Rating: 
Summary: The Essence of a Life Captured
Review: Easily the best biography I've ever read. It truly captures the essence of the legendary woman in an intimate and honest light. Berg does an excellent job of capturing the details of what made Katharine Hepburn who she was and chronicles a life that defines a century. The book includes moments of genuine hilarity (such as Michael Jackson coming to dinner) and heartbreak (the death of her beloved Spencer and her own failing health). If you're looking for titillating details or long-buried-secrets this isn't the place to look (sure, there are some small surprises and her personality is more clearly defined, but there's nothing truly shocking) but if you want to get a better understanding and new respect for one of America's most influential and groundbreaking women, Berg's portrait of a lady will be a joy to read.
Rating: 
Summary: I knew what to expect . . .
Review: After Ms. Hepburn's death earlier this summer, A. Scott Berg spent a lot of time on television talking about his book. He made it clear, or so it seemed to me, that KATE REMEMBERED wasn't so much like his other definitive, meticulously researched biographies had been. This book was, rather, a personal recollection of a 20 year friendship which had begun while Berg was writing the Goldwyn biography. I wasn't expecting sensational revelations about her life -- although I didn't know Howard Hughes was profoundly deaf. I expected a glimpse into the later years of what was arguably one of the most interesting lives of this century. Katharine Hepburn was fiercely independent, physically strong, and intensely curious -- three qualities that served her well as she embarked on a life journey that would see her become Hollywood royalty, an American icon and "the other woman" in a famous love triangle. Berg's writing style is at once comfortable and compelling. I loved the anecdotes about other Hollywood notables. The one that's been played out most in the media talks about Michael Jackson trying to use Hepburn to gain an introduction to Greta Garbo. I found the story about Warren Beatty much more interesting. After a dinner at Hepburn's rented home in Hollywood -- she was there filming A LOVE AFFAIR --- Ms. Hepburn said of Annette Benning (Beatty's wife): "Poor girl." When Berg asked her why she felt that way about Mrs. Beatty, as they both seemed in love, Ms. Hepburn said, "With the same man." This is not a definitive biography of Katharine Hepburn. That book will surely come. KATE REMEMBERED is an intimate look at one of our greatest actresses. A. Scott Berg has honored Ms. Hepburn (and himself) by chronicling what he learned during their decades long friendship and by recording "Kate Remembered." Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: This...is Katharine Hepburn? Not according to her Auto-bio
Review: Berg's book was well written, but wasn't a REAL biography-just an idiot wanting to brag of his "friendship" with such an amazing star. I feel that Berg knows next to nothing about Kate because he took all false facts from Leaming and Edwards-both authors THINK they are talking about the actress Katharine Hepburn, but really they aren't.
Rating:
Summary: Makes you feel like you got to know Hepburn better!
Review: I've enjoyed A. Scott Berg's previous biographies (MAX PERKINS:
EDITOR OF GENIUS, GOLDWYN: A BIOGRAPHY and LINDBERGH),
so naturally I looked forward to reading his latest: KATE REMEMBERED. Yet this effort was a bit different from his other efforts . . . to quote
from the Author's Note, "This book is . . . not a critical study of either
Katharine Hepburn's life or her career. It is, rather as true an account
of her life as I can present, based on countless hours of private conversations during which she reminisced . . . And so, more than
my remembrances, this book intends to convey hers." Berg met Hepburn in 1983 and remained close friends with her
until the end of her life . . . he describes their many quiet
dinners in her New York City town house, winter swims at her
Connecticut home and unusual appearances by such notables
as Warren Beatty and Michael Jackson . . . Berg also gives
insight into Hepburn's relationships with both Spencer Tracy
and Howard Hughes. In reading, I really feel that I got to know Hepburn better . . . it
almost felt that I was there with her, listening in on some of
her conversations. One, in particular, made me laugh out loud . . . when Berg first
met her, she asked him if he wanted to use the bathroom . . . he
said "no" . . . she then asked if he was really sure . . . so he
decided to use the bathroom and sure enough, he had to
go . . . Hepburn was not surprised, telling him that after all, her father was a urologist. There were many other memorable passages; among them:
* [on having children] She proceeded to illustrate her main point.
"Let's say I have a little child," she explained, "and it's
seven o'clock at night and Baby Johnny or Baby Janey
suddenly comes down with a one-hundred-and three-degree
fever. And I've go twelve hundred people waiting to see me that night
at the St. James Theatre. Now some of those people, I'm thinking, have
waited months for their tickets, and some of them have scraped
together money they can't really afford and arranged baby-sitters
so that they can have their special night that year. And now little
Johnny or little Janey is in pain and screaming and yelling. And there's
no question what I have to do. I would walk into that baby's room, and
take a pillow, and smother that adorable child!" * At one point, Hepburn-whom some wags in town had by then dubbed
"Katharine of Arrogance"-suggested that she play both roles. "But if
you play both queens," asked John Carradine, a favorite Ford player who
had a supporting role in the film, "how would you know which on to
upstage?" Hepburn found nothing amusing about the comment at the
time. Years later she roared with laughter telling it.
* Kate was never one to speak in abstractions. For all her wisdom,
she was seldom one to philosophize. But in my last long
conversation with her, the evening of her nephew Munday's
marriage--when we were alone and she seemed strangely
pensive--I could not resist asking, "So what do you think it's all
about? Life, I mean. What's the purpose? What are we doing
here?" I would have felt embarrassed asking such trite questions had Kate
not spared me by answering without hesitation, "To work hard," she
said, "and to love someone." Then she paused. But that was not all. "and to have some fun," she added. "And if
you're lucky, you keep your health . . . and somebody loves you back."
Rating:
Summary: Superb and surprisingly funny
Review: Anyone who wants to believe that Katharine Hepburn was as fascinating in life as she was on the screen - and put me on that list - will love this book. A. Scott Berg's memoir, Kate Remembered - and please note that the author informs at the onset that this is a memoir, not an official biography - captures a Hepburn who is always on, always ready with a pithy one-liner, always capable of a grand gesture, but who never seems fake or dishonest. It was impossible for me to read this without hearing her distinctive voice every time Berg quoted her. Although this does repeat some of the material in Miss Hepburn's own two forays into writing, and perhaps they have more of an authoritative voice since they came from her pen, it is worth reading for the gaps it fills and for Berg's tender treatment of his subject. To be honest, it is worth the entire cover price just to read about the surreal dinner party the evening that Michael Jackson came to dinner. Hepburn's one-liners interspersed with Jackson's silence and the other guests' continually failing attempts to make conversation is laugh-out-loud funny. When it became obvious that Jackson had never even seen a Hepburn movie (but said how much he loved them), I was laughing so hard, I dropped the book. Berg grabbed me on page one, and held my interest through the end. Read it. By the time you reach the end, you will probably want to go out and rent several of Hepburn's movies, if you don't have them already.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable read
Review: The criticism of Scott Berg as being narcissistic is unfair. Naturally, he'd insert himself into the book since it is after all, a memoir, and doesn't pretend to be anything else. The book is still most definitely about Katharine Hepburn and he leaves no doubt that he adored her and from his depiction, who wouldn't? He does the lady justice in every respect. She sounds absolutely delightful, with a terrific sense of humor, a great deal of warmth, generosity and intelligent as hell.
Rating:
Summary: Great Job, Scott Berg!
Review: Scott had the honor of being allowed into Katharine Hepburn's inner circle, and we are fortunate that he shared her life story with us. The bond they developed was genuine and the author did not exploit it, in my opinion. The writing is superb -- readers are able to visualize each scene as though it is happening before our eyes. The dialogue is engaging. When Kate provided Scott with his own set of keys to her home and involved him in the ritual of pressing the car horn at Fenwick, you can't help but applaud him for being accepted as a member of her family. The book flows very smoothly. The details regarding Hollywood and its actors provide great insight. The disclosures about Spencer Tracy, including his death were moving. The author's keen observations and personal comments add color to the biography. Whether you're a fan of Hepburn or not, "Kate Remembered" is an uplifting story about an amazing woman and the writer who considered himself her greatest fan.
Rating:
Summary: Just an idiot bragging about his relationsip with a star
Review: A. Scott Berg's book KATE REMEMBERED, is well-written, but shows false facts used by other authors (such as Anne Edwards, who THINKS she knows how to write a Hepburn Biography, but can't seem to get her facts straight), and jsut tells what his experience was with Kate. If he were going to write a book on Kate, and keep it a huge secret (it's been said that even Heburn's survivors were surprised, and appalled by this novel), thne relase it that they should at least give fans what they expect of a novel like that- a tell all book. Like KH had some huge secret she NEEDED to share with fans after her death.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable
Review: I enjoyed this book, but then I'd enjoy anything remotely connected to Katharine Hepburn. Scott Berg has given us a memorable and sometimes unusual portrait of a remarkable woman and those who love her should not miss this. Other books I've read recently and have enjoyed are Robert Harris' POMPEII and Jackson McCrae's BARK OF THE DOGWOOD. Both of these, along with KATE are good summer reads.
Rating:
Summary: Kate Remembered
Review: The life of the late, great Katharine Hepburn has been accurately and thoroughly preserved in print by her friend Berg. Released upon her death in June 2003, Kate Remembered not only captures the amazing history of Hepburn's life and career, but Berg manages to capture her personality, her passions, and her dry wit. The author, who met the actress in the early 1980s, had unprecedented access to her, and his friendship and admiration for her are evident in his writing. In addition to telling the life story of the incomparable actress, the book even serves as a history of early Hollywood and Broadway. Masterfully read by actor/director Tony Goldwyn, the audio version gives an entirely new dimension to Berg's already visual narrative. His interpretation of Hepburn's trademark voice is endearing and adds depth to the clean and flowing production. Recommended for most collections, especially those strong in biography and movie history.
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