Comedians: War Stories PDF Download

Author: Christian Talbot
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781707691623
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 82

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Book Description
Comedians: War Stories An illustrated collection of comedian's war stories from the front line of the UK and Irish comedy scenes.

Author: Daniel Sloss
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN: 0525658149
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
One of this generation's hottest and boldest young comedians presents a transgressive and hilarious analysis of all of our dysfunctional relationships, and attempts to point us in the vague direction of sanity. Daniel Sloss's stand-up comedy engages, enrages, offends, unsettles, educates, comforts, and gets audiences roaring with laughter—all at the same time. In his groundbreaking specials, seen on Netflix and HBO, he has brilliantly tackled everything from male toxicity and friendship to love, romance, and marriage—and claims (with the data to back it up) that his on-stage laser-like dissection of relationships has single-handedly caused more than 300 divorces and 120,000 breakups. Now, in his first book, he picks up where his specials left off, and goes after every conceivable kind of relationship—with one's country (Sloss's is Scotland); with America; with lovers, ex-lovers, ex-lovers who you hate, ex-lovers who hate you; with parents; with best friends (male and female), not-best friends; with children; with siblings; and even with the global pandemic and our own mortality. In Everyone You Hate Is Going to Die, every human connection gets the brutally funny (and unfailingly incisive) Sloss treatment as he illuminates the ways in which all of our relationships are fragile and ridiculous and awful—but also valuable and meaningful and important.

Author: Kliph Nesteroff
Publisher: Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
ISBN: 0802190863
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 460

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Book Description
“Funny [and] fascinating . . . If you’re a comedy nerd you’ll love this book.” —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Named a Best Book of the Year by Kirkus Reviews, National Post, and Splitsider Based on over two hundred original interviews and extensive archival research, this groundbreaking work is a narrative exploration of the way comedians have reflected, shaped, and changed American culture over the past one hundred years. Starting with the vaudeville circuit at the turn of the last century, the book introduces the first stand-up comedian—an emcee who abandoned physical shtick for straight jokes. After the repeal of Prohibition, Mafia-run supper clubs replaced speakeasies, and mobsters replaced vaudeville impresarios as the comedian’s primary employer. In the 1950s, the late-night talk show brought stand-up to a wide public, while Lenny Bruce, Mort Sahl, and Jonathan Winters attacked conformity and staged a comedy rebellion in coffeehouses. From comedy’s part in the civil rights movement and the social upheaval of the late 1960s, to the first comedy clubs of the 1970s and the cocaine-fueled comedy boom of the 1980s, The Comedians culminates with a new era of media-driven celebrity in the twenty-first century. “Entertaining and carefully documented . . . jaw-dropping anecdotes . . . This book is a real treat.” —Merrill Markoe, TheWall Street Journal

Author: Stewart Lee
Publisher: Faber & Faber
ISBN: 0571254829
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 402

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Book Description
Experience how it feels to be the subject of a blasphemy prosecution! Find out why 'wool' is a funny word! See how jokes work, their inner mechanisms revealed, before your astonished face! In 2001, after over a decade in the business, Stewart Lee quit stand-up, disillusioned and drained, and went off to direct a loss-making musical, Jerry Springer: The Opera. Nine years later, How I Escaped My Certain Fate details his return to live performance, and the journey that took him from an early retirement to his position as the most critically acclaimed stand-up in Britain, the winner of BAFTAs and British Comedy Awards, and the affirmation of being rated the 41st best stand up ever. Here is Stewart Lee's own account of his remarkable comeback, told through transcripts of the three legendary full-length shows that sealed his reputation. Astonishingly frank and detailed in-depth notes reveal the inspiration and inner workings of his act. With unprecedented access to a leading comedian's creative process, this book tells us just what it was like to write these shows, develop the performance and take them on tour. How I Escaped My Certain Fate is everything we have come to expect from Stewart Lee: fiercely intelligent, unsparingly honest and very, very funny.

Author: Julie Seabaugh
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781983147418
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 146

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Book Description
"Every Tuesday night at midnight in a dark corner of the Comedy Store, a beautiful and hilarious fight breaks out. Starving comedians drown their prejudice in comedy. It's scary. It's hilarious. It's completely punk rock. Burgeoning comics and cast-aside performers have moments of heroism, and we all get the rare chance to cleanse our sins in humor." - director Jason Reitman Accidentally conceived in July 2013 at a small, sweaty Comedy Store open mic to avoid a comedian fistfight, insult-joke competition Roast Battle has since become a global phenomenon. Taking cues from two seemingly divergent insider traditions - Friars Club roasts and urban rap battles - the show melded both into a mainstream format accessible to anyone who dared take the stage. The rules were simple: No subject was off limits, original material only, and at the end of the battle, competitors hugged. Equal parts blood sport and personal catharsis, the show instantly caught on with performers, industry members scouting the next big thing, and audiences who preferred their punchlines off-color. As host and referee, Brian Moses assembled a zany cast of supporting characters including revered Roastmaster General Jeff Ross, who was hooked from his first night. Ross gave the show instant legitimacy. He also brought his celebrity friends along to judge. Tastemakers like Judd Apatow, Jim Carrey, Jason Reitman, Dave Chappelle, Jimmy Kimmel, Snoop Dogg, Sarah Silverman, Seth Rogen, and John Mayer counted themselves among Roast Battle's devotees. The show caught early breaks at the New York Comedy Festival and South by Southwest. Just as a TV deal seemed inevitable, tensions rose and egos flared. Founders squabbled over ownership rights. Factions formed. Friendships were irrevocably broken. But for the creators and competitors who believed Roast Battle's potential was bigger than the sum of its (often raunchy) parts, freedom of speech was more than a political talking point. It was everything comedy's most enduring legends fought for since the advent of brick-wall backdrops. Five years since its inception, Roast Battle remains the most adventurous, influential comedy show in the world. Imitators exist in every city with a local comedy scene. In addition to three stateside seasons on Comedy Central, the TV brand has expanded to South Africa, Mexico, and the U.K...the latter of which became Comedy Central U.K.'s most-watched series of all time. Yet despite the growing pains, the L.A. original stubbornly retains its gritty, underground spirit, reaching capacity weekly without a lick of advertising. With on-the-scene photos by Troy Conrad showcasing the venues, competitors, riotous cast of characters, and celebrity judges this "Verbal Boxing" and "Fight Club for Comedians" has welcomed along the way, longtime comedy journalist Julie Seabaugh's Ringside at Roast Battle chronicles the emergence of a new fourth pillar of live comedy. From the coming-together of the principal players to the continuing influence the show will wield in years to come, the book explores the organic diversity, DIY nature, and politically-charged atmosphere encouraging a new generation of comedians to laugh in the face of tragedy.

Author: Gerald Nachman
Publisher: Pantheon
ISBN: 0307490726
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 688

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Book Description
The comedians of the 1950s and 1960s were a totally different breed of relevant, revolutionary performer from any that came before or after, comics whose humor did much more than pry guffaws out of audiences. Gerald Nachman presents the stories of the groundbreaking comedy stars of those years, each one a cultural harbinger: • Mort Sahl, of a new political cynicism • Lenny Bruce, of the sexual, drug, and language revolution • Dick Gregory, of racial unrest • Bill Cosby and Godfrey Cambridge, of racial harmony • Phyllis Diller, of housewifely complaint • Mike Nichols & Elaine May and Woody Allen, of self-analytical angst and a rearrangement of male-female relations • Stan Freberg and Bob Newhart, of encroaching, pervasive pop media manipulation and, in the case of Bob Elliott & Ray Goulding, of the banalities of broadcasting • Mel Brooks, of the Yiddishization of American comedy • Sid Caesar, of a new awareness of the satirical possibilities of television • Joan Rivers, of the obsessive craving for celebrity gossip and of a latent bitchy sensibility • Tom Lehrer, of the inane, hypocritical, mawkishly sentimental nature of hallowed American folkways and, in the case of the Smothers Brothers, of overly revered folk songs and folklore • Steve Allen, of the late-night talk show as a force in American comedy • David Frye and Vaughn Meader, of the merger of showbiz and politics and, along with Will Jordan, of stretching the boundaries of mimicry • Shelley Berman, of a generation of obsessively self-confessional humor • Jonathan Winters and Jean Shepherd, of the daring new free-form improvisational comedy and of a sardonically updated view of Midwestern archetypes • Ernie Kovacs, of surreal visual effects and the unbounded vistas of video Taken together, they made up the faculty of a new school of vigorous, socially aware satire, a vibrant group of voices that reigned from approximately 1953 to 1965. Nachman shines a flashlight into the corners of these comedians’ chaotic and often troubled lives, illuminating their genius as well as their demons, damaged souls, and desperate drive. His exhaustive research and intimate interviews reveal characters that are intriguing and all too human, full of rich stories, confessions, regrets, and traumas. Seriously Funny is at once a dazzling cultural history and a joyous celebration of an extraordinary era in American comedy.

Author: Mark Twain
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 2942

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Book Description
In 'Mark Twain's Comedy Classics: 190+ Stories & Sketches (Illustrated Edition)', readers are treated to a collection of humorous tales and witty sketches that showcase Mark Twain's comedic genius. Twain's signature satirical style is on full display as he expertly critiques the social norms and conventions of his time with sharp wit and clever wordplay. Each story and sketch is a masterclass in comedic writing, making this book a must-read for fans of humor and satire. The illustrations included in this edition add an extra layer of enjoyment to Twain's timeless humor, bringing his characters and settings to vivid life. Mark Twain's work continues to resonate with readers today, proving the enduring relevance of his comedic voice. It's a delightful read that will leave you chuckling and contemplating long after you've finished.

Author: Richard Zoglin
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1582346259
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
Surveys the stand-up comedy of the 1970s, citing the contributions of celebrity comics, from George Carlin and Richard Pryor to Robin Williams and Andy Kaufman, in an account that also evaluates the roles played by such clubs as Catch a Rising Star, the Improv, and the Comedy Store.

Author: Charles George Harper
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : World War, 1914-1918
Languages : en
Pages : 110

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Author: Cyrus Townsend Brady
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 276

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