Candice Bergen

Knock Wood
by Candice Bergen
1984
Linden Press
3.0 / 5.0

Candace Bergen was raised in the 1950's to feel special and unique. A Beverly Hills address and celebrity parents certainly helped that feeling. Her own celebrity and wealth seem to be guiding forces in her life, and her sense of entitlement is repeated often, but she also mocks these things that will always be her life. These stories of her life are witty, well written and revealing. She doesn't take it to seriously.

Candace spent her adolescence in a Swiss boarding school. At 19, she was a hit in theater productions, performing in many shows; and was accepted into the profession of photojournalism easily, and quickly. Almost unheard of at that time.

An insightful look into a life of privilege from an actress, model, and the daughter of Edgar Bergen. It had to be hard growing up with so much expectation and always being in the spotlight, but Candace seems to have found the humor and joy in her work and her life. She has been successful and an inspiration, as well as an excellent friend, to many. Well worth the read.… (meer)

This book is a follow-up to Bergen's Knock Wood and covers her marriage to Louis Malle and his later death, the birth of her child Chole, her Murphy Brown and Boston Legal years, as well as her current marriage to Marshall Rose. Again, Bergen tries to figure out why things are handed to her. Yes, she worked hard on Murphy Brown but she grew up in Hollywood royalty and was drop dead gorgeous. There is a lot of humor and wit in the book but I at times I also felt there was a big of bragging about her financial situation. I wish she had spent more time covering the charities she supports (not just monetarily but with her time) but maybe she doesn't really do that.… (meer)

Well written with great humor. Bergen spends time talking about growing up as the "sister" of Charlie McCarthy. As an only child, she longed for approval from her father and had a somewhat distant relationship with her mother. The book covers her childhood and high school years and includes her dropping out (being asked to leave) University of Pennsylvania. That was a disappointment to me as there are so many who would have loved to have had that opportunity and she just threw it away. Bergen tries to address her life of privilege and how things seem to just be handed to her.… (meer)