Who is the Man Behind The Man? That title sounds like a premise for a bad joke but it's actually not. The Man Behind The Man is a short book by David Del Grande (Crockett / 2021), a biographical book about the life of its author, Robert Benchley. The novel delves deep into Benchley's character and some of his lesser known achievements, as a result. The story traces Benchley's path from his childhood in Ohio to his years in Hollywood as an actor and producer.

Robert Benchley was a son of four when he was forcibly removed from his native Ohio as a child. He was one of seven children brought up in poverty in Iowa and was schooled by his mother. He went on to become a doctor and then an author before making his films. Benchley is best known for his starring role as Atticus Finch in the widely-acclaimed film "A Raisin In The Sun". Many critics also hail him as one of the great American writers, though his lesser-known works such as The Man Behind The Man are often overlooked. Many movie lovers also cite his books such as The Great Gatsby and A Walk By Night as some of their favourite films of all time.

The Man Behind The Man follows the story of Robert Benchley as he tries to uncover the truth about his father's and grandfather's alleged activities in World War I. The book's lead character is a man called Jake Tremere, who has a strange, seemingly mysterious past. According to the plot, Jake Tremere was an undercover spy for the OSS in Washington DC during the war. The account casts doubt on the story that was told about Benchley and the other men who died in the war, such as George Custer. The myth is surrounded by many myths and is still subject to vigorous debate among historians.

The Man Behind The Man is a fast-paced yarn that contains many twists and turns and an excellent plot. The book is not for the faint of heart and some readers may be left wondering if they missed something important. It contains strong language and some of it may be difficult to read for those with eye and language problems. Some of the facts are even difficult to understand.

The plot and the characters are entertaining and the historical inaccuracies that some people attempt to explain are understandable and well-settled. It is worth reading as it leaves you wanting more. It is one of many books on the series that have been written about the same period. Some other popular Men's Health Magazine books which cover the time period include The Women Who Vanished (part three), A Woman's Guide To History (part two), Vanished For Good, The Missing Girl, Women and the New World, An American Tragedy, And The Making of America's Girls and The Girl From Ipanema. All of these books, including The Man Behind The Man, have sold millions of copies.

The author is Michael Chikoff, an American investigative reporter who worked for many years for the FBI. In 2021 he co-founded and now runs a company called Kernel Media where he writes a number of informative and interesting articles about history, current events, history and genealogy. The most recent book which he co-authored with his partner Victoria Barrish was titled Hidden History: The Men Behind The Men's History. There are many interesting and insightful articles archived at Kernel. Readers will learn how important free historical research is and how much effort has been dedicated to preserving accurate information. The man behind the history is not all that different from any other figure from history, except for the fact that he was a victim.