MERV

I've always been a fan of Merv, having grown up watching his talk show. Oh, those wonderful 'theme' shows. What a fascinating and fascinated character he was! And reading this made me wish all the more than I'd had a chance to meet and talk with the man. Parts of his life were downplayed or largely ignored in this book, but it still made for a highly entertaining read.

In December 2007, I purchased this book. It took me about a year to finish it, though, but when I did, I learned a lot from a Depression-era boy who years later gave us our two most successful game show franchises, "Wheel of Fortune", and "Jeopardy!" Before reading this book, I did not know that Merv had been a military reject. Once I read that part, I quickly picked it up. Another foreign subject in this book was that he was a college dropout. Now I know he was a college dropout. Merv was one of my earliest role models as a baby, all because of "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy!" Now, I have read all about him. I was saddened to hear of his death in August of 2007, but I wound up continuing to watch his successful shows, and have twice tried out for "Jeopardy!" (I have still not been able to pass the test.) All in all, a five-star book by Merv.

I really enjoyed reading this book about Merv Griffin; his life stories were in turn funny, moving and nostalgic. He seems to have been a very special man. His attitude to all the money he made seems typical of quite a few millionaires...it's not the money he loved (although I'm sure he enjoyed what he could do with it) but the process of getting it. The thrill of the deal, so to speak. I highly recommend this auto-biography of a very interesting man.

Since I purchased this book to find out more about the man I watched for years on TV, I expected to learn things I had not known before. This book is the kind of book that feels as if he is talking to you personally. I'm about half way through and enjoying every word. He certainly led a busy and exciting life.

I have always enjoyed Merv Griffin and watched many of his TV shows. This autobiography tells about many of his achievements and a few failures. Merv's attitude is always on the bright side and I believe that is why he is so successful. Bravery and risk taking is part of the mix, but relationships are his strong points and he has many interesting stories to tell. A fun read.