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Book Review

BILLION DOLLAR BABY.
Bob Greene. Atheneum, $10

Young Chicago Sun Times columnist Greene has fulfilled the fantasies of many of his contemporaries by going on tour and performing with the Alice Cooper band. Alice Cooper (né Vincent Furnier) specializes in what Greene calls "horrendous violence" and "indefinite sexuality." Greene shows, however, that these specialties, like any other, demand a high degree of professionalism and hard work. His account also reveals the gap between the public Alice Cooper (who sings about dead babies and stomps Santa Claus to death on stage) and the private man — who can't kill a cockroach, refuses to allow pot on his tour and would rather play cards than bed with groupies. All together, Greene provides an insight into a world not many people (of any generation) know. His own feelings are mixed. But, as a whole, his account suggests that, where values are concerned, a society usually gets what it deserves. 16 pages of photos. [November 8]

(Kindly submitted by Hunter Goatley)