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eBook
Gorton, Kristyn; Johnson, Beth
Manchester University Press
, 2025
; English
; 232 Pages
This book-length study of Sally Wainwright's television, including analysis of globally recognised television series such as Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax, and Gentleman Jack, considers Wainwright's work in terms of genre, melodrama and through the concept of emotion
eBook
Gorton, Kristyn; Johnson, Beth
Manchester University Press
, 2025
; English
; 232 Pages
This book-length study of Sally Wainwright's television, including analysis of globally recognised television series such as Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax, and Gentleman Jack, considers Wainwright's work in terms of genre, melodrama and through the concept of emotion
eBook
Kilpatrick, Emily
Reaktion Books
, 2025
; English
; 193 Pages
"Maurice Ravel is one of the twentieth century's most intriguing and contradictory composers. This biography, published for the hundred and fiftieth anniversary of his birth, describes Ravel's journey from Parisian apprentice to global musical icon. Drawing on fresh research, Emily Kilpatrick reveals Ravel as both a daring provocateur and a reflective elder, his lifelong quest for originality driven by his deep love of history and literature. Set against a background of profound cultural and political upheaval, Ravel's story unfolds through his battles with the artistic establishment, his creative resilience after wartime losses, and the tragic incapacitation of his final years. The result is an intimate portrait of a composer whose music continues to enchant and challenge audiences worldwide"-- Publisher's description
eBook
Kilpatrick, Emily
Reaktion Books
, 2025
; English
; 193 Pages
"Maurice Ravel is one of the twentieth century's most intriguing and contradictory composers. This biography, published for the hundred and fiftieth anniversary of his birth, describes Ravel's journey from Parisian apprentice to global musical icon. Drawing on fresh research, Emily Kilpatrick reveals Ravel as both a daring provocateur and a reflective elder, his lifelong quest for originality driven by his deep love of history and literature. Set against a background of profound cultural and political upheaval, Ravel's story unfolds through his battles with the artistic establishment, his creative resilience after wartime losses, and the tragic incapacitation of his final years. The result is an intimate portrait of a composer whose music continues to enchant and challenge audiences worldwide"-- Publisher's description
eBook
Beautiful doom : the work of Dennis Kelly on stage and screen
Bolton, Jacqueline; Holden, Nicholas
Manchester University Press
, 2025
; English
; 285 Pages
Dennis Kelly’s award-winning plays have been translated into over thirty languages and produced on six continents. His endlessly inventive vision has produced a diverse body of work for a variety of audiences across a range of forms, genres, and media, from the Olivier and Tony Award-winning Matilda the Musical (2010), to the Channel Four cult-classic series Utopia. His 2008 play DNA, written for National Theatre Connections, is a set text on the AQA GCSE English Literature syllabus. This collection of essays written by leading scholars, teachers, and practitioners of theatre provides the first multi-authored study of Kelly’s critically acclaimed oeuvre. Featuring an original interview with Kelly himself, this volume captures the full range and scope of his writing for stage and screen, from the quirky fringe debut Debris (2003) to the globally-distributed film adaptation of Matilda the Musical (2022).
Bolton, Jacqueline; Holden, Nicholas
Manchester University Press
, 2025
; English
; 285 Pages
Dennis Kelly’s award-winning plays have been translated into over thirty languages and produced on six continents. His endlessly inventive vision has produced a diverse body of work for a variety of audiences across a range of forms, genres, and media, from the Olivier and Tony Award-winning Matilda the Musical (2010), to the Channel Four cult-classic series Utopia. His 2008 play DNA, written for National Theatre Connections, is a set text on the AQA GCSE English Literature syllabus. This collection of essays written by leading scholars, teachers, and practitioners of theatre provides the first multi-authored study of Kelly’s critically acclaimed oeuvre. Featuring an original interview with Kelly himself, this volume captures the full range and scope of his writing for stage and screen, from the quirky fringe debut Debris (2003) to the globally-distributed film adaptation of Matilda the Musical (2022).
eBook
The passion of Pedro Almodóvar : a self-portrait in seven films
Miller, James
Columbia University Press
, 2025
; English
; 217 Pages
The films of Pedro Almodóvar teem with characters who at once are and are not alter egos of the director. In film after film, the Spanish auteur mines his past for alternative selves, telling and retelling formative stories from his own life, plumbing the depths of his memory while exploring other lives he might have led. What can Almodóvar’s work tell us about the quest for self-knowledge—for understanding who we are and who we might yet become?
James Miller considers seven of Almodóvar’s most personal films, arguing that together they offer a revealing self-portrait of the director and his search for meaning. Beginning with Volver, Miller traces Almodóvar’s signature obsessions backward and forward through the director’s filmography. Deeply shaped by the counterculture of the 1960s—which arrived belatedly in Franco’s Spain—Almodóvar has long been fascinated by the exhilarating power and devastating limitations of artistic and sexual transgression. In rich readings, Miller shows how Almodóvar tests the blurry line between fiction and reality, the bounds of individual freedom, and the durability of a sense of self. In so doing, the director turns cinema into a form of philosophical investigation and self-exploration. A keenly observed, masterfully written portrait of one of world cinema’s greatest creative forces, The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar finds in film new ways to tell the story of a life.
Miller, James
Columbia University Press
, 2025
; English
; 217 Pages
The films of Pedro Almodóvar teem with characters who at once are and are not alter egos of the director. In film after film, the Spanish auteur mines his past for alternative selves, telling and retelling formative stories from his own life, plumbing the depths of his memory while exploring other lives he might have led. What can Almodóvar’s work tell us about the quest for self-knowledge—for understanding who we are and who we might yet become?
James Miller considers seven of Almodóvar’s most personal films, arguing that together they offer a revealing self-portrait of the director and his search for meaning. Beginning with Volver, Miller traces Almodóvar’s signature obsessions backward and forward through the director’s filmography. Deeply shaped by the counterculture of the 1960s—which arrived belatedly in Franco’s Spain—Almodóvar has long been fascinated by the exhilarating power and devastating limitations of artistic and sexual transgression. In rich readings, Miller shows how Almodóvar tests the blurry line between fiction and reality, the bounds of individual freedom, and the durability of a sense of self. In so doing, the director turns cinema into a form of philosophical investigation and self-exploration. A keenly observed, masterfully written portrait of one of world cinema’s greatest creative forces, The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar finds in film new ways to tell the story of a life.
eBook
How to become famous : lost Einsteins, forgotten superstars, and how the beatles came to be
Sunstein, Cass R.
Harvard Business Review Press
, 2024
; English
; 270 Pages
Fame is like lightning. Taylor Swift, Bob Dylan, Leonardo da Vinci, Jane Austen, Oprah Winfrey—all of them were struck. Why? What if they hadn't been?
Consider the most famous music group in history. What would the world be like if the Beatles never existed? This was the question posed by the playful, thought-provoking, 2019 film Yesterday, in which a young, completely unknown singer starts performing Beatles hits to a world that has never heard them. Would the Fab Four's songs be as phenomenally popular as they are in our own Beatle-infused world? The movie asserts that they would, but is that true? Was the success of the Beatles inevitable due to their amazing, matchless talent?
Maybe. It's hard to imagine our world without its stars, icons, and celebrities. They are part of our culture and history, seeming permanent and preordained. But as Harvard law professor (and passionate Beatles fan) Cass Sunstein shows in this startling book, that is far from the case. Focusing on both famous and forgotten (or simply overlooked) artists and luminaries in music, literature, business, science, politics, and other fields, he explores why some individuals become famous and others don't and offers a new understanding of the roles played by greatness, luck, and contingency in the achievement of fame.
Sunstein examines recent research on informational cascades, network effects, and group polarization to probe the question of how people become famous. He explores what ends up in the history books and in the literary canon and how that changes radically over time. He delves into the rich and entertaining stories of a diverse cast of famous characters, from John Keats, William Blake, and Jane Austen to Bob Dylan, Ayn Rand, and Stan Lee—as well as John, Paul, George, and Ringo.
How to Become Famous takes you on a fun, captivating, and at times profound journey that will forever change your perspective on the latest celebrity's "fifteen minutes of fame" and on what vaults some to the top—and leaves others in the dust.
Sunstein, Cass R.
Harvard Business Review Press
, 2024
; English
; 270 Pages
Fame is like lightning. Taylor Swift, Bob Dylan, Leonardo da Vinci, Jane Austen, Oprah Winfrey—all of them were struck. Why? What if they hadn't been?
Consider the most famous music group in history. What would the world be like if the Beatles never existed? This was the question posed by the playful, thought-provoking, 2019 film Yesterday, in which a young, completely unknown singer starts performing Beatles hits to a world that has never heard them. Would the Fab Four's songs be as phenomenally popular as they are in our own Beatle-infused world? The movie asserts that they would, but is that true? Was the success of the Beatles inevitable due to their amazing, matchless talent?
Maybe. It's hard to imagine our world without its stars, icons, and celebrities. They are part of our culture and history, seeming permanent and preordained. But as Harvard law professor (and passionate Beatles fan) Cass Sunstein shows in this startling book, that is far from the case. Focusing on both famous and forgotten (or simply overlooked) artists and luminaries in music, literature, business, science, politics, and other fields, he explores why some individuals become famous and others don't and offers a new understanding of the roles played by greatness, luck, and contingency in the achievement of fame.
Sunstein examines recent research on informational cascades, network effects, and group polarization to probe the question of how people become famous. He explores what ends up in the history books and in the literary canon and how that changes radically over time. He delves into the rich and entertaining stories of a diverse cast of famous characters, from John Keats, William Blake, and Jane Austen to Bob Dylan, Ayn Rand, and Stan Lee—as well as John, Paul, George, and Ringo.
How to Become Famous takes you on a fun, captivating, and at times profound journey that will forever change your perspective on the latest celebrity's "fifteen minutes of fame" and on what vaults some to the top—and leaves others in the dust.
eBook
To be an actress : labor and performance in Anna May Wong’s cross-media world
Wang, Yiman
University of California Press
, 2024
; English
; 286 Pages
Between 1919 and 1961, pioneering Chinese American actress Anna May Wong established an enduring legacy that encompassed cinema, theater, radio, and American television. Born in Los Angeles, yet with her US citizenship scrutinized due to the Chinese Exclusion Act, Wong—a defiant misfit—innovated nuanced performances to subvert the racism and sexism that beset her life and career. In this critical study of Wong's cross-media and transnational career, Yiman Wang marshals extraordinary archival research and a multifocal approach to illuminate a lifelong labor of performance. Viewing Wong as a performer and worker, not just a star, To Be an Actress adopts a feminist decolonial perspective to speculatively meet her as an interlocutor while inviting a reconsideration of racialized, gendered, and migratory labor as the bedrock of the entertainment industries.
Wang, Yiman
University of California Press
, 2024
; English
; 286 Pages
Between 1919 and 1961, pioneering Chinese American actress Anna May Wong established an enduring legacy that encompassed cinema, theater, radio, and American television. Born in Los Angeles, yet with her US citizenship scrutinized due to the Chinese Exclusion Act, Wong—a defiant misfit—innovated nuanced performances to subvert the racism and sexism that beset her life and career. In this critical study of Wong's cross-media and transnational career, Yiman Wang marshals extraordinary archival research and a multifocal approach to illuminate a lifelong labor of performance. Viewing Wong as a performer and worker, not just a star, To Be an Actress adopts a feminist decolonial perspective to speculatively meet her as an interlocutor while inviting a reconsideration of racialized, gendered, and migratory labor as the bedrock of the entertainment industries.
eBook
Mary C. McCall Jr. : the rise and fall of Hollywood’s most powerful screenwriter
Smyth, J. E.
Columbia University Press
, 2024
; English
; 313 Pages
A screenwriter, novelist, labor leader, Hollywood insider, and feminist, Mary C. McCall Jr. was one of the film industry’s most powerful figures in the 1940s and early 1950s. She was elected the first woman president of the Screen Writers Guild after leading the fight to unionize the industry’s writers and secured the first contract guaranteeing a minimum wage, credit protection, and pay raises. Her advocacy was not welcomed by all: To screenwriters McCall was an “avenging goddess,” but to studio heads she was, in the words of one Hollywood executive, “the meanest bitch in town.” And after a clash with the mogul Howard Hughes in the blacklist-era 1950s, she disappeared from the pages of Hollywood history.
J. E. Smyth tells McCall’s remarkable story for the first time, putting the spotlight on her trailblazing career and crucial influence. She explores McCall’s life and work, from her friendships with stars such as Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, and James Cagney to her authorship of the hit Maisie series about a working-class showgirl’s adventures. Analyzing McCall’s deft political maneuvering, Smyth offers new insight on screenwriters’ struggle for equality and recognition. She also examines why McCall’s legacy is unrecognized, showing how the Hollywood blacklist and entrenched sexism obscured her accomplishments. Colorful and compelling, this biography provides a powerful account of how one extraordinary woman shaped golden age Hollywood.
Smyth, J. E.
Columbia University Press
, 2024
; English
; 313 Pages
A screenwriter, novelist, labor leader, Hollywood insider, and feminist, Mary C. McCall Jr. was one of the film industry’s most powerful figures in the 1940s and early 1950s. She was elected the first woman president of the Screen Writers Guild after leading the fight to unionize the industry’s writers and secured the first contract guaranteeing a minimum wage, credit protection, and pay raises. Her advocacy was not welcomed by all: To screenwriters McCall was an “avenging goddess,” but to studio heads she was, in the words of one Hollywood executive, “the meanest bitch in town.” And after a clash with the mogul Howard Hughes in the blacklist-era 1950s, she disappeared from the pages of Hollywood history.
J. E. Smyth tells McCall’s remarkable story for the first time, putting the spotlight on her trailblazing career and crucial influence. She explores McCall’s life and work, from her friendships with stars such as Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, and James Cagney to her authorship of the hit Maisie series about a working-class showgirl’s adventures. Analyzing McCall’s deft political maneuvering, Smyth offers new insight on screenwriters’ struggle for equality and recognition. She also examines why McCall’s legacy is unrecognized, showing how the Hollywood blacklist and entrenched sexism obscured her accomplishments. Colorful and compelling, this biography provides a powerful account of how one extraordinary woman shaped golden age Hollywood.
eBook
白頭「工」女憶前塵──看戲、聽歌，郎雄貼身助理包珈台前幕後的故事
包珈
釀出版
, 2023
; Traditional Chinese
; 382 Pages
There is no abstract available for this title.
包珈
釀出版
, 2023
; Traditional Chinese
; 382 Pages
There is no abstract available for this title.
eBook
Mud ride : a messy trip through the grunge explosion
Turner, Steve; Tepedelen, Adem
Chronicle Prism
, 2023
; English
; 307 Pages
A down-and-dirty chronicle of the birth and evolution of the Seattle grunge scene—from amateur skate parks and underground hardcore clubs to worldwide phenomenon—as told by one of its founding fathers and lead guitarist of legendary alternative rock band, Mudhoney.
In the late 80s and early 90s, Steve Turner and his friends—Seattle skate punks, hardcore kids, and assorted misfits—started forming bands in each other's basements and accidentally created a unique sound that spread far beyond their once-sleepy city. Mud Ride offers an inside look at the tight-knit grunge scene, the musical influences and experiments that shaped the grunge sound, and the story of Turner's bands, Green River and Mudhoney, which went from underground flophouse shows to selling out stadiums with Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Including stories about the key moments, musicians, and albums from grunge's beginnings to its come-down from the highs of global success and stardom, this is the first account of the musical phenomenon that took over the world from someone who was there for it all.
Written by Steve Turner, lead guitarist of Mudhoney, a foundational grunge band that inspired musical icons from Kurt Cobain to Sonic Youth, Mud Ride features a foreword by Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard and never-before-seen photographs and grunge memorabilia throughout. Take a seat and ride through the messy and muddy grunge scene that grew from the basements of the Northwest and went on to circle the globe.
MUST HAVE FOR FANS: For cult fans of Mudhoney and all things Seattle grunge, this is the perfect book to add to your collection. Turner helped put Sub Pop Records on the map, a label that launched bands like Soundgarden and more. Mudhoney was also one of the first American grunge bands to tour Europe and the UK, laying the groundwork for the worldwide explosion of grunge. Learn more about the ins and outs of the birth of grunge and immerse yourself in '80s and '90s Seattle.
A GREAT GIFT FOR MUSIC LOVERS: For the aspiring musician or anyone wanting to learn more about music history, this is an illuminating look into grunge and Seattle bands that have gone on to become world-famous.
AN ESSENTIAL ROCK HISTORY BOOK: An amazing gift for readers of Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain's Please Kill Me, John Doe and Tom DeSavia's Under the Big Black Sun, and Michael Azerrad's Our Band Could Be Your Life. Anyone wanting to learn more about the history of grunge will delight in this great tell-all read.
Perfect for:
• Music lovers, history buffs, and musicians
• Fans of Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Hole, Green River, and more
• Anyone nostalgic for the '80s and '90s pop culture scene
• People obsessed with grunge, rock, musical movements, or Seattle history
• Readers of Please Kill Me, Under the Big Black Sun, Our Band Could Be Your Life, Grunge Is Dead, and Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge
• Gen Z readers who have embraced all things '90s, from the decade's fashion to its music, and have sparked a resurgence in popularity of grunge bands like Nirvana
Turner, Steve; Tepedelen, Adem
Chronicle Prism
, 2023
; English
; 307 Pages
A down-and-dirty chronicle of the birth and evolution of the Seattle grunge scene—from amateur skate parks and underground hardcore clubs to worldwide phenomenon—as told by one of its founding fathers and lead guitarist of legendary alternative rock band, Mudhoney.
In the late 80s and early 90s, Steve Turner and his friends—Seattle skate punks, hardcore kids, and assorted misfits—started forming bands in each other's basements and accidentally created a unique sound that spread far beyond their once-sleepy city. Mud Ride offers an inside look at the tight-knit grunge scene, the musical influences and experiments that shaped the grunge sound, and the story of Turner's bands, Green River and Mudhoney, which went from underground flophouse shows to selling out stadiums with Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Including stories about the key moments, musicians, and albums from grunge's beginnings to its come-down from the highs of global success and stardom, this is the first account of the musical phenomenon that took over the world from someone who was there for it all.
Written by Steve Turner, lead guitarist of Mudhoney, a foundational grunge band that inspired musical icons from Kurt Cobain to Sonic Youth, Mud Ride features a foreword by Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard and never-before-seen photographs and grunge memorabilia throughout. Take a seat and ride through the messy and muddy grunge scene that grew from the basements of the Northwest and went on to circle the globe.
MUST HAVE FOR FANS: For cult fans of Mudhoney and all things Seattle grunge, this is the perfect book to add to your collection. Turner helped put Sub Pop Records on the map, a label that launched bands like Soundgarden and more. Mudhoney was also one of the first American grunge bands to tour Europe and the UK, laying the groundwork for the worldwide explosion of grunge. Learn more about the ins and outs of the birth of grunge and immerse yourself in '80s and '90s Seattle.
A GREAT GIFT FOR MUSIC LOVERS: For the aspiring musician or anyone wanting to learn more about music history, this is an illuminating look into grunge and Seattle bands that have gone on to become world-famous.
AN ESSENTIAL ROCK HISTORY BOOK: An amazing gift for readers of Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain's Please Kill Me, John Doe and Tom DeSavia's Under the Big Black Sun, and Michael Azerrad's Our Band Could Be Your Life. Anyone wanting to learn more about the history of grunge will delight in this great tell-all read.
Perfect for:
• Music lovers, history buffs, and musicians
• Fans of Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Hole, Green River, and more
• Anyone nostalgic for the '80s and '90s pop culture scene
• People obsessed with grunge, rock, musical movements, or Seattle history
• Readers of Please Kill Me, Under the Big Black Sun, Our Band Could Be Your Life, Grunge Is Dead, and Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge
• Gen Z readers who have embraced all things '90s, from the decade's fashion to its music, and have sparked a resurgence in popularity of grunge bands like Nirvana
eBook
The history of sketch comedy : a journey through the art and craft of humor
Key, Keegan-Michael; Key, Elle
Chronicle Books LLC
, 2023
; English
; 303 Pages
"A boisterous debut ... the authors are as funny as one would expect ... this is a hoot." ―Publishers Weekly
"Will entice fans of Key & Peele ... a fun and funny primer on the art form." ―Booklist
Authors Keegan-Michael Key and Elle Key build on the popularity of their 2022 Webby Award–winning podcast and delve deeper into the world of sketch, helped along with new essays created expressly for the book by comedy greats.
The History of Sketch Comedy will appeal to all kinds of comedy fans as well as fans of Keegan-Michael Key, whether they know him from his Emmy and Peabody-winning work on Key & Peele
his roles in Fargo, The Prom, Schmigadoon!, The Bubble, and the upcoming Wonka
voiceover work in The Lion King
or as President Barack Obama's anger translator, Luther.
With epic personal tangents and hilarious asides, the Keys take you on an illuminating journey through all facets of comedy from the stock characters of commedia del arte in the 16th century, to the rise of vaudeville and burlesque, the golden age of television comedy, the influence of the most well-known comedy schools, and the ascension of comedy films and TV specials—all the way through to a look at the future of sketch on social media platforms. Along the way, we hear tales of Keegan's childhood, his comedy influences, and the vicissitudes of his career path. As the New York Times said in its review of their podcast, "this comedy nerd history is filtered through memoir, with Key relating stories of his budding fandom, training and rise from improv comic to television sketch artist."
Part memoir, part masterclass, and hilariously embellished with priceless commentary, The History of Sketch Comedy highlights the essential building blocks of sketch comedy while interweaving Keegan's personal career journey and the influence of his comedy heroes. The text is complemented by original art by Elle Key and exclusive essays compiled from conversations with influential performers, sketch writers, and uber comedy fans including Mel Brooks, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Mike Myers, Chris Rock, John Oliver, Tracy Morgan, Carol Burnett, Jim Carrey, Jordan Peele, and many more. This book is as entertaining as it is enlightening—a must-read for fans of comedy and all who aspire to comic greatness.
EXPANDING THE HIT PODCAST: With content from the #1 trending, NAACP-award-nominated and Webby-Award-winning Audible podcast, and featuring new-for-the-book material as well as never-before-heard stories and essays, this book will be a hit for newcomers and avid listeners of the podcast alike.
MASTER OF THE MEDIUM: Keegan-Michael Key is a bona fide maestro of comedy, with the chops, experience, and love for the history of the medium that make him the perfect expert on all things sketch. As co-writer Elle Key likes to say, "If Keegan-Michael Key was a guest lecturer at NYU teaching a course called 'The History of Sketch Comedy,' it would be a very popular class."
EXCLUSIVE ESSAYS: Keegan and Elle interviewed over a dozen comedy legends exclusively for this book, and got their takes on topics ranging from the influence of Saturday Night Live, to women in comedy, to the mathematics of sketch. Hear, in their own words, from Mel Brooks, Mike Myers, Jordan Peele, Julia-Louis Dreyfus, John Oliver, Tracy Morgan, Stephen Colbert, Carol Burnett, Chris Rock, Bob Odenkirk, Mike Birbiglia, Matt Lucas, Ken Jeong, Christopher Guest, Gary Oldman, Kevin Nealon, Laraine Newman, and Jim Carrey.
GIFTABLE VOLUME OF COMEDY GOLD: Original illustrations and personal photographs throughout make this unique comedy book as visually entertaining as it is enlightening. The perfect gift for comedy fans of all ages as well as anyone aspiring to write, perform, or produce comedic art.
Perfect for:
• Comedy lovers of all kinds
• Fans of Key & Peele
• Fans of improv, sketch, stand-up, and shows like SNL, MadTV, Monty Python, and Mr. Show
• Gift giving or self-purchase for established and aspiring comedians
• Readers of such bestsellers as Bossypants, Yes Please, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Born Standing Up, and Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama
Key, Keegan-Michael; Key, Elle
Chronicle Books LLC
, 2023
; English
; 303 Pages
"A boisterous debut ... the authors are as funny as one would expect ... this is a hoot." ―Publishers Weekly
"Will entice fans of Key & Peele ... a fun and funny primer on the art form." ―Booklist
Authors Keegan-Michael Key and Elle Key build on the popularity of their 2022 Webby Award–winning podcast and delve deeper into the world of sketch, helped along with new essays created expressly for the book by comedy greats.
The History of Sketch Comedy will appeal to all kinds of comedy fans as well as fans of Keegan-Michael Key, whether they know him from his Emmy and Peabody-winning work on Key & Peele
his roles in Fargo, The Prom, Schmigadoon!, The Bubble, and the upcoming Wonka
voiceover work in The Lion King
or as President Barack Obama's anger translator, Luther.
With epic personal tangents and hilarious asides, the Keys take you on an illuminating journey through all facets of comedy from the stock characters of commedia del arte in the 16th century, to the rise of vaudeville and burlesque, the golden age of television comedy, the influence of the most well-known comedy schools, and the ascension of comedy films and TV specials—all the way through to a look at the future of sketch on social media platforms. Along the way, we hear tales of Keegan's childhood, his comedy influences, and the vicissitudes of his career path. As the New York Times said in its review of their podcast, "this comedy nerd history is filtered through memoir, with Key relating stories of his budding fandom, training and rise from improv comic to television sketch artist."
Part memoir, part masterclass, and hilariously embellished with priceless commentary, The History of Sketch Comedy highlights the essential building blocks of sketch comedy while interweaving Keegan's personal career journey and the influence of his comedy heroes. The text is complemented by original art by Elle Key and exclusive essays compiled from conversations with influential performers, sketch writers, and uber comedy fans including Mel Brooks, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Mike Myers, Chris Rock, John Oliver, Tracy Morgan, Carol Burnett, Jim Carrey, Jordan Peele, and many more. This book is as entertaining as it is enlightening—a must-read for fans of comedy and all who aspire to comic greatness.
EXPANDING THE HIT PODCAST: With content from the #1 trending, NAACP-award-nominated and Webby-Award-winning Audible podcast, and featuring new-for-the-book material as well as never-before-heard stories and essays, this book will be a hit for newcomers and avid listeners of the podcast alike.
MASTER OF THE MEDIUM: Keegan-Michael Key is a bona fide maestro of comedy, with the chops, experience, and love for the history of the medium that make him the perfect expert on all things sketch. As co-writer Elle Key likes to say, "If Keegan-Michael Key was a guest lecturer at NYU teaching a course called 'The History of Sketch Comedy,' it would be a very popular class."
EXCLUSIVE ESSAYS: Keegan and Elle interviewed over a dozen comedy legends exclusively for this book, and got their takes on topics ranging from the influence of Saturday Night Live, to women in comedy, to the mathematics of sketch. Hear, in their own words, from Mel Brooks, Mike Myers, Jordan Peele, Julia-Louis Dreyfus, John Oliver, Tracy Morgan, Stephen Colbert, Carol Burnett, Chris Rock, Bob Odenkirk, Mike Birbiglia, Matt Lucas, Ken Jeong, Christopher Guest, Gary Oldman, Kevin Nealon, Laraine Newman, and Jim Carrey.
GIFTABLE VOLUME OF COMEDY GOLD: Original illustrations and personal photographs throughout make this unique comedy book as visually entertaining as it is enlightening. The perfect gift for comedy fans of all ages as well as anyone aspiring to write, perform, or produce comedic art.
Perfect for:
• Comedy lovers of all kinds
• Fans of Key & Peele
• Fans of improv, sketch, stand-up, and shows like SNL, MadTV, Monty Python, and Mr. Show
• Gift giving or self-purchase for established and aspiring comedians
• Readers of such bestsellers as Bossypants, Yes Please, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Born Standing Up, and Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama
