Comedy Legends Take Final Bows

While the show must go on, as the old saw tells us, it's abundantly clear that comedy suffered a major blow last Wednesday with the loss of both Milton Berle and Dudley Moore.

Known affectionately as "Uncle Miltie" and "Mr. Television," the vaudevillian cum television pioneer Berle became perhaps the most famous man in America in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Berle's "Texaco Star Theater" variety-show program dominated the airwaves, as the country became enthralled with his duck-walking, drag-wearing, gag-pulling ways. In fact, at one point 4 out of 5 television-owning households tuned in to the Tuesday night program.

Moore, on the other hand, hit the big time with the films 10 and Arthur in the late 1970s and early 80s, after getting his start in London as a member of the "Beyond The Fringe" comedy review. He's also known for his work with Peter Cook on a number of projects in the 1960s, including the British television sketch comedy series, "Not Only … but Also," and the recently remade film Bedazzled.

Although the many changes that have beset show business (and funny business) in recent years may make Berle and Moore seem like funnymen from a bygone era, their antics are sure to live on as timeless pieces of comedy. If your own funny bones are upset by the loss of such legends -- and by the recent news of Billy Wilder's passing -- perhaps the following books may provide you with a few laughs to ease your troubles, along with some insight in the history of comedy and television.

Milton Berle's Private Joke File: Over 10,000 of His Best Gags, Anecdotes, and One-Liners
by Milton Berle and Milt Rosen
More than just a run-of-the-mill joke book, here Berle offers us a glimpse at his extensive joke library, a mind-boggling document of twentieth-century humor. Organized alphabetically by category, there are enough of groaners, zingers, and show-stealers contained within this volume, and its follow-up companion, to entertain you for a lifetime. Also, in a special section entitled "Tricks of the Trade," Berle lets you in on many of his secrets, including tips on how to give a roast and how to deal with hecklers.

Groucho: The Life and Times Of Julius Henry Marx
by Stefan Kanfer
Marx is perhaps the century's most influential comedian, whose impact you can see in everything from Woody Allen to M*A*S*H to Jerry Seinfeld. Kanfer actually calls him the father of modern comedy, and after reading this thoroughly engrossing biography, you'll be hard pressed to disagree. The book follows Marx from his unsuccessful vaudeville years to his days as a Broadway sensation to his box-office triumphs, and later, to his television comeback. Along the way there are mini-biographies of all the other Marx brothers, scores of insightful anecdotes, as well as a hard, and frequently sad, look behind the enigmatic funnyman's public persona. Underneath the mustache lived a man plagued by financial insecurities, partly realized literary ambitions, and destructive relationships with his wives and daughters. Despite such troubles, however, Groucho manages to be both poignant and hilarious. An altogether moving reading experience.

The Box: An Oral History of Television 1920-1961
by Jeff Kisseloff
Through more than three hundred interviews with major movers and shakers of television's early years, Kisseloff has created a thorough and entertaining account of all of the developments that led to the industry's explosive growth. Filled with reminiscences not only from actors, writers, and directors, but also from technological innovators, television manufacturers, and business moguls, The Box weaves together loads of interview excerpts with a chronological narrative that takes you from the days before the first broadcast to Uncle Miltie's heyday and beyond. An important work of meticulous research that breathes life into the airwaves of the past.

American Scream: The Bill Hicks Story
by Cynthia True
A social commentator and comedian whose biting satire was most often compared to the great Lenny Bruce, Bill Hicks died in 1994 at the age of 32 due to pancreatic cancer. In this posthumous biography, Cynthia True sheds light on both his wild comic riffs and his manic lifestyle and provides an engaging behind-the-scenes look at the bizarre world of brick-wall comedy clubs. As the first performer to be banned from CBS's Ed Sullivan Theater since Elvis Presley (where he was making his 11th appearance on the David Letterman Show), Hicks often flew in the face of conventional notions of good taste, yet his comedy was always anchored by a satiric dose of moral outrage. This incisive look at the uncompromising legend is sure to give both Hicks fans and neophytes a greater appreciation of his original genius.

Laughter: A Scientific Investigation
by Robert R. Provine
While comedy and laughter seem to go hand in hand these days, laughter actually predates humor and even human speech, Provine tells us in this wide-ranging study. He examines all kinds of laughter here -- tickle-fit chuckles, inappropriate guffaws, drug-induced titters, TV laugh tracks, and even bizarre "laughter epidemics" -- to arrive at some truly thought-provoking observations. According to Provine, laughter isn't necessarily about the funny-factor, but rather is usually based upon on a social bond that can cause people to laugh at matters that are often quite unfunny, and sometimes tragic. At the end the book, readers are treated to a list of "10 tips for increasing laughter" that are sure to help out even the most terminally unfunny among us.