1987, 1988 Bantam edition
Patty Duke and Kenneth Turan
Call Me Anna: The Autobiography of Patty Duke
Original price $4.95, purchase price $3.95
Very worn paperback
B-
Duke tells of her more-troubled-than-Carol-Burnett childhood, not just poverty and an alcoholic father, but controlling, abusive managers. She also reveals that she's manic-depressive (now more commonly called bipolar). She of course discusses her career, what she's proud of (the various productions of The Miracle Worker in particular) and what she's not (Valley of the Dolls especially). And she goes into her love life, including nonsexual affairs with Frank Sinatra, Jr. and Sr., and four marriages. She says here that son Sean (now famous as Samwise Gamgee) was the product of a brief affair with future husband John Astin, during her relationship with Desi Arnaz, Jr., but Wikipedia tells me that in 1994 Sean's blood test revealed he was the son of the man Patty married for thirteen days, Michael Tell. Even without that tidbit, there's a lot to digest here, and I haven't even mentioned her activism for liberal causes, which became ironic when she married a drill sergeant. (They're still married, after 27 years, which surprised me.) The book didn't quite jell for me, but it's definitely an interesting read.
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