Fields for President

by W.C. Fields, Michael M. Taylor (Editor)

Fields for W.C. Fields, Michael M. Fields for Dodd, Mead & Company, U. FIRST First Edition, 2nd Printing. Not price-clipped. Published by Dodd, Mead & Company, U. S, 1971. Octavo. Hardcover. Book is very good. Dust jacket is very good with shelf/edgewear. Seller 463529 Literature

Genres: Humor, Politics, Biography, Media Tie In

163 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1940

About the author

W. C. Fields was born William Claude Dukenfield, the eldest of five children. Field's parents were a Cockney immigrant James Dukenfield and Philadelphia native Kate Felton

He was an American juggler, comedian, and actor. Fields created one of the great American comic personas of the first half of the 20th century—a misanthrope who teetered on the edge of buffoonery but never quite fell in, an egotist blind to his own failings, a charming drunk; and a man who hated children, dogs, and women, unless they were the wrong sort of women.

Fields was a marvel of marketing, he would go as far as pretending to drown in the ocean or other bodies of water, hoping to draw crowds (i.e. customers). His notoriety began around the age of 19, being propelled by his early 20s. His stardom would reach the heights Perform for Sarah Bernhardt at Buckingham Palace and other high profiled dignitaries. During his life, he would preform with some of the greatest names (e.g. Charles Chaplin) and on some of he greatest stages.

As a person, W. C. Field's had two sons: William Rexford Field Morris and William Claude Fields, Jr. Fields was married only once to Harriet Hughes from 1900 to 1946. Harriet bore Field's one son and a girlfriend by the name of Bessie Poole bore him the other son. However, there is rumor that he had a number of girlfriend's throughout his life, but the most significant were Bessie Poole and Carlotta Monti.

Reviews

[Ceejay]

What a shame that W.C. Fields din't write more books. His only effort is just laugh out loud funny. That speaks well for humor that was written in 1939.If there is any doubt about his comedic genius, then here is written proof.Mr. Fields uses this book to show why he would be a better president then F.D.R..You don't need to know a lot of people from this era, but in a couple of spots it helps.It's not a long book (162 pages) and a little less then half of those pages have photos of Fields to go along with his stories.I found myself using his voice while I read, thus making it even funnier. I wish he was still alive. If anybody could make people see how foolish todays Tea Party people are, it would be W.C. Fields.The man knew how to cut to the chase with humor.The man was an antihero before people used that term.If you need a smile on your face, then here's the book for you!

[Hal Johnson]

In 1940, comedian Gracie Allen released a humorous book facetiously outlining her plan to become president. That same year, comedian W.C. Fields released an apparently identical book, this one outlining his own path to the presidency.

Except Fields has apparently no interest in keeping to a coherent topic. His book occasionally nods towards a run for presidency but mostly just freestyles various shaggy dog stories with dashes of Vaudeville wit ("both the fair sex and the foul"). I don't mean this as a criticism! In a way, Fields book is more audacious, a thumbed nose to anyone who even pick up his book.

Unfortunately, as the authors are literally running against each other for president, I cannot help but compare the two books, and Allen's is funnier.

[Robert Smith]

Dry humor - You had to be there

This slender volume was obviously resurrected in response to the bizarre 2016 presidential campaign. I clearly (and fondly) remember Pat Paulsen's many comic runs for the presidency; I now see that he may have taken his cue from W. C. Fields. Now 76 years later the jokes and wit may go over our heads, but look carefully and you'll find some real gems.

[Michael Lewyn]

A set of comic essays written by the 1930s comedian. I wouldn't say it was laugh-out-loud funny, but I chuckled about half a dozen times and smiled a few more. My favorite line (read on my wife's birthday): "The nation needs to return to the colonial trend of life, when a wife was judged by the amount of wood she could split or buckets of coal she could carry up from the cellar."

[Kimberly Roush Renteria]

Laugh-out-loud Funny

I think it is a shame that W.C. Fields was never elected President. He had it all figured out.
This book is hilarious. His advice on marriage had me laughing so hard I was crying.
A quick, enjoyable read.

[Ronald]

Great book if you appreciate Fields's humor. Far-fetched but fun.I read it in paperbook form.

[Robert Barone]

sort of weird, but a fast easy read

[Edward Zevin]

Why not Fields for president? Even dead, he is better than some presidents I could name...

[Sjervey]

As unlikely presidential candidates have become the norm, I thought I would consider Fields, whom I knew only through film. He turns a good phrase. The book was fun. But this type of humor can become predictable. But Fields was occasionally surprisingly fresh. I won't go looking for more, but I did read it through .

[Tom Aldrich]

A book written by a comedian - check! Although I've already finished these categories, it could easily have been a satire, a book under 150 pages, and a (very tongue-in-cheek) political memoir. If I applied myself, it's also a book I could have finished in a day.

Very humorous book and very much in Fields' style of humor.

[Curt Bobbitt]

This recent reprint of the 1939 book has several stills and photographs added to the original. Fields is the only character. He imagines himself a political candidate running in the 1940 election. It is just the most convenient way to record a collection of his film philosophies. The quotations from his movie parts are loosely connected around election "issues."

[Gary Garth McCann]

I'm a fan of Fields (love the films The Bank Dick and My Little Chickadee). His book, first published in 1939, isn't as funny as his films but does have a good line or two. For instance, he quips of dining with the nation's great financial wizards just after the 1929 Crash. He told them, "Gentlemen, the trouble is simple...You have tried to sell the American people more than they could pay for."

[ds white]

True story, W.C. Fields ran for president. How different the world would be having that swollen, flushed, booze-nosed comics portrait hanging in the White House with all the other swollen, flushed, booze-nosed, yet unfunny presidents.

[Djll]

I'm sure this would be a lot funnier if read by the author. Still, some classic American comedy in these covers.

[Jim McClure]

It was entertaining, but he went on too many tangents. Had more potential.