Holiday Gifts: Coffee Table Books
Dec. 12, 2002 -- Each year, the bookstores are stocked with coffee table books. Filled with dazzling pictures, the books make perfect holiday gifts. Good Morning America's anchors shares their favorite titles.
Each of the book titles are followed by publishers' information, prices and a brief description from the publishing company.
Robin Roberts
Athlete Photographer: Howard Schatz; Foreword by George Vecsey, Afterword by Ira Berkow Publisher: Harper CollinsPrice: $59.95
The male and female athletes pictured here are pinnacles of physical achievement in sports from table tennis to sumo wrestling; they appear oiled, sweaty and clad in skimpy black briefs and sports bras as they leap, sprint, swing and flex in minimalist surroundings, with only the essential paraphernalia of their game.
One Shot Harris: The Photographs of Charles "Teenie" Harris By Stanley CrouchPublisher: AbramsPrice: $35
From the 1930s through the 1970s, Charles "Teenie" Harris (1908-1998) traversed the alleyways, workplaces, and nightclubs of his native city, camera in hand, to capture the essence of community life for the Pittsburgh Courier. Backstage with Dizzy Gillespie, in the dugout with Jackie Robinson, or on the streets with children of the Hill district, Harris documented every aspect of African-American daily life during and after the civil rights movement.
The Wonder of American Toys, 1920-1950By Charles Dee SharpPublisher: Collectors PressPrice: $49.95
The Wonder of American Toys reflects not only the toys of perhaps the most formative era of American history, but what they meant to the children who played with them, and to the society that produce them.
Charlie Gibson
New York New YorkPhotographer: Richard Berenholtz; Foreword by Kenneth T. Jackson.Publisher: Rizzoli New YorkPrice: $275.00
Most of this deluxe, massive volume showcases breathtaking panoramic photos of New York in all seasons and all its aspects — skylines, streetscapes, Times Square, Central Park, landmark buildings, and ornamental details. Each panoramic photograph is reproduced in a double-page spread, resulting in a single magnificent photograph measuring 12 inches tall and more than 36 inches long.
Stars on the Set: Stolen Moments Editors: Marc Brincourt, Guillaume Clavieres; Text by Jean Pierre BouyxouPublisher: Filipacchi PublishingPrice: $45
America's favorite pastime is the movies. Its second favorite pastime is watching the stars whose lives off the set are often more fascinating than the roles they play. Stars on the Set, Stolen Moments satisfies on both fronts: stars on the movie set caught between takes just being themselves (being stars!).
William Wegman PolaroidsPhotographer: William WegmanPublisher: AbramsPrice: $49:95
Although Wegman's artistic output includes photography and video work that doesn't feature canines, "by the mid-70s," he wryly notes, "I had become the guy with the dog." The dog was Man Ray, a Weimaraner with a movie star's instinct for the spotlight.
Tony Perkins
Rolling With The StonesBy: Bill WymanPublisher: DK PublishingPrice: $50
Bill Wyman has lovingly assembled this over-500-page book, equal parts memoir and lavishly illustrated coffee-table tome, with a winning mix of clear-eyed reportage (based on his own voluminous diaries) and an eye for colorful detail and ephemera worthy of a proud family scrapbook.
Stay Tuned: Television's Unforgettable Moments By: Joe GarnerPublisher: Andrews McMeel PublishingPrice: $49.95
Includes more than 300 vintage black-and-white and color photographs that bring more than 50 years of television memories to life. The accompanying DVD includes more than 150 minutes of actual television clips that correspond to the book's text.
The Beatles Anthology By: The BeatlesPublisher: Chronicle BooksPrice: $35.00
What should be the final word on the Beatles has arrived. It takes the form of a massive oral-history tome, its contents derived mostly from recorded conversations with Paul, George, and Ringo for the recent TV documentary The Beatles Anthology.
James Bond: The LegacyBy: John Cork and Bruce ScivallyPublisher: AbramsPrice: $49.95
Published to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Dr. No, the first James Bond film, James Bond: The Legacy is the official, definitive guide to the 007 phenomenon. Loaded with anecdotes, facts, and illustrations, the book provides features on the key actors, from Sean Connery to Pierce Brosnan, directors, costume and set designers, and others working behind the scenes. Without a doubt, this is the book of the Bond World.
In Search of AmericaBy: Peter Jennings & Todd BrewsterPublisher: HyperionPrice: $50
In Search of America explores the basic ideals that drive and define the American character. Exquisitely designed, lavishly illustrated with photographs, and peppered with fascinating side trips, the volume offers a superb blend of eyewitness reporting informed by history
Diane Sawyer
Asia GracePhotographer: Kevin KellyPublisher: TaschenPrice: $40
Co-founder of the digital culture magazine Wired, Kevin Kelly leads a double life: cyber-culture editor and independent photographer. For the past 30 years, and completely independently of his work on Wired, he has been traveling the far reaches of Asia photographing the ins and outs of daily life.
The Architecture of Philip JohnsonPhotographer: Richard Payne; Foreword by Philip Johnson, Essay by Hilary LewisPublisher: BulfinchPrice: $85.00
With a foreword by Johnson himself, an essay by his biographer Hilary Lewis, and nearly 400 color and black-and-white photographs accompanied by detailed building descriptions presented in chronological order, this is the book on Philip Johnson's architecture.
The Art of Film Noir: The Posters and Graphics From the Classic Era of Film NoirBy: Eddie MullerPublisher: Overlook PressPrice: $50
Film noir is about style as much as it is about crime. The poster art from the noir era has a bold look and an iconography all its own. The 275 dazzling posters, lobby cards, and other promotional material in this book range from the classics Out of the Past, Touch of Evil and The Big Sleep, to rare archive films such as the Devil Thumbs a Ride and Blonde Kiss. Noir expert Eddie Muller provides background information for the illustrators, most of whom have never before received credit for their work.