Performing arts publisher Hal Leonard’s booth (1948) will be bouncing all day today with lively events. At 10 a.m., music and theater journalist Andy Propst will sign copies of You Fascinate Me So: The Life and Times of Cy Coleman (Applause Books), the first biography of the Tony, Grammy, and Emmy–winning singer/songwriter who wrote the classic hits “Witchcraft,” “Big Spender,” and “The Best Is Yet to Come,” as well as such musicals as Sweet Charity, City of Angels, Barnum, and The Will Rogers Follies.
At 11 a.m., it’s all about Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, as Michael Seth Starr (no relation—you know that wasn’t Ringo’s real last name!) signs galleys of his unauthorized biography, Ringo: With a Little Help (Backbeat Books), which covers Ringo’s life and career. The book will pub on July 7, Ringo’s 75th birthday.
Backbeat Books has recently expanded its popular, long-running, music-focused FAQ series to include pop culture subjects. At 1 p.m., author Brian Solomon signs copies of Pro Wrestling FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About the World’s Most Entertaining Spectacle, the second title from the pop culture side. The book looks at the sport from its origins in carnivals to the multimillion-dollar, multimedia industry of today. Future Pop Culture FAQ titles include Cocktails FAQ (Oct.), Dracula FAQ (Oct.), The Beat Generation FAQ (Sept.), and Haunted America FAQ (Oct.).
Speaking of the FAQ series, at 2 p.m., rock journalist Susan Masino will be signing copies of AC/DC FAQ, the 22nd title in that series. Masino has known the band since 1977, and her book chronicles the history of each of the band members and all of the band’s albums and tours from its formation in 1973, through the tragic loss of singer Bon Scott in 1980, to the triumphant return with vocalist Brian Johnson and all the record-breaking albums and tours that followed.
Finally, booth visitors will be able to enter a drawing to win copies of Backbeat titles The Art of Gothic, by Natasha Scharf, from last fall, and the companion book, The Art of Horror, by Stephen Jones (Nov.).
