TotalTelly.co.uk
Devoted to Popular, Cult and Retro TV
Silent Comedy
RRP: £25.00
Our Price: £12.50 (subject to change)
A wonderful introductory book to silent comedy
Review date: 2008-01-11 Rating: 10 out of 10
I have long been a fan of silent comedy and found this book an absoloute joy.
Paul Merton's passion and enthusiasm come through in the writing, and it's nice to see a book written by a fan rather than an academic.
Like his television series and subsequent live shows of Silent Clowns, this book is great for someone who is relatively new to silent comedy. It provides a relatively detailed overviews of the famous silent comics as well as some of the lesser well known ones - and details the beginnings and the end of the silent era.
Similar Products
- Harold Lloyd Definitive Collection [1921]
- The QI Annual 2008
- QI: The Book of Animal Ignorance
- The Uncommon Reader
- Buster Keaton - A Hard Act To Follow
Reviews
Wonderful
Review date: 2008-01-05 Rating: 10 out of 10
Paul Merton's 336-page journey through the silent comedy era is as informative as it is fascinating. Merton's passion, wit and knowledge of the subject visibly shines through his writing, accompanied by beautiful full-colour images and quotations from the comedy greats. Whether you're reading it for pleasure or using it as reference material, Silent Comedy is a beautiful, thorough, accessible and indispensable book. Put simply, it's brilliant.
Excellent read, but misleading title
Review date: 2008-01-03 Rating: 10 out of 10
This book is a wonderful read, illustrated tremendously and is a thoroughly well researched book by a man who is not just a wonderfully witty wordsmith, but an obvious fan of the subject.
The only problem I have with the book is that it should have eluded within the title that it is about the early Silent Comedy Films, as it will give the impression to the reader that Silent Comedy ended with the introduction of Sound and I feel this is not the case. (Mr Bean, Eric Sykes, Mel Brooks) On page 284 discussing the arrival of sound it states, `A whole new generation of screen entertainers appeared: The Marx Brothers, Eddie Cantor and Al Jolson were all vibrant vocal performers with musical skills aplenty.' It fails to mention that a member of the Marx Brothers was a silent comedian, considered by many as the greatest physical/Silent comedian of them all.
But this is stupid nit-picking... Anyone who was aware what Paul Merton has been up to recently would have known what is contained in this book. I remember watching Chaplin, Harold Lloyd and Laurel and Hardy during my childhood and this book, now, makes me want to see them on the big screen with live musical accompaniment... Paul, please bring your Silent Clowns lecture to Ireland.
Product Details/Specifications
Authors:
Paul Merton
Recording label: Random House Books
Manufacturer: Random House Books
EAN: 9781905211708
Binding: Hardcover
ISBN: 1905211708
Number of pages: 336
Publication date: 2007-10-25
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: English (Unknown)
Language: English (Published)