The current generation knows him as the serenity-seeking Frank Costanza from Seinfeld. An older generation knows him as one-half of the comedy team Stiller and Meara. But; as his memoir; Married to Laughter; reveals; Jerry Stiller has had a lifelong love affair with entertainment. Growing up during the Depression in Brooklyn and on Manhattans Lower East Side; Jerry Stiller discovered the power of comedy when; as a child; he saw Eddie Cantor transform an audience. Jerrys father often took him to vaudeville performances; where Jerry decided that he; too; wanted to make people laugh. He studied drama at Syracuse University; where a charismatic professor inspired Jerry to believe that he could achieve his dream and become a successful actor. After Syracuse; Jerry returned to New York to begin a life in the theater. Jerry soon met Anne Meara. Even before he fell in love with her; he knew she was a remarkable person. At first they encouraged each other in their separate performances; but eventually they began doing a comedy act in the coffeehouses of New Yorks Greenwich Village. They created a brilliantly successful act with two characters who were exaggerated versions of themselves. Before long; they were regulars on The Ed Sullivan Show; the most popular television program of the day. Stiller and Meara was a smash hit. But Jerrys first love has always been the theater; and he writes with fondness and charm about his nearly fifty years in show business -- from summer stock to the early days of Joe Papps pioneering Shakespeare in the Park; from his Broadway performance in Hurlyburly to his roles in such films as The Taking of Pelham One Two Three; The Ritz; Seize the Day; and Hairspray. He describes the genesis of the hugely successful Blue Nun radio commercials that he and Anne recorded; the first of many award-winning advertisements they would make together. Jerry takes us inside his life offstage; describing with great candor his personal and professional neuroses; including some unusual experiences in therapy. He recounts hilarious stories about the Stiller family and tells wonderful tales about such friends and colleagues as Walter Matthau; Colleen Dewhurst; Mike Nichols; F. Murray Abraham; and Henny Youngman. But most of all; he describes life with Anne; showing us his admiration for her as a performer and describing how she gave him the insight into acting that hed long sought. Married to Laughter is a great love story about two people who found their place in show business without ever losing sight of each other.
#134852 in eBooks 2000-08-08 2000-08-08File Name: B000FC0RL0
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Excellent. Its chief virtue is that its a very ...By grace richardsonExcellent. Its chief virtue is that its a very PERSONAL story; which makes it concrete and specific rather than generalized. Just as concrete as fiction; but this is straight from life. I hope Cindy continues writing.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy CMFRock on Cindy!2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. A MOTHERS ACCOUNT OF HOW HER SONS DEATH CHANGED HERBy Steven H ProppCindy Sheehan (born 1957) is an American anti-war activist whose son; U.S. Army Specialist Casey Sheehan; was killed by enemy action during the Iraq War. She is also the 2012 vice-presidential nominee of the Peace and Freedom Party. She has written other books such as Not One More Mothers Child.She wrote in the Foreword to this 2006 book; "This book is the heartbreaking story of how my son Casey inspired me to give my dash meaning and to make him as proud of my life as I always was of his... This is a book of one moms journey from trusting her leaders even when they so brazenly take our country to bogus war; to one of pacifism and nonviolence at all costs."She admits that "I put him and our other children in Catholic schools because our public schools in Norwalk were so terrible... I am sure that there are many good Catholic schools out there; but my kids went to ones that were run like little fascist regimes. I have since left the misogynistic and superstitious church; and I have come to feel distrustful of most organized religion." (Pg. 13)She argues; "I realize that many people who disagree with the Iraq war and have disagreed with it from the start think that the invasion of Afghanistan was justified. I never believed that. Even if we did believe that Osama was hiding there; it did not give the United States and coalition forces the right to invade an innocent country that had nothing to do with the horror of 9/11." (Pg. 20) She adds later; "Heroes are not created on battlefields. They are created in homes... by loving families who want only the best for their children. Victims and martyrs are created by the war machine that only wants our heroes for profit." (Pg. 52-53)She describes how her daughter Carly reading her a poem affected her: "I was transformed from an ordinary human being into a crusader. I was transformed from a private mother into a public peace mom." (Pg. 59) Later; she asserts; "I am not a left-wing Democrat; and I hold many of the members of that party as responsible as I hold your party and George Bush and his administration. I do not think that there is anything political about an illegal and immoral war." (Pg. 104)Like all activists; Cindy Sheehan is a very controversial figure; but her heartfelt story is one that can appeal to a great many people---whether or not they agree with all of her political stances.