A review by bev_reads_mysteries
I Killed: True Stories of the Road from America's Top Comics by Ritch Shydner

1.0

If I've got my show biz/standup comedy terminology down, then the title of this book ought to start I Died instead of I Killed: True Stories of the Road from America's Top Comics. Because this thing died on stage. And apparently lay there for a week or two before anybody noticed. Definitely no belly laughs here, maybe a brief flicker of a smile or two. Maybe. But overall this is not a funny book. I refuse to tag it as humor on Goodreads. It would seem that Ritch Shydner and Mark Schiff, our comic hosts for this little tour, think that four letter words and sex with waitresses, strippers, and whoever else might have been available to lonely comics on the road (and the four letter word for sex) are the funniest things their fellow comedians could tell us and a close runner up is how ineptly and/or forcefully said comedians dealt with hecklers and horrendous gigs.

I chose this book primarily because it helped me with Clue #3 in my Super Book Password Challenge. But I also sincerely thought I would enjoy it. With promises of stories from the likes of Jay Leno, Mike Myers, Jeff Foxworthy, Drew Carey, Tim Allen, Joan Rivers, and others, I expected better...and funnier. I was sorely disappointed. Not recommended. ★ is, I think, generous and I only give it one star in honor of the few funny bits--nearly all of which were by or in reference to older comedians (Bob Hope, Red Buttons, Milton Berle, Jonathan Winters....).

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.