Leonard Maltin is an American film critic, film historian, and author. He was the movie critic on 'Entertainment Tonight' for 30 years and published Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide from 1969 to 2014.

Maltin's love of movies began as a child, when he had a TV Guide route instead of a newspaper route, and studied his father's weekly edition of 'Variety', which covers entertainment news. Young Leonard saved his money to buy vintage films with Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Laurel and Hardy and other silent era stars, and even tried to make his own silent shorts, which usually featured shenanigans with cream pies.

Leonard tells lots of stories about growing up in New York and New Jersey, where he was a devoted viewer of The Mickey Mouse Club, haunted the public library for film-related books and biographies, and saw as many movies as he could. Leonard's description of movie-going as a youngster, where his family 'sat down in the middle of a film, watched it to the end, sat through a cartoon, a travelogue, coming attractions, and a second feature, and then watched the first movie until the part where they came in' is reminiscent of my movie-going as a kid. Leonard also liked comic books and watching TV, which took up much of his time in the hours after school.

Leonard and a friend started their own magazine in the fifth grade, and Leonard began writing fan letters to show business people he admired, some of whom sent warm replies. In time Leonard even scored interviews with some 'generous, gracious individuals', and he names names. This doesn't come across as bragging because Maltin clearly reveres the people he's met.

At the age of 15, Leonard took over 'Film Fan Monthly', and he and his contributors spotlighted character actors such as Nigel Bruce, Robert Donat, and Miriam Hopkins....the kind of people that fascinate Maltin to this day. As Leonard got older, he began to view old and new films in every possible venue, and his extensive knowledge came in handy when he interviewed film stars, directors, and other cast and crew. Leonard's movie expertise even helped him meet his wife Alice, when he gave a lecture about movie history to an adult education class.

Leonard started publishing books about movies as well, and his early titles include: Movie Comedy Teams; The Disney Films; Our Gang: The Life and Times of the Little Rascals; and more.

A lucky break got Leonard hired as the movie critic for Entertainment Tonight, which was a reason to move to California. The job was also an opening to film festivals, award dinners, Oscar shows, television specials, and other media-related events - many of which Maltin was asked to host. These activities, plus teaching classes about animation, television, and movies gave Maltin almost unlimited access to entertainment folks. Teaching also became one of the joys of Leonard's life. (I'd like to attend Maltin's film class - at the University of Southern California - myself. It features full length movies and interviews with famous people like J.J. Abrams, Guillermo del Toro, Marion Cotillard, Angela Lansbury, Sidney Poitier, and lots more.)

A pair of anecdotes that made me laugh feature George Clooney and Brad Pitt. Talking about an Oscar party, Maltin writes, "When George Clooney walked into the green room backstage at the Arlington Theatre in 2006, I witnessed something I'd never seen before. Every woman in that room, regardless of age, simply melted." Later, when Leonard talks about the Maltin Modern Master Award, he observes, "In 2020 the honoree was Brad Pitt. I have never seen anything quite like the reaction of Santa Barbarans to this mega-movie star. If George Clooney made the women swoon, Brad Pitt knocked them senseless."

Maltin's numerous stories about people in the entertainment industry are fascinating and fun. I recognize many of the movies and people Maltin mentions, but not all of them. Dedicated film buffs will probably do better than me. Leonard also sings the praises of Walt Disney; Jerry Lewis; Roy Rogers, cartoons; radio, jazz; film-viewing at the Playboy Mansion; and more - all of which he's passionate about.

Maltin's wife Alice and their daughter Jessie feature in many of Leonard's stories, since Alice was a partner in Leonard's business ventures and young Jessie joined her parents for media events. As an adult, Jessie works in the entertainment industry herself, and hosts a podcast with her dad.

Maltin has a more glamorous lifestyle than most people, but he seems like a congenial guy who'd make a good dinner party guest.

I found the narrative, enhanced by photos, to be informative and fun. Highly recommended to movie fans.

Thanks to Netgalley, Leonard Maltin, and GoodKnight Books for a copy of the book

I could not put this book down. As a long time fan of Mr. Maltin and his vast knowledge of movies, this book was a true gift.
It is filled with so many stories, anecdotes and interesting information, that I will have to reread it to catch it all.
This book is a must have for movie fans.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

Leonard Maltin’s Starstruck is a time machine to the earlier days of film journalism. The days before the Internet, before podcasts and before streaming. Fortunately for us, however, Maltin doesn’t stop there. He continues forward, as the world has, and brings us along for the journey. And if you love movies, it’s a journey worth taking. In a world full of negativity, this book is a breath of fresh air.

For the average UK reader with a passing interest in Cinema, Leonard Maltin may not be a name at the forefront of their mind. And this book is probably not intended for them. If you're looking for salacious gossip and the inside story on celebs, then move on - this is not that book. Instead, it's a personal account of the film critic and historian's life and experiences. Yes, of course those experiences are very much film industry based and there are descriptions of his encounters with the likes of Katharine Hepburn, Robert Mitchum, James Stewart and more.
At one point in the book, the author, talking about Francis Ford Coppola's remembrance of Buster Keaton, he records an anecdote from the director and comments 'that was all - no great revelations, just a nice remembrance'. It's a quote that could apply to the book itself. The encounters the author describes are pretty much all warmly remembered and light weight.
The book starts with Maltin recalling his early life and how he got into the writing business - it's interesting - to have developed a knowledge of 'classic' TV and Film at such an early age (some of the early encounters and endeavors he discusses are from being a pre-teen. These memories are presented in a matter-of-fact manner and in succinct detail - in a way, comparable to the reviews to be found in the classic guides he is probably most famous for. Starting the book it felt a little like reading someone's note book rather than a fully fleshed out account; light touch memories and onto the next. Perhaps its' just the self-effacing manner of the author: a feeling that his 'Hollywood' stories are more interesting and worth writing more about than his own, but I began to feel a little disorientated as he skipped back chronologically in his personal life and career without getting a great sense of time periods. This settled down as the book went on and there were undoubtedly some interesting perspectives on the great and the good of screen and TV even if, and this is my weakness not the book's, some of the names mentioned from the early days were unknown to me: perhaps american readers will be more familiar with some of the stars and shows of the tv and b&W shorts he refers to.
Overall, a pleasant enough read even if I'm not quite sure who the book is aimed at. As I say, there's little in the way of 'reveals' (not that that's a bad thing), or the critical analysis of, say, a :Pauline Kael, but I imagine for those more familiar with Maltin as a TV presence than we are in the UK, it might mean a little more. Thank you to the publishers for the advance copy.

"Starstruck" is a long (~400 pages) memoir covering the expanse of Maltin's career from early childhood right up until the current time. As a youngster, he wrote a newsletter about films, and continued on through high school. He has been collecting, enjoying and writing about films his entire life. He has taught a class at USC for over 20 years. He gained notoriety as the film critic with a regular slot on "Entertainment Tonight". In addition to writing about his career trajectory, he includes many stories of the actors that he met over the years. Though he never spills the beans in a way that would embarrass anyone, there were definitely incidents that revealed the less than stellar characters of some of the personalities he met. Whether in person, or in writing, though, we was also fair and avoided negativity. From this memoir you get the impression that he truly is the nice, thoughtful and mildly funny guy that we saw on our televisions for so many years. His wife assisted and accompanied him often on many of his trips, and his daughter is in the same business now - carrying on the family tradition.

Thanks to NetGalley and Goodknight Books for a preview copy of Leonard Maltin’s book ‘Starstruck. The opinion below is my own, honest review.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Leonard Maltin’s memoir of his early days as a schoolboy collector of film and his enthusiasm for cinema from silent movies, to comedy and cartoons. His journey from amateur writer and publisher of his film fan magazines to his professional career as a film critic, cinema historian and writer. His anecdotal style brings the golden age of cinema to life and transports the reader to a bygone era of black and white film, unforgettable comedy duos, movies stars, cartoon characters and all things Disney. He takes us on a fabulous journey through the magical world of cinema, evoking happy childhood memories of Saturday morning entertainment, so many memorable films and characters and a time of ‘innocent’ family entertainment which has all but disappeared from our lives. Many thanks to Leonard Maltin for the memories and documenting what we all need to remember.

My thanks to NetGalley and GoodKnight Bks for a copy of “ Starstruck “ for an honest review .

As someone who has grown up loving movies,, in particular black and white films I was immediately drawn to this book and so excited to be able to get a preview copy.
Leonard Maltin’s Movie Guides had always had a place on my bookshelf, and have been well used over the years, even after the internet seems to have taken over.
I’ve enjoyed many biographies and autobiographies from film stars. This book was a delight from start to finish..It gives an insight into stars of yesteryear ,and contains stories of old Hollywood that I hadn’t read before..
I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Leonard Maltin's "Starstruck: My Unlikely Road to Hollywood" is the book you expect it to be. An extraordinarily knowledgeable and always engaging film journalist, Maltin shares with precision and passion his unlikely road toward becoming one of the U.S.'s most respected and embraced film journalists.

"Starstruck" is a reminder, however, that Maltin's thirty-year stint on "Entertainment Tonight" may have offered him his greatest visibility nationwide but it far from defined the full scope of Maltin's impact on the film community.

Maltin's knowledge has always been readily apparent in his widely-used reference work "Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide" and its companion "Leonard Maltin's Classic Movie Guide." He served two terms as President of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, is a voting member of the National Film Registry, and was appointed by the Librarian of Congress to sit on the Board of Directors of the National Film Preservation Foundation. He's even been a long-respected professor at USC.

"Starstruck" captures his journey from film nerd to film icon, a writer and historian who seems to have lived his life trying to ensure he was sort of "set apart" from the industry for journalistic purposes but who inevitably became so identified with it that he's considered part of it.

Maltin has always been a "comfortable" screen presence. This comfort shines throughout "Starstruck," a book that is never less than engaging and often quite enthralling. For the most part, Maltin writes in the first-person as he shares stories from his early days of growing up in New York City and enthusiastically immersing himself in the golden age of screen to such a degree that even a teenaged Maltin was snagging interviews that would be the envy of nationally recognized film journalists today.

"Starstruck" includes many of these experiences in its nearly 400 pages including encounters with everyone from Clint Eastwood to Francis Ford Coppola, Elizabeth Taylor to Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz and many more. Maltin rather hilariously documents his time as a regular guest of Hugh Hefner at the Playboy Mansion, especially in Hef's latter years, and speaks with generally warm affection about his many engagements with the Academy Awards and a myriad of other organizations.

I think nearly anyone who's ever watched Maltin would likely find him to be engaging and would expect him to be friendly and approachable if we ever met him. It's that Maltin who is most present in "Starstruck," a book with such a relentlessly friendly tone you can't help but be surprised Maltin never shares an encounter with Mister Rogers.

While "Starstruck" is a memoir, if there's a deficit in the book it's that I often felt like I was learning more about Maltin's journey than Maltin himself. The stories themselves are always engaging, yet there are times in "Starstruck" when I couldn't help but wish that Maltin was as revealing of himself as he is of his experiences.

This starts to happen in the most endearing ways toward the book's end as Maltin's daughter Jessie becomes a more regular presence in his Hollywood encounters and his obvious love for his daughter shines through page-after-page. Maltin, who shares a podcast with Jessie now, clearly adores that his daughter has largely followed his path and I could read an entire book of his relationship with Jessie.

"Starstruck" is for the most part episodic in presentation. Maltin's stories range from a couple of pages to several pages and offer a glimpse into Maltin's amazing life. As a film journalist myself, I'll also admit that I learned so much from Maltin's own reflections about his career including interviews that didn't go particularly well and that painful lesson (definitely one for me) in making sure the interview is always about the interviewee. I'm amazed how often I found myself saying "That's a great point!" and realizing ways I could tweak my own writing and film efforts.

For some, "Starstruck" will be a breezy, non-stop read. For others, myself included, the episodic nature of the writing allows for the book to be piecemealed out into easily digested portions that can be savored and enjoyed. Regardless, "Starstruck" is an engaging and entertaining reminder of why Leonard Maltin has been one of America's most beloved film journalists for over fifty years.

As a fan of all things Hollywood, this one was really up my alley. I enjoyed it, especially the stories from how he got started. It's interesting how things happened for him and the trajectory it put him on.

If you like stories about old Hollywood , tv shows , radio , animation and the life and stories of someone who has devoted his life to the entertainment world—this is the book for you. Filled with gossipy stories or Martin’s run ins with the famous and not so famous entertainers from the film and tv industry and his history on Entertainment Tonite—you cant go wrong with this quick and fun read. Recommended.

Huge fan of Leonard Maltin and his reviews. If you enjoy his content this ones meant for you. He’s a genius surrounded by his own genius.

Although largely unknown in the UK, film critic, Leonard Maltin is a household name in the US, thanks to his long running TV series,Entertainment Tonight and his run of film guides. This is an enjoyable trawl through a long and successful career in film journalism which began in the 1960s when he was a teenager..Occasionally, it is probably a bit too American many readers but there are nevertheless enjoyable anecdotes about Maltin's meetings with Katharine Hepburn, Robert Mitchum, George Lucas, Bette Davis and many others.