Sex, Drugs, Rock and Roll

by Eric Bogosian

"Mr. Bogosian is a hilarious wit: there is one line after another that you will quote to friends. He is a born storyteller with perfect pitch for the voices of various ethnic, racial and economic backgrounds. Using every powerful means available to a theatre artist, he shakes the cages of a complacent country engulfed by homelessness to ask just exactly who, if anyone, is home." -Frank Rich, New York Times

"Greatly and bilaterally talented... spiky, stinging, caustic without cauterizing. And funny." -John Simon, New York Magazine

"Scabrously funny... a dervish of a performer, ricocheting off the walls of the male psyche." - Boston Phoenix

Eric Bogosian is one of our most innovative and provocative artists, with a unique gift for portraying the currents and idioms of contemporary society. The monologues in Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll form a composite picture of the complex, sometimes alarming state of American culture in the 1990s.

One of America’s premier performers and most innovative and provocative artists, Bogosian’s plays and solo work include suburbia (Lincoln Center Theater, 1994; adapted to film by director Richard Linklater, 1996); Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll , Pounding Nails in the Floor with My Forehead ; Griller ; Humpty Dumpty ; 1+1 ; Skunkweed ; Wake Up and Smell the Coffee ; Drinking in America ; Notes from Underground and Talk Radio (Pulitzer Prize finalist; New York Shakespeare Festival, 1987; Broadway, 2007; adapted to film by director Oliver Stone, 1988). He has starred in a wide variety of film, TV and stage roles. Most recently, he created the character of Captain Danny Ross on the long-running series Law & Order: Criminal Intent . In 2014, TCG published 100 (monologues) , a collection that commemorates thirty years of Bogosian’s solo-performance career.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Fiction, Theatre, Drugs

136 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Eric Bogosian is an American actor, playwright, monologuist, novelist, and historian. Descended from Armenian-American immigrants, he grew up in Watertown and Woburn, Massachusetts, and attended the University of Chicago and Oberlin College. His numerous plays include Talk Radio (1987) and subUrbia (1994), which were adapted to film by Oliver Stone and Richard Linklater, respectively, with Bogosian starring in the former.
Bogosian has appeared in plays, films, and television series throughout his career. His television roles include Captain Danny Ross in Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2006–2010), Lawrence Boyd on Billions (2017–2018), and Gil Eavis on Succession (since 2018). He also starred as Arno in the Safdie brothers' film Uncut Gems (2019). He has also been involved in New York City ballet production, and has written several novels as well as the historical nonfiction Operation Nemesis (2015).

Reviews

[Trin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another one-man monologue show, similar to Pounding Nails in the Floor With My Forehead; this one actually came first. Coincidentally, I just read a mid-'90s interview with Bogosian in which he compares the two pieces, and he says he thinks this one is broadly funnier, while the other is nastier. I guess I'm nasty? I definitely preferred Nails. This does have some excellent bits, though: I like the litany of pretentious late '80s yuppie foods (what the heck was going on with monkfish?) and the one where he's skewering a Mick Jagger type -- in, apparently, a British accent. Wish I could have seen that, and also the one where he raps (!) or pretends to be a female sex line operator.

Both collections contain moments where he barks like a dog, for what it's worth.

[Andrei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monólogos envolventes, com o tom ácido da crítica social aos dilemas da época. Uma introdução tocante, com um relato breve que nos insere no momento, na visão do dramaturgo. Uma leitura rápida e impactante.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of three things I am absolutely certain:

- Eric Bogosian has had a lot of sex
- Eric Bogosian has done a lot of drugs
- Eric Bogosian has listened to rock and roll

Bonus 4th thing: Eric Bogosian is, was, and will be 100% That Bitch.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Self indulgent.

[Robin Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Someone on a Reddit board recommended “Mall” by Eric Bogosian to read if you’re interested in the teachings of Alan Watts, Ram Dass, or Terence McKenna. Unfortunately I couldn’t find the book, so I picked this one up to try him out.

I could tell from the first few pages I didn’t like the style of writing (each segment is like a play or stand-up comedy), but to my surprise, the book began to quickly engage me.

I really enjoyed this. It kind of reminds me of listening to a stoner ramble on about life and their different theories or like the movie Waking Life by Richard Linklater.

I’m definitely reading more from this author!

[Frank McGirk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of his pieces did have a nice rhythm to them, and perhaps the ironic rant was more cutting edge 30 years ago, but they just seem juvenile now...good pieces for your highschooler's forensic competition maybe?

[Petty Lisbon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Another typical piece of work from Eric Bogosian. A bunch of monologues from characters who talk a lot about what's wrong with the world but have nothing to say. The last part is for orphaned monologues, but how can a monologue be a draft in this mess?

[Andrea Janov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bogosian gives the greatest insights into the human existence, through authentic voices. The simplicity of the stage direction and the sparseness of the set let the monologues truly take up the space they deserve.

[R. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only Three Things Wrong with the Title
Maybe it had more impact onstage?

[Pietro Bellini · Rating 2 out of 5]

Raccolta di monologhi dell'attore di Talk Radio.
Alti e bassi.

[Lillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one person show is considerably different than other plays I have read. The actor performs skits in multiple personas who can be a bit cringy.

[Nate S · Rating 5 out of 5]

All or most of these characters can be performed today in 2024.

[Kelly Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have met every single one of these characters on the NJ Transit to NY Penn.

[behsforensics]

Cutting is for Dog Chameleon
By Eric Bogosian

Another cuttings is for Bottleman
By Eric Bogosian

[ASHLEY · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay my bad i didn’t realize it was a play that didn’t add or subtract to the plot i’m just an idiot also i like the different perspectives of stick it to the man or whatever but i was kinda bored

[roach · Rating 4 out of 5]

i just love when things r tea idk

[Shaitanah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some pieces were fun, but I think I would have liked them better if I'd seen them performed. Reading them didn't quite work out for me.

[Taylor Swift · Rating 5 out of 5]

The series is really terrific.

[Tommy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dated, but daring, these monologues make up Bogosian's seminal stage show, where he plays a dozen characters from the fringe - homeless man, loner, ruthless executive, and others.

Bogosian was the premiere monologist of his day, and these monologues show why he teetered between talented actor and self-absorbed rock star in his hey-day. These monologues tingle with the swagger of a man who knows he's hitting all the right notes.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Currently rereading this because it's so fucking good. The title says it all. This collection of monologues speaks to me just as much now as when I was a bitter college student looking for a good audition piece. I'm still bitter, just older. However, it didn't contain the one monologue I was looking for. Hmmm... maybe it was Durang.

[meredith · Rating 2 out of 5]

not his best, but i still enjoy bogosian's work no matter vut.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

More entertaining than I expected.

[Christina Zouras · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short read, some really memorable moments and surprisingly profound quotes.

[RK Byers · Rating 4 out of 5]

WAY more hits than misses.