Council Literary Series: Todd Purdum
11am | Reception
11:30am | Author Program
12:30pm | Lunch and Book Signing
The Maybourne Beverly Hills ( 225 N Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210)
Parking Information
Please note that parking will not be hosted. Guests have the following options:
- Valet Parking at The Maybourne – $23 for the first 3 hours, then $3 per additional half-hour.
- Self-Parking at Beverly Canon Gardens (242 N Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210) – Free for the first 2 hours, then $3 per additional half-hour. Daily maximum: $22.
If you have any questions, please email The Council office at thecouncil@lfla.org or call 213.228.7506.
Our Guest Author:
Todd Purdum
Todd S. Purdum is a veteran journalist and author. In a career of more than forty years, he has written widely about politics and culture, starting at The New York Times, where he spent twenty-three years, covering politics from city hall to the White House, later serving as diplomatic correspondent and Los Angeles bureau chief. He has also been a staff writer at Vanity Fair, Politico, and The Atlantic. He is the author of Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution and An Idea Whose Time Has Come: Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, the former White House press secretary Dee Dee Myers, with whom he has two grown children.
About the Book:
Desi Arnaz: The Man Who Invented Television
Desi Arnaz is a name that resonates with fans of classic television, but few understand the depth of his contributions to the entertainment industry. In Desi Arnaz, Todd S. Purdum offers a captivating biography that dives into the groundbreaking Latino artist and businessman known to millions as Ricky Ricardo from I Love Lucy. Beyond his iconic role, Arnaz was a pioneering entrepreneur who fundamentally transformed the television landscape.
Praise
“Deeply researched and clear-eyed about Arnaz’s talents as well as his struggles. . . . Purdum gives us Arnaz’s life story, and it’s an often surprising one.” — Ty Burr ― The Washington Post
“In many ways, Desi Arnaz was Ricky Ricardo, the character he played on television—creative, hardworking, excitable, lovable, an embracing personality, a natural entertainer. . . . Mr. Purdum tells this classic rise-and-fall story with an élan his subject would appreciate.” — Scott Eyman ― The Wall Street Journal
