And the Dawn of the Modern Woman - Breakfast at Tiffany's

This book is an entertaining look at the making of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" that has you feeling like you're on the scene. However, there are a couple of minor problems, which is why I gave it four stars instead of five. First, the photographs included are, in my opinion, poor choices. In particular, the photo of Patricia Neal shows barely half of a side view of her; she's almost not in the photo at all. Second, it would have been very helpful to have an appendix that told what happened to the people since making this film. In any event, if this is one of your favoite movies, you should enjoy this book immensely.

I have always loved the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the background provided by this book has added another layer to that appreciation. Having been born in the late 60's, the movie always seemed somewhat "tame" to me. It was informative to learn about how risqué the story was for its time (including the parts that didn't make it into the movie and/or the edits necessary to keep certain parts in the movie). Good behind-the-scenes insight into a classic!

I loved this book. But it does have some drawbacks. First, it's not very long. I read the whole thing on an airplane in three hours, and the last third of the book is notes. Otherwise, it contains all kind of little interesting tidbits about the movie and the actors.

This was a delightful telling of the making and the impact of Breakfast at Tiffany's. I had no idea that was the advent of the little black dress, for example - or the trials and tribulations selecting screenwriter, director, actors. This was an insightful description of all these decisions and more.

Fun, interesting, a great chronicle of the movie, the people, the times. Pop culture at its best. Warning: If you have no interest in the era of the fifties and early sixties, no interest in NYC or Hollywood culture of the time, no interest in early feminism, Jewish writers and producers, Truman Capote, well, don't read it. You won't like it, guaranteed. For the rest of us, oh yeah. Wallow in the well documented detail.

When I ordered this book, I chose normal shipping then realized that I would need it for a paper before then. I e-mailed almost immediately telling them my mistake and when I got the book (in plenty of time!) there was a note in the front saying that they were sorry for the shipping mistake and overnight shipping was on them. I was so impressed. Thank you, Larry! Haha. This book was everything I needed it to be for my film final on the adaptation of Breakfast At Tiffany's.

Lots of fun quirky facts about a beloved classic. It doesn’t tie up the argument made in the beginning about “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” in part starting the sexual revolution for women, however the book was fun enough on its own it doesn’t seem to matter as much.

The book was entertaining. Would have liked more photos. The information often seemed more like gossip than real referenced info. I loved Audrey Hepburn and the film, so I did enjoy the book, but the author's attempt at making this "the dawn of the modern woman" falls short. I think that would take a lot more proof than the author provides here.

I love Audrey Hepburn and Breakfast at Tiffany's is one of my favorite movies, so I was excited to read this book. Unfortunately, it was terribly boring and I had to force myself to finish reading it.

I ordered this book hoping for a somewhat scholarly discussion of feminism and how women's changing roles were portrayed in the movies. What I got was a rather amateurish if entertaining behind the scenes look at making the movie. Heavy on "dish" but light on scholarship, the author uses phrases like "a Broadway hangout with a honey of a bar" in complete earnestness, or tries to be cool with lines like "handshakes, backslaps, and across-the-room waves were passed around like a hooker at an all-night orgy.". Besides being offensive, it makes it impossible to take this book seriously. Not to mention the section headings like "What Johhny Mercer does in bed" (which turns out to be writing song lyrics) and "Does Edith Head give good costume?". I'm sure that would kill a room full of 7th graders, but adults find it puerile. So if you're looking for a light, fun read about a period of Hollywood history, this book may be for you. If you want a serious discussion of women's issues, don't be misled by the title like I was.

This book looks very inviting but is deceptive in content. It's weak from disconnected anecdotes told with no further depth of discussion or information. Very disappointing as it could have been a fascinating book about an interesting subject. It's based on interviews and hearsay more connected to how the movie came to life rather than how any of it relates to the dawn of anything. It's a weak biography of Audrey Hepburn with nothing new about any of it. Sorry to have purchased this. About a third of the book is used for references functioning mostly as name dropping.

This has a great premise, according to the cover: "Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman". Unfortunately, the book doesn't follow through completely on any of those ideas. There's some of a biography of Audrey Hepburn, but only for a set period of time and without any real depth. There's an account of the making of "Breakfast at Tiffany's", but very little about the movie's aftermath or how it is viewed in the modern context. There's also some discussion of the changing role of women in society at the time of the movie, but the book never ties the movie and the sociological shift as definitively together as the subtitle suggests that they should be. This was a short, interesting read with lots of little anecdotes about making the movie, but doesn't live up to the ideas in its own title.

Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman is Sam Wasson's examination of the iconic film Breakfast At Tiffany's, and why that was a key film in the changing of women's roles in modern society.

Breakfast at Tiffany's was originally a novella written by the talented Truman Capote. In Holly Golightly, Capote created a new woman and one of the most original characters in modern fiction. She was free-spirited and made no apologies for being a sexually active woman.

Capote envisioned Marilyn Monroe in the lead role of the film adaptation. But the producers didn't see it that way. They knew the character would need to be toned down a bit for the film, and they wanted someone more . . . refined.

Audrey Hepburn is a modern icon, but how did she get that way? She made several very successful movies in the 1950s, including Roman Holiday, Sabrina, and Funny Face. In all these films she is charming but always a lady.

Hepburn found her fashion muse in Hubert de Givenchy, who created the wardrobes for several of her films, including her iconic "little black dress" in Breakfast at Tiffany's. The opening credits set the scene for the film (and for the cover of the book). It is early morning and Holly Golightly is wearing a long black dress. She has obviously been out all night. This dress came to be seen by young women as liberating. This dress wasn't girlish or sweet - it was sexy.

Hepburn was nervous about making the film, because she was uneasy about Holly Golightly's character - amoral, essentially a hooker. Hepburn was intensely aware of her stature of classy refinement - she first made a splash playing a European princess in Roman Holiday.

Henry Mancini had written scores for television, but was determined to write a score for this film. He was turned down but eventually wrote the film's theme song (with lyrics by Johnny Mercer), "Moon River."

George Axelrod had written the play and film The Seven Year Itch, but was determined to write Tiffany's. The play was considered smutty, and no one considered Axelrod the right writer to pen such a classy film. He eventually did write the script for the film.

All of these factors came together into the making of Breakfast at Tiffany's, which in retrospect is a landmark film. You can't imagine the movie without Hepburn, "Moon River", or the little black dress.

This film was made at a time when filmmaking was still a labor of love - it wasn't just about making the latest blockbuster or having the most special effects.

The movie was made in 1960 - the same year the birth control pill was approved for use in the United States - and released in 1961. The beginning of the sexual revolution had begun.

Wasson's theory is that this film had a profound impact on young women at that time. Even if young women watching the film didn't want Holly's "profession" - they wanted a real career - they admired her liberated spirit. This new generation of young women wanted to have a fun, glamorous, slightly hedonistic existence of which they were in charge- and not have to apologize for it.

Wasson brings all of these disparate threads together to tell a fascinating story of how the movie came to be made and how everything eventually came seamlessly together. The film has become essential viewing, especially by young women. This is the film for which Audrey Hepburn is best remembered.

I loved this book because I love the film and Audrey Hepburn and was interested in how the movie came to be and why it has become such ah important film that even the young women of today love Audrey Hepburn and know this film. Wasson has done a fine job of research, talking to some of the participants involved and is obviously devoted to the subject. He has written a previous biography of Breakfast At Tiffany's director, Blake Edwards.

I recommend this book if you love movies, Truman Capote, Audrey Hepburn, and Breakfast at Tiffany's.

I just finished reading a library copy after seeing that Wasson was coming out with a biography of Bob Fosse, one of my favorite choreographers. I'm glad I did, because I was bowled over by this sparkling, funny account of how the movie came about, how the filmmakers (including Blake Edwards) navigated the censorship rules, a somewhat reluctant Audrey Hepburn (scared because she would have to act in this, and about a good-time girl as well!), an imperious Edith Head (who wanted to dress Audrey and not that French upstart Givenchy, to turn Holly Golightly's story into a romance with a happy ending. This small book of little more than 200 pages is a masterpiece of concision and stylish storytelling. I ate it up in two days, down to the informative end notes that discusses his sources (books and interviews) and other side issues. His page on the importance of the little black dress that explains its impact on women was enlightening. I loved this book.

When Paramount was gearing up to release "Breakfast at Tiffany's," a film that would go on to usher in an entirely new and more authentic depiction of women on screen (even if it had still had a long way to go), they had to be careful. Audrey Hepburn, the darling of such films as "Roman Holiday" (which won her an Oscar) and "Sabrina," was very conscious of her public image. Unlike other stars who carefully constructed their images, Audrey was essentially the kind woman she was perceived by the public to be. Hepburn, who could sometimes be found knitting on set, didn't want that reputation tarnished. So, unsurprisingly, Hepburn nearly turned the role of the free spirited good time girl Holly Golightly, the film she is most remembered for today.

And therein lies the crux of Sam Wasson's masterful book on the making Breakfast at "Tiffany's" and its cultural significance. At this time in film history it wasn't okay to play this type of character. On screen good girls were good and bad girls were bad. There was no gray area. But "Tiffany's" would change all that, and show the world that not only did this gray area indeed exist, but it was a hell of a lot of fun to be single and sexually liberated woman--even if you were just playing one.

Golightly, as it turns out, was an amalgam of so many of the society ladies that Truman Capote (the author of the original novella on which the film is based on) knew and socialized with, but it was Babe Paley and Capote's own mother, Nina, who most pervaded the character of Holly.

This slim volume (coming in at just over 200 pages) is also a history of Hollywood during the mid 1950s and through the filming of "Tiffany's." Not having read Capote's original novel, I was unaware that the Paul Varjak character in the film was actually Holly's gay friend in the novel. The social mores of the day dictated that the character be turned into a love interest.

I think Sam Wasson's book is clever and unique and witty in its telling of the story behind the story of how "Breakfast at Tiffany's" paved the way for a new brand of filmmaking and depiction of women on screen. Often irreverent, always engaging, Wasson's book does not disappoint.

Author Sam Wasson brilliantly brings us back to the early '60's and how our beloved Audrey Hepburn and ''Breakfast at Tiffany's'' paved the way for the woman's movement in America. The timing was right for ''Breakfast at Tiffany's.'' The American woman of 1961 was ready to abandon Doris Day in her puffed sleeves for Audrey Hepburn in that slinky black dress. The author reminds us that in Holly Golightly's day a woman couldn't get a credit card in her own name. Employment ads were divided: Help Wanted, Male and Help Wanted Female. Those ''female'' jobs were almost always low paying dead ends. That would all change in spades in the next few years. BAT was prescient! Holly Golightly was a feisty, intelligent single woman living in her own apartment in the big city. Holly set the stage for the rest of us, though we wouldn't have to resort to ''favors'' to be self sufficient.

''Breakfast at Tiffany's'' was a very risky enterprise for its time. The producers of BAT pulled off the seeming impossible: giving the audience a bad girl who's good. And, a happy ending for the bad girl. And, they got it past the censors! And, they got Audrey Hepburn to play the ''hooker.'' Sure, we learn Holly is getting money for ''favors'' but she's so refreshingly edgy, quirky and loveable that we let her get away with it. We loved the very independent Holly Golightly every bit as much as Princess Ann of ''Roman Holiday'' and Sr. Luke of ''The Nun's Story.'' No mean feat.

Consider the names: Truman Capote, Audrey Hepburn, Henry Mancini, Johnny Mercer, Mickey Rooney, Hubert De Givenchy and Blake Edwards. This book is the fascinating story of how this extraordinary group put together a hit. The book is fun, too, full of interesting background (Capote wanted Marilyn Monroe to play Holly!) and dishy tidbits (George Peppard was an obnoxious ham.). Both engrossing and a lot of fun! I recommend it highly.

Fun, interesting, a great chronicle of the movie, the people, the times. Pop culture at its best. Warning: If you have no interest in the era of the fifties and early sixties, no interest in NYC or Hollywood culture of the time, no interest in early feminism, Jewish writers and producers, Truman Capote, well, don't read it. You won't like it, guaranteed. For the rest of us, oh yeah. Wallow in the well documented detail.

Obviously this movie is a true classic. Hearing all the behind scenes is fantastic. The book reads like a really good "Vanity Fair" article when "Vanity Fair" was really good. On a side note, I got to work with Blake Edwards twice and the book reinforces all my experiences with him. He was an incredibly talented man who demanded fun on the set.

Neither fish nor fowl. As one reviewer said, the author apparently tried to "provide the material with significance by attributing some epochal status to the subject....[presenting] Breakfast At Tiffany's was a major catalyst for changing American society's views on women's roles and sexual activity outside of marriage." it did neither.

In the first part of the book there was some really laughable writing, e.g., see the photo. And some miserable malapropisms--I wish I'd taken notes.

This book was fascinating on so many levels. I loved the background on Capote and Hepburn - Wasson gave us just enough information without over saturating and over whelming the reader.
Most interesting was the path to getting the movie made - the many stops and starts and the different writers/directors that it could have went to - and thank God it didn't!
Also - loved the info about "The Little Black dress" - I had no idea about the history of the LBD and couldn't wait to tell my girlfriends.
Really enjoyed Wasson's clever "pun intended" chapter titles.
A super fast and fascinating read!

What really helps make this book good is Sam Wasson's writing. Instead of wordy paragraphs detailing set production and the like, he turns it into a near novel like format in which we get into the lives of Truman Capote, Audrey Hepburn, Blake Edwards, Henry Mancini... the list goes on.

Unfortunately, Wasson does not produce any new, juicy details on the making of this iconic film, but instead he analyzes this film, the production, and anyone involved with it to it's core. It starts with a young Truman Capote aching for attention from his playgirl mother, drinking her perfume in desperation to be close to her in some way. It weaves a loose biography of Miss Hepburn through the book as well, discussing some of her other works like "Sabrina" and "Roman Holiday".

I feel that whatever Wasson makes up in lack of details he covers up with his smooth, polished writing. It is a guidebook in some ways of anyone who enjoys the movie. He provides an amusing "cast of characters" at the start of the book and a map to Holly Golightly's NYC.

We could have some more details, perhaps. And more information on co-stars George Peppard and Patricia Neal. But considerably, this is a good book. Fans of the classic film will love it. Wasson is simply a wonderful writer. Perhaps he should tackle some other classics like "Casablanca" and "Gone with the Wind" next.

One occasionally finds a non-fiction book where it appears that the author realized there either wasn't enough material for a straightforward retelling of the event, or that it wasn't marketable as a stand-alone story. When that realization occurs, there is a tendency to try to provide the material with significance by attributing some epochal status to the subject. Unfortunately, the attempt usually falls short because the author doesn't substantiate the claim. Such is the case with Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M. Wasson attempts to make the case that Breakfast At Tiffany's was a major catalyst for changing American society's views on women's roles and sexual activity outside of marriage. However, other than of a couple of quotes from some popular culture figures, like the co-founder of Ms. Magazine, Wasson doesn't present much evidence to support his contention. Thus, most of the other material that's used to ostensibly support this assertion comes off as little more than filler to meet a page count requirement.

While the book's thesis isn't well supported, the material that documents the making of the movie is entertainingly informative. Wasson does a superlative job of depicting all of the characters' compromises, motivations, and inspirations in filming the movie. He is particularly effective in his depiction of Audrey Hepburn, who comes across as someone who sincerely wanted to be a great mother, wife, and actress (in that order). Wasson's portrayal makes it clear that Hepburn's sincerity was the key to her public appeal, which made it possible for audiences to embrace her Breakfast At Tiffany's role...a role that they would've likely found objectionable had it been filled with another actress.

There is a very engaging story in Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.; namely, the creation of Breakfast At Tiffany's. Unfortunately, Wasson's lack of faith in his material results in the insertion of additional topics that only detract from the better primary story. Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M is still a book worth purchasing. But, it is a book that will require careful reading in order to separate the informative from the pretentious.

Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M. by Sam Wasson
Harper, 2010
204 pages
Non-fiction; celebrity
3/5 stars

Source: School library

Summary: A look at the making of 'Breakfast at Tiffany's:' how the producers, director, writer, and stars came to make it and how it impacted cinema and American life.

Thoughts: I think I saw a review of this in People magazine and I put it on my list because it seemed like a breezy read with links to the classic movies I love (actually don't really like BaT but I also need to watch it again). This was a very quick and easy read. I'm not particularly familiar with any of it although I've seen BaT and I don't not like Audrey Hepburn (she's not in my top 10, but maybe the top 20). Reading the backstories was interesting-tracing Hepburn's path to this role and looking at the backstage people is always interesting as they're too often neglected.

But Wasson's argument about how groundbreaking this film was in its depiction of female sexuality is not well argued. Just repeating that it pushed boundaries and was remarkable does not equal a well-reasoned and well-supported argument. It also seemed quite shallow and I kept feeling like there should be more to the story although I wasn't sure what.

Overall: Definitely recommended for the diehard fans of BaT; otherwise don't bother.

Cover: I love the cover-Audrey in the iconic dress with Tiffany blue in the subtitle is perfect!

This is an very well-written work of film history...luckily for us readers, many of the personalities involved in the making of Breakfast at Tiffany's are still alive, so Wasson had the opportunity to conduct first person interviews as well as relying on historical accounts.

It really shows how times have changed....! If you are interested in film history, Audrey Hepburn or 20th century women's history, costume design, Givenchy...oh you get my drift, many people will enjoy this delightful book!

Bravo to Sam Wasson!

Lots of fun quirky facts about a beloved classic. It doesn’t tie up the argument made in the beginning about “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” in part starting the sexual revolution for women, however the book was fun enough on its own it doesn’t seem to matter as much.

I really enjoyed this book. It had so much information on the making of both the book and the movie, giving a lot of perspectives on both projects and filling in on what the time period was like and how hard it was to get a movie like that made back then. And of course I am such a big Audrey fan, that just getting to learn more about her life was awesome. Wonderfully written, very interesting.

Wasson takes the reader through the process of getting the book to the screen - from page one he has the reader hooked.

This nonfiction piece is not truly for Capote fans but for Hepburn/Tiffany fans. It is well-researched and contains a nice flow to the writing. Wasson delivers facts through story instead of story through facts, which is quite effective.

I was eager to read this book -- the differences between the the novel and the movie versions of Breakfast at Tiffany's have always suggested that a lot happened behind-the-scenes. But this skimpy book feels barely researched, rushed, lazy, content to be lazy -- and its curious presentation (in bits, some no longer than a paragraph) only underlines the problem.

Frequently, it begins to delve into some potentially fascinating facet of the production or its back-story only to give up abruptly. ("That's it?!" I kept saying to myself.)

For more satisfying, passionately in-depth investigations of specific films, see Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, or Mark Harris' Pictures at a Revolution. This book is just not in their league.

This book is amazing. Background information on the making of the movie was very interesting along with people involved in it's production. Everyone who likes Breakfast at Tiffany's will appreciate this wonderful book.

Sam Wasson can write about film like nobody's business. His vast store of knowledge, keen research skills, and access to people who rarely speak publicly (e.g. Rob Wolders, Ms. Hepburn's companion) make this book a must-read.

I really enjoyed this book. It had so much information on the making of both the book and the movie, giving a lot of perspectives on both projects and filling in on what the time period was like and how hard it was to get a movie like that made back then. And of course I am such a big Audrey fan, that just getting to learn more about her life was awesome. Wonderfully written, very interesting.

I bought this book after reading "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and seeing the movie again. I was anxious to get more behind-the-scenes information. Unfortunately, this book didn't provide it. The author seems to have spent most of his time thinking up catchy chapter titles, but there wasn't much information about either the movie or Capote's book. There was an obsession about sex in early movies and about Audrey Hepburn's daring prostitute role, but there wasn't much about the "dawn of the modern woman."

This is an very well-written work of film history...luckily for us readers, many of the personalities involved in the making of Breakfast at Tiffany's are still alive, so Wasson had the opportunity to conduct first person interviews as well as relying on historical accounts.

It really shows how times have changed....! If you are interested in film history, Audrey Hepburn or 20th century women's history, costume design, Givenchy...oh you get my drift, many people will enjoy this delightful book!

Bravo to Sam Wasson!

This was the perfect book for a quick weekend trip. I loved learning more about Audrey's life and career and how her role in Breakfast at Tiffany's shaped the portrayal of women in films. It was very well written and tons of fun. I would highly recommend this book to Audrey fans.

Very interesting to get an inside look into the industry at the time, the way in which women were viewed and hindered and the many different people who played a role in creating such a memorable and influential film as Breakfast at Tiffany's. Watching the movie again will be a real treat after reading this book! An easy and fun read-highly recommended.

An entertaining and well researched depiction of the making of Breakfast at Tiffany's. Mostly centered on the making of the movie more than Audrey Hepburn herself, enjoyed it very much none the less.