If your kid has caught the acting bug and you want to help pave their way to stardom, then keep reading… Does your child enjoy performing in front of an audience – be it at family gatherings or at friends’ parties? Have you lost count of the number of school plays or local theater productions your young one has starred in? Are people constantly amazed when they watch your kid act out scenes from popular movies like a pro? You may have only realized it recently, but you could be the proud parent of the next big child star. Naturally, you’d want to support their dreams and help them put their acting prowess to work. But first, a reality check: even if your kid has plenty of talent, finding success in the entertainment industry can be quite challenging. For one, just think about how stiff the competition is out there – after all, your child is not the only one hoping to be thrust into the spotlight. In fact, according to HBO’s documentary, Showbiz Kids, there are over 20,000 child actors who audition for roles in Hollywood every year… and a whopping 95% of them don’t book a single job. This is a sad reality that Makeda Tene’ Ekakitie, a “momager” of a successful child actor, knows all too well. Her son, Innocent Onanovie Ekakitie, is, fortunately, part of the 5% of young talents who have booked projects left and right with no signs of stopping. However, her son’s success was not exactly a walk in the park – it took years of hard work, plenty of patience, and numerous mistakes-turned-to-learnings before they finally found his rightful place in the industry. The good news is, your child’s journey to fame does not have to be difficult. Makeda – an actress, writer, and musician herself – has created an in-depth guide to help you make your kid’s acting dream a reality. Inside, here is just a small fraction of what you will discover: How to expertly navigate through an audition process without making costly mistakes Fool-proof tips to secure the necessary work permits – don’t let life-changing opportunities get away just because of technicalities! 5+ ways to get the winning headshot – the most crucial marketing tool your kid needs to start booking jobs The one thing you should never put in your kid’s resume… unless you want to kiss their acting dream goodbye How successful child actors build their “dream team” – discover ways to connect with the right agents and reps A step-by-step guide to getting your child booked for their breakout role What’s a “self-tape” and why is it a must-have to ensure your kid’s success in showbusiness Time-tested techniques to protect your child’s earnings… and why you should learn from the actor who played Uncle Fester in Addams Family And much more. In this book, several years of first-hand experience have been conveniently summed up in simple, practical, and easy-to-digest ways to help you and your child make it in the biz… and stay there for a long time. The road to your child’s stardom may be tricky and treacherous, but with the right tools and information, it will be a sweet and successful ride. If you want to support your child and help them reach their full acting potential, then scroll up and click “Add to Cart” right now.

"Steely Dan was a somewhat unusual band that still inspires unusually strong devotion in its fans. Formed in the late '60s in New York, they released seven albums between 1971 and 1981, two of which were nominated for a Grammy. Part of what's unusual about them is that each of those albums was made by a different group of musicians--founding members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen had no issues swapping players from record to record in order to get the sound they wanted. The band stopped touring in 1974, so the recording studio was the only place they needed their collaborators. Those recordings are legendary, especially among vinyl enthusiasts, for their exquisite production. The precision was necessary, in part, because Steely Dan played with form more than most bands, mixing elements of other genres--especially jazz--with pop and rock. And the lyrics are also distinctive. As the authors put it in their proposal, Steely Dan's songs are "exercises in fictional world-building. Each song features its own cast of rogues and heroes and creeps and schmucks, lovers and dreamers and cold-blooded operators, all tempest-tossed by the ill winds of the '70s." This book consists of sixty-some essays, each devoted to one character, and each essay is accompanied by a painting of the particular character that serves as a jumping-off point for the piece, with additional spot illustrations scattered throughout"--

This is the ultimate show-biz how-to guide for aspiring kids and their parents, written by Hollywood’s number-one kid-talent expert and executive producer for Disney, ABC, and the WB, Irene Dreayer (“the Dray”). As a thirty-year veteran of discovering kid stars and producing hit TV shows such as the Disney Channel’s The Suite Life on Deck and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, as well as several TV movies, Dreayer has seen hundreds of kids try to make it in show business. Most parents and kids don’t understand the steps or how to navigate the ins and outs of the industry. Most make critical mistakes. As Hollywood’s only trusted career coach for kid talent, Irene Dreayer developed the Dray Way (www.thedrayway.com) as her proven method for guiding show-biz kids and their parents on how to audition correctly, how to handle the business side, and how to deal with issues such as image and rejection. The Dray Way is her method for working with kids and training parents on how to pursue this business we call show in a strategic manner, the right way. This book is designed as a workbook for parents and kids to do together. Every chapter explains, informs, and delivers the honest truth about specific aspects of the entertainment business and outlines the crucial information kids and parents need to learn as a family. Some chapters are designed exclusively for parents, but most are a family affair. The exercises in each chapter are to be completed by parents and kids in order to learn the skills required to be a better actor, singer, or dancer. Mom! I Want to Be a Star is entertaining, fun to read, and a wonderful opportunity for families to explore together their child’s dream and desire to become a star.

Kylari Way is a trilogy about adventure, magic and romance in a primitive, nomadic setting. The second book, The Gathering, continues the saga of Natari Starhaven as he fights his first challenge match, weds his beloved, Jolarra, accepts the destiny planned for him by the elders of his clan, begins training in the mystical ways of the Menwani Shamen, and goes on his first raid against the enemies of his people, the Sharone. It is a story of challenge and courage and terrible, painful loss.

A dual biography of entertainment legends Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Jackson that explores their individual careers and personal lives leading up to and including their 25-year friendship.

“These veteran insiders have a passion for casting major motion pictures, and they use meetings with famous people to illustrate how Hollywood works.” —Publishers Weekly For anyone who’s ever walked out of a movie and said, “That guy was all wrong for the part,” comes this first-of-its-kind look at how actors are chosen and careers are born. Two of the top casting directors in the business, who recently cast the much-lauded choice of Daniel Craig as the new James Bond, offer an insider’s tour of their crucial craft—spotting stars in the making. Janet and Jane share the fascinating, funny stories of discovering and casting then-unknown stars such as Julia Roberts, Tom Cruise, Leonardo DiCaprio, John Cusack, Matt Damon, Jennifer Connelly, Virginia Madsen, Joaquin Phoenix, Meg Ryan, Benicio Del Toro, and the Harry Potter kids. Taking us from the first casting call through head shots, auditions, meetings, and desperate searches to fill a part, they give us the kind of behind-the-scenes access to the machinery of star-making that captivates movie fans and aspiring actors alike. “In an exuberant, faultlessly pleasant manner, the authors take us behind the Hollywood curtain and into a world often misunderstood . . . remarkable reading.” —PopMatters “Parlour game fun . . . Good-natured and always professional, Hirshenson and Jenkins impart the tenets of their craft.” —The New York Times Book Review “Reads as fast and easily as a finely honed script.” —The Columbus Dispatch “Hirshenson and Jenkins have done much to demystify the process of matching actors with movie roles in this must-read for anyone interested in acting or casting.” —Booklist

This volume is a paean to the “Revue”, the “Fit-Up” and the fifty or more travelling roadshows which traversed the roads of Ireland during the heyday of the “fit-ups”, the decades prior to the Second World War. This book is a personal memoir of one of the “goddesses” of Irish repertory theatre―Vic (Victoria Loving)―the woman known as the “Sequin Queen”―as recounted by her granddaughter, one of the last of these travelling artistes. It is a celebration of Ireland’s “curtain up”, and the “five-and-nine”, the fairground barker and the circus tober. It is a hymn to the artist whose home was the road and whose stage-wing voices lie hidden in the boarded-up hall and the abandoned outhouse. Listen up!―for one last garish display of the paint-glow, one final tread of the magic footboard.