The Pythons: Autobiography [Paperback]

The Pythons (Author), Graham Chapman (Author), Michael Palin (Author), John Cleese (Author), Terry Gilliam (Author), Eric Idle (Author), Terry Jones (Author), Bob McCabe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2005

Over thirty years ago, a group of five Englishmen and one wayward American, re-wrote the rules of comedy. Monty Python's Flying Circus, an unheralded, previously unseen and practically unprogrammed half hour of sketches, hilarities, inanities and animations first appeared on the BBC late one night in 1969. Its impact on the world has been felt ever since.

From its humble beginnings as late night entertainment on a British TV channel that went off the air before midnight, it blossomed into arguably the most influential movement in modern comedy. They found the Holy Grail, they detailed the life of the Savior-also-ran Brian, and when we were lost, they explained The Meaning of Life.

Now, those purveyors of dead parrots and silly walks are going to tell us something more: Their story. In their own, intimate, never before heard words.

The Pythons by The Pythons is the definitive word on all things Pythonesque (the only word invented by a modern comedian which is listed in the Oxford English Dictionary.) 30 years of insight, hindsight, and bad sight - now told for the first time. Stuff they're never remembered before alongside stories they'd forgotten to say, coupled with things they couldn't say then and even more things they can't pronounce now (with a healthy dollop of things they would never have said in the first place if any others had been in the room at the time.)

The Pythons by The Pythons is a unique look at arguably the most important comic team of the modern age, lavishly illustrated with 1000 photographs and illustrations, many culled from the teams' own personal collections, many seen here for the first time. A tome, a tombstone, the definitive word on all things Python, as told by all things Python - do you want Spam with that?

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Python fans will need to clear a large space on their bookshelf or coffee table for The Pythons--a big, vital autobiography of the comedy troupe. This is an oral history by the six members (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin) from birth to--in the case of Chapman--death. We get reminisces about childhood, university days, early successes, and rich details about the landmark Flying Circus TV series and subsequent films. The voices are fresh (with expectation of Michael Palin's insightful diary entries), not just complied from earlier publications. "Due to his insistence of being inconveniently dead," Chapham's voice is heard through his longtime partner David Sherlock, his brother and sister-in-law (and some archival materials). As a whole, the six impart a refreshing ability to deal honestly with the frustrations that arose over the years and it comes out in the text even when events are recalled differently. The book is not a light read (figuratively and literally), perhaps a smaller size would have been better for the amount of text; a cursory glance at the coffee table is tough. What does fill the book is an abundance of photos (over 1,000), most never published and many from the troupe's private collections. Along with concept sketches, Gilliam's drawings and doodles, and a few correspondences, this is a keepsake memento of the legendary group. --Doug Thomas --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

This massive autobiography/oral history offers a full literary meal about the irreverent Python troupe and an equally satisfying wealth of photos covering childhoods, weddings, film and TV appearances. It opens with members Michael Palin, Eric Idle, John Cleese and Terry Gilliam supplying witty commentaries about their collaborators, then follows with the foursome-plus Terry Young-profiling themselves. Graham Chapman, who died in 1989, comes alive through sparkling reminiscences by his longtime partner, David Sherlock. The groundbreaking sextet first captured attention through David Frost's The Frost Report in 1966 and became comedy cult kings with the BBC series Monty Python's Flying Circus. The accounts and accompanying photographs regarding their experiences and conflicts on Circus and the subsequent motion pictures The Life of Brian, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and The Meaning of Life are captivatingly honest closeups of the creative process; the reprinted postcards the gang sent Terry Jones from Amsterdam are priceless. "Dear Terry," reads one, "Graham is sitting on my right. On my left is an empty chair. Opposite sits John Goldstone & to his left (not mine) is Little John. To his left & slightly in front of him i.e. at the head of the table sits a silly little man who is in charge of us." Despite inevitable skirmishes, an open attitude prevailed that allowed everyone to express themselves freely: says Idle, "You could say anything-`I think that's crap'-and nobody would punch you and get upset." By book's end, readers will feel they know each Python intimately and marvel that six such different personalities could collaborate to produce such hilarious, scathingly subversive comedy. 1,000 color and b&w photos.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (November 15, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312311451
• ISBN-13: 978-0312311452
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #411,077 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Say no more!, November 14, 2003

By 

Andrew S. Rogers (Stamford, Connecticut) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Pythons: Autobiography by the Pythons (Hardcover)

This is a really big book, in nearly every sense. It won't be easy to carry it to the beach, but the Python fan will definitely find enough within these hard covers to keep her entertained and informed for a good long time.

The book consists almost entirely of excerpts from interviews with the Pythons. In that sense, it is indeed an autobiography. The Pythons go in depth about their pre-show lives, what it was like doing the program, and the process of making the movies, live shows, and other Pythonalia. It's not a *funny* book in the sense of being full of deliberate jokes. But they people themselves are all entertaining, and the references and many, many photos -- including personal snaps and show outtakes -- will certainly trigger countless happy memories.

As I say, the interviews go very in depth about a lot of things, and so it can get just a little tedious at times, with details about movie shoots, legal arrangements, and the rest. At the same time, they don't seem to be holding anything back, and the force and nature of each man's personality really comes through. It's interesting not only to see how mix, and clash, of characters shaped the Python product, but also to see personal tensions wax and wane over the years.

If there is a drawback to this book, apart from the occasional tedium and the sheer weight of the thing, it's some of the chapter headings, captions, and other material not written by the Pythons themselves. People who write about Monty Python seem afflicted by a need to try to be as funny as the Pythons themselves, and it seldom works. And so we get chapter headings like "In Which the Pythons Meet the Pythons" or "In Which We All Become Starlets" -- it just gets a little tiresome.

Apart from that, though, it's hard to imagine any Python fan not coveting this book, and carefully preserving it next to his copy of "Thirty Days in the Samarkand Desert with the Duchess of Kent" by AEJ Eliott, OBE. It's definitely worth the price to purchase (and the effort to carry around), and is sure to be treasured.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The last word on Python, November 11, 2003

By 

Chris B "zerocard13" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pythons: Autobiography by the Pythons (Hardcover)

I was excited to read this book. After enough books had been written based on excerpts from obviously longer interviews, I was ready to read the definitive word on Monty Python and I was not disappointed with The Pythons.

True, they may not describe the writing of every sketch, but that would make the book impenetrable and probably triple the length. This is an examination of the group as a whole and I was pleasantly surprised by it. I thought I knew my Python history but it was nice to finally see how things fell into context, particularly the troupe's early, pre-Python work as well as some of the fine details of the making of the records and books, which have gotten short shrift in other books.

It's not always an easy read, which almost goes without saying. Some lasting enmities come out in the interviews and they can be discomforting to read. However, it goes without saying that without that if they had been removed, the book would have been lacking.

If I have any criticisms of the book, it would be some of the layout choices. Like many similar books, the designers went a little overboard in some of their color schemes, using dark colors behind black text or complicated background that distract the eye from what you're reading, both very distracting.

But that's a relatively minor quibble for what is, essentially, the final word on most (if not all) things Python. It's well worth the wait, the weight and the price.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the GOOD books on Python!, June 4, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Pythons: Autobiography by the Pythons (Hardcover)

At this point, there have been many, many tomes written on the now-legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python. The best of them are: George Melly's "The Life of Python" (one of the few written before member Graham Chapman's death); Kim Howard Johnson's two titles, "First 20 Years of Monty Python" and "Life Before and After Monty Python"; and David Morgan's "Monty Python Speaks." This 16 ton autobiography is quite good but, if you've read any or all of the aforementioned books, there will be far fewer suprises here. The way in which this book stands out from the rest is the increased detail of many of the oft-told tales and a handful of newer (if somewhat trivial) revelations. The larger reveals seem to take place during their individual childhoods and events which took place near the end of their partnership, with much detail given involving the writing of "Meaning of Life" and the proposed '90s reunion which never materialized. Also welcome are the comments of Chapman's brother John who provides a new perspective on the most conflicted Python. If you do not own or have never read any of the other finer titles, this could very well be considered the one stop shop for all Monty knowledge. There is NO editorializing in this book, simply anecdote after anecdote from those involved. This, and the other titles, are probably of most interest to those interested in the art of comedy writing in that they are largely accounts of the creation of the material and group dynamic. A great book!