The book is Steve Martin’s “Born Standing Up“. I’ve always been a big fan of his, from way back in the days of the “wild and crazy guy”, happy feet, “let’s get small”, and the arrow through the head. Remember? Well, I guess that depends on how old you are. And of course since then he has made many worthy films too.

This book follows his life from childhood into his beginnings with magic and comedy. Then into his becoming famous and how it affected him. Finally he covers why he decided to never do stand-up comedy again. The book ends there, hopefully he will write another one someday that will deal with his life after stand-up. This book is written in an easy-to-read style with some subtle humor, although you do get the down side too. It was a quick read and an enjoyable one.

Here’s what Elvis Presley said about Steve Martin in 1971:

“Son, you have an ob-leek sense of humor”

Here’s what amazon.com had to say about the book:

At age 10, Steve Martin got a job selling guidebooks at the newly opened Disneyland. In the decade that followed, he worked in Disney’s magic shop, print shop, and theater, and developed his own magic/comedy act. By age 20, studying poetry and philosophy on the side, he was performing a dozen times a week, most often at the Disney rival, Knott’s Berry Farm. Obsession is a substitute for talent, he has said, and Steve Martin’s focus and daring–his sheer tenacity–are truly stunning. He writes about making the very tough decision to sacrifice everything not original in his act, and about lucking into a job writing for The Smothers Brothers Show. He writes about mentors, girlfriends, his complex relationship with his parents and sister, and about some of his great peers in comedy–Dan Ackroyd, Lorne Michaels, Carl Reiner, Johnny Carson. He writes about fear, anxiety and loneliness. And he writes about how he figured out what worked on stage.

This book is a memoir, but it is also an illuminating guidebook to stand-up from one of our two or three greatest comedians. Though Martin is reticent about his personal life, he is also stunningly deft, and manages to give readers a feeling of intimacy and candor. Illustrated throughout with black and white photographs collected by Martin, this book is instantly compelling visually and a spectacularly good read.

If you like Steve Martin at all, check out this book and let me know what you think.

Or maybe leave me a comment below…?

And I already blogged about his birthday and Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid.

Hey! Get stevenology by email! Click here