Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse [Hardcover]

Phyllis Diller (Author), Richard Buskin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 17, 2005

From housewife to humorist, Phyllis Diller has been making millions laugh for five decades with her groundbreaking comedy. Now the laughter continues with her uproarious autobiography.

Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse recounts the story of how, against all odds, Phyllis Diller became America's first successful and best-loved female stand-up comic. She began her professional career at age thirty-seven, in spite of the fact that she was a housewife, mother of five, and working at a radio station due to her husband's chronic unemployment. Now, fifty years later, after two traumatic marriages; extensive cosmetic surgery; numerous film, television, and stage appearances; and separate careers as an artist and piano soloist with symphony orchestras, Phyllis Diller finally tells her story.

With her trademark laugh, incredible wit, and self-deprecating humor, Phyllis Diller has etched her way into comedic history. And while her wild hair and outrageous clothes may make her look "like a lampshade in a whorehouse," her strength, self-belief, perseverance, and raucous sense of humor are what make her truly unforgettable.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Brash comedy and a surprising bitterness fuel this unsparing account of Diller's drive to make it big. Born to elderly parents in Lima, Ohio, in 1917, Phyllis Ada Driver was blessed with neither beauty nor wealth. At 20--and already pregnant--she married Sherwood Diller, a handsome, selfish ne'er-do-well who became the "Fang" in her comic monologues of domestic life; the couple had five children. Nearly 40 when she began her performing career, Diller turned a knack for relentless self-deprecation into a nightclub act. She performed in The Poets' Follies of 1955 with poet/painter/composer Weldon Kees and Beat writer Lawrence Ferlinghetti. But women were a novelty in the bar-based world of stand-up comedy, and plenty of humiliating club engagements ensued. Diller persisted, though, and while her male colleagues (Milton Berle, Don Rickles, Lenny Bruce) were pioneering 1950s "insult comedy," she turned the venom on herself and reaped its rewards. Eventually shedding her dud husband, Diller became a superstar--and the first one to go public about her plastic surgery ("I was a walking billboard for plastic surgery," she observes wryly). Retired from show business since 2002, Diller retains a dedicated fan base and an enormous interest in the world that spawned her. And considering she's the original "He's just not into me" girl, a pioneering desperate housewife, might this be the time to launch a comeback?
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Phyllis Diller, the world's first and foremost successful female stand-up comic, has been at the top of her game for five decades.

Richard Buskin has written more than a dozen books, including biographies of Princess Diana, Marilyn Monroe, and Sheryl Crow. He makes his home in Chicago.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher (February 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585423963
• ISBN-13: 978-1585423965
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Having the last laugh...?, July 5, 2005

By 

Melanie Gilbert (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse (Hardcover)

If living well is the best revenge, then it is hard to appreciate why Phyllis Diller spends a good portion of her latest autobiography settling scores with dozens of minor people whose names would have completely faded from history if not for her memoirs.

But then, for a woman who made a comedic career out of catastrophes and disappointments, perhaps this is her way of having the last laugh. Unfortunately, these bitter remembrances just aren't funny and mar an otherwise delightful book. Instead the story is jagged and a little too hard-edged and earns a solid three stars.

Penguin, however, has produced a beautiful book for Ms. Diller with a stunning bright orange cover with raised printing while the book underneath features a three-piece case binding with foil stamping. Even the ivory-colored paper inside is high-quality stuff. And I couldn't find one typo. The presentation reflects Penguin's star-quality regard for Diller giving this book an overall four-star rating.

When Diller focuses on her successes by highlighting colleagues (like Bob Hope) or good timing (like breaking in at a time when no other female comics offered serious competition) or techniques (like ending punch lines with consonants to emphasize the mock hostility), her story really entertains. But the book just isn't worth the hardcover admission price and I would recommend waiting for and buying the paperback version of Diller's story.

34 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What an amazing story. What an amazing woman!, February 27, 2005

By 

Blair Warren (San Antonio, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse (Hardcover)

What do you think of when you hear the name Phyllis Diller? Funny jokes? Crazy wigs? Her infectious laugh? Well, that ain't the half of it.

Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse is the story of a woman who grabbed onto a dream and refused to let it go. Despite overwhelming odds, heartbreaking misfortune and lifelong personal insecurities, Phyllis Diller did what every one of us dreams of doing; she refused to accept her circumstances, decided exactly what she wanted to become and then became it. And best of all, she did it her way.

If you have ever dreamed of accomplishing something but allowed doubt to stop you from trying, read this book. It will touch your heart. It will make you laugh. But most important, it will help you find the strength you'll need to make your own dreams come true.

Thank you Ms. Diller. While I have admired your comedy for years, I will admire your tenacity forever.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WHATTA BOOK; WHATTA PERSON, March 20, 2005

By 

Brady Buchanan (Henderson, NV United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse (Hardcover)

It is so interesting to read about a multi talented person who is supremely successful where they reveal the downside parts of their life and wonder why they did what they did...but they did it. Like Phyllis Diller, I read a most wonderful book "The Magic of Believing" by Claude Bristol when I was in my early 20's that did change my life, but not to the extent that she transformed herself because of that book. Many miserable things happened to her traveling through her life journey, but she was always optimistic and overcame the adversities. This book has funny parts, however, it is really an autobiography and details the life of the author. A marvelous read and a story that should get more than 5 stars.