Book Review: Dervish Dust: The Life and Words of James Coburn by Robyn L. Coburn

About:

Dervish Dust: The Life and Words of James Coburn by Robyn L. Coburn is a biography of the famous actor, covering his career, relationships, and beliefs. Ms. Coburn is a writer who works in the theatre and film industry; she is also James Coburn’s daughter-in-law.

• 424 pages
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Potomac Books
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1640124055

My rat­ing for Dervish Dust— 5
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Thoughts:

The majority of the material for this book came from tapes James Coburn has recorded, planning his own autobiography. Dervish Dust: The Life and Words of James Coburn by Robyn L. Coburn uses much of these tapes, as well as many other resources to tell the fascinating life of the actor.

The first movie I watched with Mr. Coburn was The Magnificent Seven, which is probably still one of his most famous films. Over the years, I noticed Mr. Coburn’s roles more and more, as well as his voice-acting performances.

This is a rich and immersive biography, which doesn’t attempt to a saint of out its subject, nor lionize his memory. Mr. Coburn knows his faults, admits them, and faces up to them. For example, he knows he was a bad parent, and says so. This is something which the vast majority of people will not admit, and certainly will never put in writing. And, frankly, will think twice before putting it in an authorized biography.

Mr. Coburn has lived the life of a movie actor like everyone should. I was always wondering how come all the rich and famous “go places”, but never travel. Mr. Coburn loved to travel (as do I), and took advantage of his job to do so. I was quite envious reading about his wonderful trips around the globe.

A spiritual man who outlived many of his closest friends (Bruce Lee, Steve McQueen, and director Sam Peckinpah among them), Mr. Coburn, surprisingly lacked internal introspection. This, of course, was not throughout his whole life, but for a certain period it seemed to be a glaring contradiction. The book also doesn’t shy away from Mr. Coburn’s use, and support, of using drugs when one chooses to.

Whether or not you’re a fan of Mr. Coburn, this biography is worth reading. There author used many first-hand sources, interviews, and of course James Coburn’s words to put together a comprehensive view of his life and legacy.

Buy Dervish Dust from Amazon.com*
More Books by Robyn L. Coburn*

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I got this book for free.
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books