Funny Woman (A Midland Book) [Paperback]

Barbara W. Grossman (Author)

Book Description

Series: A Midland Book | Publication Date: August 22, 1992

Fanny Brice (1891-1951) was a truly popular entertainer, with a career that spanned four decades. She was a hit in almost every branch of American show business—burlesque and vaudeville, drama and musical revues (including nine Ziegfeld Follies), film and radio. She is most often remembered for her characterization of the radio brat Baby Snooks, yet Snooks was not Brice's best role. A brilliant comic, Fanny Brice had a significant impact on a field that had been predominantly male, proving that the term "funny woman" was not an oxymoron.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Grossman's entertaining, scrupulously documented study--a Jewish Book Club selection in cloth--portrays vaudeville and radio star Brice's talent, determination and legend-building. Photos.

Copyright 1992 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

To the younger generation, comedian Brice is remembered (if at all) by Barbra Streisand's portrayal of her in the musical Funny Girl . Brice's career spanned 40 years, from vaudeville to radio, where she spent the last 14 years of her life as "Baby Snooks." She tried unsuccessfully to work in serious drama and films, but did her best work as a singer and comic in the Ziegfield Follies. Grossman, a member of the Board of the Harvard Theatre Collection, tries to reconstruct Brice's comedy style by analyzing the materials she used, describing her antics, and reviewing her act. She provides thorough research despite the difficulties in sorting through many inconsistencies in Brice's own statements. The first biography of Brice since Norman Katkov's Fabulous Fanny ( LJ 2/1/53), this definitive work will be useful in large theater collections.
- Marcia L. Perry, Berkshire Athenaeum, Pittsfield, Mass.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (August 22, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253207622
• ISBN-13: 978-0253207623
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,771,615 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Will The Real Fanny Brice Please Stand Up?, June 18, 2000

By 

Dan Kelley (Miami Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Funny Woman (A Midland Book) (Paperback)

This is a satisfying,well reasearched, and enlightening look into the real truths behind famed comic and Ziegfield star Fanny Brice. With harsh facts yet obvious respect for her subject author Barbara W. Grossman peels away the myths propagated by the Streisand films and gets to the facts and the core of the real Fanny Brice. This is a very entertaining biography and may also be used as a great tool to research the early days of Vaudeville, Burlesque, and the Ziegfield Follies.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Book, July 13, 2010

By 

Charles K. Prather - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Funny Woman: The Life and Times of Fanny Brice (A Midland Book) (Hardcover)

Book was really perfect - and delivery was much faster than expected. Great seller.