enrolled at the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art， he attended dress rehearsals at the National Theatre， watching the likes of Glenda Jackson， Peter O'Toole， Laurence Olivier， and Maggie Smith。After reading about his life， Mr Cox has been through a lot for the entertainment industry。 Let's hope he gets some accolade/Oscar glory soon！ 。。。more
Ian Warren
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A wonderful read from the opening page and an actor who doesn’t take himself too seriously。
apryl
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LOOK。 this starts out so， so well， and then you become acutely aware that he really does have more in common with logan roy than he perhaps ought to admit （bad takes on modern culture， weirdly apologetic and sympathetic toward the behaviour of famous white men）。 interesting and unsurprising but。。。approach with caution（？！）
Richard Luck
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A book of the year candidate。 Which year？ Pretty much any you care to mention。
John Bleasdale
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Occasionally funny frequently acerbic。 It’s also a bit Stephen Toast。
lyny
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