If Chins Could Kill! By Bruce Campbell is one of the best “biographies” I have ever read. The only thing better than this pen and ink bio is the audiobook that Campbell himself presents.
First published in 2001 and later in 2009 in the United Kingdom, If Chin’s Could Kill is Bruce’s story of his early life and his involvement with wunderkind Sam Raimi and co.
Michigan
Written an awful lot like his acting style (not sure if that is actually a good thing or not) the book is entertaining and features a lot of memories from Bruce about: Growing up in Michigan, going to school in Michigan, discovering girls in Michigan, et al.
Yet amazingly the book is not about Michigan. Who’d have thunk it? The book is very entertaining as he relates his relationship with the Raimi family, which includes mom and pop Raimi plus Ted and Owen as well as Sam.
He also talks about filming all those Super 8 films in high school. Their timorous expedition into “real” film making. He tells about filming in 16mm and getting it blown up to the requisite 35mm.
Mr Campbell takes us on a ride on the ‘B’ side of the street. He explains as humorously as possible about what it takes to be a ‘B’ movie actor. And then to find yourself a star as a result. This is a man who has made more independent movies than Carter’s got little pills. Bruce says that he’s only just able to make a living at it.
*At least, that’s his story and I don’t know, call me a sucker; but damn it, I believe him.*
Pictures and All That
The book is “shot-gunned” with pictures throughout. They aren’t stuck in the middle like all those “other” phoney-baloney “star” books. The pics show that a lot of the young folks started out on the entertainment road with Bruce.
I enjoyed reading the book that took me literally years to finally purchase. It was only after watching the pilot episode of Burn Notice that I remembered that he had “written” a couple of books on his career.
I’ve been a fan ever since watching Evil Dead in an Arkansas drive-in, it was dollar night. I could not wait to read it. I couldn’t find it anywhere to buy and my local library kept refusing my suggestion that they buy the book just so I could read it.
*A quick note to the author Bruce Campbell.*
Sorry Bruce, but the whole world’s a critic. I am arguing that this is an obviously important story. One that Bruce Campbell fans need to read. This seemed to fall on deaf ears. To my chagrin they still do not stock your first or even second book, Make Love! The Bruce Campbell Way. So I had to stumble upon it completely by accident in my local Waterstones bookstore. I am still hoping to stumble upon your second book the same way.
Right, groveling done, I can go onto the rest of my review, Bruce takes us through his marriages and the birth of his children. He also takes us behind the scenes with Kevin Sorbo (aka Hercules) and what it was like working in New Zealand on the show (and on Xena Warrior Princess).
The Verdict
If you are a Bruce Campbell fan, you’ll love this book. I’ll give it a 5 out of 5 stars because if I concentrate I can hear Bruce reading the book in my head. That’s pretty damned entertaining, I can tell you. The book is available on can be Amazon and other booksellers online.
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