Steve Martin

The Emmy Award-winning comedian shares the stories of his years in stand-up comedy in a humorous memoir that recalls a first job selling guidebooks at Disneyland, his early magic and comedy act, his years of honing his craft, and the sacrifice, discipline, and originality it took to take him to the top, set against the backdrop of the tumultuous 1960s and 1970s. 350,000 first printing.

A Comic's Life

Born Standing Up

Steve Martin has been an international star for over thirty years. Here, for the first time, he looks back to the beginning of his career and charmingly evokes the young man he once was. Born in Texas but raised in California, Steve was seduced early by the comedy shows that played on the radio when the family travelled back and forth to visit relatives. When Disneyland opened just a couple of miles away from home, an enchanted Steve was given his first chance to learn magic and entertain an audience. He describes how he noted the reaction to each joke in a ledger - 'big laugh' or 'quiet' - and assiduously studied the acts of colleagues, stealing jokes when needed. With superb detail, Steve recreates the world of small, dark clubs and the fear and exhilaration of standing in the spotlight. While a philosophy student at UCLA, he worked hard at local clubs honing his comedy and slowly attracting a following until he was picked up to write for TV. From here on, Steve Martin became an acclaimed comedian, packing out venues nationwide. One night, however, he noticed empty seats and realised he had 'reached the top of the rollercoaster'. BORN STANDING UP is a funny and riveting chronicle of how Steve Martin became the comedy genius we now know and is also a fascinating portrait of an era.

Marcy Pursell 

This memoir want quite what I expected. It was interesting, but not my favorite audiobook by a comedian. I think some of his jokes were over my head, or were used in previous generations, so they just didn't click for me.

Dana Kraft

Nice, quick read. Favorite quote is as follows: "I learned a lesson. It was easy to be great. Every entertainer has a night when everything is clicking. These nights are accidental and statistical: Like lucky cards in poker, you can count on them occurring over time. What was hard was to be good, consistently good, night after night, no matter what the abominable circumstances."

brendan sudol

main takeaways: success/wealth != happiness; it takes awhile to get really good at your craft (even if super talented)

Sarah Ryan

An interesting read that seems to prove the 10,000 hours of deliberate practice rule. Steve started working on his routine as a 10 year old working summers in Disneyland. By the time he became the biggest comedian of the day he had been working on his act for 20+ years. There is no such thing as an overnight success!

ANDREW BRYK

Impressive how descriptive Martin is of his time years ago as a rose through the comedy world. His resilience and effort in honing his craft can inspire those in any profession. There seemed to be no place for a Steve Martin type in the classic realm of comedy at his time but he was able to push through and succeed in his niche, creating a new style of comedy for the generation. Hard work pays off even though it may take years on end to get the results

Steven Ovadia

I don't know. I know people love this book, but I really didn't like it that much. Martin seems a little pretentious. At first I thought the book was a bit of a put-on, like what a comic who takes himself too seriously might write. 
Martin is a good, honest writer, though. That much comes across. But it's kind of weird that this comedy memoir takes itself so seriously. I mean, it's a fake arrow through the head. That joke is barely working on one level. Don't try to make it high art.

Cola

A must read for every comedian. This book inspired me to do great work and at the same time made me feel like I could be doing more.

Kerry Gibbons

Quick book. Steve Martin is always an entertaining writer. Heating his miraculous journey to the top is almost thrilling. This book is not a laugh-a-minute riot or anything, so don’t start it with that expectation.

Magdalene Lim

Never found him particularly funny. I only remember him acting in the Pink Panther. Much less did I know that he used to do stand-up! For a book about a comedian, it didn't make me laugh. 

What I liked about it was reading about his struggle up, the existentialism or "am I really gonna be doing this for the rest of my life" thoughts he had when he was doing so-so in his career. How hard he worked at his craft and the little nuggets of information about standup that he shares - not nearly enough to make anyone funny though.

Enfys J. Book

I've read a number of autobiographies written by comedians, and this one stands out from the rest by focusing more on the development of an unusual comedian's craft as set against the rapidly-changing world of comedy in the '60s and '70s, rather than dwelling on other aspects of his life. I really enjoyed hearing how his act evolved from his experiences working at Knott's Berry Farm, as a writer for the Smothers Brothers, touring during the end of the hippie era, and performing on talk shows. The book is a "tell-all" but not in the sense of gossip, and the narrative holds together as the story of how his comedy came to be what it was, rather than him. Martin clearly wants to keep a lot of his life private, and that's fine; the story would be bogged down if he'd added endless relationship and family stories.

Rebecca Light

I don't love autobiographies in the first place, but I do love Steve Martin so I always wanted to read this one. He's a good technical writer, but the desire for privacy that he alludes to in the content of the book has the counterproductive effect of making the book quite dull. He doesn't reveal much of his soul. His work as a comedian, actor, and musician is far more interesting than his account of it. I wish he would dig deeper. Shopgirl reveals a lot more about Steve Martin than this autobiography, but that's the magic of fiction for you. The best chapter was the one about his time working at Disneyland—of course.

I.m. ruzz

short, and avoids anything of real substance but still an interesting look into his mind and mentality. reading this book with a thought more on what he isn't saying, wasn't into, didn't do given his estimable fame in the late 70s tells you more about him than what he does say, or did do. Also, his meticulous attention to control and detail and precision are an interesting look inside the mind of a comedian, and also artist. I believe, for a time he uncovered the universal tide of art which extends to all things requiring mastery, and using his observant, thoughtful, almost OCD nature fostered it into some of the periods best comedic work. 

a short read at just slightly over 200 pages, you can chew through it in an afternoon.

Born Standing Up A Comic's Life

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