My Brother Was An Only Child

by Jack Douglas, Jack Paar (Introduction)

“My Brother Was an Only Child” was Jack Douglas’ very first humour book, having written for famous radio and television celebrities such as Jack Paar, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Jimmy Durante, as well as TV shows such as “Adventures of Harriet and Ozzie”, “The George Gobel Show”, and “Laugh-In”. It perfectly captures the sense of humour prevalent in this era and is as refreshing and side-splittingly funny now as it was then.

Genres: Humor

90 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1959

About the author

Jack Douglas (born Douglas Linley Crickard , July 17, 1908 - January 31, 1989) was an American comedy writer who wrote for radio and television while additionally writing a series of humor books.

On radio, he was a writer for Red Skelton, Bob Hope and the situation comedy, Tommy Riggs and Betty Lou (1938–46), in which Riggs switched back and forth from his natural baritone to the voice of a seven-year-old girl.

Continuing to write for Skelton and Hope as he moved into television, Douglas also wrote for Jimmy Durante, Bing Crosby, Woody Allen, Johnny Carson, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet , The Jack Paar Show , The George Gobel Show, and Laugh-In .

The producer of Laugh-In , George Schlatter, said, "He saw the world from a different angle than the rest of us. He was not only funny, he was nice." Douglas won an Emmy Award in 1954 for best-written comedy material.

He was best known for his frequent guest appearances on Jack Paar's shows of the late 1950s and early 1960s. On one such appearance, when Douglas was well established as a Paar guest, he was chastised by Paar for holding a stack of file cards with his jokes while talking with Paar.

When Paar returned to television in 1973 and was confronted by unexpected low ratings, he engaged Douglas to contribute monologue material by mail. One week, there was no mail from Douglas; but his next package contained a "Sorry I didn't send anything last week. I forgot you were on."

Douglas and his third wife Reiko, a Japanese-born singer and comedian, were regular guests on shows hosted by Merv Griffin, Dick Cavett, and Johnny Carson.

Reviews

[Rob Smith, Jr. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Never thought I'd repeat a review for a book. But my opinion of Douglas' 'Never Trust a Naked Bus Driver' is the same as my opinion of 'My Brother Was an Only Child'.

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I have been a Jack Douglas fan since I was in junior high school and first discovered his writings in the Orlando Public Library. It's been a long while since I've really read Douglas. I recently came across most all of his library during my travels to add to the entire library I've had for decades. That and other happenings in my life trajectories has me delving back into the humor genre and I'm starting by re-reading Douglas.

After reading this book I can't recall that I've read it before, but know I have. The reason I likely don't remember reading this book is how shallow it is to the bulk of Douglas' other books. The book seems a dumping ground for whatever Douglas scribbles at anyone time. Frankly, much of it comes across as being written during the cocktail hour.

Nearly the entire book are non-sequiturs a-plenty that leads to somebody killing someone else or themselves. It quickly gets predictable and less and less funny. For a short book there are a number of pages of just one line that really doesn't lead to much.

Again, I love Douglas's writings...just not this.

Bottom line: I don't recommend this book. 4 of ten points.

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this when I was a teenager, and it seemed funnier back then.

[Amadei · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s surreal and satirical and hilarious even if you don’t get all the dated references (which I definitely did not). Anyway, here’s a peanut; step on Mother.

[Angeles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uhm.

I really don't know what to say. Or where to begin. Or why I even read this book. I can't remember if someone recommended it, or if I did it on a list, or if it was referenced somewhere.

What I do know is that I'm thoroughly confused. And not entirely entertained. There were some good moments. Mostly I'm left wondering if this is all above my scale of intelligence, or if it's just that I have little imagination.

Whatever it is, I won't likely be reading it again. But I don't dissuade anyone else from trying.

[Jeremiah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm glad that this wasn't the first Jack Douglas book I read, because it may well have been the last, and that would have been a loss. It's a completely different style than most of his others, and I found it very forgettable.

However.

There are a couple of points where he takes advantage of the fact that it's a book in amusing and unexpected ways that I'd never seen before, and would literally be impossible in an e-book. For that reason, I'm happy to have it on my shelf.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a Jack Douglas fan for years, having started with his hilarious "Shut Up and Eat Your Snowshoes." This was his first book, and I found it in a used book staore a while ago. It is a gem! Don't expect anything deep, but don't expect anything easy either. This book will make you laugh out loud!

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a kid I thought this was the funniest thing I ever read. I still think of stuff in it every once in awhile and laugh to myself. He was the head writer for Jack Paar, I think, and his outlook was pretty silly.

[Matthew · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is dated and filled with tired clichés and bad jokes. That may be a little unfair because there is a chance that those clichés and dated jokes originated with this book. Despite this, it is no longer a book to recommend to anyone else.

[Marguerite Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

My father got me hooked on Jack Douglas. This book and 'Never Trust a Naked Bus Driver" are so funny.

[Kbreach · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this one hoping to find some decent selections for my high school son's speech season (humorous category). No luck. A few chuckles but nothing appropriate or memorable.

[KennyO · Rating 3 out of 5]

Refer to my review of The Jewish-Japanese Sex and Cookbook and How to Raise Wolves.

[Timothy McNeil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dated, very Jewish humorous stories mostly fall flat (though probably would be better when performed). The shorter gags are better.

[Phil · Rating 1 out of 5]

This likely was the (Steve Martin) 'Cruel Shoes' of its day. That said, its day was 1959. This book of humor is very dated, and if once funny has lost much over the years.

[Dkolacinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

To hell with Chapter 19. Every damn book you pick up has a Chapter 19.

[Joey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not funny.

[R.K. Cowles · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars

[LOVEROFBOOKS · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a little dated~1959, but it still made me laugh. A lot and out loud. There are some things I don't get, since I wasn't around in that era, but it's made me hungry for more of his books, so off I go...

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Non-sequiturs like the title abound, and the assumed cultural knowledge in the slim volume (breezed through in under two hours) is a passive condemnation of the current educational system. I made at least three dozen notes about references, people, and events to research.

[Ken Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was funny, but I was only 16.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a perfect mirror of my humor: surrealist, deadpan, and dated to somewhere around the mid to late 1950s

[Annette Bergman · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Brother was an only Child

I have laughed so much reading this nonsense. It is a classic in a field of its own. Author has a brilliant mind.