Vintage Humor for Wine Lovers [Paperback]

Malcolm Kushner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 2003

The world's first complete book of wine humor. Hundreds of funny quotes, definitions, anecdotes and news items about mankind's favorite beverage. Plus wine cartoons from The New Yorker.

The perfect gift for anyone interested in wine. And that's no joke!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It's a great gift for anyone who loves wine...." -- Napa Valley Register, March 19, 2003

"Kushner offers hundreds of funny wine thoughts in a Henny Youngman delivery throughout the book." -- Wine on the Web, March 2003

"Not everything is laugh-out-loud funny...but there are plenty of chuckles as well." -- San Jose Mercury News, April 23, 2003

About the Author

Malcolm Kushner, "America's Favorite Humor Consultant," is an internationally acclaimed expert on humor and communications. His previous books include Public Speaking For Dummies (IDG Books) and The Light Touch: How To Use Humor For Business Success (Simon & Schuster).

Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Malcolm Kushner & Assoc (January 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970459890
• ISBN-13: 978-0970459893
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #858,872 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #13 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Entertainment > Humor > Cooking
  • #56 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Drinks & Beverages > Spirits
  • #76 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Entertainment > Humor > Jokes & Riddles

More About the Author

Malcolm Kushner, "America's Favorite Humor Consultant," is an internationally acclaimed expert on humor and communication. Since 1982, he has trained thousands of managers, executives and professionals how to gain a competitive edge with humor. His clients include IBM, Aetna, HP, AT&T, Bank of America, American Bar Association, American Medical Association and the IRS.

A co-creator of the humor exhibit at The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, he also co-authored "Well...There You Go Again": The Humor That Shaped America (Volume I) -- the first multimedia CD-ROM devoted solely to Ronald Reagan. He has lectured about presidential humor at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, the Smithsonian Institute and numerous leadership conferences.

Kushner is the author of "The Light Touch: How to Use Humor for Business Success" (Simon & Schuster). A main selection of the MacMillan Business Book Club, it has been translated into five languages. He is also the author of "Public Speaking For Dummies" (Wiley Books) and "Presentations For Dummies" (Wiley Books) which has sold over 100,000 copies. His latest books are "The Little Book of Humorous Quotes" (aka associates) and "The Official Book of Mob Humor" (Robert D. Reed Publishers).

Kushner holds an M.A. in Communication from the University of Southern California. and a J.D. from the University of California Hastings College of the Law. He has served as a staff attorney for the California Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, and practiced law with a major San Francisco firm.

Frequently interviewed by the media, he has been profiled in Time Magazine, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post and numerous other publications. His television and radio appearances include CNN, National Public Radio, CNBC, "Voice of America" and "The Larry King Show."

Kushner is also the creator of the widely quoted "Cost of Laughing Index" -- a price index of the 16 leading humor indicators in America. The annual Index has been featured on Good Morning America, The Tonight Show and the front page of The Wall Street Journal. It is routinely picked up for April Fool's Day by wire services around the world.

A popular speaker at corporate and association meetings, Kushner is based in Menasha, Wisconsin. For more information, and lots of humor you can use in your next presentation, check out www.kushnergroup.com or www.museumofhumor.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For Anyone with a Refined Palate for Humor & Wine, March 3, 2003

By 

Mollie - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vintage Humor for Wine Lovers (Paperback)

Although those with a passion for the 'fruit of the vine' will especially enjoy this book, it will definitely be valued by anyone who appreciates humor as dry and as crisp as an excellent chablis.

The quotes, jokes, and one liners are priceless -- unlike many a bottle of expensive wine. And Kushner's own running commentary reads like stand up comedy at its best.

Now that many of us are quietly eschewing French wines (that are not really better than many other wines but which did, until recently, possess a certain 'snob appeal') we may well wonder what to bring to the next party or get-together that will impress a hostess with our 'sophistication, worldiness and overall sense of 'cool.' This is the answer. Bring a copy of this book together with a bottle of Californian (or) Virginian (or) Spanish (or) Italian (or) Australian, (or) Chilean wine, and you will not only make a tremendous hit with the host or hostess, but by reading excerpts from the book aloud, you'll be assured that the party won't be dull.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Full-bodied and flavorful with a real bite, October 25, 2004

By 

Kristin J. Johnson "Three-time published author" (Hilo, Hawaii) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Vintage Humor for Wine Lovers (Paperback)

Bubbling over like champagne, as wicked as Brie and chocolate-covered strawberries, Malcolm Kushner's marvelous humor book on wine demands to be sniffed, sipped, and imbibed with pleasure. Drinking in this book on wine will make you feel tipsy without the consequences. As Kushner says in the section Everything I Know I Learned from Drinking Wine: A loaded person is more dangerous than a loaded gun. That said, a glass or two of young Beaujolias or White Zin goes perfectly with this book.

Kushner swirls his own witticisms, his musings on what would happen if famous authors wrote about wine (especially funny are Joan Rivers on Chablis and Dr. Seuss on Champagne: "I do not like it / Cham I am / I do not like / That pagne of cham"), trivia, trivia quizzes and humorous quizzes, and his real-life clips of studies on the mental benefits of drinking wine with quips and quotes from the drunk and the famous.

There's plenty of silliness in a glass of wine, and Kushner saves most of his wickedness for the pretentious tasters, the wine connoisseurs and the sommeliers (that's wine servers for the uninitiated).

New Yorker cartoons, like the heady aroma of a newly opened bottle of Napa Valley wine, add a delicious flavor to this humorous collection.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Perfect Host or Hostess Gift, September 21, 2006

By 

S. Newman "Sandy" (Arizona) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Vintage Humor for Wine Lovers (Paperback)

A friend gave us a copy as a hostess gift when he visited and we love the book.