I am a huge fan of Breaking Bad (actually, my husband and I are rewatching it again right now), and I loved Cranston on Malcolm in the Middle back when it was on, too. He’s an excellent actor, both doing comedy and drama, and it turns out he’s a better than average writer as well!
“I will pursue something that I love — and hopefully become good at it, instead of pursuing something that I’m good at — but don’t love.”
Bryan Cranston grew up with a father determined to be a star — despite the fact that it eventually tore his family apart. Cranston started acting in commercials at age seven, but wasn’t sure it was what he wanted to do for a living for another 15 years. He actually became a police officer, then took a road trip with his brother where he realized what his true ambition was.
Cranston takes us through his history — growing up with and then without his father, his meandering career choices and then the roles that led him to his current life: a guest star on The X-Files, Tim Whatley on Seinfeld, Hal on Malcolm in the Middle, and of course, Walter White. Being a fan of his work probably makes the book more interesting, but it’s so well-written that anyone who enjoys a memoir should try it out.
Did you do hard copy or audio? I used my last audible credit for awhile to order the audio version. His narration of The Things They Carried was so phenomenal that I decided to listen to this one that way. Now that book club is over, I have a feeling I’ll be queuing that one up next week.
I read the hard copy, but I imagine the audio version would be excellent. He has a great voice.