Heath Ledger was one the most charismatic and powerful screen presences of his generation. Having established a high-profile acting career by the age of 21 with the lead in 'A Knight's Tale', the young Australian went on to pursue a succession of increasingly diverse and often subversive roles that challenged the film industry's initial impression of him as a mere teen-idol. While a limited number of his early roles would hint at the greatness of which he was capable, it was not until his melancholy, Oscar-nominated performance in Ang Lee's modern classic 'Brokeback Mountain' that Heath proved beyond question the blistering extent of his abilities and secured his place amongst the Hollywood elite, bringing to this new status a depth of artistry absent in all but the most accomplished of his contemporaries. His sudden death at the age of 28 rocked the film industry to its core, created an international media storm, and threw a poignant shadow over the completed body of work that has now become his legacy. This book explores Heath's relationships with actresses Heather Graham, Naomi Watts, and Michelle Williams (his ex-fiancée and the mother of his daughter Matilda), recounts the full story of the making of 'Brokeback Mountain', and details that film's subsequent impact. It charts Ledger's increasingly troubled state of mind as the role of the Joker in 'The Dark Knight' took a disturbing physical and psychological toll, and examines the dissatisfaction with his own performances that plagued him until the very end. Heath Ledger: Hollywood's Dark Star is the definitive story of the life and times of a compelling and intense young man whose loss will be profoundly felt for many years to come.

The Joker in 2008's mega-hit movie The Dark Knight was an incredible, Oscar-worthy performance by this young and troubled actor. Tweens and teens were crazy about the film, and the world mourned when Ledger died. This book examines Ledger's brief career, background, and personal life, as well as the controversies surrounding his death. From his breakout role in the teen flick 10 Things I Hate About You to his Oscar nomination for his performance in Brokeback Mountain, Ledger's biography is bound to intrigue young movie fans. Lives Cut Short is a series in Essential Library, an imprint of ABDO Publishing Company.

Most Batman fans have enjoyed the Dark Knight in comics or on the big screen and are eagerly anticipating the release of the new Justice League movie. But only real fans know the other characters who have donned the cowl in place of Bruce Wayne, or know the full origin stories of those who make up the rogues gallery. 100 Things Batman Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die is the ultimate resource for true fans, whether you're a comic book collector, an aficionado of Christopher Nolan's films, or both! Joseph McCabe of Nerdist.com has collected every essential piece of Dark Knight knowledge and trivia, as well as must-do activities, and ranks them all from 1 to 100, providing an entertaining and easy-to-follow checklist as you progress on your way to fan superstardom. Contains exclusive interviews with Batman creators!

(Book). At nearly six hundred pages, The Dark Knight Trilogy , a behemoth of script and storyboards, captures on the page the dark mythic expanse of the cinematic Batman. These definitive, vibrant film blueprints published on the heels of the final film's closely guarded release are destined to be enshrined on every fan's bedside table, studied in universities, and emulated by filmmakers.

Heath Ledger was a superstar on the world stage, a gorgeous guy, a true romantic, a man who was dedicated to his craft and who loved a laugh. This is the definitive look at the real life of Heath Ledger from childhood to fully-fledged stardom, with exclusive personal insights from his family and friends, by an Australian journalist and author Janet-Fife-Yeomans. This is an Australian story about the beginning of a legend.

Netflix’s most watched limited series to date! The thrilling novel of one young woman’s journey through the worlds of chess and drug addiction.​ When eight-year-old Beth Harmon’s parents are killed in an automobile accident, she’s placed in an orphanage in Mount Sterling, Kentucky. Plain and shy, Beth learns to play chess from the janitor in the basement and discovers she is a prodigy. Though penniless, she is desperate to learn more—and steals a chess magazine and enough money to enter a tournament. Beth also steals some of her foster mother’s tranquilizers to which she is becoming addicted. At thirteen, Beth wins the chess tournament. By the age of sixteen she is competing in the US Open Championship and, like Fast Eddie in The Hustler, she hates to lose. By eighteen she is the US champion—and Russia awaits . . . Fast-paced and elegantly written, The Queen’s Gambit is a thriller masquerading as a chess novel—one that’s sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. “The Queen’s Gambit is sheer entertainment. It is a book I reread every few years—for the pure pleasure and skill of it.” —Michael Ondaatje, Man Booker Prize–winning author of The English Patient

Along with Batman, Spider-Man, and Superman, the Joker stands out as one of the most recognizable comics characters in popular culture. While there has been a great deal of scholarly attention on superheroes, very little has been done to understand supervillains. This is the first academic work to provide a comprehensive study of this villain, illustrating why the Joker appears so relevant to audiences today. Batman's foe has cropped up in thousands of comics, numerous animated series, and three major blockbuster feature films since 1966. Actually, the Joker debuted in DC comics Batman 1 (1940) as the typical gangster, but the character evolved steadily into one of the most ominous in the history of sequential art. Batman and the Joker almost seemed to define each other as opposites, hero and nemesis, in a kind of psychological duality. Scholars from a wide array of disciplines look at the Joker through the lens of feature films, video games, comics, politics, magic and mysticism, psychology, animation, television, performance studies, and philosophy. As the first volume that examines the Joker as complex cultural and cross-media phenomenon, this collection adds to our understanding of the role comic book and cinematic villains play in the world and the ways various media affect their interpretation. Connecting the Clown Prince of Crime to bodies of thought as divergent as Karl Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche, contributors demonstrate the frightening ways in which we get the monsters we need.