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The Lives and Legends of Del Close
By Kim Johnson
BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY
416 Pages, 6 x 9
Formats: EPUB, PDF, Mobipocket
PDF, $9.99 (US $9.99) (CA $12.99)
ISBN 9781569764350
Rights: WOR
Chicago Review Press (Apr 2008)
Overview
Containing recollections from more than 80 of the comedic giant’s closest friends and colleagues, this absorbing biography explores Del Close's old haunts, his sensational past, and the reality behind the tales he told so often. From traveling with a carnival and hanging out with a pre-Scientology L. Ron Hubbard to riding with the Merry Pranksters and using a coven of witches to help him kick a lifelong cocaine habit, Close led an incredibly rich life—one whose absurdity proved great fodder for improv theater. Astute and compassionate, Close influenced improvisational theater’s greatest comedic talents of the last 50 years—Nichols and May, Lenny Bruce, Bill Murray, Chris Farley, Tina Fey—and coached the witty masterminds behind such comedic institutions as Second City, Saturday Night Live, Groundlings, and the Upright Citizen’s Brigade.
Reviews
"The definitive biography of an improvisational comedy guru . . . this loving, honest portrait will help the rest of the world get hip to the guy who made comedy hip." —Kirkus Reviews
"Without Del Close I wouldn't be half the improviser, actor, comedian, or writer that I am. . . . Johnson's book is a gem!" —Jeff Garlin, executive producer and costar, Curb Your Enthusiasm
"A terrific book . . . incredibly funny, terribly sad, always fascinating." —Starlog Magazine
"Johnson's book proves that Del Close is the most unrecognized and yet most influential comedians in the last fifty years." —Matt Besser, founding member, Upright Citizens Brigade
"Del Close, the skull that launched a thousand skits." —Peter Bonerz, actor and director
Author Biography
Kim “Howard” Johnson was a longtime friend of Del Close, a personal assistant to John Cleese, a newspaper and magazine writer, and the author of several books on Monty Python. He coauthored the improv classic Truth in Comedy with Del Close and Charna Halpern. He lives in Ottawa, Illinois.
