This Time, This Place

April 30, 2007
Valenti, an "obscure owner of an advertising and political consulting agency in Houston," came under the national spotlight when, with little fanfare, he became a special assistant to President Lyndon B. Johnson. Valenti opens with Kennedy's assassination, right after which Johnson told Valenti, without warning, "I want you on my staff." After his arrival in Washington, Valenti jumps back in time, cruising through his Houston childhood, experience as WWII B-25 pilot and subsequent Harvard education. The dramatic arc works well, setting up nicely the book's weightiest portion, an insider's view of the Johnson White House, featuring a fascinating discussion of Robert McNamara's summer 1965 plan to increase U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. The last third chronicles Valenti's 38 years as chair and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America, an organization with close ties to Washington politics; Valenti shares enlightening details of developing and implementing the MPAA's voluntary movie rating system, still in place today, as well as his relationship with numerous "icons of the silver screen" (Kirk Douglas gets the most space). Valenti's informal prose occasionally runs purple, but his life story, populated with Washington power-brokers and Hollywood royalty, is an absorbing one. 15 b/w photos.

Starred review from June 1, 2007
Almost 40 years as head of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) were not lost on Valenti (Speak Up with Confidence), who died in late April with this memoir completed. He knows how to grab readers' attention and keep them riveted with a narrative largely about his adult years, although he does cover his Houston childhood. He writes of his experiences as a World War II bomber pilot, a special assistant to President Johnson, and CEO of the MPAA. It's hard to say that Valenti was larger than life when his life was lived this large, but his story sometimes seems like a Hollywood epic. His time in the Johnson White House reads like The West Wing as he tells of working to pass the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts and helping to create Medicare. Later, as he describes his interactions with the many Hollywood stars and power brokers he came to know, the narrative seems more like an Entertainment Tonight special. Most of his recollections are positive and upbeat, and readers are left with great admiration for the author. Highly recommended for all public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 11/15/06.]Jill Ortner, SUNY at Buffalo Libs.

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