Living the Legend: The Journal of a Titanic Background Actress Paperback – 17 Nov. 2012

Really interesting book, would recommend to any Titanic movie lover! It is a very great insight to how the movie was made.

After long being fascinated by all things Titanic, I have been looking forward to reading this book. All the behind scenes books cannot cover the boredom of being an extra in a film as big as the Titanic.Judy Prestininzi kept a journal of her time from 24th September 1996, to 26th March 1997 of her unique insight into filming (with a postscript in December 1997). Most of the journal entries are relatively short, nothing really more than a couple of pages, and sometimes there are multiple days covered in one diary entry. There could have been some more context given, during some of the entries just to flesh them out a bit more, but I suppose it was never written with the thought of it being published 16 years down the line. It does make for a quick read, as the chapters are quite short.Some of the diary entries do get a bit repetitive, there's only so many times you can read about Judy driving back and forth from her home to the set in Mexico, and the boring hours between takes and night shoots. Judy talks about having grown up children (one of her sons was also an extra), but she does come across as having quite a juvenile attitude at times. Perhaps it was the boredom of being on set, and the constant waiting, but talking of TP-ing "Mr Cameron's" house at one point, really stunned me. I would have edited that out with reading the diary entries back.Judy also has some often quite strong negative views on certain things - she gets quite catty about the catering on set (it wasn't as good as the "crew" catering) and sharp tongued when it came to the other, newer extras. Sometimes it was necessary, particularly when the extras wouldn't follow directions or got rough during some shots. But other times, it felt like she was looking down her nose at the other extras, or wasn't being respectful. Perhaps that was just the way I was reading it, and maybe others would read it differently.I wish this book had perhaps included some photos, like maybe a scan of her diary entries, or some of the photos she mentioned getting taken during the shooting, or maybe some screenshots from the film where she appeared. I felt like I couldn't really recognise/pick her out in a scene, even though from what she talks about, she was in quite a few notable scenes with the main cast, as different people. (She talks about changing from third class, to first class, and then back again, multiple times, when they needed to plump up the background cast.) The photo on the front cover is beautiful, and there's a photo on the back cover of her playing Molly Brown.Overall, from what Judy says, it came across as quite a friendly cast, with Judy being picked out by the crew frequently and was on first name basis with a lot of them. The postscript about the premiere was brief, I would have liked her to spot herself on screen, it seems quite generic, just referring to all of the extras as cheering when they saw themselves. She looks back on her time fondly, particularly in the author's note, when she talks about her son and also going on to star in other Titanic related features, such as Ghosts of the Abyss and Last Mysteries of The Titanic, both times playing Molly Brown instead of an extra.I did learn a few new things, such as the actress who played Irish Mummy, was Jenette Goldstein, who was also Vasquez in Aliens and John's foster mum in Terminator 2. (She's completely unrecogniseable in my opinion, but Judy mentions trying to recognise where she knew her from.) A lot of the mentions about the construction of the set was also very interesting, if a little hard to picture without anything to reference them to - and if I'm ever an extra, I'm taking a book with me!For Titanic enthusiasts, this will certainly be a book to pick up to add to your collection, if you can look past the gripes that I had.

Take a peak behind the curtain of master mind James Cameron during the filming of the Oscar award winning Titanic. Judy's journal is an honest & frank retell of the highs & lows of a background actress. I couldn't put it down! A MUST have for any fan of the film or anyone who is curious about what goes on before & after the director cries "CUT!"

Living the Legend is a very unusual book about the making of a film, written from a very unusual vantage point - that of an extra. Two things make this book worthwhile and a lot of fun to read. First, the author's voice - she comes across as a genuinely nice person, who writes intelligently and secondly, the film she is helping to make is a modern masterpiece, Titanic.This book is an excellent companion to Paula Parisi's book about the making of Titanic, which is also a fascinating read - one written from a much more traditional perspective. Between the two books you really get a feel what it was like to work on this deeply troubled but ultimately triumphant production.

"We were so very excited and honored to have Judy as a member of the Titanic Book Book club!  I finished this book in a matter of days as I had trouble putting it down! I also purchased the eBook!  Judy has a wonderful way of capturing your attention, and she's funny!  Just imagine her standing at the top of the high dive, when being asked to JUMP and Scream, for the lifeboats to return!  Judy said her wonderful "outside voice" was gained while living on a ranch!  I wont tell you too much, as you really want to get this! I will tell you that I, personally, am happy that Judy couldn't fit in that size 2 first class outfit, I'm sure she had more fun in 3rd class!"~Jill Carlier, Titanic Book Club

Living the Legend: The Journal of a Titanic Background Actress is an interesting behind-the-scenes look at Judy's experiences while helping make James Cameron's Titanic. I'm glad the author had the presence of mind to keep a journal, because this is filled with tons of details that would be difficult to recall at a later date. You will not find most of this info anywhere else.The book is presented in a basic, straightforward manner, with each chapter being that day's journal entry. This is really a "boots on the ground" approach, forgoing any overarching commentary on the production, and just letting us know what it was like to be an extra.And some of it ain't pretty.When it comes down to it, making a movie is a whole lot of work--much of it down and dirty. Sure, sometimes you get to do cool things like be in scenes with Billy Zane, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Kate Winslet, but mostly what you get to do is be at the beck and call of the production, wait around for hours and hours, and be (justifiably) upset that the food provided to you is almost inedible compared to what the cast and crew get. Ah, but that is Hollywood, and many are willing to pay their dues as an extra for a chance to be a part of history. Judy lays it all out, giving us the interesting and the good right along with the horrible and the ugly. She isn't afraid to let us know that not all aspects of a production this big are going to be wholesome.I get the sense that the author stuck very close to the content of her original journals. For the most part this works, but there were certain instances where I felt some anecdotes could have used additional details or explanation to help flesh out the journal entry. As a reader, some of my questions went unanswered.But hey, I did enjoy reading this book, and I'd recommend it to anybody who loves Titanic, or anybody who has ever considered being an extra on a movie--especially on a large scale production.

A fascinating glimpse into the making of the 1997 film TITANIC. This first hand account takes you through almost every level of the film's production from a very personal experience. Highly recommend!