Make 'Em Laugh

September 29, 2008
Kantor, who produced and directed the Emmy-winning Broadway: The American Musical
for PBS in 2004, returns with a six-part PBS series on comedy. For this companion book, he teamed with NYU professor Maslon, editor of Library of America's George S. Kaufman collection. Their guide to guffaws and giggles ranges from silent film actors (Charles Chaplin, Buster Keaton) to sitcoms (Seinfeld
), satire (Mad
, SNL
) and stand-up comics (George Carlin, Lenny Bruce). Taking a scattershot approach with 60-plus performer profiles and sidebars, the resulting text is sometimes superficial with curious oversights; two decades of radio comedy get squeezed into three pages, so Amos 'n' Andy
and Bob and Ray
rate only a few paragraphs; Stan Freberg sold millions of records yet is dismissed in a single sentence.” With hundreds of fascinating photographs, this book benefits from the TV series' extensive photo research, but what is certain to be a hilarious cascade of clips on PBS is a pratfall in print.

November 1, 2008
This well-illustrated companion to the PBS television series features concise yet captivating insights on the art of comedy in America and the men and women who have made us laugh for over 100 years, including expanded information and biographical narratives beyond the series. Maslon and Kantor (coauthors, "Broadway: The American Musical") cover stage, radio, television, and film personalities, dividing the group into six categories: "Knockabouts," "Satire & Parody," "Smart-Alecks & Wise Guys," "Nerds, Jerks, Oddballs & Slackers," "Breadwinners & Homemakers," and "Groundbreakers." Contemporary colleagues add to the text with behind-the-scenes comments to honor those comedians who influenced their professional careers. The book reveals how Charlie Chaplin created his famous tramp character, how Harpo Marx finally spoke at his last performance to announce his retirement, and how Redd Foxx gained popularity through the "party records" phenomena. The authors include to-the-point analysis of such comedy greats as stone-faced Buster Keaton, scandalous Mae West, lovable Jack Benny, controversial Lenny Bruce, trailblazing Phyllis Diller, off-the-wall Mel Brooks, radical George Carlin, and adorable Gilda Radner. Recommended for all public, academic, and special libraries with film study collections. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 8/08.]Richard Dickey, Washington, DC

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2008
This coffee-table companion to a six-part PBS documentary is an interesting, if seldom deep, survey of twentieth-century American comedy, especially on the radio, in the movies, and on TV. It features lots of glossy photographs, some familiar, others less so; those of silent comedians are particularly rare and delightful. Its six parts correspond to those in the series, and they are further divided into short, breezy, fascinating chapters on particular icons of American comedy. The range of figures discussed is wide, including Bob Hope and Lenny Bruce, Gilda Radner and Lucille Ball, the Smothers Brothers and the Marx Brothers, and the siblings and others who were the Three Stooges. The book has blind spots: comedians who were stars on stage but not in mass media are ignored, as are the edgier stand-ups of the last 30 years. It isnt to be read straight through, for its components are too slight to sustain sophisticated argument. Its meant for browsing; hence, it contains a veritable smorgasbord of information about Americas funny men and women.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)