World Famous Comics: Most of the Most of S.J. Perelman (Modern Library Humor and Wit)
Most of the Most of S.J. Perelman (Modern Library Humor and Wit)
By: S J Perelman Publisher: Modern Library Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Modern Library Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 572 Publication Date: May 30, 2000 Release Date: May 30, 2000
Product Description: This book includes many of the greatest hits from 1930 to 1958--available only in this edition--by the devastatingly witty Perelman, the leading figure of The New Yorker magazine's golden age of humor and one of the most popular American humorists ever. In these hilarious pieces, the charmingly cranky Perelman turns his scathing attention to books, movies, New York socialites, the newspaper business, country life, travel, Hollywood, the publishing industry, and, last but not least, himself. His self-portrait: "Under a forehead roughly comparable to . . . Piltdown Man are visible a pair of tiny pig eyes, lit up alternately by greed and concupiscence. . . . Before they made S. J. Perelman, they broke the mold." Sophisticated and supremely mischievous, Perelman is an acrobat of language who turns a phrase and then, before the reader has time to finish admiring his agility, turns it again.
Another Perelman fan chimes in One big foible of fun I was pretty resistant to the charms of Perelman's prose in my early years, as I usually looked for writers who could give some hint as to life 's deeper meanings. Perelman I find at an age when I am perhaps a bit tired of finding deeper meanings, provides the kind of sheer amusement and escape that few other writers can. His vocabulary is extraordinary and delightful, and his sentences complicated artistic constructions which always seem to arrive at unpredictable and at times hilarious places. This is a writer who simply delights in making all of mankind seem as if we are one big foible of fun.
Spiritually Uplifting This book has kept my spirits up over some very tough times. Each short essay is a gem of understated humor. Perelman's gift for making up names that make you laugh out loud -- especially if you know Yiddish -- is unparalleled.
This is a book to savor. Even the introduction and interstitial writing by the editor, Steve Martin, are hilarious.
Perelman is also an erudite humorist, throwing about deadly accurate references to the classics of American and European literature with abandon.
If it was worth lampooning between 1930 and 1958, Perelman lampoons it. The results have not aged badly.
Thanks, SJ, wherever you are.
Pure Genius, Plain and Simple Perelman isn't just a brilliant humor writer, he's a brilliant writer. I can't think of another wordsmith, except for Shakespeare, who has a better knack for finding the right word for the right occasion. Half the time, I don't get his esoteric references to New York social life of the 30s and 40s and 50s, but he manages to write his pieces in such a way that I still find it humorous. He is such a gifted writer that he could make a seminar on Social Security funnier than any sketch on Saturday Night Live. It's too bad contemporary Americans no longer appreciate the sort of wordplay, non-sequiturs, and witticisms that define Perelman's writing. At the same time, his work, except when he's writing about obscure New York City social life, still feels fresh and relevant.
Woody Allen said that reading Perelman was detrimental to a young writer because then your own work begins to mimic his. I don't see this as such a bad thing. If only more "humorists" were as funny as Perelman, there might really be a reason to watch sitcoms and spend money to see "comedies."
A Lengthy Volume of Perelman Prose Most of the Most of S.J. Perelman (part of the Humor and Wit series of Modern Library) is a lengthy, though abridged, volume of the Perelman pieces from 1930 - 1958, many of which originally appeared in the New Yorker, among other magazines. This book should not necessarily be read straight through, as I did to my slight regret, as it can become a little overwhelming. There is some dating in the material but it is more of a delight how little effect time has taken on the comedy. The best pieces are, without a doubt, the marvelous Cloudland Revisited sequences where the author looks at books and movies he admired in his youth to see what horrible things time, experience and maturity have done to them. These selections are the treasures of the volume. A fine look at the almost lost art of a certain form of humour writing at its height. A wonderful volume to be savoured slowly.
Piecing together Perelman I agree that it should be a capital crime to butcher Perelman's published works, but since I can't find an unabridged copy of "The Most of S. J. Perelman", this book does well enough. As the only thing removed was "Acres and Pains", and that CAN be purchased separately, I would strongly recommend this book.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tony's Online Tips
Trevor
