Jason Zinoman writes the On Comedy column for the New York Times. He has also contributed to Vanity Fair, the Guardian, and Slate, and is the author of Shock Value and Searching for Dave Chappelle. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.
“I devoured this book. Not only a rare and richly detailed account
of the life of one of my comedy heroes, but I loved that you can
feel Zinoman’s curiosity about, and admiration for, Dave’s singular
sensibility on every page.” — Billy Eichner
“[Zinoman] writes…with great knowledge, high standards, and deep
empathy. This is not only a revealing portrait of one of comedy’s
most challenging and enigmatic figures but an acute and insightful
look at how...the mind of one restless, uncomfortable, elusive man
can transform both comedy and late-night television.” — Mark
Harris, author of Pictures at a Revolution and Five Came Back
“[Zinoman]...turns his rare combination of show-leather reporting,
lively storytelling, and interpretive brilliance to an epochal
moment in American entertainment, and, of course, to the giant,
gloriously complicated, quintessentially American celebrity at its
center: a man we know both intimately and not at all–at least until
now.” — Brett Martin, author of Difficult Men
“Of all the performers who have put their imprints on late-night
television, David Letterman may have done the most cleverly
disruptive job. If you want to fully understand the Letterman
DNA–and Dave’s own quixotic legacy–[Zinoman] has delivered a smart
and funny analysis that is your best opportunity yet.” — James
Andrew Miller, author of Powerhouse
“This incisive, illuminating book shows the personal toll that
success took on all responsible, the price paid for laughs.” —
Kirkus
“… [A] book that does impressive triple duty as an acute portrait
of stardom, an insightful chronicle of three rambunctious decades
of pop-culture evolution, and a very brainy fan’s notes… [Zinnoman
is] especially sharp and engaging when he’s breaking down
Letterman’s trademark predilections .” — New York Times Book
Review
“… [P]robably the finest profile ever written of a TV comic, which
is praise not meant to be faint… You’ll be entertained,
enlightened… and even alarmed… If you even just liked Dave, and
especially if you loved him, you’ll get plenty of bang for your
book bucks.” — Daily Beast
“Well researched, incorporating a nice mixture of interviews–with
Jay Leno, Merrill Markoe, Chris Elliott, and Martin Short, among
many others–and previously published material, the book is the
Letterman biography fans have been waiting for.” — Booklist
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