From dealing blackjack in the small-time gangster town of Steubenville, Ohio, to carousing with the famous "Rat Pack" in a Hollywood he called home, Dean Martin lived in a grandstand, guttering life of booze, broads, and big money. He rubbed shoulders with the mob, the Kennedys, and Hollywood's biggest stars. He was one of America's favorite entertainers. But no one really knew him. Now Nick Tosches reveals the man behind the image--the dark side of the American dream. It's a wild, illuminating, sometimes shocking tale of sex, ambition, heartaches--and a life lived hard, fast, and without apologies.

Nick Tosches has written several biographies including Dino: Living High in the Dirty Business of Dreams; Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story; and Unsung Heroes of Rock 'n' Roll: The Birth of Rock in the Wild Years Before Elvis. He was born and raised in New Jersey and lives in New York.