Will Cuppy, American Satirist

Will Cuppy, American Satirist PDF Author: Wes D. Gehring
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476601917
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 223

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Book Description
Back in the golden age of humor books (late 1920s-early 1950s), when wits of the pantheon like Robert Benchley, James Thurber, and S.J. Perelman were producing their signature works, there was another singular satirist who more than held his own with such fast company: Will Cuppy (1884-1949). This factual funnyman's metier is dark comedy that flirts with nihilism. His agenda is baldly stated in such classic Cuppy book titles as How to Be a Hermit (1929), How to Tell Your Friends from the Apes (1931), and The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody (1950). This biography doubles as a critical study of a satirist whose shish-kebabing of humanity was often done through the veiled anthropomorphic use of animals. For a biographer, Will Cuppy represents a treasure trove of possibilities. He was a great humorist, and most of his best work is still in print, but until now he has never been the subject of a book-length study. His mesmerizingly complex and eccentric private life almost trumps the comic accomplishments of his public persona.

Will Cuppy, American Satirist

Will Cuppy, American Satirist PDF Author: Wes D. Gehring
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476601917
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 223

Get Book Here

Book Description
Back in the golden age of humor books (late 1920s-early 1950s), when wits of the pantheon like Robert Benchley, James Thurber, and S.J. Perelman were producing their signature works, there was another singular satirist who more than held his own with such fast company: Will Cuppy (1884-1949). This factual funnyman's metier is dark comedy that flirts with nihilism. His agenda is baldly stated in such classic Cuppy book titles as How to Be a Hermit (1929), How to Tell Your Friends from the Apes (1931), and The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody (1950). This biography doubles as a critical study of a satirist whose shish-kebabing of humanity was often done through the veiled anthropomorphic use of animals. For a biographer, Will Cuppy represents a treasure trove of possibilities. He was a great humorist, and most of his best work is still in print, but until now he has never been the subject of a book-length study. His mesmerizingly complex and eccentric private life almost trumps the comic accomplishments of his public persona.

The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody

The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody PDF Author: Will Cuppy
Publisher: David R. Godine Publisher
ISBN: 1567923771
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
When it was first published in 1950, The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody spent four months on The New York Times best-seller list, and Edward R. Murrow devoted more than two-thirds of one of his nightly CBS programs to a reading from Cuppy's historical sketches, calling it "the history book of the year." The book eventually went through eighteen hardcover printings and ten foreign editions, proof of its impeccable accuracy and deadly, imperishable humor.

How to Become Extinct

How to Become Extinct PDF Author: Will Cuppy
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780226128269
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
Humorous essays poke fun at the natural world, extinct animals, pet snakes, and the noises of fish

How to Tell Your Friends from the Apes

How to Tell Your Friends from the Apes PDF Author: Will Cuppy
Publisher: David R. Godine Publisher
ISBN: 9781567922974
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 170

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Book Description
A survey of life on earth, in all its variety and pagentry, by a very annoyed humorist. From early man, the Neanderthal, Cro-Magnon, to irascible observations on mankind and the animal kingdom today (including "Birds I Could Do Without"), Will Cuppy, a perennially perturbed hermit, is your guide in these are very funny essays. For eight years, from 1921 to 1929, Will Cuppy lived alone on Jones Island, off Long Island's South Shore. From that outpost, he gained a reputation for his factual but funny magazine articles and wrote the book, How to be a Hermit, his first bestseller. His last, The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody, was left unfinished after Cuppy's death in 1949 and has become a classic of American humor. In between (among other titles) was this very funny collection. First published in 1931, the subjects include "What I Hate About Spring," "Awful Mammals," and "Why Be a Rhinoceros?" Great for anyone who loves classic American humor.

How to Be a Hermit

How to Be a Hermit PDF Author: Will Cuppy
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 181

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Book Description
How to Be a Hermit by American humorist Will Cuppy is a subjective and partly fictional account of Will's adventures as a hermit on Jones's Island in Wisconsin. Excerpt: "All was excitement that June morning among the clams of Jones's Island (pronounced, by your leave, in two good healthy syllables, thus: Jone'-sez). Softies by the bushel dug themselves deeper into the shoreward mud, and whimpering little quahogs out in their watery beds clung closer to their mothers as they heard the dread news relayed by their kinsfolk of Seaman's Neck, Black Banks Channel, Johnson's Flats, and High Hill Crick."

Dave Barry Slept Here

Dave Barry Slept Here PDF Author: Dave Barry
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307758710
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
“What caused the American Revolution? This is indeed a rhetorical question that for many years historians have begun chapters with. As well they should. For the American Revolution is without a doubt the single most important historical event to occur in this nation except of course for Super Bowl III (Jets 16. Colts 7. This historian won $35).” So goes the skewed sensibility, the muddied mind, the bent pen of one of America's funniest writers, Dave Barry. This time his subject is U.S. history, the way it's never been told before. Every single momentous event and crucial moment is covered, including . . . • The Birthing Contractions of a Nation • Kicking Some British Butt • Barging Westward • The Forging of a Large, Wasteful Bureaucracy • Deep Economic Doo-doo • The Fifties: Peace, Prosperity, Brain Death . . . and right up through the scintillating Reagan-Bush years, during which, Mr. Barry notes, America is steadfastly Napping Toward Glory. If you love to laugh, if you love your country, if you are unaware that “the Sixth Amendment states that if you are accused of a crime, you have a right to a trial before a jury of people too stupid to get out of jury duty,” Dave Barry Slept Here is the book you've been waiting for since 1776. Or at least since Super Bowl III. Praise for Dave Barry Slept Here “A dazzling performance . . . Barry is brilliant.”—The Washington Post Book World “[Dave] Barry turns his formidable wit to the subject of American history, with a result reminiscent of the Reduced Shakespeare Company: The better you know the original, the funnier it gets.”—Los Angeles Times “I fear that Mr. Barry's dream of making millions of dollars through mass sales of his book to a captive audience of innocent schoolchildren will not be realized, and he will have to be content with making readers laugh a lot, as this one did.”—The New York Times Book Review

Is Sex Necessary?

Is Sex Necessary? PDF Author: James Thurber
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0060733144
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 212

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Book Description
The first book of prose published by either James Thurber or E. B. White, Is Sex Necessary? combines the humor and genius of both authors to examine those great mysteries of life -- romance, love, and marriage. A masterpiece of drollery, this 75th Anniversary Edition stands the test of time with its sidesplitting spoof of men, women, and psychologists; more than fifty funny illustrations by Thurber; and a new foreword by John Updike.

From Day to Day

From Day to Day PDF Author: David E. Johnson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 464

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Book Description
Presents a list of birthdays of famous people and noteworthy events for every day of the year.

3D Sweeties

3D Sweeties PDF Author: Julian Glander
Publisher: Fantagraphics Books
ISBN: 1683961803
Category : Comics & Graphic Novels
Languages : en
Pages : 170

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Book Description
In a digitally drawn, three-dimensional universe, characters grapple with interior decorating woes, amorous microbiology, and where to find the absolute most aspirational succulents. Readers will fall in love with “America’s favorite mug,” Cuppy; hear the familial bickering of sentient purple slime molds; and encounter Sarah Something and her musings about gaming culture and conceptual art.

The Penguin Dictionary of Modern Humorous Quotations

The Penguin Dictionary of Modern Humorous Quotations PDF Author: Fred Metcalf
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ISBN:
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
From Woody Allen to P.G. Wodehouse, the last hundred years offer a rich banquet of humor. Just about any topic under the sun can inspire witty remarks. Fred Metcalf's clearly cross-referenced anthology provides countless gems--ideal for after-dinner speakers, would-be wags, and anyone in search of hours of amusement.