Chuck Barris Books In Order

Novels

  1. You and Me Babe (1974)
  2. The Big Question (2007)
  3. Looking for Della (2007)
  4. Who Killed Art Deco? (2009)

Non fiction

  1. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (1984)
  2. The Game Show King (1993)
  3. The F.A.R.R. Theory (1996)
  4. Bad Grass Never Dies (2004)
  5. Della (2010)

Novels Book Covers

Non fiction Book Covers

Chuck Barris Books Overview

You and Me Babe

AN OUTRAGEOUS AUTOBIOGRAPHY PUBLISHED TO COINCIDE WITH THE MIRAMAX FILM STARRING DREW BARRYMORE, GEORGE CLOONY, AND SAM ROCKWELL, DIRECTED BY GEORGE CLOONY Suspense, excess, danger and exuberant fun come together in Chuck Barris’ unlikely autobiography the tale of a wildly flamboyant 1970s television producer, better known as the infamous host of The Gong Show. What most people don’t know is that Barris allegedly spent close to two decades as a decorated covert assassin for the CIA. Barris, who achieved tremendous success as the creator and producer of hit TV game shows such as The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game, claims to have joined the CIA as an agent in the early 1960s, infiltrated the Civil Rights movement, met with militant Muslims in Harlem, and traveled abroad in order to kill enemies of the United States. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is now a movie directed by and starring George Clooney, with Sam Rockwell as the author, but the original story is wild and gripping, spiced with intrigue, sex, bad behavior and plenty of great one liners. It is destined to become a classic.

The Big Question

From the revolutionary mind of television’s legendary mad genius, a story of money, sex, greed, revenge, murder and reality TV

The year is 2012, and as the Most Famous Television Producer in the World is walking down a wintry New York City block, he’s accosted by a homeless looking cripple who, like everyone else, insists he has the formula for the greatest TV show of all time. As it turns out, he does: Contestants will compete for one hundred million dollars. If they win, they’re rich. If they lose, they face immediate on camera execution.

As the Producer begins scheming to steal the idea and revive his fading career, The Big Question introduces the extraordinary characters who will ultimately become the show’s contestants a brilliantly rendered, Dickensian cast that includes the seventy something Vera Bundle, with a taste for scotch and encyclopedias; Arthur Durch, a convicted sex offender turned relationship therapist; Retta Mae Wagons, a sixteen year old prostitute with an IQ of 170 and an ex con turned Muslim fundamentalist boyfriend who doesn’t appreciate her; Billy Constable, the Kentucky rube who gets off a bus in New York and promptly finds himself in trouble with the Mob; and Father Brady, the devout Catholic priest with a mortifying secret to hide at any cost. As the first episode is broadcast live in front of millions, the audience, the cast, and the crew behind the scenes do the unthinkable: they sit and watch, rapt and glassy eyed, as the final contestant left on stage meets an unimaginable fate.

To say The Big Question is a novel of greed and immorality would be putting it lightly. But to read this book without laughing out loud at every page would be impossible. This is more than just a funny book, though. With uncanny precision and razor sharp wit, the inimitable Chuck Barris reveals the inconceivable lengths to which people will go for those priceless fifteen minutes, the fascination we have with the little black box in our homes and the horrifying deeds done in the name of entertainment.

Who Killed Art Deco?

From the infamous mind of a comic madman and the author of the sardonic The Big Question comes a mind numbingly hilarious parody of cop dramas, police procedurals, and America’s upper crust. Comic legend: Chuck Barris is the creator and former producer of The Gong Show, The Newlywed Game, and The Dating Game, among many others. His memoir, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, sparked a worldwide debate as to the validity of his professed identity when he claimed to have worked as an assassin for the Central Intelligence Agency during the 1960s and the 1970s. As a storyteller, Barris is the blackest comedian there is. As a satirist, he may be one of the best writers around today. A masterful spoof: Art Deco Jr. is heir to a vast fortune, scion of one of America s most powerful men but he is also the black sheep of the family. When he is found murdered in his Manhattan apartment, everyone wonders who could have killed him. Was it Art s recently spurned lover, Eddie Cotton, the failed actor and gigolo? Was it one of Art s own relatives, all of whom seem ready to disown him for tarnishing the family name? As the investigation unfolds, it becomes apparent to the novice detective Jimmy Netts that without an actual license, it s tough to investigate anything resembling a crime scene. Full of uproarious investigative snafus, Who Killed Art Deco?? is a dark and delightfully funny book from an equally troubled mind.

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

Suspense, excess, danger, and exuberant fun come together in Chuck Barris’s unlikely autobiography the tale of a wildly amboyant ’70s television producer nationally known as the host of The Gong Show. What most people don’t know is that Barris also spent close to two decades as a decorated covert assassin for the CIA, claiming to have killed over thirty people. Honestly. Barris, who achieved tremendous success as the creator of the hit game shows The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game, joined the CIA as an agent in the early 1960s. He inltrated the Civil Rights movement, met with militant Muslims in Harlem, and was sent abroad to kill enemies of the American state, even as his game shows began to soar to ratings success. Originally published in 1982, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind has been out of print for a number of years, but interest in Barris is about to reach an all time high, with a major movie based on the book coming from Miramax Films in December 2002. The all star cast includes Sam Rockwell, Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Drew Barrymore. Barris will be covered extensively in the media this fall. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is a wild and improbable tale spiced with intrigue, sex, bad behavior, and plenty of one liners.

The Game Show King

The former host of ‘The Gong Show’ discusses his creation of ‘The Newlywed Game,’ ‘The Dating Game,’ and other television programs, his fall from grace, and life in his adopted France.

Bad Grass Never Dies

Good killers are hard to find. But the CIA has no trouble finding the legendary TV producer and game show king Chuck Barris. In Bad Grass Never Dies, Barris picks up the fast paced intrigue in Hollywood, where his emotional life lies in ruins, his career careens out of control, and he can’t get a break anyplace he turns. Then one day a high ranking CIA boss appears unannounced on Barris’ doorstep. The CIA needs the cooperation of a Mexican terrorist, and Barris is ordered to recruit the killer as a paid assassin. Complicating matters is the fact that this same assassin is responsible for the death of two of Barris’ fellow operatives. What’s to prevent him from facing the same fate on arrival in Mexico? Barris’ beguiling humor and a crack shot taxi driver hold the answer. The stakes continue to build in this eagerly awaited sequel from the author who dazzled and amused readers and later movie audiences with the publication of his first book of memoirs, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.

Della

In Della, showbiz legend Chuck Barris delivers a poignant yet candid memoir of life with his only daughter, Della.

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