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Twenty Five Mystery Science Theater 3000 Films That Changed My Life In No Way Whatsoever
In 1990, Frank Conniff joined the staff of "Mystery Science Theater 3000". First he was hired as a writer, then he was called upon to play TV's Frank, the bumbling yet lovable Mad Scientist henchman in Deep 13. And then he was given the sacred duty of finding the films that would be riffed on the show. Thus, because of his actions, the world now knows of "Manos: The Hands of Fate", "Monster A-Go-Go", "The Brain That Wouldn't Die", "Teenagers from Outer Space", and many other cheesy movies that the world would just as soon not know about.
In these essays, TV's Frank focuses on twenty-five of the "Mystery Science Theater 3000" films he found and riffed with his fellow "MST3K" writers and cast mates. It tells the story of how a comedian who was lucky enough to work on a beloved Peabody Award winning TV show was transformed into a comedian who was lucky enough to work on a beloved Peabody Award winning TV show. It's a story that will stay with you for the rest of your life, if you happen to die just as you finish reading the book.
In these essays, TV's Frank focuses on twenty-five of the "Mystery Science Theater 3000" films he found and riffed with his fellow "MST3K" writers and cast mates. It tells the story of how a comedian who was lucky enough to work on a beloved Peabody Award winning TV show was transformed into a comedian who was lucky enough to work on a beloved Peabody Award winning TV show. It's a story that will stay with you for the rest of your life, if you happen to die just as you finish reading the book.
104 pages, Paperback
First published August 15, 2016
57 people are currently reading
227 people want to read
About the author
Frank Conniff
17 books103 followersFrank Conniff is a comedy writer and performer who began his TV career writing for the Peabody Award winning Comedy Central series Mystery Science Theater 3000, where he also played TV's Frank, the bumbling yet lovable mad scientist sidekick. He then went on to be a writer, producer and actor on the ABC TV series Sabrina the Teenage Witch and he was a writer and producer on The Drew Carey Show on ABC, The New Tom Green Show on MTV, and the satirical series O2BE on the Oxygen Network, where he was also a cast member. He was head writer of the animated Nickelodeon series Invader Zim, and also was a writer and producer for the Air America Radio network, where he provided material for on-air personalities Rachel Maddow, Marc Maron, Lizz Winstead, Al Franken, Janeane Garofalo, and Randi Rhodes. He was a writer and performer on Viewpoint with John Fugelsang on Current TV, and on Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell on the FXX network, and he also writes and performs on The Jimmy Dore Show and appeared regularly on Tell Me Everything with John Fugelsang on the SiriusXM Insight channel. He is the writer and star of a live stage show, Cartoon Dump, and he writes, produces and directs original musical comedy radio plays for his podcast, Podhouse 90. He is currently touring the country with Trace Beaulieu in a live movie-riffing show, The Mads Are Back, and podcasting regularly on Mother May I Podcast with Frank & Irene.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews
March 23, 2019
Technically it's about a 3.5, but if you're the type of individual, who has, say, spent countless hours watching and re-watching MST3K episodes on youtube, then the odds are pretty decent you'll enjoy it.
June 1, 2021
Here's the thing: I came to this book thinking - hoping - that there'd be some behind-the-scenes stuff on the making of MST3K. Even though the years of my deep obsession with it seem to be over and I've become more of a dabbler, the period of my life when I was more into it than almost anything stick with me. When I gain new over-arching interests, I don't give up on the old ones. Some head into the background and some just continue to insist themselves on my life. I didn't stop being into cheese because tiki swooped in, Blitzen Trapper didn't make me forget Springsteen, and Ann Patchett could never usurp Stephen King.
But when you focus on a thing you like, even if you move on and develop new interests, that thing has a tendency to stick in your brain like a fly in amber. You position it at a time and place in your life when it had the most meaning, and in a lot of ways, it's always that. Frank Coniff, aka TV's Frank, was a big part of what made MST3K important for me, and only part of that was because I was extremely attracted to him at the time. So maybe it stands to reason that I assumed this book was going to be Conniff's fond, in-depth memories of all the times they had putting together this show that helped me stay sane during my fringe years.
What I realized is something I've known all along about creative people and the art they make: they don't stay mired in it as long as the people who love it do. In this slim book of essays, Conniff uses his time at MST3K and the movies they riffed as a springboard to talk about other stuff: obscure pop culture, some politics, and, most revealingly, himself. While he doesn't go too in-depth, Conniff takes some time out of riffing on things to talk about his early years of drug and alcohol dependence, and how that profoundly affected him. There's one part near the end when he confesses that he wishes he could have enjoyed TV cop shows of the 70s when they were first on, but that he was too busy fucking up his life with addiction at the time. That's such a specific lament, and it's worth the price of this book.
But when you focus on a thing you like, even if you move on and develop new interests, that thing has a tendency to stick in your brain like a fly in amber. You position it at a time and place in your life when it had the most meaning, and in a lot of ways, it's always that. Frank Coniff, aka TV's Frank, was a big part of what made MST3K important for me, and only part of that was because I was extremely attracted to him at the time. So maybe it stands to reason that I assumed this book was going to be Conniff's fond, in-depth memories of all the times they had putting together this show that helped me stay sane during my fringe years.
What I realized is something I've known all along about creative people and the art they make: they don't stay mired in it as long as the people who love it do. In this slim book of essays, Conniff uses his time at MST3K and the movies they riffed as a springboard to talk about other stuff: obscure pop culture, some politics, and, most revealingly, himself. While he doesn't go too in-depth, Conniff takes some time out of riffing on things to talk about his early years of drug and alcohol dependence, and how that profoundly affected him. There's one part near the end when he confesses that he wishes he could have enjoyed TV cop shows of the 70s when they were first on, but that he was too busy fucking up his life with addiction at the time. That's such a specific lament, and it's worth the price of this book.
November 25, 2016
I've read every book written from the cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000--which don't pop into existence as much as they used to--so of course I had to read Frank Conniff's. That said, if you're looking for insight into MST3K, or their movie selections in general, you might want to look elsewhere. This collection of 25 essays uses 25 MST3K episodes as springboard into somewhat related topics, many of them political. It's a light, funny read, but some of it does seem undercooked; Mike Nelson's own collection of essays (Mind Over Matters) made for a much more focused collection of essays. Still, Frank has his own distinct point of view, and if you're an MST3K fan, this book is worthwhile enough to burn off an afternoon.
August 30, 2016
Extremely funny, but poorly edited.
July 7, 2018
Frank Conniff spent 5 years appearing on Mystery Science Theater 3000* picking the films and appearing on the show as TV's Frank. If you look at the cover illustration, you'll be like, "Oh, THAT guy." If you think that sounds like a kickass job, you are right.
The other reviewers are correct: I wish this book had more anecdotes about MST3K or the movies they watched. I didn't entirely mind though. Parts of the book have their moments of obviousness (all new batches of young people are equally annoying to each subsequent batch of old people, Trump is terrifying), but Coniff is also witty, profane and charming. These are qualities I can get behind.
(It also has some typo issues, the kind a basic word processing spell check should have caught. Since other reviews mention it, I'll just say yes there are typos that even a casual reader will notice. But unless you are completely unable to get past such things, you should still be able to read and enjoy this.)
I did like the essays that discussed the movies or MST3K trivia the best (some go off on a completely unrelated tangent, with mixed results), but even the diversions can be charming: Bride of the Monster becomes an essay on Ed Wood's outsider art (less Conniff sound delusional here, he fully acknowledges the fact that Wood is a terrible filmmaker), I Accuse my Parents turns into a sweet homage to his late mother.
Conniff was with MST3K during its golden years, so the book includes some of their greatest hits like Manos: The Hands of Fate, Eegah! and (YESSSS!!) Mitchell. I really wished he would have delved into how unhappy Joe Don Baker was about that film getting the riff treatment, but I was even more curious about what it's like to have Buford Pusser himself pissed at you.
*Kids, back in the 90's there was an amazing show on Comedy Central where people made fun of bad movies while other people at home watched them watching and making fun of bad movies. Maybe this sounds dumb and pointless, but the millennial who sits next to me at work spends hours upon hours watching YouTube videos of someone else playing video games which seems to me even more dumb and pointless. Anyways, some of MST3K is available via your local streaming outlets, and some of it is on the YouTube. So, you should check it out. Especially if you enjoy a good Harold Pinter reference.
The other reviewers are correct: I wish this book had more anecdotes about MST3K or the movies they watched. I didn't entirely mind though. Parts of the book have their moments of obviousness (all new batches of young people are equally annoying to each subsequent batch of old people, Trump is terrifying), but Coniff is also witty, profane and charming. These are qualities I can get behind.
(It also has some typo issues, the kind a basic word processing spell check should have caught. Since other reviews mention it, I'll just say yes there are typos that even a casual reader will notice. But unless you are completely unable to get past such things, you should still be able to read and enjoy this.)
I did like the essays that discussed the movies or MST3K trivia the best (some go off on a completely unrelated tangent, with mixed results), but even the diversions can be charming: Bride of the Monster becomes an essay on Ed Wood's outsider art (less Conniff sound delusional here, he fully acknowledges the fact that Wood is a terrible filmmaker), I Accuse my Parents turns into a sweet homage to his late mother.
Conniff was with MST3K during its golden years, so the book includes some of their greatest hits like Manos: The Hands of Fate, Eegah! and (YESSSS!!) Mitchell. I really wished he would have delved into how unhappy Joe Don Baker was about that film getting the riff treatment, but I was even more curious about what it's like to have Buford Pusser himself pissed at you.
*Kids, back in the 90's there was an amazing show on Comedy Central where people made fun of bad movies while other people at home watched them watching and making fun of bad movies. Maybe this sounds dumb and pointless, but the millennial who sits next to me at work spends hours upon hours watching YouTube videos of someone else playing video games which seems to me even more dumb and pointless. Anyways, some of MST3K is available via your local streaming outlets, and some of it is on the YouTube. So, you should check it out. Especially if you enjoy a good Harold Pinter reference.
February 23, 2024
I have been watching MST3K since 1994 and I watched Laserblast, their last episode on Comedy Central, convinced it would not be reborn. But is has and the show remains a classic. I was excited to read this, hoping for some wit and perspective from one of my favorite cast members. Instead, and despite a few promising entries, I got Progressive political essays, heavy handed in the way that reminded me of Christian rock, but for the left and with a bit more wit. Conniff checks all the contemporary boxes. Jokes about white people "stealing" music? Check. Praise for Millennials as "open and tolerant?" Check (I am a millennial and I laughed hard at that piece of bullshit). Jokes about Republicans? Check. Bashing the past and portraying it as oppressive? Semi-check, for he does have some humor on this point and these are some of the times where I laughed. Of course he would though. He lived in the past, and familiarity breeds nuance.
This could have been a great book. Instead, it will be more dated than his many obscure cultural references. Indeed, the leftism portrayed here is more about gender and race, the leftist talking points of today, instead of economics. Kudos though to Conniff for not joining many of the left in the Democratic Party's renewed love of hawkish policies.
This could have been a great book. Instead, it will be more dated than his many obscure cultural references. Indeed, the leftism portrayed here is more about gender and race, the leftist talking points of today, instead of economics. Kudos though to Conniff for not joining many of the left in the Democratic Party's renewed love of hawkish policies.
March 28, 2017
Know going in: this is not a memoir so holding it to the standards of a memoir is unfair to the book and its author.
What is it then? It's a list, with details of why each item is listed filling out the book. It's not a "best of" or "worst of" list. It's simply a list of what Conniff considers to be the MST3k films that stand out in his mind for one reason or another.
There are indeed tidbits about Conniff's experiences on and off the MST3k set, enough that I'd love his next work to be the memoir some reviewers wish this was. But if you let this book be what it is, you'll like it. It's like sitting down with TV's Frank and having a chat. And when he's done talking, he's done and that's it.
What is it then? It's a list, with details of why each item is listed filling out the book. It's not a "best of" or "worst of" list. It's simply a list of what Conniff considers to be the MST3k films that stand out in his mind for one reason or another.
There are indeed tidbits about Conniff's experiences on and off the MST3k set, enough that I'd love his next work to be the memoir some reviewers wish this was. But if you let this book be what it is, you'll like it. It's like sitting down with TV's Frank and having a chat. And when he's done talking, he's done and that's it.
January 5, 2022
I wanted to like this book. I love Frank. I love mystery science theater 3000. I love Rifftrax. I love cheesy movies. I really thought this was going to be Frank's twisted take on 25 of the worst/best MST 3000k films. Instead it was just a bunch of rambling thoughts on the history of cinema and life in general. While I learned a lot about Frank, I didn't really learn about these films and found myself fairly bored. I read something and thought, "Hmm...that's supposed to be funny," but it fell flat for me. But now that I think about it, I don't think I've found any of the books written by the MST 3000k crew funny at all.
October 23, 2025
HE GOT MOVIE SIGN! a review of Twenty Five Mystery Science Theater 3000 Films That Changed My Life In No Way Whatsoever (Paperback)
I greatly enjoyed this book. Being an MST3K fan from its start (and thus being old enough to get most of the references), and realizing that Frank Conniff was one of the key reasons for that love, this book didn't have to win me over at all.
First, I should point out that the book is also available as an audiobook, read by Frank himself, from DUMB INDUSTRIES (HERE). It's definitely worth getting the audiobook, as you get to hear Frank deliver his humorous writing exactly as intended. And it's a deal at the price!
Second, I thought I'd say a few things about what this book ISN'T. I actually re-watched all 25 episodes noted here, listening to the relevant chapter afterwards. So, as to what the book isn't - it isn't really about, in any detail, the actual movies themselves. Oh sure, you may learn a few things about them, but the purpose isn't to present some kind of detailed history of the film. Also (and perhaps more surprisingly) the book is not really about the MST3K writers/actors and why each movie was chosen, their reactions to it, what they liked or disliked. Yes, you do get some of that in passing (and on a few occasions in detail when Frank wants to makes a point about the director) but it might be easy to think that's what the purpose of this book is and you'd be wrong.
What each chapter of this book IS is a chance for Frank to write a humorous comedy essay on some subject connected to the film. Sometimes, it's disabusing you of a certain viewpoint about the film (a heartfelt argument for the dedication and love of cinema shown by Ed Wood in the chapter on BRIDE OF THE MONSTER, a slightly bemused & befuddled re-estimate of the fact that parts of MANOS: THE HANDS OF FATE work pretty damn well! I would note here that you owe it to yourself to track down the MADS ARE BACK version of the film that Frank and Trace Beaulieu - Dr. Forrester - riff on, it looks amazing in its restoration!), sometimes it's just taking an aspect of popular culture and running with it (PLANET OF THE APES as a cultural phenomena when discussing TIME OF THE APES, the cycle of Lassie/Benji film when discussing THE PAINTED HILLS), or having an actual experience of seeing the film as a child (SANTA CLAUS CONQUERS THE MARTIANS), or adjudging just how bad someone's work is (Director Coleman Francis comes in for a drubbing on RED ZONE: CUBA).
I particularly liked the essay that followed DADDY-O, which was about how every young generation thinks it's the hot shit, and the next generation does as well, ad infinitum, and the one regarding I ACCUSE MY PARENTS (which is about Frank's amazing parents). And, just in case you're wondering, he doesn't shy away from the truth about his own foibles and failings (in his youth he was a dedicated alcoholic and drug abuser before friends and family intervened and shipped him out to the Midwest where he dried-out, took up stand-up, and ended up with the most perfect job in the world for a guy like him).
I actually love Frank Conniff. I'm very happy he has survived and triumphed over his demons. He seems like a kind, level-headed guy and I'd love to spend an afternoon talking with him. This book may be the closest I'll ever get to that.
I greatly enjoyed this book. Being an MST3K fan from its start (and thus being old enough to get most of the references), and realizing that Frank Conniff was one of the key reasons for that love, this book didn't have to win me over at all.
First, I should point out that the book is also available as an audiobook, read by Frank himself, from DUMB INDUSTRIES (HERE). It's definitely worth getting the audiobook, as you get to hear Frank deliver his humorous writing exactly as intended. And it's a deal at the price!
Second, I thought I'd say a few things about what this book ISN'T. I actually re-watched all 25 episodes noted here, listening to the relevant chapter afterwards. So, as to what the book isn't - it isn't really about, in any detail, the actual movies themselves. Oh sure, you may learn a few things about them, but the purpose isn't to present some kind of detailed history of the film. Also (and perhaps more surprisingly) the book is not really about the MST3K writers/actors and why each movie was chosen, their reactions to it, what they liked or disliked. Yes, you do get some of that in passing (and on a few occasions in detail when Frank wants to makes a point about the director) but it might be easy to think that's what the purpose of this book is and you'd be wrong.
What each chapter of this book IS is a chance for Frank to write a humorous comedy essay on some subject connected to the film. Sometimes, it's disabusing you of a certain viewpoint about the film (a heartfelt argument for the dedication and love of cinema shown by Ed Wood in the chapter on BRIDE OF THE MONSTER, a slightly bemused & befuddled re-estimate of the fact that parts of MANOS: THE HANDS OF FATE work pretty damn well! I would note here that you owe it to yourself to track down the MADS ARE BACK version of the film that Frank and Trace Beaulieu - Dr. Forrester - riff on, it looks amazing in its restoration!), sometimes it's just taking an aspect of popular culture and running with it (PLANET OF THE APES as a cultural phenomena when discussing TIME OF THE APES, the cycle of Lassie/Benji film when discussing THE PAINTED HILLS), or having an actual experience of seeing the film as a child (SANTA CLAUS CONQUERS THE MARTIANS), or adjudging just how bad someone's work is (Director Coleman Francis comes in for a drubbing on RED ZONE: CUBA).
I particularly liked the essay that followed DADDY-O, which was about how every young generation thinks it's the hot shit, and the next generation does as well, ad infinitum, and the one regarding I ACCUSE MY PARENTS (which is about Frank's amazing parents). And, just in case you're wondering, he doesn't shy away from the truth about his own foibles and failings (in his youth he was a dedicated alcoholic and drug abuser before friends and family intervened and shipped him out to the Midwest where he dried-out, took up stand-up, and ended up with the most perfect job in the world for a guy like him).
I actually love Frank Conniff. I'm very happy he has survived and triumphed over his demons. He seems like a kind, level-headed guy and I'd love to spend an afternoon talking with him. This book may be the closest I'll ever get to that.
June 14, 2019
I really, really wanted to like this book, but was disappointed all around. First of all, it's obscenely short, clocking in a just over a 100 pages, making it shorter than a Bathroom Reader book. Normally I wouldn't mind reading a short book, except I paid 10 bucks for this one, which is upsetting when one considers how many meatier books are available for the same price *new*.
Okay, so it's too short, but is it *good*? My answer to that is a firm "meh". I love Frank Conniff, and I'm a diehard MST3K fan, which is the only reason I read this book. However, I'm not really sure what this book is supposed to be. Each chapter covers a movie that was famously featured on MST3K, which Frank then talks about for maybe a paragraph being going on a tangent about another subject vaguely related to the movie. That's fine, but none of these feel particularly fleshed out and Frank relies on so many outdated references for humor he polices himself for it at the end of each chapter, explaining the more esoteric references. Not that I'm accusing Conniff of wrongdoing, but everything about this book feels like a blatant cash grab. Had it been anyone else who wrote this, I would have assumed the thought process to be: "Hoo boy, I gotta make rent. Here, lemme toss out a MST3K book the length of a Scientology pamphlet real quick and my fans will pay it."
In the end I didn't walk away from this book with any more knowledge of the inner workings of MST3K, or the legacy of these movies, than I had already gleaned by reading The Amazing Colossal Mystery Science Theather 3000 Episode Guide.
Okay, so it's too short, but is it *good*? My answer to that is a firm "meh". I love Frank Conniff, and I'm a diehard MST3K fan, which is the only reason I read this book. However, I'm not really sure what this book is supposed to be. Each chapter covers a movie that was famously featured on MST3K, which Frank then talks about for maybe a paragraph being going on a tangent about another subject vaguely related to the movie. That's fine, but none of these feel particularly fleshed out and Frank relies on so many outdated references for humor he polices himself for it at the end of each chapter, explaining the more esoteric references. Not that I'm accusing Conniff of wrongdoing, but everything about this book feels like a blatant cash grab. Had it been anyone else who wrote this, I would have assumed the thought process to be: "Hoo boy, I gotta make rent. Here, lemme toss out a MST3K book the length of a Scientology pamphlet real quick and my fans will pay it."
In the end I didn't walk away from this book with any more knowledge of the inner workings of MST3K, or the legacy of these movies, than I had already gleaned by reading The Amazing Colossal Mystery Science Theather 3000 Episode Guide.
September 21, 2016
A big letdown for a variety of reasons - the primary one being Frank's slapdash approach to his topic. Editing doesn't exist for both grammar and clarity, and what we get reads like a quick first draft knocked out over a weekend. True, the continual digressions that occur instead of actually discussing the movies is often amusing, but something a bit more coherent was expected. I suppose this type of quickie project exists for self-publishing via POD (Print on Demand), and while I don't regret dropping five bucks for some hearty laughs ... ultimately, I have to file this under the label of disappointing.
October 26, 2016
I LOVED this book! As a fan of MST3K in my youth, I remember watching this show. This book bought back great memories. It is a short/easy read, but it took me a while to finish, because I went to You Tube and watched the episodes Frank talks about in his book. It made the book more enjoyable for me and I laughed so much!!! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves comedy & wants a fun read!
January 9, 2017
This one is tough for me. I think I finished it because I love MST3K and adore TV's Frank. But it's a bit rambling and off-topic. If you pick this one up thinking you might get some insight into the back stage workings of the MST3K crew, you're going to be disappointed. This is Frank riffing about riffing movies. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
April 27, 2019
If you're looking for a fun recap of MST3K with some behind-the-scenes stories you will get almost none of that. What you will get instead is Frank riffing on titles for movies he outright tells you he cannot remember nor does he care to revisit.
May 28, 2019
If you aren't an MST3K fan why are you here? Seriously?
It might be easier to describe this book by what it isn't that what it is. It isn't a collection of movie reviews or even descriptions. It isn't a memoir about the wacky times in the writers room. And it isn't an autobiography although there are autobiographical parts.
What is mostly is, is a collection of stream of consciousness essays triggered by his recollection of 25 awful mvies he watched for his job.
I am fairly sure that I have seen at least 80% of the films, some multiple times. But that really doesn't make the book any better. You either like what Frank says or you don't.
I do disagree with his despair over Manos: The Hands Of Fate. Don't get me wrong Manos is a terrible film, absurd film, bad film but it was shot for almost no money using a crappy camera and loaded with problems. It makes Ed Wood look like Tim Burton. However when you consider films like Gigli that had a budget of millions of dollars, academy award winners, grammy winner and sucked donkey balls is Manos really that bad?
It might be easier to describe this book by what it isn't that what it is. It isn't a collection of movie reviews or even descriptions. It isn't a memoir about the wacky times in the writers room. And it isn't an autobiography although there are autobiographical parts.
What is mostly is, is a collection of stream of consciousness essays triggered by his recollection of 25 awful mvies he watched for his job.
I am fairly sure that I have seen at least 80% of the films, some multiple times. But that really doesn't make the book any better. You either like what Frank says or you don't.
I do disagree with his despair over Manos: The Hands Of Fate. Don't get me wrong Manos is a terrible film, absurd film, bad film but it was shot for almost no money using a crappy camera and loaded with problems. It makes Ed Wood look like Tim Burton. However when you consider films like Gigli that had a budget of millions of dollars, academy award winners, grammy winner and sucked donkey balls is Manos really that bad?
September 20, 2018
Loved it. Wish it had been longer.
May 27, 2019
Outside of the fact Frank Conniff was part of MST3K and each chapter mentions an episode of MST3K, this book has absolutely nothing to do with MST3K. It's great anyway
September 5, 2016
Frank's trademark dry humor is on full display here and in good form. He is still cracking wise after all these years. What let me down is that there isn't enough of it, and the side trails and digressions take us far from the films that "changed his life in no way whatsoever" to very tangential topics. I was hoping for a bit more of him lashing back at these cinematic pain sticks or finding the simple joy in a rainbow after surviving watching one of these stinkers 6 times in a week. Instead we get musings about pop culture that only vaguely intersect with the subject matter at hand, and occasionally a completely fictitious pop culture reference that the audience is then let in on the joke after the fact, at the end of the chapter. Not what I was expecting, and not what I was wanting.
I don't know if the print version fared better, but the Kindle version was very poorly edited. Numerous words ran together and there were several glaring typos (Jean Claude Van Damn, for example). This detracted from my enjoyment of the book.
Worth a read for anyone who loves Frank Conniff or MST3K, but be warned that it's not quite what I thought it would be.
I don't know if the print version fared better, but the Kindle version was very poorly edited. Numerous words ran together and there were several glaring typos (Jean Claude Van Damn, for example). This detracted from my enjoyment of the book.
Worth a read for anyone who loves Frank Conniff or MST3K, but be warned that it's not quite what I thought it would be.
August 19, 2016
I love Frank, like I love all of those guys, and I think I laughed out loud at least once in each essay (unsurprisingly, Frank knows his audience), but the book had a bunch of typos, which always bums me out. You're better than that, Frank, I know you are.
Still, thanks for the laughs, in this book, on Twitter, the podcasts, and MST. Like Rick from Pod People, you're the best!
Still, thanks for the laughs, in this book, on Twitter, the podcasts, and MST. Like Rick from Pod People, you're the best!
Read
November 18, 2016It was a great read. Funny and great obscure references. It made my long flight bearable.
November 12, 2025
It's TV's Frank!
I am a gigantic fan of this show, especially the seasons that featured TV's Frank (2 through 6), and I even listened to that “Movie Sign with the Mads” podcast, which was how I learned of this book. I happened to mention this to a co-worker, who then up and bought it for me for my birthday this year.
Frank is on for the entire book, loading it with jokes from cover to cover. We learn about him, his childhood, his struggles with drugs, and how rehab led him to the Midwest and eventually MST3K. About the 25 episodes we do not learn a whole lot that is new, but these are mostly a springboard to talk about other things anyhow. He does go into some detail about how he joined the show and what the process was early on, however.
There's a kind of footnote at the end of each segment, “The FBI Obscure Reference Task Force” to explain whichever obscure reference happens to have been in that one. I wasn't around in the 60s and 70s, but I happened to get a lot of the references. If that's one thing MST3K is legitimately great for, it makes you look up all kinds of random stuff, because the good episodes are loaded with references!
The book is not long, and it is of a highly segmented nature, so there's no need to inhale it all in one sitting. Frank wrote it in 2016, and many of the references are more pertinent to the 20th century, which is just fine by me.
It is not a super detailed breakdown of each movie or the process with each, but there are so many books on this show by now, so this one did not need to be that.
If I wanted to nitpick, there are a couple of small things. The formatting leaves the right side of the page uneven, the book is very thin so the text on the spine could never be read at a distance (alright, it's print on demand, I get it). Also, at one point Frank confuses “The Lost Continent” with “King Dinosaur”, but the dude has a lot of movies to juggle.
Anyhow, we go from “Sidehackers” to “Red Zone Cuba”, and it goes pretty damn well.
November 25, 2018
I did enjoy this book, but it left me wishing for more. The essays are a little disjointed. I read a review or two before I bought the book, so I was forewarned that most of the content had a tenuous relationship to the movies that Conniff used as a basis to discuss just about whatever came to his mind. I completely understand that the vast majority of the audience for a book by this author are going to find it based on his connect to MST3K, so it only makes sense for him to use MST3K to lure readers, but then the reader should be able to expect a little more on the subject. As it stands, the book is a little bit MST3K memoir, a little bit autobiographical memoir, a little bit social commentary, and a whole lot of obscure movie and TV reference and discussion. None of this I minded, and Conniff is clever and amusing, but after the first few essays, the abrupt changes in topic and direction lost its appeal. I've followed Conniff on social media before and I was aware that he is unapologetically political and liberal, and I like that, but this book should have either stuck to the promise that it focused more on MST3K, or he should have written a full fledged memoir, or designed a collection of essays that highlighted his own funny and cynical view on the world, but the attempt to make this book a little bit of everything in just over a hundred pages falls short of its promise.
January 18, 2022
If you are expecting to read breakdowns and reviews of the films in this book by Frank, you are going to be disappointed. On the other hand, if you are willing to allow Conniff to use these films as a point of reference to talk about other films, pop culture, politics and his life you'll be more than satisfied.
Each chapter is titled for a particular bad movie that were among those Frank chose for MST-3K treatment. He'll usually mention the director and sometimes a star, the producer or writer will be listed. Sometimes it's barely that and the title is followed by the first joking reference.
In a way, this is Conniff's biography, as he talks about his childhood, his parents and even his addiction. While he makes fun of just about everyone and everything in the entertainment industry, he doesn't spare himself at all.
Some of his references are pretty obscure and I even was proud of myself every time I would recognize the person or film he would reference. Watching hours of bad films, whether along with Joel, Michael and the 'bots, or just on my one finally seemed to pay off.
Each chapter is titled for a particular bad movie that were among those Frank chose for MST-3K treatment. He'll usually mention the director and sometimes a star, the producer or writer will be listed. Sometimes it's barely that and the title is followed by the first joking reference.
In a way, this is Conniff's biography, as he talks about his childhood, his parents and even his addiction. While he makes fun of just about everyone and everything in the entertainment industry, he doesn't spare himself at all.
Some of his references are pretty obscure and I even was proud of myself every time I would recognize the person or film he would reference. Watching hours of bad films, whether along with Joel, Michael and the 'bots, or just on my one finally seemed to pay off.
February 8, 2019
Let me be frank about Frank('s book).
First, Frank! Allow me to be your editor. This needed a better grammar, spelling, and writing sweep. There were many errors.
Second, this book is a 4-star book ONLY for people who know and love the world of MST3K. If you don't know/don't care about the cult of MSTies, do not read this book. (You should care, though, because it's the best show ever.)
Third, I am a MSTie. Reading things from the writers/cast of the show makes me happy. The show means so much to me, and I love feeling like the creators still care about what they gave to their audience. It becomes comfort reading, and I liked this book. I think it was a good idea to keep it short, and it's a nice book to pick up and read in bits and pieces.
It was enjoyed.
First, Frank! Allow me to be your editor. This needed a better grammar, spelling, and writing sweep. There were many errors.
Second, this book is a 4-star book ONLY for people who know and love the world of MST3K. If you don't know/don't care about the cult of MSTies, do not read this book. (You should care, though, because it's the best show ever.)
Third, I am a MSTie. Reading things from the writers/cast of the show makes me happy. The show means so much to me, and I love feeling like the creators still care about what they gave to their audience. It becomes comfort reading, and I liked this book. I think it was a good idea to keep it short, and it's a nice book to pick up and read in bits and pieces.
It was enjoyed.
October 3, 2019
OK, it’s not really about the movies. The movie title is just a springboard for a Dave Barry-like essay/rant about some topic triggered (in Conniff’s mind) by the movie. It’s hilarious. Conniff displays a brilliant wit and style that belies the mopey character he played on MST3K. There is a bit of trivia about the show here and there, and some background bits about the movie or about a totally unrelated movie, but it’s all enjoyable. If you have a sense of the absurd, if you like Dave Barry, S. J. Perelman, Monty Python, or Woody Allen (before his fall), you’ll like this. My wife and I met Frank Conniff recently along with Trace Beaulieu during their 'Mads' tour where they riffed on THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US live at a local theater. We even got a T-shirt.
June 19, 2018
While I'm not a fan of the Joel saga of MST3k, I do love Frank Conniff as "TV's Frank". In The MST3k Reunion episode from Rifftrax I loved his riffs. Frank's writing is top notch and in this book you get a quick book of his comedy framed around 25 films that was done in MST3k. You learn a bit about the behind-the-scenes and the beginning of MST3k but most of the book is Frank's observations on his life and the world around him.
I laughed out loud in this book. It was a fun, quick read.
I laughed out loud in this book. It was a fun, quick read.
September 16, 2018
4.5 stars; great read from one of the giants of MST3K, and one half of the brilliance that is The Mads. Part MST3K retrospective, part biographical essays, this book consists of a series of essays on various interesting topics relating to pop culture, television and entertainment history, politics, and the human condition. Funny and satirical, Conniff's quick wit and biting humor make this a must read.
May 14, 2017
Some amazing political jokes and commentary on the wrongheadedness of middle age and up folks scoffing at hipsters and millennials more broadly. I guess I'm not surprised I'd find alignments with someone who spent his youth watching tv and movies bad and good and the aspired to work with those media.
January 9, 2021
Technically a 3.5 star. It was a fun read but slightly misleading. I thought this would have more insight and behind the scenes of MST3K but in reality it was more of a list of movies Frank remembers from the show. While entertaining to read Frank can go way off topic. There were times when I had to go back a few pages to see what movie he was originally talking about.
November 18, 2024
If you like Frank Conniff's humor, you will like this book. It's a quick read, 25 short essays. It is a bit autobiographical, a bit nostalgic, and quite a lot funny. As other reviewers have pointed out, Frank uses MST3k movies as a starting place to write about different subjects with an emphasis on obscure film, TV and cultural references. A fun read.
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