Satiristas: Comedians, Contrarians, Raconteurs & Vulgarians

by Paul Provenza, Dan Dion

Overview

Featuring our greatest comedic minds on the nature of humor, its relevance in society—and why sometimes you just need a good dirty joke to cleanse the palate—Satiristas is a hilarious multi-voiced manifesto on satire and comedy presented by Paul Provenza, co-creator of The Aristocrats.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780061959875
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/11/2010
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Paul Provenza has been a major name in stand-up comedy for decades. He is the co-creator and director of the critically acclaimed comedy/documentary The Aristocrats. He has written, produced, and starred in several comedy specials, including the comedy talk show Comics Only for Comedy Central and his own one-man show for Showtime, The Incredible Man-Boy. He is an artistic consultant to the Montreal and Chicago Just for Laughs festivals, and is currently co-producing and starring in The Green Room with Paul Provenza for Showtime.

Editorial Reviews

¡Satiristas! reveals the method and the madness of men and women who inhabit the funny side of the commentariat.” — Los Angeles Times

“Humor heavyweights discussing satire and social change in their craft…A wealth of intimate, and, at times, surprising discussions…A cultural critique of comedy as an art form.” — Time Out Chicago

“A brilliant, wildly inventive new book that is comedic magic. It features interviews with and portraits of some of the biggest comedians ever.” — Los Angeles Herald Examiner

“Glimpses into the minds of some of the sharpest, most insightful and revolutionary voices in entertainment. They surprise, they challenge, they may even offend you, but every word is worth your time and attention. Read it. You won’t regret it.” — Sacramento Book Review

From the Publisher

Humor heavyweights discussing satire and social change in their craft…A wealth of intimate, and, at times, surprising discussions…A cultural critique of comedy as an art form.

Time Out Chicago

¡Satiristas! reveals the method and the madness of men and women who inhabit the funny side of the commentariat.

Los Angeles Times

A brilliant, wildly inventive new book that is comedic magic. It features interviews with and portraits of some of the biggest comedians ever.

Los Angeles Herald Examiner

Glimpses into the minds of some of the sharpest, most insightful and revolutionary voices in entertainment. They surprise, they challenge, they may even offend you, but every word is worth your time and attention. Read it. You won’t regret it.

Sacramento Book Review

Finally, a book that gets right to the heart of comedians who choose to enter the unforgiving realm of the satirist—brave men and women who dare to question the unfairness of government politics or the human social condition. Provenza, cocreator and codirector of the film The Aristocrats, interviews 60 comedians. Well-known humorists Lenny Bruce, Bill Maher, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Robin Williams, Stephen Colbert, Lily Tomlin, and Margaret Cho all have something very important in common—the ability to make people think. Provenza's interviews are short, direct, and incisive and give readers an immediate understanding of what drives these satirists to risk controversy and their careers for their fellow human beings. Dion provides wonderfully stark photographs to accompany each interview. The book ends with a special tribute to the late comic genius George Carlin. VERDICT In direct, insightful snapshots of the often misunderstood branch of comedy known as satire, those who follow in the footsteps of Mark Twain and Jonathan Swift reveal how they pay the price for their honesty and wit.—Richard A. Dickey, Washington, DC

Library Journal