Rating: 
Summary: An well-written recounting of a friendship
Review: Interesting and fun to learn how Katharine Hepburn spent her leisure time. Well written. One does get the sense that the author does not like Cynthia McFadden (Cynthia was a friend of Hepburn in recent years). And his interjection of himself is a little more than I would have liked. Overall a good read if you are a biography and nonfiction enthusiast.
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful book!
Review: I ordered the book earlier this week and was anxiously awaiting it, though concerned about some of the less than ecstatic reviews listed here.However, received the book today and read it all in one sitting ....and thoroughly enjoyed it! Yes, Mr. Berg does write about himself and his work on various projects that took place prior to,and during, his friendship with Ms. Hepburn.. and he does bring in Irene Selznick on occasion, but that was fine with me. Having read his 'Goldwyn' biography many years ago and having enjoyed it very much, I had an interest in Mr. Berg as a person as well as a writer and found his self-related inclusions to be a natural and perhaps, necessary, part of the overall narrative - to explain who he is, what he does for a living, what his career and subject matter interests are and how this brought him into Ms. Hepburn's life. And having also read Ms. Selznick's memoir and having found her quite an interesting person too, I was delighted to read more about her ...and her feelings regarding Ms. Hepburn and their friendship - so these inclusions were a plus for me! My only 'complaint' about this book was the inclusion of various biographical data regarding Ms. Hepburn's life and career interspersed through-out the narrative, as I considered this book to be an accounting of Ms. Hepburn's life from 1983-2003 and of Hers and Mr.Berg's friendship during this time. Tho'I must admit that my pique regarding the biographical information may come from just having re-read the Barbara Leaming and Anne Edwards books on Ms. Hepburn, so I may be a little burned out on certain information right now. Aside from that, I found that this book provided additional insight into Ms. Hepburn's life, with regard to her routines, and her relationships with close friends and Family. Perhaps there really wasn't much 'new' information..in the sense that I was not shocked by anything that I read and do not view Ms. Hepburn any differently after reading this book than I did prior to, but then, I've always considered her to be a very refreshing and intriguing and fascinating person...and I still do! (Well, I take that back! I do feel that I admire her even more..as she really tried to live her life as a person of good character and her desire to always 'listen to the song of life' and move forward in a positive fashion, in spite of personal pain or trouble or sadness, is very inspiring and a life-lesson worth paying attention to.) Or perhaps I should say that if you are a Katharine Hepburn fan and have enjoyed her self-authored books and various TV interviews and appearances, and her 'Me'-style documentary (shown as part of the TCM tribute on 7/10), then this book is simply and truly 'More of a Good thing'! I did not find Mr. Berg's description or stories about Spencer Tracy to be derogatory or damaging in any way, instead he came across as a complicated man struggling with issues, as we all do, failing and succeeding at various times in combating his 'demons' and I actually found a great deal of understanding and sympathy in Mr. Bergs theory, as stated to Ms. Hepburn when she asked, of why Mr. Tracy lived as he did. In closing, I highly recommend this book! Selena
Rating:
Summary: All Hype and very lttle substance.
Review: I was really looking forward to reading this book because of my admiration for Katharine Hepburn, the greatest actress to ever appear in film. Sadly, this book was a major disappointment. Mr. Berg claims to have been a friend and confidante for 20 years, but there is nothing in this book to support the publishers and authors claims that the book is so intimate and revealing that it could only be published upon Miss Hepburn's death. If you were expecting to read revelations into one of Hollywood's greatest love stories, it is not here. There is very little mention of Spencer Tracy, except to denegrate him as a drunk. I can't believe a Pulitzer Prize winning author could get away with writing such tripe! The worst part of the whole book, for me, is when Mr. Berg is practically bragging about how he got Katharine Hepburn to be in Warren Beatty's film "love Affair". If he really loved and cared for her as he claims, I would think that he would have wanted to protect from this kind of exploitation. It makes me feel that all his claims of intimacy are a lie.
Rating:
Summary: A fellow New Englander .. What a 'gal' ...
Review: I have not finished the book .. just got it the other
day (but that won't take long as it is so easy to read however, I want to savor it too) .. but it is almost like being there . having worked in the film business MOST of my life .. there were two people
I would love to have worked with .. (living 'stars'; while I was still working)
one being Kate Hepburn and the other Gregory Peck .. Unfortunately,
I never worked with either .. I wanted so much to write to Miss Hepburn; being
a fellow New Englander too .. but did not .. Scott Berg did and his memories are just wonderful .. I kind of envy him for being able to become friendly with her but admire him for allowing us to share his wealth of meetings/friendship ... Now I would like to meet him .. but that shall not probably not happen either .. You MUST read his book .. yes, it is somewhat like her book 'ME' (I sign my name that way sometimes too!) .. but this is Scott's view of her and just making one feel like 'you are right there with them' enjoying the scotch .. don't forget to go to the bathroom! .. Yes, you are right there with the two of them and the people around them .. Thank you Scott for sharing .. I would love to know what your puzzle of interviewing various people is . how are you putting it all together .. your plan .. Having worked around the studios & people in them; and knowing some of the things you know .. and being curious .. I hope your book 'Kate Remebered' is all that both you and Miss Hepburn wanted it to be.
Rating:
Summary: "But I digress..."
Review: ...should have been one of the phrases Berg uses in Kate Remembered. When he mentions Irene Selznick for the umpteenth time, one wonders who this book is about. Kate or Irene? A much better read is the July 18 New Yorker article by Claudia Roth Pierpont on Katherine Hepburn, which includes most of the details Berg presents. In contrast, however, Pierpont's article is beautifully written with sensitivity and clarity about a remarkable woman.
Rating: 
Summary: If you want a book about Kate-this Ain't It
Review: I found this book a self-aggrandizement of Mr. Berg rather than a revealing memoir about the Great Kate Hepburn. He does talk on and on about others he's known and speculates on why Spencer Tracy drank. Hepburn theoretically told him to write his spectulation down, hence it appears in this book. All in all, the Barbara Leaming book is 100x better and more interesting. Or for gossip about Kate as a friend, read Garson Kanin's Tracey and Hepburn. I really didn't need (nor do I think Hepburn really would've wanted us) to know how feeble she was in the last 10 years, with her memory gone, being depressed and lonely, etc. Mr. Berg should've taken a year or so to think it over and reread this which he supposedly really wrote in 1999 just waiting for 'the end'. She comes off well but he doesn't.
Rating: 
Summary: What a disappointment
Review: I was thrilled a few days after the sad passing of Katharine Hepburn to hear of this new book. Wow, I thought. A great Pulitzer prize winning author wrote the long awaited full length biography of Katharine Hepburn. It seemed too good to be true. As it turned out, it was too good to be true. This book is a sad, sad travesty. When Garson Kanin wrote what so far is the definitive book on Tracy and Hepburn, he was accused of intruding himself too much into his book. Some people said it should have been called Tracy, Hepburn and Kanin. Well, Garson Kanin had nothing on A. Scott Berg. Berg should have called this book Me and Kate or simply Me. I am stunned at how little space is actually devoted to Katharine Hepburn in this book. Berg said he spent hours and hours talking to Kate. If he did, where is the result? Certainly not in this book. There is a skimpy bit of biography ackwardly interspersed throughout the book. However, it is quickly apparent that Mr. Berg simply cribbed the biographical materials, errors and all, from the Katharine Hepburn biographies by Anne Edwards and Barbara Leaming. These books are simply loaded with errors in fact that Mr. Berg accepted, apparently, without any effort to verify their veracity. One of my favorites is Mr. Berg's quite elegant observation that Hepburn after the end of her tour of Australia with the Old Vic in 1955 "having climbed her own personal summit, she went on location with Tracy to the French Alps, where he filmed The Mountain. . . ." Didn't happen. Spencer Tracy filmed The Mountain in the French Alps in August and September of 1955. Katharine Hepburn was in Australia with the Old Vic from May to mid November of 1955. She was 10,000 miles from the French Alps and certainly not at the location of the filming of The Mountain. Mr. Berg has stated that Hepburn chose him as her official biographer. I, of course, cannot speak for Katharine Hepburn but wouldn't she consider this book a real betrayal of her trust? For some inexplicable reason, Mr. Berg joins Barbara Leaming and other in painting a completely inaccurate and negative picture of Spencer Tracy. I'm never sure why this is done other than to introduce a false drama to these rather feeble efforts. Mr. Tracy was, of course, a very distinguished actor; one of a handful of the greatest actors who ever appeared on film. He was also a very close and admired friend to many actors and directors of his day. Stanley Kramer simply idolized Tracy and, as he said, went into each new film project after he met Spencer Tracy with the intention of finding a part in the film for him. Robert Wagner credits Tracy with starting his career as do other actors. Katharine Houghton, Katharine Hepburn's niece, who appeared with Tracy in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, recently spoke of him on Larry King Live. It was clear that she adored him. How is it that all these people who knew Tracy had so many good things to say about him while people like Berg, who never met him, having nothing good to say? Does Berg think that Katharine Hepburn was so stupid as to love a man who was unworthy of her? This book is a cheap bit of exploitation. I would have expected more from Mr. Berg.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating glimpse into the life of an extraordinary woman
Review: I admit that I did not know much about the life of Katharine Hepburn. I always admired her movies and found her to be an attractive woman who always remained out of the public's eye. A.Scott Berg was fortunate to give her fans and people who wanted to know more about her a glimpse into her "everyday" life, her thoughts, her memories, and her likes and dislikes. While reading this book, it made me feel like I was an unseen observer who watched the author and Miss Hepburn carry on conversations ranging from flowers to her unforgetable romance with Spencer Tracy. Miss Hepburn felt quite comfortable talking with the author. I find it amusing how they first met each other and the conversation that ensued. I too would be quite nervous in meeting Miss Hepburn. She was quite intimidating and didn't suffer fools lightly (not that I am one mind you). It seems like Mr. Berg found a connection with Miss Hepburn that most people would envy to have. She talked openly about her past relationships with the men in her life, such as Howard Hughes, Spencer Tracy, and other famous men. She also talked about her family, the power brokers in Hollywood (Louis B. Meyer, Samuel Goldwyn to name a few). Her thoughts about famous actors of the past and those famous today. All told, I found this very interesting and fascinating because not much is written about this private woman. I got from the book that Miss Hepburn very much missed her friends from Hollywoods "Golden Age". She had genuine feelings for people who helped her career and she kept in touch with them throughout the years, but always at an "arms distance". The most touching is the genuine friendship she had with her assistant Phylis. It stuck me that these two were "sisters" who really admired each other. Miss Hepburn also had a unique relationship with her brother Dick. She was quite exhaused with him but as she said "what can I do? He's my brother". A. Scott Berg gives the reader what Miss Hepburns days were like at Fennwick, at her apartment in New York City. She enjoyed the routines in her daily life. I think it is because outside of these routines, her life could of been quite messy due to her popularity. It is sad to see what happened to Miss Hepburn in her final years, however I don't believe the author was being mean spirited or obtrusive when describing the declining health of Miss Hepburn. He was simply telling what she looked like and what she was thinking. I don't believe Miss Hepburn would of minded what he wrote, because I think she wanted the author to share what her life was like to those of us who are her fans and those who are interested in her, since she remained out of the public eye for so long. This is an outstanding read and I for one am glad that I read it. It makes me feel like I know more about Katharine Hepburn and what she was like outside the moviescreen. She was an outstanding actress, stubborn as a mule, gracious to her loved ones, opinionated to a fault, yet a survivor of tragedy, which made her shine even more, even if she didn't know or understand it. What a woman! Highly Recommended!
Rating: 
Summary: Still a Mystery
Review: I think Mr.Berg allows the reader to feel present as he talks, swims,eats, and travels with Miss Hepburn. We are probably as "close" to her in this book as we will ever get. Sad as the final years of her life were due to illness and age, he lets us know that she had her family, himself, and a few other close friends who cared for her. He also was very truthful in letting the reader understand that regardless of fame and fortune and the love of millions, living to a great age often leaves one without the old friends who lived your life with you which contributes to the loneliness that was evident at the end of her life. For those who think that Mr. Berg inserts himself too much in the story, I think they are incorrect. I think the love and friendship he felt for her were genuine and that is why she revealed as much as she did (even though some feel it was too little). Mr.Berg stated in an interview that they did not discuss sex or money. I am fine with that; however, I wish that he had asked her why and when she had rejected religion. I always found it fascinating that her paternal grandfather was an Episcopal priest and yet there has never been any mention of a religious upbringing. Miss Hepburn stated that we can never "know" anyone and I think this graceful remembrance of her reflects that sentiment. Additionally, I do not think his writing about her final days was cruel, just the awful truth about the way life ends for all of us.
Rating:
Summary: What Kate Hepburn was like as a friend!
Review: No matter how much you really read about famous people, even ones with strong personalities, it is still hard to know what it would be like to have these folks as a friend. Scot Berg tells us, in a very readable book, what Kate Hepburn was 'behind the curtain" - and I admire her more now, than I did before. Eccentricities and star power aside, this lady knew what it took to be a friend. The one reason Hepburn worked so long professionally is that she was continually reinventing herself as an actress, based on what she had to offer at the time, and what the market would bear. It was a very different actress who won the Oscars for "Morning Glory" and "Golden Pond", and that was not an accident. Hepburn used the same strategy personally - as old friends died off, she worked to develop new ones. And none of here newer circle (Berg, McFadden, Harvey) come across as leeches, or hanger-ons. They are all holding up their end of the relationship. Also, if one reads between the lines (especially the dedication of the book to his housemate), it is pretty obvious that Hepburn knew her relationship with Berg would always be strictly platonic. Several reviewers have mentioned that this book is an invasion of privacy. Yes, there are a lot of private discussions in it, including how Hepburn died (and not badly for someone who lived to 95) but one must assume that Hepburn knew exactly what she was doing in letting Berg into her life - it was no secret what he did for a living, she even provided much valuable assistance on various projects (including writing to Anne Marrow Lindbergh), so someone as professionally canny as Kate Hepburn must have planned that her story would be told (after she died) by him.
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