Entertainment Comedy

Award-Winning Finalist in the Narrative: Non-Fiction category of the 2020 Best Book Awards sponsored by American Book FestIn 1988, a young, mid-level employee named Art Bell pitched a novel concept - a television channel focused 100 percent on just one thing: Comedy - to the chairman of HBO. The station that would soon become Comedy Central, with celebrated programs like South Park, Chapelle’s Show, The Daily Show, and The Colbert Report, was born.

Morecambe and Wise - the most famous and best-loved British comedy double-act of all time. In this unique book, Eric Morecambe's son Gary sheds new light on the comic geniuses who became the nation's best friends. Gary reveals what it was like behind the scenes, with touching and hilarious stories of life in the Morecambe and Wise family homes, along with memories from Eric's wife Joan and his daughter (and Ernie's goddaughter) Gail, who has never written about her father before.

Grammy Nominee for Best Spoken Comedy Album
Once again there's good news for those of us who rage at the evening news, shake our heads at Washington's business-as-usual, or watch as politicians carom helplessly between political crises and sex scandals: Dennis Miller is back performing his fourth installment of hilarious observations, I Rant, Therefore I Am. More from Miller.

Comedy of Doom is a collection of essays, parodies, and true stories covering every major topic in geek culture. Including smart, funny takes on video games, Star Wars, vampires, Doctor Who, Jane Austen, a complete guide to emotional preparation for the zombie apocalypse, instructions for the new sport called Competitive Hugging, and more.

As one of America's hottest female comedians, Lisa Lampanelli has earned critical acclaim across the country for her no-holds-barred style and ability to make people laugh at their own stereotypes and differences. Now, from the gutter-mouth comedienne who "talks like a truck driver but resembles a '50s housewife" (New York Times) comes her over-the-top, laugh-out-loud memoir, Chocolate, Please.

In It's Only a Movie, the incomparable Mark Kermode took us into the weird world of a film critic's life lived in widescreen. Now, The Good, The Bad and the Multiplex takes us into the belly of the beast to ask: 'What’s wrong with the modern movie business – and how can we make it right?'

We've all heard that you learn more from failure than you do from success. Which means that all those hours spent watching crappy movies wasn't a waste of your precious and ever-dwindling life span; it was an education! And Better Living Through Bad Movies can show you how to extract the profound, life-affirming lessons from films like Battlefield Earth, Coyote Ugly, and Indecent Proposal.

A hilarious window into the world of comedian and social-media star Arron Crascall, as he embarks on a life-changing journey of discovering what truly makes him happy. In the same vein as his favourite TV show, The Wonder Years, old Arron (full of See Ya Later wisdom) meets young 13-year-old Arron and tackles all the big stuff. As he revisits some of the key moments in his life, Arron will give his young self some words of wisdom on how to navigate the big issue of being a contented and fulfilled grown-up.

You might know Mo as the critically acclaimed stand-up comedian, BAFTA-winning presenter, Masked Singer judge and social media mega star. But do you know the moments that really made him? Opening up on the turning points, the good times, the challenges and the lessons learned, this is Mo as you've never seen him before.

As the Sunrise weatherman, Sam Mac has bungee jumped, swum with sharks, got his cat on the cover of Pussweek magazine, taken his mum to the Logies when he was nominated for gold, stripped naked for The Real Full Monty and even recorded a song with The Wiggles. But, ultimately, his job is about people - from primary schoolers to pensioners, Sam's gift is how he connects with them all. He uses heart and humour in his role on Sunrise to introduce viewers to the true characters of Australia.

In all my years of reporting on the human condition, this has to be the most bizarre, and (if true) history shattering interviews I've ever conducted. This story is told by Billy "Big Rig", a pseudonymous truck driver I met over sausage gravy and biscuits in the late 1990s when I was driving a truck to make ends meet. We struck up a friendship, although I think I maybe spoke 10 words to him the whole time I knew him. He did most of the talking. And the way he spun a yarn caused me to be transfixed.

I was at my wit's end. I'd had enough of this job, this life, and my relationship had broken up. Should I eat chocolate, or go to India, or fall in love? Then I had a revelation: Why not do all three, in that order? And so it was that I embarked on a journey that was segmented into three parts and was then made into a major motion picture. Later, I woke up on an airplane with a hole in my face and a really bad hangover. I was ushered brusquely off the plane by my parents who took me to a rehab.

Mit genügend Humor wird alles leichter. Bastian Bielendorfer dokumentiert deshalb vom ersten Tag an, durch welche Absurditäten sich unser Leben seit dem Beginn des Corona-Wahnsinns verändert hat. Innerhalb weniger Stunden wird die Hausärztin zur Seuchenexpertin, der Postbote zum Hochrisikoarbeiter. Und Bastis Zuhause mutiert zur Zwangs-WG mit Frau, Mops und Schwiegermutter. Nach ein paar Tagen im Hausarrest erklärt Basti der Corona-Angst den Krieg und beginnt mit seinen schriftstellerischen Aufräumarbeiten in einer Welt, die nie wieder so sein wird wie zuvor.

Chip Chinery's memoir is a look in front of and behind the curtain at what actually happened his first year as a full-time professional stand-up comedian during the ‘80s comedy boom. Chip kept a journal and snapped pictures at every gig. Some of the comics were or would become household names. Most would remain unsung. Then there was his 17-year-old opening act who would reach the pinnacle of stand-up fame and fortune.

Social media comedian Heather Land uses her trademark sassy, laugh-out-loud humor to remind us of the many ways that real life can be really funny. Heather Land has something to say about almost everything in life - the unbelievable, inconceivable, and downright frustrating - and why she “ain’t doin’ it.” In her first book, Heather shines a light on the (occasional) ridiculousness of life through a series of hilarious essays, dishing on everything from Walmart and ex-husbands to Southern beauty pageants and unfortunate trips to the gynecologist.

Every Boy Should Have a Man takes place in a post-human world, where creatures called oafs keep humanlike "mans" as beloved pets. One day, a poor boy oaf brings home a man, whom he hides under his bed, in the hopes his parents won't find out. When the man is discovered, the boy admits it is not his - but the boy is no delinquent. Despite the accusations being hurled at him, he's telling the truth when he says he found the man wandering aimlessly in the bramble.

Raised in Manhattan by her overly protective sex-therapist mother who wore "seven layers of shoulder pads" and her two doting grandparents, life in Wendy Spero's world has never been dull. As a child, she passed the time organizing impromptu "garage sales" on city sidewalks, sniffing fruit-scented magic markers to intoxication, parenting dozens of high-maintenance stuffed animals, and seeking out other "microthrills", which she writes about in this hilarious audiobook of odd but true stories.

This smart and witty collection of opinions, observations, and anecdotes covers a broad range of personal topics. Kathie Lee Gifford's stories are often funny, sometimes heartfelt, and always compelling - think Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck meets Carol Burnett.

No subject is off-limits: talking to her kids about sex, being married to Frank Gifford, embarrassing professional gaffes, run-ins with celebrities (of which there are many), the harsh and funny realities of aging.

Father Knows Best was a situation comedy built around the Anderson family and life on Maple Street in the fictitious Midwestern town of Springfield. Robert Young starred as Jim Anderson, head of the household, husband of Margaret, and an insurance man by occupation. The couple had three children. The weekly radio script, although played for laughs, offered words of wisdom and “recipes for domestic happiness” that American families could identify with. Jim’s understanding wife Margaret was the picture of domesticity as mother to Betty (aged 18), Bud (16), and Kathy (10).

El humorista Manolo Royo entrevista a sus compañeros de profesión. Gila, Tony Leblanc, Tip y Coll, Martes y 13, Francisco Umbral, Manolo Summers, Chumy Chúmez, Miliki, Mingote, Forges... A través de una serie de entrevistas informales Manolo Royo habla con más de 40 humoristas y otros profesionales del humor, esos que en un momento u otro de nuestra vida nos han hecho reír y pensar, y presenta esta colección única e inolvidable, ¡una joya del humor!