Tag: Biography

Original post from my Mom blog here – https://mamaonthemove1.wordpress.com/2026/02/06/book-review/

Title: The Third Gilmore Girl: A Memoir

Author: Kelly Bishop

Genre: Memoir, Biography, Non-fiction

Number of Pages: 239

My Rating: 💋💋💋💋💋

Book Summary:

After more than half a century in show business, Kelly Bishop has stories to tell. From her Tony Award-winning performance in the original Broadway cast of A Chorus Line, to playing Jennifer Grey’s mother in Dirty Dancing, to her iconic role as matriarch Emily Gilmore in the groundbreaking television classic Gilmore Girls, few actors have enjoyed such long-running success —and even fewer can claim the adoration that this legendary actress has cultivated over her many working years. Kelly’s instantly recognizable voice has echoed through theaters and living rooms for decades.

For the first time, Kelly opens the door into her own life. She retraces her steps from Broadway to Hollywood and everywhere in between, reflecting on her decades-long career and sharing some of her greatest memories and lessons she learned along the way. From her early days as a dancer at Radio City Music Hall in the ’60s, to marrying young to a compulsive gambler, to her time as a burned-out Las Vegas showgirl, nothing is off-limits. She takes readers behind the scenes, from how she helped create a role in A Chorus Line, what it is like having Ed Herrmann as her TV husband and Lauren Graham as her TV daughter, and working with some of the biggest names in showbiz. The result is an enchanting celebration of a fearless and versatile performer whose talent and spirit have earned her an enduring place in the hearts and homes of millions.

Chock-full of witty insights and personal photographs, The Third Gilmore Girl is a warm, unapologetic, lively memoir from a woman who has left indelible impressions on her audiences- and who has no plans of slowing down.

My Thoughts:

To be blatantly honest, I was bound to love this one considering how big of a fan I am of Kelly Bishop and Gilmore Girls. I haven’t read a memoir this fast since Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark by Cassandra Peterson. (HUGE Elvira fan as well!) And let me tell you, neither one of them disappointed me in the slightest!

To say Kelly Bishop (Or Carole Bishop as she was originally known as before the name change with SAG) has an incredible life and career is an absolute understatement. Her determination, drive, hard work ethic, fight and wit will have you admiring her and giggling the whole way through. The books description has never been more accurate. It leads you through her love of Ballet as a young girl, her auditioning for the American Ballet Theatre corps de ballet only to deviated into a different career path….Broadway! Her Broadway career is astonishing and she even won a Tony Away for her performance. To say it’s impressive is an understatement and the sprinkling of famous actors, actresses, choreographers and musical composers is just cool. It was also really interesting to see how she transitioned into acting in television and movies. Learning she was suppose to play Vivian Pressman in Dirty Dancing and instead got handed the role of Marge Houseman (Baby’s mother) instead, well that was crazy to me.

Then all the wonderful moments of her on the set of Gilmore Girls, her relationships with Amy Sherman-Palladino (the series writer), Lauren Graham, and Ed Herrmann and the moments she shared with each of them. Along with the other cast and crew. From doing the New York Times crossword with Ed Herrmann in their shared trailer, arriving too early to set, to even marching in Washington with Amy. Also, finding out that the last season of Gilmore Girls, Season 7, was not written by Amy at all! No wonder it didn’t have the same pizzazz. How I never noticed that after the millions of times I’ve re-watched that series, I really don’t know! She also discusses how Netflix essentially allowed to show to resurface and gain popularity, the shows reboot for those 4 episodes, the evolution of Emily Gilmore and how she was team Logan. Now sorry Kelly, I have to strongly disagree on the team Logan bit, but her and I definitely agree that it was Team Luke the whole way!!

It wasn’t just her professional career you admire in this book, which is again extensive and very impressive. It also showed her personal life as well. Her very loving relationship with her husband Lee, her love for animals, her mother, and the plethora of wonderful friendships she cultivated over her career. You could feel the vulnerability in certain sections of this book, her sense of humor/wit and her strong personality. She is truly infectious, even in writing. Not to mention some very wonderful fan interactions she had encountered, which I thought was a very sweet touch to put in her memoir.

But it wasn’t all sunshine and roses.

She sprinkles in her failed marriage, life lessons from showbiz including the difficulties of travel and financial stability. The reality of going pay check to paycheck and everything in between. Her husbands health struggles with multiple forms of cancer. Grief and loss and how she persevered through them. The difficulty of shady agents and finding work, but not just any work, but also work that spoke to her as an actress.

I am not not one to cry over celebrities, but Kelly Bishop had me teary eyed when she spoke of the loss of Ed Herrmann (another impeccable actor and who played Richard Gilmore in Gilmore Girls), the loss of her husband Lee and when she reminisced about moments with her husband Lee after he passed and sadly left this world. I can truly say those moments, touched me so deeply with the way they were written with such love and adoration. Those moments made me stop and think about my own loved ones in that moment.

That to me, put the cherry on top of the cake.

So do I recommend this one? OH HELL YES! I think that’s enough said right?

Hope you enjoyed and keep an eye out for the next review which will be the novel The Lake by Natasha Preston. I’ll also let you know what our next book club book will be after February 15th!

Ciao!