I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This!

Starred review from July 10, 2006
Beginning with his 1960 Grammy-winning album, The Button Down Mind of Bob Newhart
, the comedian's 46-year career has included nightclub standup, TV series (The Bob Newhart Show
), animation voices (The Simpsons
), feature films (Catch-22
, Elf
)—and now his first book. At age 77, Newhart is clearly in his anecdotage, with mirthful memories of his successes and failures. Treating the reader almost as a personal friend, Newhart covers everything in this guided tour through his button-down brain, from his 43-year marriage and fear of flying to fatherhood, Vegas, sitcoms, golf and assorted antics with celebrity pals. Aware that digression is the better part of valor, he interrupts the low-key autobiographical flow with amusing asides, and this rambling look at "the absurdist side of life" is just as effective in print as on TV, adding depth and dimension to the familiar image of Newhart as a frustrated, flawed everyman. In the tradition of Max Eastman's Enjoyment of Laughter
(1936) and Steve Allen's The Funny Men
(1956), he analyzes and compares comedy styles. The hilarity is heightened as he reveals how he created his best satirical sketches. Influenced by H. Allen Smith, Robert Benchley, James Thurber and Max Shulman, Newhart himself has now joined that lofty pantheon.

October 2, 2006
Newhart's deadpan delivery, slight stammer and expert comedic pauses make this audiobook memoir an indispensable purchase for fans. Newhart's persona was always the everyman ("Men usually think I was in the army with them. And the women think I was their first husband and usually say, 'Hey, stupid, I haven't had a check...' and then catch themselves."). He modestly explains his comedy origins, which led to a recording career (his first two comedy albums won him three 1960 Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year). Nightclub appearances segued to movies (he hilariously explains how he tried to get fired from Hell Is for Heroes
) and TV sitcom success (The Bob Newhart Show
from 1972–1978 and Newhart
from 1982–1990). Newhart peppers his breezy memoir with a sampling of some of his classic comedy routines (including "The Driving Instructor," "Grace L. Ferguson Airline and Storm Door Co." and "King Kong and the Night Watchman"), and his timing remains impeccable. Simultaneous release with the Hyperion hardcover (Reviews, July 10).