The Last Human Cannonball:: And Other Small Journeys in Search of Great Men

Byron Rogers' latest collection of travel pieces follows the formula of his book An Audience with an Elephant: in search of—and finding—a remarkable array of quirky, whimsical and singular individuals. But as well as such characters as the pensioner on a Saga holiday who decided to swim across the Amazon, this book sees for the first time Rogers meeting a number of undeniably famous people: Hollywood stars, legends of children's radio serials he had idolized in childhood—even rock stars like Mick Jagger. But, as one might expect, Rogers' encounters with a celebrity have their own unexpected outcomes. Burt Lancaster rants to him about trans sexuality. Rita Hayworth is most worried about her neighbor's TV aerial. A retired star of the silent screen turns out to live in Henley-on-Thames. Rogers' last book, The Bank Manager and the Holy Grail received excellent coverage and was reprinted twice; and his biography of J.L. Carr, The Last Englishman was hailed by Simon Jenkins as "a miniature masterpiece."

© 2013 Aurum (E-bog): 9781845138493

Release date

E-bog: 14. marts 2013