Happy Accidents - Softcover

Lynch, Jane

Softcover

ISBN 10: 140134187X ISBN 13: 9781401341879

Publisher: Hachette Books, 2012

Synopsis

In the summer of 1974, a fourteen-year-old girl in Dolton, Illinois, had a dream. A dream to become an actress, like her idols Ron Howard and Vicki Lawrence. But it was a long way from the South Side of Chicago to Hollywood, and it didn't help that she'd recently dropped out of the school play, The Ugly Duckling. Or that the Hollywood casting directors she wrote to replied that "professional training was a requirement."

But the funny thing is, it all came true. Through a series of happy accidents, Jane Lynch created an improbable--and hilarious--path to success. In those early years, despite her dreams, she was also consumed with anxiety, feeling out of place in both her body and her family. To deal with her worries about her sexuality, she escaped in positive ways--such as joining a high school chorus not unlike the one in Glee--but also found destructive outlets. She started drinking almost every night her freshman year of high school and developed a mean and judgmental streak that turned her into a real-life Sue Sylvester.

Then, at thirty-one, she started to get her life together. She was finally able to embrace her sexuality, come out to her parents, and quit drinking for good. Soon after, a Frosted Flakes commercial and a chance meeting in a coffee shop led to a role in the Christopher Guest movie Best in Show, which helped her get cast in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Similar coincidences and chance meetings led to roles in movies starring Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, and even Meryl Streep in 2009's Julie & Julia. Then, of course, came the two lucky accidents that truly changed her life. Getting lost in a hotel led to an introduction to her future wife, Lara. Then, a series she'd signed up for abruptly got canceled, making it possible for her to take the role of Sue Sylvester in Glee, which made her a megastar.

Today, Jane Lynch has finally found the contentment she thought she'd never have. Part comic memoir and part inspirational narrative, this is a book equally for the rabid Glee fan and for anyone who needs a new perspective on life, love, and success.

WITH A FOREWORD BY CAROL BURNETT

About this title

Review:

‘Excellent and often surprising ... contains plenty of hilarious lines ("Like any good, closeted young lesbian of the 70s," the second chapter memorably begins, "I developed a raging crush on Ron Howard") ... [and] evocative descriptions of the intense anger, loneliness and confusion that Lynch has known in her life ... self-knowledge and biting honesty characterises the book.’ Guardian

‘A frank, engaging, and at times uproariously funny autobiography of a roller-coaster life.’ Vogue

‘Hilarious, smart and stunningly honest.’ Scotsman

‘How a bubble-permed boozer from Illinois cleaned up her act to become one of the hottest names in Hollywood.’ Daily Telegraph

‘Moving and funny.’ Star magazine

‘Lynch is, for once, not going for laughs; she's going for something remarkably close to wisdom. . . . look[s] back over a life that would drive many memoirists to hyperbole if not histrionics with astonishing perspective.’ LA Times

About the Author:

Jane Lynch grew up on the south side of Chicago and currently lives in Los Angeles. She married Dr. Lara Embry in 2010, and was lucky enough to get two daughters in the deal.

About this edition

• Publisher: Hachette Books
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 140134187X
• ISBN 13: 9781401341879
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320