Traci Lords: Underneath It All |  | Author: Traci Lords
Publisher: It Books
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
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Seller: _beaglebooks_
Rating:  82 reviews
Sales Rank: 178544
Media: Paperback
Pages: 304
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9 x 6 x 0.9
ISBN: 0060508213
Dewey Decimal Number: 363.470973
EAN: 9780060508210
ASIN: 0060508213
Publication Date: July 1, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com Review
Nora Kuzma was a troubled teenager from Steubenville, Ohio; Traci Lords was the underage skin mag/porn queen who became the centerpiece of the adult video industry's greatest scandal. In reality, they were one and the same, the subject of this slick, if thin autobiography. But what's striking here is not the familiar storyline--confused, sexually abused teen falls in with drugs and the wrong Southern California crowd, forges fake IDs to become Penthouse Pet of the Month at 16 and the '80s hottest adult star, then arrested as focus of the Reagan administration's crackdown on porn, only to become reborn as cleaned-up, psychoanalyzed/rehabed purveyor of legitimate film, TV, and music career. Rather, what's striking is Lords's capacity for denial, compartmentalization, and myopia when it serves her ends. Her scandalous tenure in the skin trade--undeniably the sole basis for her infamy and subsequent legitimate career--is glossed over here in a few score pages, with more attention paid to the heavy-metal musicians that dotted her life than the motivations and machinations of the Feds who literally changed her life; Slash's snake gets more ink here than Attorney General Ed Meese. Quick to ladle generous sympathy on her own plight, she heaps little but scorn upon those from the seedy past of her porn-star alter-ego, yet seems to have had few qualms about formally adopting that moniker as her legal name. --Jerry McCulley
Product Description
The moving, gripping, and tell–all autobiography of Traci Elizabeth Lords, a former child porn queen, electronica maven, and cult movie and TV star. At 14, Nora Kuzma ran away from home and ended up on the dirty streets of Hollywood. She fell in with a fast crowd, and her dreams of modelling soon landed her a spectacular centrefold in Penthouse Magazine, where at 15 she became internationally known as TRACI LORDS. From there she appeared in numerous adult films and magazines, denying her past and battling a deep addiction to cocaine and men. Three years later she got out. This is her memoir–a tale of loss, redemption, and ultimate survival as Traci Elizabeth Lords takes you into her secretive past, faces her demons, and shares her extraordinary journey of personal growth.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 82
 Traci, I Love You January 8, 2010
A. Kote (Philadelphia, PA)
I'll start off by saying this book isn't a literary masterpiece in the sense that it's incredibly well-written. But, that doesn't make it a bad thing. Traci's autobiography may at times feel weak, but it's honest, and that's what draws me to it. Lords could have easily hired a ghostwriter or like Jenna Jameson, received help from another established author, but instead she did it all on her own - and that's what makes her novel stand out. It's personal, at times reading like the pages from a diary.
To me, Traci Lords is one of the most fascinating celebrities in modern time - a woman who in the 80's caused national news and controversy when it was discovered that Lords was underage when she had filmed well over what are now 100 titles. Her notoriety has stuck, and will remain so in future pop culture. I'll admit that I initially had no real interest in Traci, only knowing her by her reputation, but after reading Jameson's memoir, I sort of developed an interest in the grittiness of the porn industry, and what it's really like for these actors behind the scenes. And I'm glad I picked this novel up, now developing a new-found respect and admiration for Traci. In her book, Traci talks about life as an abused child, who later experiences rape, molestation, neglect, pregnancy, a drug addiction and a stint in porn, all before she turned 18 years old. It's a great read, often a heart wrenching tale, but one with a fairy tale ending, as Lords has overcome her struggles and obstacles in life, proving all those around her who during the time she caused headlines, went on to say Traci would never amount to anything other than her 15 minutes of a being a "porn lolita". Less than a year after her 18th birthday, Traci would go on to star in arcs on numerous popular television programs such as Melrose Place, Roseanne, Married with Children, and Tales from the Crypt, launch a music career with a #1 dance album, and a moderately successful mainstream career in movies, starring in Cry-Baby, Blade, and The Tommyknockers.
If you want to read an honest, inside look at the incredible life of a young woman, make sure to pick up this title.
An Excellent Read January 7, 2010
Randell L. Burton (Tampa, Fla.)
A great story about someone overcoming a tumultuous past to pursue their dreams and goals--and winning. Ms. Lords is a great storyteller and the first and only of her kind to succeed. This book is a must read for anyone who had to struggle to deal with an unhappy childhood and had to work hard to make their life livable and good.
 An ok book about an unappreciative tart December 18, 2009
burntham77 (Las Vegas, NV)
The book itself is half boring and half good. Her time spent in porn was fun to read about, but all the acting stories afterward were kind of dull. I did not like her lousy attitude towards the porn industry. She lied about her age to get into the business, and her time in the business ended up getting her way more fame than she deserves. Would people really give a crap about her movies and music were it not for her porn star background? I would imagine not.
If you are one of those people that love her non-porn work, then by all means read this book. People looking for a lot of juicy stories about the world of porn would be better off buying books by Jenna Jameson or Christy Canyon.
A Great Read August 26, 2009
Joe Blough (Minneapolis, MN United States)
I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was an open and honest look into Traci's life as told by her. Thiere are a few points in this book where her writing is not the best but I did not buy it just for the skilled writing, I get a kick out of people who bash autobiographies regarding exact grammer and lack of a well told story, after all it is real life and real life is messy.
If you have any interest in Traci, or the porn subject I recomend reading this book.
 She's fooling herself at times April 25, 2009
S. Doty
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Traci Lords refers to her porno past as an "obstacle" she had to overcome and claims to have done it with TV roles, minor movie roles, music, etc. But while it may have prevented her from getting a few roles, her porno fame ALLOWED her to get roles and, on balance, worked in her favor. I know people who only saw "Cry-baby," because that "porno girl was in it." Same with her music -- "check out the CD by that porno queen." She parlayed her porno queen status as the ultimate proof that sex sells while pretending porno was an obstacle to her success, a total self-delusion. If not for porno, she would never have gotten the breaks and notoriety she did. But she can't face that fact and claims to "loathe" porno, her springboard. The reader is left with the impression she's trying to take more credit than she deserves for her later mainstream work. She also deflects blame for her sins as the VICTIM of a cloudy rape and fuzzy molestation, but it seems like self-serving exaggeration. No charges were ever brought. And we wonder what the other side of the story was, from her first boyfriend and step-father. Is her credibility no better than the dancer for the Duke lacrosse team? She tries to have it both ways -- playing the victim when it suits her advantage, then stating she isn't a victim when that posture seems to help more. It can flip like a coin. Otherwise, an interesting story. Reads a bit like a work resume at times, though. (I went to high school with one of her boyfriends and was interested to see how she described their relationship.)
Showing reviews 1-5 of 82
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