The Funniest One in the Room: The Lives and Legends of Del CloseChicago Review Press, 01/04/2008 - 416 páginas Nichols and May. John Belushi. Bill Murray. Chris Farley. Tina Fey. Mike Myers. Stephen Colbert. For nearly a half century, Del Close—cocreator of the Harold, director for the Second City, San Francisco's the Committee, and the ImprovOlympic, and “house metaphysician” for Saturday Night Live—influenced improvisational theater's greatest comedic talents. His students went on to found the Groundlings in Los Angeles, the Upright Citizens Brigade in both New York and Los Angeles, and the Annoyance Theatre in Chicago. But this Pied Piper of improv has gone largely unrecognized outside the close-knit comedy community. Del was never one to let the truth of his life stand in the way of a good story—and yet the truth is even more fascinating than the fiction. In his early years, he traveled the country with Dr. Dracula's Den of Living Nightmares, knew L. Ron Hubbard before Scientology, and appeared in The Blob. Del cavorted with the Merry Pranksters, used aversion therapy to recover from alcoholism, and kicked a cocaine habit with the help of a coven of witches. And when he was dying, Del bequeathed his postmortem skull to the Goodman Theatre for use in its productions of Hamlet—a final legend that lives on, long beyond the death of the father of long-form improvisation. |
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... Second City, “discovering” many of the improvisers who had blazed into stardom on Saturday Night Live and SCTV. He sounded like the best person to teach post–Second City improvisation, and the party would be an opportunity to meet him ...
... Second City, and a well-known eccentric, Darden drove a 1926 Rolls-Royce Phantom II, would often wear a cape, and had picked up the habit of chewing on a handkerchief or other piece of cloth. Jeffrey Sweet's Something Wonderful Right ...
The Lives and Legends of Del Close Kim Howard Johnson. The Second City had opened the previous December at 1842 North Wells Street, the site of a former Chinese laundry. Alk joined with Paul Sills, who would direct, and Bernie Sahlins ...
... Second City, titled “The Suncoast of Bohemia” (an homage to the Second City's fourth, then-current revue, called The Seacoast of Bohemia, which featured Darden). By this time, however, Del was about to hit the road for more stand-up. In ...
... another rather lonely year of solo-ing around the country. Love, Del Once again, Del had to confront the threat of success. Opening for ... Second City in Chicago. The Second City pay was abysmal; Del claimed it was The FunniestOneinthe Room.
Índice
17 The ImprovOlympic | |
18 Roaches in the Dental Floss | |
19 The Return of the Harold the Barons Barracudas and Charna | |
20 The Brain of the Galaxy | |
21 Chris Farley The Blob and Farewell to Second City | |
22 Workshops Reunions and the Family | |
23 Close Youve Gone Sane | |
24 The Party | |
8 The Merry Pranksters and My Mother the Car | |
With the Committee in San Francisco | |
10 The Birth of Harold Spidering and a Pornographic Western | |
11 Pretty Much a Blur | |
Belushi and the Bean Can | |
13 Valium Vitriol and Ancient Egyptian Opium | |
14 The Clockwork Orange Treatment | |
15 Junkies Give the Best Shots | |
16 Saturday Night Live Tennessee Williams and the Cleanup | |
25 Curtain Call | |
Bibliography | |
Notes | |
Interviews | |
Acknowledgments | |
Works of Del Close | |
Index | |
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The Funniest One in the Room: The Lives and Legends of Del Close Kim Johnson Pré-visualização indisponível - 2008 |