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The Great Clowns of American Television (McFarland Classics)
 
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The Great Clowns of American Television (McFarland Classics) (Paperback)

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5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
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  Hardcover, October 31, 1988 -- -- $2.47
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"appealing study" -- Back Stage

"important contribution" -- AB Bookman's Weekly

"revive[s] and showcase[s] overlooked treasures of American comedy. Recommended" -- Choice


Product Description

There are generations that have never seen Sid Caesar become an automobile tire or Red Skelton stick his thumbs in his armpits and intone. "Two theagulls...," never journeyed with Ernie Kovacs to a surrealistic world of his warped imagination. Covered here are seventeen comic talents (with photographs): their early years, marriages and personal challenges, anecdotes about them, the characters they created, their styles, and often representative dialogue or sketch descriptions. includes a listing of all television shows in which the comic starred (giving length, network, air dates). The comics include Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, Carol Burnett, Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Tim Conway, Jackie Gleason, Danny Kaye, Ernie Kovacs, Olsen and Johnson, Martha Raye, Soupy Sales, Red Skelton, Dick Van Dyke, Flip Wilson, Jonathan Winters, and Ed Wynn.
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 270 pages
  • Publisher: McFarland & Company (December 19, 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0786413034
  • ISBN-13: 978-0786413034
  • Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 13.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,360,091 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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More About the Author

Karin Adir
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5.0 out of 5 stars Remembering Comedy Greats!, October 17, 2009
Being born in 1950, I was lucky enough to grow up watching many of the comedy greats of all-time on television. It's easy remembering all those nights of shared laughter with the family sitting around the boob tube watching Red Skelton, Jackie Gleason, Dick Van Dyke, Carol Burnett and others. Karin Adir provides an entertaining, insightful and affectionate look at 17 of those masters of comedy in this 2002 McFarland & Company release.

Either I was too young or my family hadn't purchased a TV in time to see Milton Berle, Ed Wynn, Oleson & Johnson or Sid Caesar. It doesn't take much to bring back memories of almost all of the other performers covered in Adir's book - Ernie Kovacs, Danny Kaye, Martha Raye, Soupy Sales, Flip Wilson, Jonathan Winters and Tim Conway. Skelton was probably the purest clown; Kovacs, the most mind-blowing. I was happy to see Conway included; he was/is a comedic genius. Before he joined the Carol Burnett Show, it was entertaining. After he joined, it was hilariously entertaining!

Adir does a fine job of summarizing the life and times of Caesar, Berle, Skelton and the others and how they fared on television. Not all succeeded: Wynn, Oleson & Johnson, etc. and Adir provides insights into why they didn't. Along with career information, Adir includes snippets of classic skits and jokes; a nice touch.

Paging through THE GREAT CLOWNS OF AMERICAN TELEVISION is so much fun. You remember - often with laughter - those talented men and women who brought so much joy to so many. Pick up a copy, sit back and enjoy! Highly recommended.
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