Customer Reviews

The Second City Unscripted: Revolution and Revelation at the World-Famous Comedy Theater

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you have a pulse, you probably like to laugh. If you laugh, you are probably fans of all of the great performers who have come from the ranks of Chicago's Second City. When you read this book, you'll get a chance to learn who these people really are and get to know a big part of what made them great. It's history. It's a part of what makes you smile -- when you watch Colbert, or SNL, or all of the great films and shows these people made -- these Second City alums are cornerstones in our lives. When I read this book, I felt like I had been given private audience to the inner lives of these great men and women and events that shaped them. Brilliantly composed and a comfortable read, I think that this book completely hits the mark.

This is an Oral history of the Second City comedy group from it's conception in the late 50's to late 00's when it's more the establishment than anti-establishment. Some amazing comedians, actors and writers - Robert Klein, John Belushi, Tina Fey came out of there. This place has an amazing history. Oral Histories are almost always interesting to me, you get the first hand accounts of what happened, unfiltered.

With those two things going for it, I thought this book would be a home run instead it was a weak base hit. I was surprised how un-entertaining it was. They talked to all these funny people and I can't say I laughed much. Maybe my expectations were off.

I'm not entirely sure how that happened. The book was unfocused. The book covers about 50 years and dozens of cast members, over less than 300 pages, so they didn't have space to cover things in detail. I didn't get enough of say, Eugene Levy talking about characters and sketches, and I got too much info about Bernard Salins starting the group and trying to find an appropriate theatre, worrying about paying the bills, etc.

I was a medical student/resident physician in Chicago from 1964-1975. During those years Old Town in general and Second City in particular were where entertainment was happening. I remember 2nd City for bentwood chairs, John Belushi, Van Camps Beans, and vodka tonics. It was intellectual and interactive, and even though in those days I didn't read the NYT, I thought I was as hip as the U of C crowd. I love this book's format compiling pieces related by the luminaries. (Here I'm also thinking of the similar book about Hunter S Thompson). These guys have shaped the nature of humor on TV, on stage, and in the movies for the last 50 years.

This is a decent overview of this legendary comedy theatre. However, it suffers in comparison with Donna McCrohan's fantastic (and now out-of-print) tome, "The Second City," published in 1987. This book's strongest point is the fact that it provides a snapshot of the theatre from 1987-2009. When McCrohan's book was published, such recent luminaries as Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Chris Farley, Bob Odenkirk, and Tim Meadows had not set foot on the Second City's fabled stages. However, this book's major weakness is it's lack of coverage of the theatre's early years. Granted, many of it's early cast members have now passed on but several remain and we barely hear from them (where is Mina Kolb, Barbara Harris, Jack Burns, etc.?). Also, it tends to focus on the MOST famous contemporary luminaries. I would've liked to hear more from those who went on to very respected careers as character actors but maybe are not household names. So, it's better than nothing and it does dish some dirt (apparently, Mike Myers and Jim Belushi were among those who were not always popular with their fellow castmates). But, ultimately, I feel there were a multitude of missed opportunities that could've resulted in a very good, ROUNDED portrait of the granddaddy of all comedy troupes.

This book is not worth the paper it's printed on. There is no overall narrative. It is simply a large collection of quotes that are poorly organized. The formatting is very 90s. It's as if they took the poor writing/bullet point style editorial from contemporary times and pair it with the lack of aesthetic and design layout from the 80s/90s. I bought this as a gift but I don't feel comfortable giving it away now that I've seen it's poor quality in person.

The Second City unscripted is an excellent book for any aspiring improv artist or fan of comedy. It tells the history of the greatest improv theater in the country, Second City, and through the words of the cast, creators and writers it weaves a story that helped shaped comedy as we know it. This book is expressly told by the very people who were there and who have experienced the magic of Second City firsthand. From its origins of being considered the "second city" to New York to being the premiere comedy college, this book details comic satire and how its changed from generation to generation. An superb fun and fascinating read, anyone can enjoy this book. The backstage drama, the mounting public pressure, the career launching success of this small theater in Chicago make its history a rich and intensely funny read.

Snippets from interviews with ALL those who've made SC what it was in its hay-day and continues to be!

very appropriate in the face of the 50th anniversary though that is not mentioned ever in the book.. a meaningful understanding of the development of the whole 50 years.... leaves one wondering where or who will be the future stars

Mike Thomas has done a excellent job capturing the heart of this great American Institution with his oral history. Listening to the stories is like being in the same room with these comedic legends. Second City and it's performers are to the theater what jazz is to music. You get to know the players & the folks behind the scenes well enough to like some & dislike others, artists all. Kudos to Thomas. The book is honest & incisive. A real insight into America's true living theater, Chicago's Second City. You can't go wrong. A perfect holiday gift that will be treasured.

For years, people tried to get me to write a sequel to Something Wonderful Right Away. I didn't. UNSCRIPTED does it differently than I would have, but most of the important points and voices are here. I recommend it.

A prior commentator asked where in UNSCRIPTED are Barbara Harris, Mina Kolb and Jack Burns. Barbara Harris and Mina Kolb are in Something Wonderful Right Away -- there's a chapter devoted to each of them. Jack wasn't in the mood to talk when I contacted him, but his partner Avery Schreiber was, and there's a nice meaty chapter with him, too.

If you want to know the origins of Second City, that's why SOMETHING WONDERFUL is still in print. One of the reasons Mike Thomas didn't talk to some of the founders is that they aren't in a position to talk. I managed to get most of them.

But there's plenty of story past 1978, where SOMETHING WONDERFUL leaves off. Just as my book was being published, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE was confirming its central place in the culture. The movement of the Second City sensibility into the mainstream -- hell, the mainstream sensibility BECAME the Second City sensibility -- that's the bulk of Thomas's book.

So, as I said elsewhere, you need both his book and my book. You also should look at Janet Coleman's THE COMPASS, and Sheldon Patinkin's coffee table book with swell photos, and Bernie Sahlins's memoir. And pretty soon a swell documentary about the making of a Second City show called SECOND TO NONE will be released as a DVD with commentary tracks by Tina Fey, Rachel Dratch, Mick Napier and Scott Adsit, among others. It captures the process as nothing else I've seen does.