Photo Credit: Amazon
I forget exactly how and why I came across this book on my library’s website and downloaded it to my Kindle. Except that I adore Steve Martin. My brother and I laughed our way through The Jerk and quoted it for a good part of my adolescence. Then came Three Amigos!, Roxanne, Father of the Bride, and my all-time favorite Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. As an 80s kid, Martins’ standup was before my time, but I had vague notions of a “wild and crazy guy” saying “excuuuuuuse me!” while wearing an arrow through his head.
What a treat it is to peek behind the curtain and see him as a young man develop his comedic voice, struggle with his family’s dysfunction and anxiety, date girlfriends, and become an entertainment icon. Or as he describes it, “why I did standup and why I walked away.” Steve Martin is smart and a sharp writer. This is not a book of jokes, but an entertaining and poignant tale of an endearing showman.
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