Ellis Edward Amburn (2 August 1933 – 18 August 2018) was an American book editor and

biographer Biographers are authors who write an account of another person's life, while autobiographers are authors who write their own biography. Biographers Countries of working life: Ab=Arabia, AG=Ancient Greece, Al=Australia, Am=Armenian, AR=Ancient Rome ...

Life

A 1954 graduate of Texas Christian University, Ellis Amburn worked as a reporter for ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'' before going into the book publishing industry where he rose to the position of

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...

, working for such well-known publishers as

Delacorte Press Dell Publishing Company, Inc. is an American publisher of books, magazines and comic books, that was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte Jr. with $10,000 (approx. $145,000 in 2021), two employees and one magazine title, ''I Confess'', and ...

, Coward-McCann, William Morrow. During his career, Amburn was an editor for authors such

John le Carré David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. A "sophist ...

, Belva Plain,

Muriel Spark Dame Muriel Sarah Spark (; 1 February 1918 – 13 April 2006). was a List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist, short story writer, poet and essayist. Life Muriel Camberg was born in the Bruntsfield area of Edinburgh, the daughter of Bernar ...

Joshua Logan Joshua Lockwood Logan III (October 5, 1908 – July 12, 1988) was an American theatre and film director, playwright and screenwriter, and actor. He shared a Pulitzer Prize for co-writing the musical '' South Pacific'' and was involved in writing ...

and for

Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian ...

, who would be the subject of Amburn's 1998 book on which

Leonardo DiCaprio Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio (; ; born November 11, 1974) is an American actor and film producer. Known for Leonardo DiCaprio filmography, his work in biographical and period films, he is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received ...

has optioned

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

rights. Amburn served as editorial director for G. P. Putnam's Sons and in addition worked as a ghostwriter for

Priscilla Presley Priscilla Ann Presley (née Wagner, formerly Beaulieu; born May 24, 1945) is an American businesswoman and actress. She is the ex-wife of American singer Elvis Presley, as well as the cofounder and former chairperson of Elvis Presley Enterpris ...

Shelley Winters Shelley Winters (born Shirley Schrift; August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006) was an American film actress whose career spanned seven decades. She won Academy Awards for ''The Diary of Anne Frank (1959 film), The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) and ' ...

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, and actress whose career spanned seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local r ...

and

Zsa Zsa Gabor Zsa Zsa Gabor ( , ; born Sári Gábor ; February 6, 1917 – December 18, 2016) was a Hungarian Americans, Hungarian-American socialite and actress. Her sisters were socialites and actresses Eva Gabor and Magda Gabor. Gabor competed in the ...

. In 1990, he produced his first biography on fellow Texan

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

that led to further such books. He is noted for his exhaustive research, even going so far as to live for several weeks at the home of the parents of Orbison's first wife, Claudette Frady-Orbison. His books have generated controversy at times (such as his biography of Janis Joplin), and he is reviled by many Buddy Holly and Roy Orbison fans for presenting

hearsay Hearsay, in a legal forum, is an out-of-court statement which is being offered in court for the truth of what was asserted. In most courts, hearsay evidence is Inadmissible evidence, inadmissible (the "hearsay evidence rule") unless an exception ...

as fact. Amburn lived in

High Springs, Florida High Springs is a city in Alachua County, Florida, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in Alachua County and seventh-largest in North Central Florida. The population was 6,215 at the 2020 census, up from 5,350 at the 2010 census. It ...

, outside of Gainesville and in

Tifton, Georgia Tifton is a city in and the county seat of Tift County, Georgia, United States. The population was 17,045 at the 2020 census. The area's public schools are administered by the Tift County School District. Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College has ...

. His papers are held at Texas Christian University.

Death

The Virginian-Pilot and the literary website Shelf Awareness reported that Amburn died on Saturday, August 18, 2018, after a long illness. Maureen O'Brien, book editor, ghostwriter, and friend of Amburn's remembered him thus: "Always the chipper man about town and cheerleader to his multitude of friends all over the world, Ellis was writing and editing right up to the end, working on a memoir of his celebrity-filled life in the book biz, where he was considered one of the best pop culture chroniclers from New York City to Hollywood and all points in between. A great gossip and even better confidant and friend, he was a true role model and mentor."

Partial bibliography

*'' Pearl: The Obsessions and Passions of Janis Joplin'' (2005) -

Warner Books Grand Central Publishing is a book publishing imprint of Hachette Book Group, originally established in 1970 as Warner Books when Kinney National Company acquired the New York City-based Paperback Library. When Time Warner sold their book publis ...

*'' The Sexiest Man Alive : A Biography of Warren Beatty'' (2002) -

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...

*'' The Most Beautiful Woman in the World: The Obsessions, Passions, and Courage of Elizabeth Taylor'' (2000) - HarperCollins *'' Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac'' (1998) -

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan in New York City. It is headquartered in the Equitable Building (New York City), Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishe ...

*'' Buddy Holly: A Biography'' (1995) - St. Martin's Press *'' Dark Star: The Roy Orbison Story'' (1990) - Carol Publishing Group *'' Olivia de Havilland and the Golden Age of Hollywood'' (2018) -

Lyons Press Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an American independent academic publishing company founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amburn, Ellis 1933 births American biographers American male biographers Celebrity biographers People from High Springs, Florida People from Jack County, Texas People from Tifton, Georgia Texas Christian University alumni Writers from Texas 2018 deaths