Laugh Lines, Alan Zweibel
Laugh Lines, Alan Zweibel
List: $19.95 | Sale: $13.97
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Laugh Lines
My Life Helping Funny People Be Funnier; A Cultural Memoir

Author: Alan Zweibel, Billy Crystal

Narrator: Alan Zweibel

Unabridged: 8 hr 10 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/21/2020

Synopsis

With his tender, funny memoir of four decades in the business, Alan Zweibel traces the history of American comedy.Alan Zweibel started his comedy career selling jokes for seven dollars apiece to the last of the Borscht Belt standups. Then one night, despite bombing on stage, he caught the attention of Lorne Michaels and became one of the first writers at Saturday Night Live, where he penned classic material for Gilda Radner, John Belushi, and all of the original Not Ready for Prime Time Players. From SNL, he went on to have a hand in a series of landmark shows—from It’s Garry Shandling’s Show to Curb Your Enthusiasm.Throughout Laugh Lines, Zweibel weaves together his own stories and interviews with his friends and contemporaries, including Richard Lewis, Eric Idle, Bob Saget, Mike Birbiglia, Sarah Silverman, Judd Apatow, Dave Barry, Carl Reiner, and more. The book also features a charming foreword from his friend of forty-five years, Billy Crystal, with whom he cowrote and coproduced the film Here Today starring Crystal and Tiffany Haddish. Laugh Lines is a warmhearted cultural memoir of American comedy.

About Alan Zweibel

Alan Zweibel is an original Saturday Night Live writer who the New York Times said has “earned a place in the pantheon of American pop culture.” He has won multiple Emmys and Writers Guild of America awards for his work in television that includes It’s Garry Shandling’s Show (which he co-created and produced) and Curb Your Enthusiasm. His theatrical works include his collaboration with Billy Crystal on the Tony Award–winning 700 Sundays, Martin Short’s Broadway hit Fame Becomes Me and Bunny Bunny: Gilda Radner: A Sort of Romantic Comedy, which he adapted from his bestselling book. He is the author of numerous other books, including The Other Shulman, which won the Thurber Prize for American Humor and the popular children’s book Our Tree Named Steve. He is the co-writer and producer, with Billy Crystal whom also directed, of Here Today, a forthcoming feature film starring Crystal and Tiffany Haddish.

About Billy Crystal

Billy Crystal has starred in many hit films, among them When Harry Met Sally, City Slickers, The Princess Bride, and Analyze This. He is the author of the Tony award-winning play 700 Sundays, about his relationship with his late father, which was later adapted into a book, and the children’s book, I Already Know I Love You. He was a cast member of Saturday Night Live, is a six-time Emmy winner, and recipient of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. He has hosted the Academy Awards numerous times.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Bill on September 07, 2020

I love SNL lore, so this book's definitely in my wheelhouse. The first half of "Laugh Lines" addresses how Zweibel straddled two generations of American comedy, starting out writing jokes for old-school Catskill comics and then getting his first big break writing for the first cast of SNL. Zweibel d......more

Goodreads review by Lynn on July 21, 2020

Funny Wonderful Breezy Book Alan Zweibel is a funny man who began comedy writing in the early 70s and found success in Saturday Night Live heyday. He has written many books, none of which I’d heard of but snatched up my library’s copy of Bunny Bunny a memoir about his friendship with Gilda Radner. Th......more

Goodreads review by MaskedSanity­ on February 20, 2023

Alan Zweibel knows how to make other people funny. That's obvious. It's also in the title. This book goes into his process of writing for some of the all-time greats and some of the not-so greats. His relationships with Gilda Radner and Garry Shandling (both fall into the "all-time great category, t......more

Goodreads review by Francis on September 27, 2024

I enjoyed this book. This is a memoir from comedy writer Alan Zweibel who wrote for Saturday Night Live when it first started and many other famous comedians. He did write some funny lines and there were laugh out loud parts in the book.......more

Goodreads review by Matthew on February 16, 2021

Three and a half stars for this warm and often moving look back at the type of comedy writing career I dreamt of having as a kid growing up on the exploits of the Saturday Night Live crew and Garry Shandling. Zweibel is not a name many will know in the UK, but he was instrumental in the success of S......more

Quotes

“Alan Zweibel is legendary among us comedians. He is the man who delivers comedy with an emotional clout that makes him respected and revered.” Steve Martin

“Alan Zweibel is the original man behind the man! I don’t have enough fingers to count how many people would not be where they are without Alan Zweibel. (I only have four fingers, but still…)” Sarah Silverman

“Screamingly funny—also very moving. A classic.” Mary Karr

“A brilliant book by a brilliant man. I can’t wait to reread it with the TV off.” Martin Short

“I have read the complete works of Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Flaubert, and Melville. Trust me, Alan Zweibel is MUCH funnier.” Dave Barry

“It’s medicine we can all use right now.” People

“A delightful and moving memoir, filled with sweet and sour star-studded behind-the-scenes tales of dealing with egos and creating or polishing material to make other comedians even funnier…[and] also an encouraging and indispensable guide for budding comedy writers.” Shelf Awareness (starred review)

“This zippy memoir by comedians’ comedian Zweibel offers laughs on nearly every page…hilarious and self-deprecating.” Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Readers will find plenty of new, behind-the-scenes details and celebrity anecdotes. This is a truly fun romp.” Booklist

“An amiable, big-lug, heart-of-gold sort of book…A pleasant, amusing tale of a life in jokes, suitable for budding comedians and students of the form.” Kirkus Reviews

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