Nobody's Fool: The Lives of Danny Kaye

by Martin Gottfried

A detailed portrait of a paradoxical entertainer explores his rise from the streets of Brooklyn, his turbulent marriage, and the claims about his homosexuality.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1994

About the author

Martin Gottfried,was a New York drama critic for over forty years and the author of five biographies and two books of theater criticism.

Gottfried graduated from Columbia College in New York City in 1959,and attended Columbia Law School for three semesters, next spending one year with U.S. Army Military Intelligence.Gottfried began his writing career as the classical music critic for The Village Voice, doubling as an off-Broadway reviewer for Women's Wear Daily, a position that made him the youngest member of the New York Drama Critics Circle in the organization's history.

Winner of the George Jean Nathan Award for Dramatic Criticism and recipient of two Rockefeller Foundation Fellowships, Martin Gottfried was the chief dramatic critic for the New York Post and Saturday Review. He is the author of A Theater Divided, Jed Harris: The Curse of Genius, All His Jazz: The Life and Death of Bob Fosse, Balancing Act: The Authorized Biography of Angela Lansbury and Nobody’s Fool: The Lives of Danny Kaye.

Reviews

[Brendan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes reading a biography about a star you really love can be hard. Sometimes it is better not to know more about people you idolize.

[K B · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up.

If you want extremely well researched material about Kaye’s work (along with some excellent anecdotes) read Koenig’s book King of Jesters. If you want more of an actual biography, this is the way to go, but do beware of Gottfried’s constant pushing of his thesis of Danny as “unknowable” and his maddening insistence on speculation and armchair psychology, particularly when it comes to the Kaye/Fine marriage 🙄 He also has a few bewildering passages re: Danny’s Jewishness that led me to pencil “wtf” in the margins.

As for complaints that Gottfried paints an overwhelmingly negative portrait of his subject, I don’t find that to be true. While the author certainly seems to relish the anecdotes that feature Kaye’s nastiness, I think he’s pretty fair. We’d all like to think that Danny was warm and lovely all the time, but he wasn’t a good guy or a bad guy, he was just an introverted guy in showbiz with big talent and mood swings to match (I’d love to catch him on an upswing kinda day, like when he’d decide to serve plane passengers on whatever flight he was on, just for fun, and I certainly wouldn’t want to work for him during his TV years). Sounds like he became more unhappy and asshole-ish towards the end, which is too bad, but by Gottfried AND Koenig’s account, Kaye wasn’t at his best when he was bored or insecure, and aging’ll do that to a performer.

One thing that really bugs me about BOTH Gottfried and Koenig is their obvious disdain for Sylvia Fine. Koenig obviously tries to elevate his hot takes from Gottfried’s petty style, but he twice refers to her as “hurricane Sylvia.” Obviously Fine had just as many issues going on as her husband and their marriage was definitely a… fascinating and complex arrangement, but she was a genius in her own right and she was brave enough to assert herself in Hollywood (most often on behalf of Danny), which could be a treacherous place for women and still is. By now we all know when women in showbiz are dubbed “controlling” or “difficult” it likely means she’s committed the crime of expressing an opinion. Anyway, I like Sylvia.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming off of watching White Christmas several times over the holidays, I had to follow up Bing Crosby's autobiography with a biography on Danny Kaye. Nobody's Fool seemed to be well researched as it was filled with detail and quotes about this classic comedic performer. Growing up, my sisters and I watched several Kaye movies and came to appreciate his goofiness. Kaye's journey to leading man was certainly worth a read. I liked reading about Kaye's journey to the Hollywood icon I know him as.

He definitely paid his dues in show business. At the beginning of his career, he grasped on to any small part in any type of show. It was that desperation that all but forced Kaye to excel as a singer, dancer, comedian, and dramatic actor. The movies I know Kaye best for have him goofing around, so I was surprised that he was a ladies man. And even more surprised that he had an affair with Eve Arden! They discussed leaving their spouses for each other, and Arden actually did, but Kaye couldn't bring himself to leave his wife.

I was also stunned by how popular he was! He was one of the top earning actor in several mediums. He gave sold out performances in London (several times to the royal family). He had a radio show, and also appeared on Broadway. He was offered many movie roles that were tailored to him and his performing style. Yet, the author seemed to hate him. The author spent a lot of time discussing whether Kaye was homosexual and this went on and on throughout the book. It was addressed negatively, which made me irritated. I also didn't feel that the constant reference to Kaye being Jewish were necessary or relevant. The author opined that Kaye flopped in movies because he looked Jewish and acted Jewish. Even if t were true I didn't think there was a need to harp on the fact throughout the entire book.

Actually, a very small amount of time was spent describing Kaye's experience in movies. The majority of the book was focused on Kaye's shows and theater performances, and in his interactions with others. I liked that aspect very much, as it gets a little boring to just read a glorified biography of the films an actor made. Overall, I thought this gave a good view in who Kaye was and how he made his career such a success. I liked this!


[Kaleido Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's hard to separate one's enjoyment of a biography from one's involvement in the book's subject.

This is a book that is both respectful of Kaye's body of work and bleakly honest about his personal shortcomings.

By and large, Kaye was an intensely private individual, so the thrill of peeking behind the curtain is certainly stymied by the revelation that the world's entertainer, particularly beloved of children and musicians (and I have been both), should be such an unsympathetic human being.

Perhaps I would ultimately have preferred not to read this book, to keep the man as myth... but it is written well enough have kept me going to the end.

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a very thorough, analytical look at the life of Danny Kaye, supposedly one of the greatest performers of all time, who I never heard of until a month ago. The writing is excellent and there's enough juicy gossip for even the most (morbidly) curious readers.

Danny Kaye was a strange and mysterious fellow, so I'm glad that people are writing biographies about him. But, I think that the author overthought this one. I experienced a similar sentiment when reading John Coldstream's 800 page epic on the life and times of Dirk Bogarde. Was it readable? Very. Was it excessive? You bet.

I'm in the middle of watching White Christmas as I write this, and I wonder, why would anyone go so far to draw such circuitous and unfounded conclusions? Danny Kaye did not put that much thinking into his acting. And neither did Bing, or Vera-Ellen, or Rosemary Clooney. That's because this was the fifties and they were making a silly musical, and things were much simpler then. You didn't have to think that much. From the interviews I've read, it doesn't seem Danny Kaye thought that much either.

I feel like the author is missing the point. His thesis is, 'Danny Kaye's stage persona was a lie'. I don't think that works. There is always a little bit of the actor himself in each part he plays. Bing Crosby was an arrogant jerk, and it shows. I struggled for years to make it through a Woody Allen movie, because I found him so unlikeable (and this was before I knew that he slept with his step-daughter). Kaye seems genuinely warm, clever, and somewhat eccentric; a likeable guy, and sometimes other sources have corroborated that.

After reading this, I wasn't too impressed with Danny Kaye either. But then, after a week's break, I'm watching White Christmas and I love him all over again. It's not that he was a particularly great actor, or had a dazzling screen presence or whatever people care about most. It was more had a very good instinct for what was interesting, entertaining or absurd; what 'fit' a situation. And despite what Pike claims, it doesn't seem like he has an ego. I never got the sense that he was trying to steal a scene or detract from another actor's performance.

There's my two cents. You should really skip this one. I get the sense that it's mostly gossip and conjecture anyway, and if we're to believe the majority of the reviews here, it will probably only leave you considerably depressed. The author didn't even bother to check his facts; some of the stuff about the films is even blatantly wrong.

[Jim Kelsh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Danny Kaye was wildly talented...and lead a odd life.
This book presents warts and all.
Three jimmys out of five

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've always loved Danny Kaye and was curious about his "supposed" affair with Laurence Olivier so I thought I would read his biography.

The book was well written, giving my the history as well as the gossip that I was looking for. I did find out that Danny was far more complex than I thought, and not nearly as nice as I'd hoped.

Still I liked the book and could recommend it to anyone interested in his career.

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt this was a good book to learn more about Danny Kaye, but it was slightly biased at points and I was hoping to just learn some positive things about him!!!

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always a fan, but I had no idea as to the scope of his popularity back in the day. Interesting to learn about his early years and disappointing to read about his "dark side."

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is much to admire in the professional life of Danny Kaye: singer, dancer, stand-up comedian, sketch artist, serious actor both on stage and in films. His art was demonstrated in the live theatre, in motion pictures, on radio and television. Author Gotteried sets himself a challenging task to discern how Kaye's background as a youthful Jewish Catskills entertainer was a sort of predicate to the many talents which he demonstrated later in life. Gotteried also goes beyond the story that could be told from nothing but reportage in Variety and reveals facets of Kaye's mind and personality which are not at all common knowledge. He was a licensed pilot and one of the first and few non-professional pilots to be certified to fly jets. He was fascinated by medicine and by surgery, in particular; he scrubbed-in on a heart surgery with Dr. Michael DeBakey. He was an expert Chinese cook with a restaurant-quality Chinese kitchen built onto his Beverly Hills home; he cooked Mandarin food for Jacques Pepin. His work as an international ambassador for UNICEF is well known; his many trips entertaining troops for the USO less so. The flaw that annoyingly mars this book is the author's weird fixation on Kaye's sexuality and the possible that he may have been homosexual or bisexual. Those portions of the biography (and there are too many) are built on inuendo, rumor and speculation rather than on fact. Where there is no evidence for a premise, it is unlikely to be true. And, frankly, who cares? This is probably something that Gotteried should have discussed with his analyst.

[Myrna Gottlieb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book about Danny Kaye had some interesting material about Kaye and his struggles with his Jewishness, which he downplayed; about Kaye and his miserable relationship with his wife Sylvia- they led very separate lives:, about Kaye's personal lack of warmth and bouts of depression . But it was filled with gossip much of which has been contested as untrue: Princess Margaret was in love with him (did they or didn't they?) Laurence Olivier (did they or didn't they?) Kaye's affairs with multiple women, etc. The custom made space shoes he always wore, which he helped design- that appears to be true. Many catty remarks about Sylvia- she wore expensive dresses but had no sense of style, she had cosmetic surgery to shorten he nose, reduce her bosom, but she was still unattractive. She played the piano but not well. And the author put down her award-winning lecture series, which I saw; it was excellent. Also gossip about her odd behavior when Kaye died- elaborate schemes to conceal form the public and also his friends where he was buried.

[Dan Blackley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Danny Kaye, one of my favorite performers, was a complex man who conquered Vaudeville, Hollywood, Broadway and beyond. This bio is well written but be warned. Sometime when you read about a person you find out MORE than you want to. I felt that this book did talk about his performances, films and was interesting until it started to turn dark. This was due to Kaye's attitude toward others.
I have read many bios/autobios about famous people and this one really was painful to finish. Kaye was a great performer, but from what I read, a not nice person. Comics tend to have hidden demons but this was one for the record books. I will still enjoy his films and performances but now, I will see them as a highlight of his life rather than the sum of the whole.

[F · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gottfried fancies himself a psychologist but he doesn't take it too far... just far enough to write a fantastic book about an exceptional talent, a tremendous entertainer and a troubled person... Danny Kaye.
I learned things about Kaye I didn't know. I found rumors of Kaye's sexuality destroyed and examples of his talents confirmed. This book delves into Kaye's personal life as well as his professional life. Sometimes they crossed. Kaye had two very expensive hobbies and they are discussed here as well. Kaye is NOT the man I thought he was- that is neither good nor bad- facts don't care about feelings.

[Howard Fox · Rating 1 out of 5]

Far too much slanted supposition to be a good bio

[Helen Beck · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing

[Spiderorchid · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably one of the best movie-star biographies I know. And I've read a lot of them.
What makes "Nobody's Fool" so different is the fact that the author manages not to get all sappy and emotional just because he is a fan of his subject. And Gottfried certainly is a fan of Danny Kaye, this is evident in his admiration for Kaye's work on stage and screen and especially in the little scenes where he describes that Kaye could be a very helpful and caring person if someone really needed him. But that admiration doesn't make Gottfried blind for Kaye's faults - and he had a lot of them. He describes Kaye as a brilliant man on stage but very private and emotionally restraint off stage. He had a mean streak a mile wide when in a foul mood and the older he got the worse his off stage (and sometimes even his on stage) behaviour got. Gottfried tries to explain this development and character traits with Kaye's tendency to get depressive as well as with his need to be the center of attention when performing - a need that is at the core of the success of every great star.
The book doesn't focus on Kaye's individual movies or performances (but there are nevertheless many examples from his movies and shows as well as some nice photos). Instead, Gottfried tries to show the reader how the "Danny Kaye" act and persona developed over the years and which elements where characteristic of the act and how they worked. He describes in a very interesting way how Kaye worked and how he (and his wife Silvia Fine, among others) discovered what worked with an audience and which routines showcased his many talents best.
"Nobody's Fool" doesn't idealize Danny Kaye. It shows an extremely talented man who wasn't a very nice person. But what Gottfried manages to convey is the fact that Kaye was one of the greatest entertainers of his time and why. In my opinion Kaye's talent and brilliance are summed up best by Gottfried when he describes Danny Kaye as absolutely unique.
(This is the same review I published four years ago on amazon.com.)

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like many who are in the limelight (and quite a few who aren't), Kaye had an assortment of personal troubles. This book did a good job of balancing the darker side of Kaye's personality with his memorable on-stage triumphs. The parts of the book that have stuck with me are the examples of Kaye's pettiness in dealing with rivals and his uneasy relationship with his spiritual side.

[Carmelina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This biography has the distinction my having not read one since. Sometimes it may be better not knowing about stars you love watching on film etc. I felt that Gottfried didn't like his subject matter and this went double for Kaye's wife.

[ZezagPolla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before reading i'm rating it :), i'm sure it's a very interesting book .

[Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of Danny Kaye's movies. So it was a bit disappointing to find out that his personal life was messy. Why should that surprise me? (since most of our Hollywood idols are like that)