Laugh: Portraits of the Greatest Comedians and the Stories They Tell Each Other

by William Claxton, Mike Thomas

A delightful collection of fifty black-and-white photographs of fifty beloved comedians reveals previously unseen sides of such personalities as Robin Williams, John Cleese, and Carol Burnett, and collects their favorite comic stories. 25,000 first printing.

98 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Jim Dooley · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book's title beautifully states the premise ... LAUGH: PORTRAITS OF THE GREATEST COMEDIANS AND THE STORIES THE TELL EACH OTHER. Frankly, a good laugh today seemed like exactly what I needed.

The portrait photography of William Claxton is frequently a delight. I was particularly "taken" with the images of Robin Williams, Charlie Callas, Paul Reiser, Dan Aykroyd, Buddy Hackett, Sid Caesar, Nathan Lane, Kevin Nealon, John Lithgow, Rich Little, Red Buttons, Don Rickles, Phyllis Diller and Steve Allen.

On the "storytelling" side, I guess I was more difficult to please. Only three caused me to laugh out loud (Ray Romano, Rich Little and Don Rickles). I smiled at the ones from Sid Caesar, Charlie Callas, Harvey Norman, Martin Short, Mort Sahl and Robin Williams. But, frankly, I have no idea why Andy Dick's offensive rant was a part of this.

On the plus side, it is a very short read ... and it was nice to "catch up" with some comics I've enjoyed for years.

[Amber the Human · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh. I mean, some fun stories here and there. Nice portraits. I read it only a few weeks ago, and I can't really remember any of the stories, so not what I would call memorable. A perfectly fine coffee table book.

[Duncan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really quick read, and the pictures are great. While most of the stories aren't all that funny, they do offer a great insight into the minds of these comedians.

[Paul Hankins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some language from some of the comedians within the collection would keep this from general circulation in the classroom library, but the composite photographs of some of the top names in American comedy make this book a "can't miss" for cultural literacy that comes from some of the best in the business. My favorite entries from the book are from Don Rickles and Rich Little.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read. I read it for Photography, actually for the pictures, but the stories that go with them are so fun I had to read them all! :D

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast read. Great b/w pics