The Funniest One in the Room: The Lives and Legends of Del CloseChicago Review Press, 2008 M04 1 - 416 páginas Nichols and May. John Belushi. Bill Murray. Chris Farley. Tina Fey. Mike Myers. Stephen Colbert. For nearly a half century, Del Close—cocreator of the Harold, director for the Second City, San Francisco's the Committee, and the ImprovOlympic, and “house metaphysician” for Saturday Night Live—influenced improvisational theater's greatest comedic talents. His students went on to found the Groundlings in Los Angeles, the Upright Citizens Brigade in both New York and Los Angeles, and the Annoyance Theatre in Chicago. But this Pied Piper of improv has gone largely unrecognized outside the close-knit comedy community. Del was never one to let the truth of his life stand in the way of a good story—and yet the truth is even more fascinating than the fiction. In his early years, he traveled the country with Dr. Dracula's Den of Living Nightmares, knew L. Ron Hubbard before Scientology, and appeared in The Blob. Del cavorted with the Merry Pranksters, used aversion therapy to recover from alcoholism, and kicked a cocaine habit with the help of a coven of witches. And when he was dying, Del bequeathed his postmortem skull to the Goodman Theatre for use in its productions of Hamlet—a final legend that lives on, long beyond the death of the father of long-form improvisation. |
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Resultados 1-5 de 74
... knew about Del Close, one of the most important men in modern comedy, but Howard Johnson's book is an excellent introduction to this brilliant teacher and innovator.” —Ian Roberts, founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade The ...
... knew or worked with the man, only contin- ues to grow. Yet Del Close, who was so devoted to truth in comedy, was the first to promote legends in the story of his own life, even as the facts were uncovered. His own relationship with the ...
... knew what was going on in the world. Manhattan had its own daily newspapers, the Mercury and the Nationalist, where residents got their local news. The Topeka Capital and the Journal plus the nationally rec- ognized Kansas City Star and ...
... knew he had violated some unspoken principle . Looking back , he realized it taught him that “ sometimes it's more heroic to lose . " 2 While his mother may have contributed to his sense of humor , young Del , like so many comics , may ...
... a patient from the local mental institution for an evening's out- ing , and would be sitting down in the front , so if there were any prob- lems , the management knew where they were . The Manhattan , Kansas : Setting the Stage 13.
Contenido
1 | |
22 | |
36 | |
44 | |
62 | |
77 | |
7 Stongehenge and a Skate Through the Sewers | 95 |
8 The Merry Pranksters and My Mother the Car | 109 |
17 The ImprovOlympic | 239 |
18 Roaches in the Dental Floss | 251 |
19 The Return of the Harold the Barons Barracudas and Charna | 267 |
20 The Brain of the Galaxy | 285 |
21 Chris Farley The Blob and Farewell to Second City | 300 |
22 Workshops Reunions and the Family | 316 |
23 Close Youve Gone Sane | 331 |
24 The Party | 350 |
With the Committee in San Francisco | 118 |
10 The Birth of Harold Spidering and a Pornographic Western | 132 |
11 Pretty Much a Blur | 153 |
Belushi and the Bean Can | 165 |
13 Valium Vitriol and Ancient Egyptian Opium | 175 |
14 The Clockwork Orange Treatment | 193 |
15 Junkies Give the Best Shots | 208 |
16 Saturday Night Live Tennessee Williams and the Cleanup | 220 |
25 Curtain Call | 364 |
Bibliography | 376 |
Notes | 377 |
Interviews | 386 |
Acknowledgments | 389 |
Works of Del Close | 393 |
Index | 410 |
Otras ediciones - Ver todas
The Funniest One in the Room: The Lives and Legends of Del Close Kim Johnson Sin vista previa disponible - 2008 |