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How to Talk Dirty and Influence People
Castigated in his time for breaching such American conversational taboos as religion, sex, censorship, and racism, Lenny Bruce proved to be a pioneer in exposing hypocrisies, the impact of which still echoes on both sides of censorship controversies. This book and soon-to-be-released private tapes are sure to bring the extent of Bruce's influence into sharp focus. Photo insert.
188 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1965
About the author
Lenny Bruce
37 books82 followersLenny Bruce, born Leonard Alfred Schneider, was a controversial American stand-up comedian, writer, social critic and satirist of the 1950s and 1960s. His 1964 conviction in an obscenity trial was also controversial, eventually leading to the first posthumous pardon in New York history.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 302 reviews
May 28, 2012
This was a rare book left behind by the overweight and greasy lead singer of a band I booked once when I used to do that. I read it immediately and furiously like a masturbating teenager adopting Bruce's jargon as my own and made many decisions based on what I thought Lenny Bruce would do. When those decisions went up in flames I thought to myself; "well, fuck, it could be worse, I coulda been Lenny Bruce". Reading this book at times made feel overwhelmingly dirty, disgusted and guilty (like porn and Bukowski) and I can't wait to read it again.
August 7, 2017
Millenial left-leaning cucks such as myself are often credited for creating and proliferating the “Politically Correct Society” we supposedly find ourselves in, and I hate to perpetuate my own stereotype, but I must say I take offense to that. You see there’s a large sect of people who think we have something of an epidemic on our hands: a generation of coddled pussies. They believe we would rather live in a world of “safe spaces” and “trigger warnings” than think critically or allow our ideas to be challenged. They believe that we all want to end free speech, and censor any dissenting opinion or hurtful word because we’re just too coddled to cope with reality. For anyone who believes this, or who believes that this “Politically Correct Society” is the reason our future as a nation looks more Orwellian with each passing day, I invite you to read How to Talk Dirty and Influence People.
Lenny Bruce was a comedian and entertainer, perhaps the most notorious of his day, whose acts were hilarious, but were also constantly under attack thanks to Obscenity Laws. These laws, when put into practice, made the utterance certain, obscene four-letter words an arrestable offense. In the words of the law itself, public speech is declared to be obscene (and therefore illegal) if “to the average person, applying contemporary community standards, the dominant theme of the material, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest.” Let me translate that for you. You have no right to free speech if the words you speak are deemed OFFENSIVE.
Of course Bruce probably could’ve gotten away with saying certain four-letter words. After all, he performed mostly in jazzy strip clubs and salacious bars. What really got him into trouble was the meaning behind his words, not the words themselves. See, Lenny Bruce dared to criticize the most hypocritical institutions of his day (and our day): He joked about organized religion, officers of the law, and the supposed progressive liberals who talked the talk whenever it came to race relations, but never walked the walk. He was a brilliant and witty social satirist which made him a dangerous criminal, and with each new city he performed in, he faced another arrest, another trial over words.
What Lenny Bruce experienced 50 years ago was censorship. Today, bigots say bigoted comments and are promptly called out for being bigots, and then they complain that “the liberals are trying to censor me!” When that happens, I can only laugh. When certain alt-right pundits are dropped by their publishing companies (Note the word companies) for vitriolic, baiting comments that don’t reflect the values of those companies, they decry the state of our “Politically Correct Society” and invoke the tenets of the first amendment. Then I laugh even harder. When online forums are shut down for being incestuous buckets of hate, and the suddenly silenced army of rage monkeys unleashes fury via social media I just laugh and laugh. “WHERE IS MY FREE SPEECH!” They all scream. “I’M A VICTIM OF CENSORSHIP!”
What these people don’t get, is that they are not victims of censorship. They were not arrested for their unpopular opinions, they weren’t even forced to stop speaking. They may have been dropped by a for-profit organization, or a website that has its own rules about discussion, but they act as if they are revolutionary martyrs fighting tyranny and oppression. What they really are is a group of sissy crybabies. They’re crying because slurs and remarks that used to be acceptable in polite conversation are no longer acceptable, and they just can’t take it. Companies looking to reach as wide an audience as possible don’t want to be represented by racists. Websites designed to be social and welcoming don’t want to be overrun by nazi trolls. The first amendment protects your speech from government persecution, not from economic consequence.
But you may say “what about these college campuses? Full of liberal censors, going around and telling speakers not to come, telling professors what to teach?” Obviously, I don’t condone that, and honestly I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Congress has stepped in on this issue, and they’ve reached a bipartisan consensus that it just isn’t acceptable. Meanwhile, laws that actually promote censorship, such as laws against Net Neutrality, and laws that allow parents to edit school textbooks and reading lists, fly right under the radar. Funny how I don’t hear complaints about censorship from our revolutionary martyrs then...
But I’m getting off track. My point is that the “Politically Correct Society” did exist, and Lenny Bruce lived through it. His fight against the censorship of that society took such a toll on him that it very probably killed him. So to anyone complaining about out P.C. culture today I do not think you should be censored, but maybe every once in a while you could just shut the hell up.
My favorite quotes from the book:
“Marilyn Monroe’s respectability when she died was based principally upon her economic status, which is, in the final analysis, the only type our society really respects.” (67)
“I knew in my heart by pure logic that any man who calls himself a religious leader and owns more than one suit is a hustler as long as there is someone in the world who has no suit at all. So I made up my mind. I would become a priest.” (75)
“Any 19-year-old girl who is married to a wealthy, elderly guy... well, never mind that – just anyone who is married for security is a hooker. Two dollars for a short time, as opposed to a marriage license and a lot of two dollars for a longer time.” (105)
“Marijuana will be legal some day, because the many law students who now smoke pot will some day become Congressmen and legalize it in order to protect themselves.” (164)
Lenny Bruce was a comedian and entertainer, perhaps the most notorious of his day, whose acts were hilarious, but were also constantly under attack thanks to Obscenity Laws. These laws, when put into practice, made the utterance certain, obscene four-letter words an arrestable offense. In the words of the law itself, public speech is declared to be obscene (and therefore illegal) if “to the average person, applying contemporary community standards, the dominant theme of the material, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest.” Let me translate that for you. You have no right to free speech if the words you speak are deemed OFFENSIVE.
Of course Bruce probably could’ve gotten away with saying certain four-letter words. After all, he performed mostly in jazzy strip clubs and salacious bars. What really got him into trouble was the meaning behind his words, not the words themselves. See, Lenny Bruce dared to criticize the most hypocritical institutions of his day (and our day): He joked about organized religion, officers of the law, and the supposed progressive liberals who talked the talk whenever it came to race relations, but never walked the walk. He was a brilliant and witty social satirist which made him a dangerous criminal, and with each new city he performed in, he faced another arrest, another trial over words.
What Lenny Bruce experienced 50 years ago was censorship. Today, bigots say bigoted comments and are promptly called out for being bigots, and then they complain that “the liberals are trying to censor me!” When that happens, I can only laugh. When certain alt-right pundits are dropped by their publishing companies (Note the word companies) for vitriolic, baiting comments that don’t reflect the values of those companies, they decry the state of our “Politically Correct Society” and invoke the tenets of the first amendment. Then I laugh even harder. When online forums are shut down for being incestuous buckets of hate, and the suddenly silenced army of rage monkeys unleashes fury via social media I just laugh and laugh. “WHERE IS MY FREE SPEECH!” They all scream. “I’M A VICTIM OF CENSORSHIP!”
What these people don’t get, is that they are not victims of censorship. They were not arrested for their unpopular opinions, they weren’t even forced to stop speaking. They may have been dropped by a for-profit organization, or a website that has its own rules about discussion, but they act as if they are revolutionary martyrs fighting tyranny and oppression. What they really are is a group of sissy crybabies. They’re crying because slurs and remarks that used to be acceptable in polite conversation are no longer acceptable, and they just can’t take it. Companies looking to reach as wide an audience as possible don’t want to be represented by racists. Websites designed to be social and welcoming don’t want to be overrun by nazi trolls. The first amendment protects your speech from government persecution, not from economic consequence.
But you may say “what about these college campuses? Full of liberal censors, going around and telling speakers not to come, telling professors what to teach?” Obviously, I don’t condone that, and honestly I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Congress has stepped in on this issue, and they’ve reached a bipartisan consensus that it just isn’t acceptable. Meanwhile, laws that actually promote censorship, such as laws against Net Neutrality, and laws that allow parents to edit school textbooks and reading lists, fly right under the radar. Funny how I don’t hear complaints about censorship from our revolutionary martyrs then...
But I’m getting off track. My point is that the “Politically Correct Society” did exist, and Lenny Bruce lived through it. His fight against the censorship of that society took such a toll on him that it very probably killed him. So to anyone complaining about out P.C. culture today I do not think you should be censored, but maybe every once in a while you could just shut the hell up.
My favorite quotes from the book:
“Marilyn Monroe’s respectability when she died was based principally upon her economic status, which is, in the final analysis, the only type our society really respects.” (67)
“I knew in my heart by pure logic that any man who calls himself a religious leader and owns more than one suit is a hustler as long as there is someone in the world who has no suit at all. So I made up my mind. I would become a priest.” (75)
“Any 19-year-old girl who is married to a wealthy, elderly guy... well, never mind that – just anyone who is married for security is a hooker. Two dollars for a short time, as opposed to a marriage license and a lot of two dollars for a longer time.” (105)
“Marijuana will be legal some day, because the many law students who now smoke pot will some day become Congressmen and legalize it in order to protect themselves.” (164)
March 5, 2021
Funny & Pointed! Social Commentary.
January 4, 2023
How to Talk Dirty & Influence People felt like you having a drink with Lenny Bruce while he tells his life story. Lenny talks about how he got started in his career. From childhood, his time in the navy, and traveling the world. Lenny struggled with the law due to language on stage. He gave perspective on life, politics, & religion.
The writing style was very unique because he captured how he spoke in real life.
Yes, I read this book because of the show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
The writing style was very unique because he captured how he spoke in real life.
Yes, I read this book because of the show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
May 18, 2012
There is an ebb and flow to the tale of classic comics. People are brought up on a basis similar to comets passing through the atmosphere. Someone dies and the comet appears a little quicker ("X lived in the shadow of Y who had paved the way for X to do their most famous bits ...").
Lenny Bruce's comet comes every 5 or ten years, it seems. He's been labeled a martyr and a genius and one of the most important comedians to ever come across a stage. Just a couple of weeks ago, another website was looking at Comedians who had forced society to move forward and started their discussion with Bruce and Mort Sahl (a contemporary whose humor was a bit more political). This reminded me, "Man, it's been a while since I heard those Bruce bits. Gotta hear them again." And then, "You know, there's his autobiography. I wonder what that's like."
The answer: It's the ESSENTIAL Lenny Bruce. More essential than the book falsely labeled as The Essential Lenny Bruce if only because this one ties his jokes together. He took his time with this book and crafted something that tells [a great deal of] his story. From early life to beginnings of his comedy career to his obscenity cases to his overwhelming paranoia (stuff that comes out in Let The Buyer Beware's CD's ... but that's over 7 hours of listening to poorly recorded material), it's almost all here. And integrated throughout are some of his more classic bits. Yeah, "Christ and Moses" is not complete. Sure, "Are There Any Niggers Here Tonight" (while quoted on the back) is not here. But instead, we get him running off on jerking off. We get Lenny discussing the mysterious object in his Aunt Mema's cupboard (a douche) and we also get his criticisms of the police and "The Man". We even get him criticizing himself from time to time.
It rambles on, like his performances, but because it's written, we don't lose any word. The reader understands the power of the words that Lenny uses in his comedy and, with the book spelling out some of his performances word for word, we can actually laugh at it. This book is what needs to be discussed every time Lenny's comet rolls on through the comedy ether. They talk about seeing him and listening to his records, but frankly, they didn't translate very well. This book, though, allows us living 50 years after his death to get in touch with his work and understand what makes it funny and what makes it poignant and why it was important in the first place.
Now, how much of this autobiography is true ... that's up for debate. I don't know, I don't want to know (my guess is around 75%). This book isn't about learning about who Lenny Bruce is. This book is about why Lenny Bruce was important in the 1950's and 1960's and why we should still care about him now. Some of his bits (like one I named a couple of paragraphs up) still can't be performed today. As South Park gets censored over and over again (via death threats of all things!), as words are still thought of as dirty, as Political Correctness has swamped the nation and our thoughts with what should be allowed ... sometimes we need a Lenny Bruce to stick a finger in our assholes and tell us it smells like shit down there.
The only drawback to reading this book (or listening to a lot of Bruce) is that you begin to talk like him. Give me a week and I'll stop.
Lenny Bruce's comet comes every 5 or ten years, it seems. He's been labeled a martyr and a genius and one of the most important comedians to ever come across a stage. Just a couple of weeks ago, another website was looking at Comedians who had forced society to move forward and started their discussion with Bruce and Mort Sahl (a contemporary whose humor was a bit more political). This reminded me, "Man, it's been a while since I heard those Bruce bits. Gotta hear them again." And then, "You know, there's his autobiography. I wonder what that's like."
The answer: It's the ESSENTIAL Lenny Bruce. More essential than the book falsely labeled as The Essential Lenny Bruce if only because this one ties his jokes together. He took his time with this book and crafted something that tells [a great deal of] his story. From early life to beginnings of his comedy career to his obscenity cases to his overwhelming paranoia (stuff that comes out in Let The Buyer Beware's CD's ... but that's over 7 hours of listening to poorly recorded material), it's almost all here. And integrated throughout are some of his more classic bits. Yeah, "Christ and Moses" is not complete. Sure, "Are There Any Niggers Here Tonight" (while quoted on the back) is not here. But instead, we get him running off on jerking off. We get Lenny discussing the mysterious object in his Aunt Mema's cupboard (a douche) and we also get his criticisms of the police and "The Man". We even get him criticizing himself from time to time.
It rambles on, like his performances, but because it's written, we don't lose any word. The reader understands the power of the words that Lenny uses in his comedy and, with the book spelling out some of his performances word for word, we can actually laugh at it. This book is what needs to be discussed every time Lenny's comet rolls on through the comedy ether. They talk about seeing him and listening to his records, but frankly, they didn't translate very well. This book, though, allows us living 50 years after his death to get in touch with his work and understand what makes it funny and what makes it poignant and why it was important in the first place.
Now, how much of this autobiography is true ... that's up for debate. I don't know, I don't want to know (my guess is around 75%). This book isn't about learning about who Lenny Bruce is. This book is about why Lenny Bruce was important in the 1950's and 1960's and why we should still care about him now. Some of his bits (like one I named a couple of paragraphs up) still can't be performed today. As South Park gets censored over and over again (via death threats of all things!), as words are still thought of as dirty, as Political Correctness has swamped the nation and our thoughts with what should be allowed ... sometimes we need a Lenny Bruce to stick a finger in our assholes and tell us it smells like shit down there.
The only drawback to reading this book (or listening to a lot of Bruce) is that you begin to talk like him. Give me a week and I'll stop.
September 29, 2021
The legal stuff is not that much fun to read. On the other hand, his writings on the standup comic world is pretty great. And he’s funny!
December 20, 2018
Wow what a funny, absurdly relevant book. I could go on about this book but mostly I’m distracted by how much I want to go back in time and fuck the shit out of Lenny Bruce.
I’m sure he’d have the review end no other way.
I’m sure he’d have the review end no other way.
May 5, 2021
When you read this book you can hear Lenny Bruce's voice reverberating in your head. It brought me into the mind and comedy of a comedy inspiration.
Lenny was tragic as he was funny and I certainly saw that in these pages. It's a quick read that will make you a bigger fan of Lenny Bruce!
Lenny was tragic as he was funny and I certainly saw that in these pages. It's a quick read that will make you a bigger fan of Lenny Bruce!
December 26, 2013
Page for page, line for line, semi-colon for semi-colon, the funniest book I've ever read.
March 13, 2024
I love Lenny Bruce and I respect what he was able to accomplish, regarding free speech and the position of the satirist in the modern world. Every comic- every. single. one.- who has come after is in some sense trailing in his wake.
I got really into reading this in high school. I relished noticing that other people got into it, too, and saw what happened when the American legal structure decided to try and take him down. A landmark case for defenders of free speech and dissent.
Only trouble is: a lot of his work, this book included, seems too dated to stand up to today's reader. Too many obscure 50's references along the lines of "that's like telling Arnie Winkler to start selling dolphin insurance to AMERICA UNITED!!!"....audience cracks up completely and....it goes way over my head.
I've heard a couple things recently, particularly 'How to Relax Your colored friends at Parties' which actually did make me laugh out loud, so maybe my opinion isn't still relevant....
Anyway definitely recommended for anyone interested in post war American counterculture...
I got really into reading this in high school. I relished noticing that other people got into it, too, and saw what happened when the American legal structure decided to try and take him down. A landmark case for defenders of free speech and dissent.
Only trouble is: a lot of his work, this book included, seems too dated to stand up to today's reader. Too many obscure 50's references along the lines of "that's like telling Arnie Winkler to start selling dolphin insurance to AMERICA UNITED!!!"....audience cracks up completely and....it goes way over my head.
I've heard a couple things recently, particularly 'How to Relax Your colored friends at Parties' which actually did make me laugh out loud, so maybe my opinion isn't still relevant....
Anyway definitely recommended for anyone interested in post war American counterculture...
May 12, 2021
Ο Lenny Bruce ήταν μια σπάνια ιδιοφυΐα.
Πρωτοπόρος τού stand up, προφητικός σέ πάμπολλες περίπτωσεις, αποτέλεσε την κύρια πηγή έμπνευσης για άλλες μεγάλες προσωπικότητες του χώρου όπως οι :Bill Hicks, George Carlin,Dave Chapell κτλ.
Το γράψιμο μου είναι ακριβώς όπως είχα φανταστεί. Πνευματώδες, διαπεραστικό καί ξεκαρδιστικό.
Παρόλο πού ταλαιπωρήθηκε τόσο πολύ μέσα καί έξω από τά δικαστήρια, για αυτά πού έλεγε στίς παραστάσεις τού (σεξ, θρησκεία, φυλετική ισότητα,κουμουνισμος μεταξύ άλλων)και με ένα σωρό ψευδείς(;) κατηγορίες για χρήση ναρκωτικών, δεν είναι ποτέ απολογητικός. Όχι επειδή είναι ξεροκέφαλος ή πεισματάρης, τουναντίον, αλλά επειδή όντως πολεμούσε για την ελευθερία τής έκφρασης στην τέχνη και την ζωή.
Τα σκηνές που περιγράφονται είναι απίστευτες. Είναι σάν νά ζεις σέ άλλη εποχή.
Νιώθεις να περιτριγυρίζει όλη η συντηρητικότητα τής Αμερικής τού 50 καί τού 60, και έναν Bruce πού γράφει και σχολιάζει με την ειλικρίνεια καί σκωπτικοτητα ενός εφήβου με IQ 200. (Νά πω σέ αυτό τό σημείο ότι χρησιμοποιεί έντονα αργκό της εποχής τού, οπότε καλό είναι να έχετε την έκδοση του playbook για την μετάφραση.)
Αυτό που έκανε στην σκηνή δεν ήταν απλά κωμωδία"για όλη την οικογένεια", αλλά λεκτικός jazz αυτοσχεδιασμός με κοινωνική μαύρη σάτιρα, πού είχε στόχο νά προβληματίσει.
Ένας μεγάλος καλλιτέχνης, πού η εποχή πού έζησε δεν ήταν έτοιμη για αυτόν.
Είμαστε τυχεροί που υπάρχει ακόμα ανάμεσα μας μέσω κειμένων σαν αυτό.
Η επιρροή τού στην κοινωνία λάμπει ακόμα μέσω όλων τών μεγάλων σύγχρονων καλλιτεχνών τού stand up, πού δικαίως τόν έχουν εικόνισμα.
5/5
Πρωτοπόρος τού stand up, προφητικός σέ πάμπολλες περίπτωσεις, αποτέλεσε την κύρια πηγή έμπνευσης για άλλες μεγάλες προσωπικότητες του χώρου όπως οι :Bill Hicks, George Carlin,Dave Chapell κτλ.
Το γράψιμο μου είναι ακριβώς όπως είχα φανταστεί. Πνευματώδες, διαπεραστικό καί ξεκαρδιστικό.
Παρόλο πού ταλαιπωρήθηκε τόσο πολύ μέσα καί έξω από τά δικαστήρια, για αυτά πού έλεγε στίς παραστάσεις τού (σεξ, θρησκεία, φυλετική ισότητα,κουμουνισμος μεταξύ άλλων)και με ένα σωρό ψευδείς(;) κατηγορίες για χρήση ναρκωτικών, δεν είναι ποτέ απολογητικός. Όχι επειδή είναι ξεροκέφαλος ή πεισματάρης, τουναντίον, αλλά επειδή όντως πολεμούσε για την ελευθερία τής έκφρασης στην τέχνη και την ζωή.
Τα σκηνές που περιγράφονται είναι απίστευτες. Είναι σάν νά ζεις σέ άλλη εποχή.
Νιώθεις να περιτριγυρίζει όλη η συντηρητικότητα τής Αμερικής τού 50 καί τού 60, και έναν Bruce πού γράφει και σχολιάζει με την ειλικρίνεια καί σκωπτικοτητα ενός εφήβου με IQ 200. (Νά πω σέ αυτό τό σημείο ότι χρησιμοποιεί έντονα αργκό της εποχής τού, οπότε καλό είναι να έχετε την έκδοση του playbook για την μετάφραση.)
Αυτό που έκανε στην σκηνή δεν ήταν απλά κωμωδία"για όλη την οικογένεια", αλλά λεκτικός jazz αυτοσχεδιασμός με κοινωνική μαύρη σάτιρα, πού είχε στόχο νά προβληματίσει.
Ένας μεγάλος καλλιτέχνης, πού η εποχή πού έζησε δεν ήταν έτοιμη για αυτόν.
Είμαστε τυχεροί που υπάρχει ακόμα ανάμεσα μας μέσω κειμένων σαν αυτό.
Η επιρροή τού στην κοινωνία λάμπει ακόμα μέσω όλων τών μεγάλων σύγχρονων καλλιτεχνών τού stand up, πού δικαίως τόν έχουν εικόνισμα.
5/5
March 21, 2023
Retrospectively in love with Lenny.
February 6, 2022
Lenny Bruce, one of the prominent stand up comedians during the 50s and 60s, has been on the list of people that I want to learn more about for some years now. Hearing his old performances, there is something about him that interests you immediately. Something so honest and unhinged, that calling it an performance does not feel quite right. Of course, this quality got him in trouble countless times. While Bruce himself is what drew me to this book, an unexpectedly interesting part of it, is the recounting of the many hearings and trials he went through - fighting the obscenity laws in the US at the time. While he eventually would receive wide support and respect for his work, it is clear it did not come for free. Apart from increasing my respect for the man himself, this memoir is a reminder of the importance of satire in a healthy society.
January 11, 2023
Good read. A bit dated in some sections (not everything that was controversial in the 1950s and 60s still is), but there are things in there that are just as up to date today as they were 60+ years ago. The second half of the book gets a bit deep into his obscenity trials (multiple!) and his narcotics trials. Overall, I enjoyed it and I am sticking with my 4 star rating.
Also, I had this as an audiobook which I would definitely recommend. The reader is an actor who has preformed as Lenny on stage and he reads the entire book in the voice and style of Lenny Bruce! Very well done in my opinion.
Also, I had this as an audiobook which I would definitely recommend. The reader is an actor who has preformed as Lenny on stage and he reads the entire book in the voice and style of Lenny Bruce! Very well done in my opinion.
Read
August 27, 2023This is not your average autobiography. It lacks some honesty (imho) to be a trully great work but ir also shows you who the man was (and honesty is sometimes overrated). While some references have flown over my head and the only thing more boring than court proceedings is reading about court proceedings, it contextualizes Lenny Bruce’s work perfectly. And makes you wonder how can anyone ever want to go back in time. And also makes you wonder at what point, if Bruce was active today, he would be cancelled. I’m guessing pretty quickly.
January 22, 2020
This book is essentially a Lenny Bruce skit about his life and I love it. Very funny, VERY dirty, and an amazing read
September 7, 2020
Readers, it's not a stand-up comedy routine, it's an autobiography, written by a satirist with a keen eye for hypocritical social mores. This is the historical account of an underdog who rose to set the standard for a new generation of thinkers, writers, and comedians, employing social commentary as a form of protest. An advocate for freedom of speech, Lenny Bruce told the truth as he saw it and was persecuted--and prosecuted--for obscenity. There's humor in that. Not the kind that makes you laugh out loud; it's the kind that makes your heart pound and your eyes well up with hot tears.
February 22, 2017
In this politically correct version of the world Lenny Bruce is just as offensive as he was back when he was being busted by the fuzz for being obscene. You see Lenny is an icon that paved the way for greats like Carlin, Pryor, Hicks, and even Sam Kinison. Words themselves aren't dirty. It's the image that they create. Lenny was ahead of his time and he paid dearly for it. It's unfortunate that Mr. Bruce doesn't get the respect that he deserves. He changed the way that people approached comedy and busted down doors that were formerly closed. I know I'm coming off fan boyish, but Bruce is one of those guys that taught me more about life than most teachers. I learned about free speech from Lenny, and I also learned that you don't really have the freedom to speak at all. You just think you do.
This isn't the first time I read this book I read it back when I was eighteen and I hadn't really seen Lenny perform, and I didn't really know all that much about him. I knew how he died, and how dirty he was, but then again when you looked back at the state of who came after, he wasn't really all that dirty. He knew how to hold a audience's attention but he wasn't trying to offend anyone. He just spoke to them the way he spoke to his friends. If you look on Youtube there are some really good bits of his that still hold up well, while others are quite dated. I fell in love with the book and read it about ten, or eleven times. I thought this was an autobiography, but it's really not.
It's just a series of stories that seem true, and who knows, maybe to Lenny they were. They are entertaining and what makes it so readable is that they're funny, and you're inside Lenny's head a bit. There are other biographies of Bruce, but this one is special because it's the man's own words before his world started falling apart. We do get a glimpse of his beginning legal troubles, but we don't get the tragic end. Lenny had no idea just how bad things were going to get. Neither did family or fans. Some of the stuff is dated but anytime you read an older book you're going to have this issue. If you're one of those people that are bothered by that then maybe you should avoid the book and read something else.
It is one of my favorite books though, and one that you should read if you're at all interested in what the world was like for someone like Lenny who actually arrested for saying cock sucker on stage. He talks about his status as a sick comic and we also get a glimpse inside his marriage to Honey Bruce. This was at the time, the definitive book on Bruce and still is. These are somewhat autobiographical tales that will make you laugh and is a great introduction the legend that is Lenny Bruce.
This isn't the first time I read this book I read it back when I was eighteen and I hadn't really seen Lenny perform, and I didn't really know all that much about him. I knew how he died, and how dirty he was, but then again when you looked back at the state of who came after, he wasn't really all that dirty. He knew how to hold a audience's attention but he wasn't trying to offend anyone. He just spoke to them the way he spoke to his friends. If you look on Youtube there are some really good bits of his that still hold up well, while others are quite dated. I fell in love with the book and read it about ten, or eleven times. I thought this was an autobiography, but it's really not.
It's just a series of stories that seem true, and who knows, maybe to Lenny they were. They are entertaining and what makes it so readable is that they're funny, and you're inside Lenny's head a bit. There are other biographies of Bruce, but this one is special because it's the man's own words before his world started falling apart. We do get a glimpse of his beginning legal troubles, but we don't get the tragic end. Lenny had no idea just how bad things were going to get. Neither did family or fans. Some of the stuff is dated but anytime you read an older book you're going to have this issue. If you're one of those people that are bothered by that then maybe you should avoid the book and read something else.
It is one of my favorite books though, and one that you should read if you're at all interested in what the world was like for someone like Lenny who actually arrested for saying cock sucker on stage. He talks about his status as a sick comic and we also get a glimpse inside his marriage to Honey Bruce. This was at the time, the definitive book on Bruce and still is. These are somewhat autobiographical tales that will make you laugh and is a great introduction the legend that is Lenny Bruce.
March 3, 2022
"an honorary doctorate of letters to the man who
won fame using them four at a time."
won fame using them four at a time."
August 9, 2022
My respect for his brilliance and ahead-of-his-time progressive nature and quick wit, is separate from my sporadic boredom with the autobiography.
I enjoyed the chapters about his arrest and court cases most.
I can now separate Lenny Bruce, from the fictionalized version of him I over romanticized on TV… which is probably healthy.
I enjoyed the chapters about his arrest and court cases most.
I can now separate Lenny Bruce, from the fictionalized version of him I over romanticized on TV… which is probably healthy.
January 27, 2014
Autobiografia di Lenny Bruce Autobiografia di Lenny Bruce, noto oggi per soli due motivi, la celebrazione che ne fece Bob Fosse nel secco film Lenny (lo interpreta D. Hoffman, IMHO una delle sue migliori interpretazioni) e l'essere stato l'ispiratore riconosciuto di Daniele Luttazzi in Italia. Il resistibile successo di Lenny fra gli anni 50 e 60 si bas� sullo scandalizzare a oltranza. Tecnica infantile che ha sempre (contro i muri solidi) un discreto successo. Se poi teniamo conto dell'America profonda tutta torte di mele, Doris Day e zii che violentano nipotine nel capanno degli attrezzi possiamo comprendere come un tipo come Lenny Bruce - un classico, one-liner da battaglia, facesse sbellicare dalla risa gli hip urbani. La societ� contro cui si scagliava � quella che Kurtz rievoca in Apocalypse Now "Addestriamo dei ragazzi a sganciare Napalm sulla gente, ma i loro comandanti non vogliono che scrivano "cazzo" sugli aerei perch� � una parola oscena" Fu perseguitato da una censura codina e ottusa ma ci mise del suo, non cap� che c'� molta gente cui piace realmente la vita torta di mele & Doris Day, non per ipocrisia e senza violentare le nipotine. Di questo errore lo perdoniamo, fu il primo, era solo, l'ha pagata e molte ipocrisie erano demolende e meritoriamente demolibili. Stupisce che il medesimo errore l'abbia commesso trent'anni dopo un uomo che spesso appare acuto e intelligente come Luttazzi. Il disastro di Lenny fu sia nelle persecuzioni che sub� che nel seguente rendersi conto che la dissacrazione esasperata somiglia molto a segare il ramo su cui ci si � seduti. Se stesso incluso. Fortemente consigliato ai reduci degli anni '70 e a chiunque voglia ghignare. Ricordate che fu originariamente pubblicato da "Playboy", toglieva il singhiozzo inevitabile dopo la liturgica contemplazione del paginone centrale. Solo interessati / astenersi perditempo.
February 8, 2024
“Let me tell you the truth. The truth is what is. What should be is a fantasy, a terrible, terrible lie that someone gave the people long ago."
The last season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel doesn't come out for a while and I don't like surprises, so I picked up the memoir of the actual Lenny Bruce. It was funny, as one would expect, but kind of heart-breaking too. I'm a sucker for a doomed story. I guess I forget that comedians aren't that different from writers, just some lonely folks trying to communicate their existence.
“I am not offended by war in the same way that I am not offended by rain. Both are “motivated” by need. I was at Anzio. I lived in a continual state of ambivalence: guilty but glad. Glad I wasn’t the GI enjoying that final “no-wake-up-call” sleep on his blood-padded mud mattress. It would be interesting to hear his comment if we could grab a handful of his hair, drag his head out of the dirt and ask his opinion on the questions that are posed every decade, the contemporary shouts of: “How long are we going to put up with Cuba’s nonsense?” “Just how many insults can we take from Russia?” I was at Salerno. I can take a lot of insults.”
The last season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel doesn't come out for a while and I don't like surprises, so I picked up the memoir of the actual Lenny Bruce. It was funny, as one would expect, but kind of heart-breaking too. I'm a sucker for a doomed story. I guess I forget that comedians aren't that different from writers, just some lonely folks trying to communicate their existence.
“I am not offended by war in the same way that I am not offended by rain. Both are “motivated” by need. I was at Anzio. I lived in a continual state of ambivalence: guilty but glad. Glad I wasn’t the GI enjoying that final “no-wake-up-call” sleep on his blood-padded mud mattress. It would be interesting to hear his comment if we could grab a handful of his hair, drag his head out of the dirt and ask his opinion on the questions that are posed every decade, the contemporary shouts of: “How long are we going to put up with Cuba’s nonsense?” “Just how many insults can we take from Russia?” I was at Salerno. I can take a lot of insults.”
October 18, 2014
This book starts off well but toward the end slips into a mess of legal rhetoric that became dull so I'm giving it a 3 star rating. But there are valuable lessons to be derived here; such as what it is to be a jew vs. a gentile, the power of words both written and spoken under those people in power who are in charge of censorship, how sticking your neck out in society does not always go over well, and why it is important to remain stoic and objective in a climate of religion vs. politics.
December 31, 2019
Lenny Bruce is a major character on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel so I was curious. They use his material verbatim in the show.
March 7, 2024
this sent me into absolute FITS of laughter and granted that might have been b/c of the pot but this was just so very stupidly brilliantly funny
Read
September 29, 2023The autobiography of Lenny Bruce, stand up comedian in the '50s and the' 60s. Sex, religion, racism, free speech. You name it, he spoke about it with unmatched brilliance, sparking controversy and paying a heavy price.
"it is biting, sardonic, certainly stimulating and quite often funny—but never in a jovial way."
While half the book talks about his life from his formative years, taking us through the choices that led him to the stage in front of the audience the rest of it is consumed by his legal troubles concerning his "obscene" material, that eventually took a toll. It was the hardest part of the book to follow and more often than not, I got lost in it.
"Now there are no more dirty Japs; there are dirty Commies! And when we run out of them there’ll just be dirty dirt. And dirty mud. Then we’ll eat the mud and Pearl Buck will write a book about it. By that time, the few hippies who discovered that it’s the earth which is dirty will have made it to the moon for the Miss Missile contest."
Η αυτοβιογραφία του Λένι Μπρους, stand up κωμικός στις δεκαετίες του '50 και του '60. Σεξ, θρησκεία, ρατσισμός, ελευθερία του λόγου. Ότι και αν πείτε, έχει μιλήσει για αυτό με απαράμιλλη οξυδέρκεια, πυροδοτώντας διαμάχες και πληρώνοντας το βαρύ τίμημα.
«Είναι δηκτικός, σαρδόνιος, σίγουρα διεγερτικός και αρκετά συχνά αστείος αλλά ποτέ με εύθυμο τρόπο».
Ενώ το μισό βιβλίο μιλά για τη ζωή του από τη νεαρή ηλικία του μέχρι την ενηλικίωση, περνώντας από τις επιλογές που τον οδήγησαν στη σκηνή μπροστά στο κοινό, το υπόλοιπο κυριεύεται από τα νομικά του προβλήματα σχετικά με το «άσεμνο» υλικό του, που τελικά τον κατέβαλλαν. Ήταν το πιο δύσκολο κομμάτι του βιβλίου και τις περισσότερες φορές χανόμουν στις αναφορές του.
"Τώρα δεν υπάρχουν πια βρώμικοι Ιάπωνες, υπάρχουν βρώμικοι Κομμουνιστές! Και όταν μας τελειώσουν και αυτοί, θα υπάρχει απλώς βρώμικη βρωμιά. Και βρώμικη λάσπη. Μετά θα φάμε τη λάσπη και η Περλ Μπακ θα γράψει ένα βιβλίο γι' αυτό. Μέχρι τότε, οι λίγοι χίπις που ανακάλυψαν ότι η γη είναι βρώμικη θα έχουν φτάσει στο φεγγάρι για το διαγωνισμό Μις πολεμικό βλήμα."
"it is biting, sardonic, certainly stimulating and quite often funny—but never in a jovial way."
While half the book talks about his life from his formative years, taking us through the choices that led him to the stage in front of the audience the rest of it is consumed by his legal troubles concerning his "obscene" material, that eventually took a toll. It was the hardest part of the book to follow and more often than not, I got lost in it.
"Now there are no more dirty Japs; there are dirty Commies! And when we run out of them there’ll just be dirty dirt. And dirty mud. Then we’ll eat the mud and Pearl Buck will write a book about it. By that time, the few hippies who discovered that it’s the earth which is dirty will have made it to the moon for the Miss Missile contest."
Η αυτοβιογραφία του Λένι Μπρους, stand up κωμικός στις δεκαετίες του '50 και του '60. Σεξ, θρησκεία, ρατσισμός, ελευθερία του λόγου. Ότι και αν πείτε, έχει μιλήσει για αυτό με απαράμιλλη οξυδέρκεια, πυροδοτώντας διαμάχες και πληρώνοντας το βαρύ τίμημα.
«Είναι δηκτικός, σαρδόνιος, σίγουρα διεγερτικός και αρκετά συχνά αστείος αλλά ποτέ με εύθυμο τρόπο».
Ενώ το μισό βιβλίο μιλά για τη ζωή του από τη νεαρή ηλικία του μέχρι την ενηλικίωση, περνώντας από τις επιλογές που τον οδήγησαν στη σκηνή μπροστά στο κοινό, το υπόλοιπο κυριεύεται από τα νομικά του προβλήματα σχετικά με το «άσεμνο» υλικό του, που τελικά τον κατέβαλλαν. Ήταν το πιο δύσκολο κομμάτι του βιβλίου και τις περισσότερες φορές χανόμουν στις αναφορές του.
"Τώρα δεν υπάρχουν πια βρώμικοι Ιάπωνες, υπάρχουν βρώμικοι Κομμουνιστές! Και όταν μας τελειώσουν και αυτοί, θα υπάρχει απλώς βρώμικη βρωμιά. Και βρώμικη λάσπη. Μετά θα φάμε τη λάσπη και η Περλ Μπακ θα γράψει ένα βιβλίο γι' αυτό. Μέχρι τότε, οι λίγοι χίπις που ανακάλυψαν ότι η γη είναι βρώμικη θα έχουν φτάσει στο φεγγάρι για το διαγωνισμό Μις πολεμικό βλήμα."
July 10, 2018
I read this book so long ago that I decided to revisit and read it again. The best parts are the bits, probably from some of his routines, which still cause laughing out loud. However, some of the material is dated, but valuable historically to show how times change. The justice system then was so bothered by him that they hounded him as badly as the Internet can now hound people. He provides court records that show him caught in a kind of theatre of the absurd over what one could or couldn't legally say. The memoir portion of the book is rich with stories of his time in the Merchant Marine and his love with Honey Harlowe. Also he tells of a con game he ran of raising money to help foreign countries in the name of religion. (This reminded me of Elmore Leonard's novel, "Pagan Babies", which was about the exact same kind of scheme.) Though at times dated, he was also prescient, declaring marijuana would some day be legal. Lenny Bruce died in the mid-60's shortly after this book was first published, which adds a different dimension to reading about his hounded situation.
July 29, 2019
Bruce was really the original shock comic. The things he discussed on stage just hadn’t been done before him. He talked about sex (a lot), drugs (a lot), and rallied against war and our government. He was arrested multiple times, debuted reentry to the UK due to his previous stand up routines there, and was the original “obscene” comic. While his some of his comedy may be rather tame by today’s standards, it can still shock. His memoir is no different. For those of us 50 and 60 years removed from his comedy, his memoir is a testament to his values and his honesty to his own vision of the world. The first 2/3 of the book was better than the end, but I think that also reflects his mental state as he grew older. The book itself isn’t often funny, but it is incisive and humorous with its melancholy. Sadly, he died at 40 due to a drug overdose.
November 21, 2022
Having listened to some podcasts about Lenny Bruce and of course his likeness and influence in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, I was excited to read this. I picked the audiobook for this one since I had a particularly long drive. I really enjoyed the first 3/4ths of it. I think he made a lot of interesting points and commentary but the end kind of went off the rails for me. A talented visionary that was lost too soon.
January 12, 2023
3/5’s ⭐️’s// This autobiography was originally serialized in Playboy Magazine. It starts off really strong, but slowly slips into Bruce’s famous stream of consciousness. It gets complicated when he starts discussing his many arrests not only for ‘obscenity,’ but also for drug possession. The book gives little insight to how he fell into addiction, other than his Naval service in WWII which led him to Salerno and Anzio. Of course, that could be enough. (3/110) #readlist2023
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