He did not grow up on the Mississippi River, but he did illustrate comic strips, and he wrote produced, and directed films and television series that entertained hundreds of millions of people. If you fondly remember Leonard Starr’s Mary Perkins Onstage, Stan Drake’s The Heart of Juliet Jones, Al Capp’s Li’l Abner, or Wonder Woman (1978), Chico and the Man (1978), All in the Family (1979), or Murder, She Wrote (1993-1996), then you’ve unknowingly been a Tom Sawyer fan for decades. Discover Tom’s multiple exciting careers, from helping illustrate comic books at the age of twenty-two for Stan Lee, to top advertising illustrator, to award-winning filmmaker, and on through his Emmy and Edgar-nominated career in Hollywood and beyond. This Tom Sawyer does not whitewash any fences. You will delight to his entertaining memories of Jerry Orbach, Angela Lansbury, Mary Tyler Moore, Mickey Rooney, Leonard Goldberg, Leonard Starr, Stan Drake, Al Capp, Ruth Terry, Milton Caniff, Lila Garrett, Mort Lachman, and Howard Hughes. Illustrated. “. . . a wildly entertaining testament to enjoying one’s life, finding ways to realize your dreams. And having worked with Tom for 12 lovely years, I can honestly say that he knows how to tell a great story.” - Angela Lansbury “. . . way more than a memoir. Tom has written a totally entertaining guidebook for how to grab onto the fun-side of life, pursue your dreams, turn bummers into assets, thumb your nose at the bozos—and win the Game.” - William Link, Columbo co-creator “. . . the veteran writer-producer tells his adventures with humor, pluck, and pizazz. He has an insider’s knowledge of the business that will appeal to aspiring Hollywood writers and fans alike.” - Paul Levine, bestselling author of Bum Rap “. . . a splendid account of the evolution of a stellar career in television—of overcoming its challenges. Part Movie/TV-land tell-all, part entertainment industry treatise, and all impossibly fun!” - Jon Land, screenwriter and USA Today bestselling author “Witty, surprisingly honest and impossible to put down . . . the guy's had more adventures than the fictional Tom Sawyer.” - Dennis Palumbo, screenwriter (My Favorite Year) "Take a ride from the bottom step to the top of an escalator and join creative, insightful and tenacious Tom Sawyer on his journey to success. This screenwriter, author and director presents his life to readers in a humorous, heartfelt and definitely creative way. Tom tells readers that everyone deserves success, and it doesn't matter what walk of life you are in, success comes to those who work at it, so network and never give up. He's learned through experience, you have to be tireless in the pursuit of your dreams. The unique information shared in this book, pulled from his life experiences -- good, bad and comical --helps readers understand Sawyer's great success. Tenacious, flexible, smart, and intuitive are all waysto describe this fascinating man, and his life story certainly makes for compelling reading." Fran Lewis - The Fran Lewis Show " The Adventures of the REAL Tom Sawyer names names and, with a light touch, a deft hand, tells us where the Hollywood bodies are buried. This relentlessly entertaining memoir by a true legend, who still eats lunch in Tinseltown, also serves as a splendid primer on the evolution of television from one Golden Age to another, and especially what came in between. Part Movie/TV-land tell-all,part entertainment industry treatise, and all impossibly fun !" Jon Land, screenwriter and USA Today bestselling author "An intense funny autobiography that grabs hold of us and doesn't let go until the end. Maybe not even then..." Lila Garrett - Connect the Dots - KPFK radio "Sawyer spent 12 years as a writer for Murder, She Wrote , the last 5 as Showrunner, and has written a couple of expertly crafted thrillers that illustrate his suspicion of underexamined history ( The Sixteenth Man on the JFK assassination; No Place to Run on 9/11). But there's much more to the engrossing story of his eventful life: his uneasy relationship with his parents, black-market activities while stationed in Japan, marriages (two unsuccessful, the third very successful), work as a cartoonist, life-changing psychoanalysis, experiences in advertising and short-film making, collaboration on the libretto of an opera about John F. Kennedy, and entry into the world of Hollywood, initially as a director but later as a much-in-demand TV writer. Apart from his undeniable readability and storytelling knack, Sawyer's openness and honesty is remarkable." Jon Breen - Mystery Scene Magazine