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Laugh Lines
- Author
- Alan Zweibel
- Narrator
- Alan Zweibel
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date
- 20 October 2020
- Run Time
- 8 hours 11 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
With his tender, funny memoir of four decades in the business, Alan Zweibel traces the history of American comedy.
Alan Zweibel started his comedy career selling jokes for seven dollars apiece to the last of the Borscht Belt standups. Then one night, despite bombing on stage, he caught the attention of Lorne Michaels and became one of the first writers at Saturday Night Live, where he penned classic material for Gilda Radner, John Belushi, and all of the original Not Ready for Prime Time Players. From SNL, he went on to have a hand in a series of landmark shows—from It’s Garry Shandling’s Show to Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Throughout Laugh Lines, Zweibel weaves together his own stories and interviews with his friends and contemporaries, including Richard Lewis, Eric Idle, Bob Saget, Mike Birbiglia, Sarah Silverman, Judd Apatow, Dave Barry, Carl Reiner, and more. The book also features a charming foreword from his friend of forty-five years, Billy Crystal, with whom he cowrote and coproduced the film Here Today starring Crystal and Tiffany Haddish. Laugh Lines is a warmhearted cultural memoir of American comedy.
Critics Review
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“It’s medicine we can all use right now.”
People
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“Alan Zweibel is legendary among us comedians. He is the man who delivers comedy with an emotional clout that makes him respected and revered.”
Steve Martin
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“Alan Zweibel is the original man behind the man! I don’t have enough fingers to count how many people would not be where they are without Alan Zweibel. (I only have four fingers, but still…)”
Sarah Silverman
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“Screamingly funny—also very moving. A classic.”
Mary Karr
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“A brilliant book by a brilliant man. I can’t wait to reread it with the TV off.”
Martin Short
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“I have read the complete works of Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Flaubert, and Melville. Trust me, Alan Zweibel is MUCH funnier.”
Dave Barry
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“A delightful and moving memoir, filled with sweet and sour star-studded behind-the-scenes tales of dealing with egos and creating or polishing material to make other comedians even funnier…[and] also an encouraging and indispensable guide for budding comedy writers.”
Shelf Awareness (starred review)
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“This zippy memoir by comedians’ comedian Zweibel offers laughs on nearly every page…hilarious and self-deprecating.”
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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“Readers will find plenty of new, behind-the-scenes details and celebrity anecdotes. This is a truly fun romp.”
Booklist
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“An amiable, big-lug, heart-of-gold sort of book…A pleasant, amusing tale of a life in jokes, suitable for budding comedians and students of the form.”
Kirkus Reviews
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“Finally, I have the Zweibel bible!”
Judd Apatow
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“I love this book! And it’s not just because Alan says nice things about me. Well, maybe it is.”
Larry David
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Alan Zweibel
- Narrator
- Alan Zweibel
- Duration
- 8 hours 11 minutes
- Release Date
- 20 October 2020
- ISBN
- 9781799918356
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Genre
- Biography: arts and entertainment
Synopsis
With his tender, funny memoir of four decades in the business, Alan Zweibel traces the history of American comedy.Alan Zweibel started his comedy career selling jokes for seven dollars apiece to the last of the Borscht Belt standups. Then one night, despite bombing on stage, he caught the attention of Lorne Michaels and became one of the first writers at Saturday Night Live, where he penned classic material for Gilda Radner, John Belushi, and all of the original Not Ready for Prime Time Players. From SNL, he went on to have a hand in a series of landmark shows—from It’s Garry Shandling’s Show to Curb Your Enthusiasm.Throughout Laugh Lines, Zweibel weaves together his own stories and interviews with his friends and contemporaries, including Richard Lewis, Eric Idle, Bob Saget, Mike Birbiglia, Sarah Silverman, Judd Apatow, Dave Barry, Carl Reiner, and more. The book also features a charming foreword from his friend of forty-five years, Billy Crystal, with whom he cowrote and coproduced the film Here Today starring Crystal and Tiffany Haddish. Laugh Lines is a warmhearted cultural memoir of American comedy.
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