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Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life - Steve Martin
Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
by: (author)
3.83 60
In the midseventies, Steve Martin exploded onto the comedy scene. By 1978 he was the biggest concert draw in the history of stand-up. In 1981 he quit forever. This book is, in his own words, the story of "why I did stand-up and why I walked away." Emmy and Grammy Award winner, author of the... show more
In the midseventies, Steve Martin exploded onto the comedy scene. By 1978 he was the biggest concert draw in the history of stand-up. In 1981 he quit forever. This book is, in his own words, the story of "why I did stand-up and why I walked away." Emmy and Grammy Award winner, author of the acclaimed New York Times bestsellers Shopgirl and The Pleasure of My Company, and a regular contributor to The New Yorker, Martin has always been awriter. His memoir of his years in stand-up is candid, spectacularly amusing, and beautifully written. At age ten Martin started his career at Disneyland, selling guidebooks in the newly opened theme park. In the decade that followed, he worked in the Disney magic shop and the Bird Cage Theatre at Knott's Berry Farm, performing his first magic/comedy act a dozen times a week. The story of these years, during which he practiced and honed his craft, is moving and revelatory. The dedication to excellence and innovation is formed at an astonishingly early age and never wavers or wanes. Martin illuminates the sacrifice, discipline, and originality that made him an icon and informs his work to this day. To be this good, to perform so frequently, was isolating and lonely. It took Martin decades to reconnect with his parents and sister, and he tells that story with great tenderness. Martin also paints a portrait of his times -- the era of free love and protests against the war in Vietnam, the heady irreverence of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in the late sixties, and the transformative new voice of Saturday Night Live in the seventies. Throughout the text, Martin has placed photographs, many never seen before. Born Standing Up is a superb testament to the sheer tenacity, focus, and daring of one of the greatest and most iconoclastic comedians of all time.
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Format: paperback
ISBN: 9781416553656 (1416553657)
ASIN: 1416553657
Publisher: Scribner
Pages no: 224
Edition language: English
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Community Reviews
Something to Ponder
Something to Ponder rated it
3.0 Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
I love Steve Martin and enjoyed learning about his life. It lived up to my expectations and was an easy read.
Jenny's Book Bag
Jenny's Book Bag rated it
4.0 Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
Great biography!
Jenny's Book Bag
Jenny's Book Bag rated it
4.0 Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
Great biography!
A Few Thoughts
A Few Thoughts rated it
5.0 Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
For me, Steve Martin is a little like Mash. It took some life-mileage under my belt before I really got it. This book deepened my appreciation for him more than any of his albums or movies ever has. Well done, Steve.
Osho
Osho rated it
Enjoyable enough and a quick read, Steve Martin's memoir of his life to date in comedy includes events and examples that some of us remember, but touches only lightly on his romantic relationships. More than you'd expect about his relationship with his parents, however.
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