I received for Christmas the least
looked-forward-to book I have ever received: John Cleese’s “So, Anyway…”.
Cleese, of course, is a founder of Monty
Python, the wildly successful British comedy group that took male
teenagers by storm in the early 1970s and was considered inheritor to The
Beatles’ mantle as conquerors of America by none other than George Harrison (according to his friend Eric Idle, another Python). Cleese is also co-creator, co-writer,
producer and star of what has been called the best TV sitcom ever created,
Fawlty Towers.
Python, the wildly successful British comedy group that took male
teenagers by storm in the early 1970s and was considered inheritor to The
Beatles’ mantle as conquerors of America by none other than George Harrison (according to his friend Eric Idle, another Python). Cleese is also co-creator, co-writer,
producer and star of what has been called the best TV sitcom ever created,
Fawlty Towers.
Thus, for a certain generation—i.e. male
baby-boomers who came of age when Monty Python was laying waste to all previous
notions of what was funny—a book, any book, by John Cleese would be a no-brainer for Christmas, or
Hanukkah, or even New Year’s Eve.
baby-boomers who came of age when Monty Python was laying waste to all previous
notions of what was funny—a book, any book, by John Cleese would be a no-brainer for Christmas, or
Hanukkah, or even New Year’s Eve.
But despite having grown up on the original
Python series aired on PBS, and despite having seen the group live at City Center in
1976, and despite having seriously considered traveling to London to see the
group’s final reunion at the O2 Center last summer, I had no interest in this
book, the reason being an especially scathing review in the Wall Street Journal
by one Wesley Stace, a British author who also performs as a singer-songwriter
by the name of John Wesley Harding, the title of an old Bob Dylan album (go
figure).
Python series aired on PBS, and despite having seen the group live at City Center in
1976, and despite having seriously considered traveling to London to see the
group’s final reunion at the O2 Center last summer, I had no interest in this
book, the reason being an especially scathing review in the Wall Street Journal
by one Wesley Stace, a British author who also performs as a singer-songwriter
by the name of John Wesley Harding, the title of an old Bob Dylan album (go
figure).
In his review, John Wesley Harding/Wesley Stace
wrote pretty much what you might expect of a book by Cleese, whose intensely
intellectual approach to comedy, and the well-known years he spent in
psycho-therapy, tends to make him appear to be the John Lennon of the Pythons—Lennon
being the ex-Beatle who had the nerve to dismiss his achievements as a Fab Four
by saying, “We were just a band that made it very very big, that’s all.”
wrote pretty much what you might expect of a book by Cleese, whose intensely
intellectual approach to comedy, and the well-known years he spent in
psycho-therapy, tends to make him appear to be the John Lennon of the Pythons—Lennon
being the ex-Beatle who had the nerve to dismiss his achievements as a Fab Four
by saying, “We were just a band that made it very very big, that’s all.”
And that’s the tone of the Wesley Stace/Wesley
Harding review in a nutshell:
Harding review in a nutshell:
The title “So, Anyway . . .” implies a cavalcade of convivial anecdotes
and lengthy digressions. This is a grave misrepresentation, partly because of
an occasional reluctance on Mr. Cleese’s part (“actually telling you about [the
Footlights does] not fill me with excitement”) and partly because promising
stories are derailed by the decision to narrate them in the voice of Mr. Cleese
playing a crashing bore at a party in a Python sketch…
and lengthy digressions. This is a grave misrepresentation, partly because of
an occasional reluctance on Mr. Cleese’s part (“actually telling you about [the
Footlights does] not fill me with excitement”) and partly because promising
stories are derailed by the decision to narrate them in the voice of Mr. Cleese
playing a crashing bore at a party in a Python sketch…
It’s a difficult book to enjoy and “The Last Laugh” would perhaps have
been better a title, so often does Mr. Cleese give himself the punch-line in
age-old disputes. He rehearses every perceived slight. The “undeserved insult”
of being overlooked for a position of authority at school left a life long
scar: “I believe that this moment changed my perspective on the world.” His ill
feeling towards his dead mother is likewise undimmed by time…
been better a title, so often does Mr. Cleese give himself the punch-line in
age-old disputes. He rehearses every perceived slight. The “undeserved insult”
of being overlooked for a position of authority at school left a life long
scar: “I believe that this moment changed my perspective on the world.” His ill
feeling towards his dead mother is likewise undimmed by time…
But receive the book for Christmas I did, and
am glad I opened it and began reading it.
am glad I opened it and began reading it.
Because if, as I suspect he did not, Hardy
Wesley/Stace Wesley had in fact read the entire book, as I have, he would have
discovered that [We interrupt here to
explain that book reviewers frequently do not read the actual book before
reviewing it; many reviewers, in fact, rely on summaries provided by the book
publisher for scheduling and cost reasons, as we learned during the publication
of “Pilgrimage to Warren Buffett’s Omaha,” when a reviewer took issue with a
blog post the author had written, mistaking it for the book—Ed.] what John
Cleese has done is write a tight, funny, comprehensive-but-compact biography
that zeros in on the whys and wherefores of how he, and, indirectly, the
Pythons, got to be what they became.
Wesley/Stace Wesley had in fact read the entire book, as I have, he would have
discovered that [We interrupt here to
explain that book reviewers frequently do not read the actual book before
reviewing it; many reviewers, in fact, rely on summaries provided by the book
publisher for scheduling and cost reasons, as we learned during the publication
of “Pilgrimage to Warren Buffett’s Omaha,” when a reviewer took issue with a
blog post the author had written, mistaking it for the book—Ed.] what John
Cleese has done is write a tight, funny, comprehensive-but-compact biography
that zeros in on the whys and wherefores of how he, and, indirectly, the
Pythons, got to be what they became.
He starts at the beginning, when and where he
was born, and while the stuff about his father and mother (and grandparents,
too) may seem irrelevant and mean-spirited to Stacely/Hardley, it’s all part of
explaining how he developed the sense of humor he did.
was born, and while the stuff about his father and mother (and grandparents,
too) may seem irrelevant and mean-spirited to Stacely/Hardley, it’s all part of
explaining how he developed the sense of humor he did.
The fact that Cleese had a tough time with his mother
explains a lot, while the fact that he really liked and admired his father
seems jarring at first, considering his recurring role as the demented
authoritarian figure in Python sketches, but that role is explained by his
memories of being bullied at school, followed by this insight:
explains a lot, while the fact that he really liked and admired his father
seems jarring at first, considering his recurring role as the demented
authoritarian figure in Python sketches, but that role is explained by his
memories of being bullied at school, followed by this insight:
“Peter
Cook [Another revolutionary British
comedian—Ed.] always said that he quite deliberately staved off bullying by
being funny. I think in my case it was
less a conscious activity—more ‘Oh, that felt nice.’ And, as I realized, I became funnier, of
course, because the spark is always there.
So the bullying faded away, and I started, for the first time, to make
friends.”
Cook [Another revolutionary British
comedian—Ed.] always said that he quite deliberately staved off bullying by
being funny. I think in my case it was
less a conscious activity—more ‘Oh, that felt nice.’ And, as I realized, I became funnier, of
course, because the spark is always there.
So the bullying faded away, and I started, for the first time, to make
friends.”
Hardly ‘rehearsing every perceived slight,’ as
the Stacy/Hardy review put it.
the Stacy/Hardy review put it.
In fact, the entire book is supremely well written in
the Cleese manner—there is no “as told to” laziness here—and while the
anecdotes are not, as the reviewer would seem to prefer, “convivial,” they all
serve to tell a point: the point being, “here’s where it came from.”
the Cleese manner—there is no “as told to” laziness here—and while the
anecdotes are not, as the reviewer would seem to prefer, “convivial,” they all
serve to tell a point: the point being, “here’s where it came from.”
Along the way, we learn where the germ of certain bits
were developed (e.g. Sybil Fawtly’s description of her paranoid mother—“And she’s always
on about men following her; I don’t know what she thinks they’re going to do to
her, vomit on her, Basil says”—came
directly from Cleese’s phobic mother); why he and Graham Chapman worked so well as a
writing team (“When you begin to write comedy, the biggest worry is simply: is
this funny? Writing with a partner ensures you get
priceless feedback, and Graham and I worked together well: we found each other
funny and when we did laugh, we really laughed); and how the path to Python let
through unknown (in America, at least) radio and TV shows like “I’m Sorry, I’ll
Read That Again,” “At Last The 1948
Show” and “The Frost Report.”
were developed (e.g. Sybil Fawtly’s description of her paranoid mother—“And she’s always
on about men following her; I don’t know what she thinks they’re going to do to
her, vomit on her, Basil says”—came
directly from Cleese’s phobic mother); why he and Graham Chapman worked so well as a
writing team (“When you begin to write comedy, the biggest worry is simply: is
this funny? Writing with a partner ensures you get
priceless feedback, and Graham and I worked together well: we found each other
funny and when we did laugh, we really laughed); and how the path to Python let
through unknown (in America, at least) radio and TV shows like “I’m Sorry, I’ll
Read That Again,” “At Last The 1948
Show” and “The Frost Report.”
To be sure, Cleese aims zingers at old archaic
conventions and the occasional petty personality who offended his sense of
justice, but those asides are overwhelmed by the surprisingly affectionate portraits of writers, producers and directors who helped him along the way (including David Frost, despite the fact that Eric Idle gave a merciless portrayal of Frost as “Timmy Williams” in the Python series). All in all, it is hardly the cranky kind of stuff Wembley/Stadium would have
readers believe, and even the occasional gibes all serve the main point of explaining where all this great
stuff came from.
conventions and the occasional petty personality who offended his sense of
justice, but those asides are overwhelmed by the surprisingly affectionate portraits of writers, producers and directors who helped him along the way (including David Frost, despite the fact that Eric Idle gave a merciless portrayal of Frost as “Timmy Williams” in the Python series). All in all, it is hardly the cranky kind of stuff Wembley/Stadium would have
readers believe, and even the occasional gibes all serve the main point of explaining where all this great
stuff came from.
As, for example, when Cleese reprints parts of several old sketches from various pre-Python shows, including a couple that later made it
into Python sketches, either on film or on records, as well as some
laugh-out-loud bits that did not.
into Python sketches, either on film or on records, as well as some
laugh-out-loud bits that did not.
And for anyone interested in
creativity—especially of the breakthough, Python kind—this is invaluable, and
pleasurable reading.
creativity—especially of the breakthough, Python kind—this is invaluable, and
pleasurable reading.
Wembley Stadium notwithstanding.
Jeff
Matthews
Matthews
Author
“Secrets in Plain Sight: Business and Investing Secrets of Warren Buffett”
“Secrets in Plain Sight: Business and Investing Secrets of Warren Buffett”
(eBooks
on Investing, 2014) Available now at Amazon.com
on Investing, 2014) Available now at Amazon.com
© 2014
NotMakingThisUp, LLC
NotMakingThisUp, LLC
The content contained in this blog represents only
the opinions of Mr. Matthews. Mr. Matthews also acts as an advisor and clients
advised by Mr. Matthews may hold either long or short positions in securities
of various companies discussed in the blog based upon Mr. Matthews’
recommendations. This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice, and
should never be relied on in making an investment decision, ever. Also, this
blog is not a solicitation of business by Mr. Matthews: all inquiries will be
ignored. The content herein is intended solely for the entertainment of the
reader, and the author.
the opinions of Mr. Matthews. Mr. Matthews also acts as an advisor and clients
advised by Mr. Matthews may hold either long or short positions in securities
of various companies discussed in the blog based upon Mr. Matthews’
recommendations. This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice, and
should never be relied on in making an investment decision, ever. Also, this
blog is not a solicitation of business by Mr. Matthews: all inquiries will be
ignored. The content herein is intended solely for the entertainment of the
reader, and the author.
4 replies on “The NotMakingThisUp Book Review: The Best Least Looked-Forward-To Book I Have Ever Received, John Cleese’s “So, Anyway…””
The Python show in London was delightful. The phallic cannons were worth the price of admission alone.
If you like intelligent comics, Steve Martin's autobiography is a great read as well. Its amazing how how hard he worked for so many years to become an "overnight" sensation.
Nice to hear about the London show. Regarding the Steve Martin book, agree wholeheartedly. (In fact, that was covered in these virtual pages, February 2008, in an unfortunately backhanded way, after watching a really pathetic interview by Deborah Solomon.
http://jeffmatthewsisnotmakingthisup.blogspot.com/2008/02/weekend-edition-wisdom-of-solomon.html)
JM
I've never actually managed to make it all the way through a John Wesley Harding song…
Headlong into our 9 year old son's Python education, I'll read this happily.
I'm so happy you read it, instead of dismissing it as a bunch of racket. [Racket? That's Brahms! Brahms' Third Racket!]