First to Leave the Party: My Life with Ordinary People... Who Happen to Be Famous

Entrepreneur and art collector Bachir’s chatty debut memoir recalls his interactions with dozens of celebrities. The child of Lebanese immigrants to Canada, Bachir launched Premiere, a Canadian magazine focused on video rentals, in 1980, which led to a career in film marketing and distribution; by 2005, he became the president of Cineplex Media. That work brought him into contact with some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including Elizabeth Taylor, Marlon Brando, and Gregory Peck, and Bachir traces those interactions in punchy chapters that vary in tone. Many sections humanize the stars, as when Christopher Plummer apologizes for an outburst about gala scheduling, or Taylor delights in traveling undetected through Toronto. Elsewhere, Bachir’s more critical: the openly gay businessman once excoriated James Stewart for his hostility toward homosexuals and dismissiveness of the AIDS epidemic. The sheer number of people Bachir covers is impressive, and while the project is built on name-dropping, he never comes across as conceited. As Alan Cumming’s introduction notes, readers unfamiliar with Bachir will learn of “his vast kindness and passion... and his utter sincerity and joie de vivre.” This delights. (Oct.)