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It's Good to Be the King: The Seriously Funny Life of Mel Brooks
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 790
EAN: 9780470225264
ISBN: 0470225262
Label: Wiley
Manufacturer: Wiley
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 336
Publication Date: February 26, 2008
Publisher: Wiley
Studio: Wiley
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Editorial Review:
This book traces the extraordinary life and career of Mel Brooks, who has ridden a wave of show business success perhaps unsurpassed by anyone of his generation. Offering many insights into the wacky world of Brooks and his many collaborators, as well as an intimate look into his successful marriage to the brilliant and beautiful actress Anne Bancroft, It's Good to Be the King might just be the most delightful, engaging, and entertaining biography you'll ever read.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Definitive Bio on Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks has had an incredible career in television, films, and theater. James Robert Parish's book puts it all in perspective. Believe it or not, there have been many setbacks and failures in the life and career of a man most of us think of as hugely successful. Parish, who has written many fine Hollywood biographies, does an excellent job of telling the story of Brooks' life, extensively covering the personal and professional. It's an interesting, entertaining book that also includes a nifty ... Read More
Rating:  - Mel Brooks Dissected
The life of Mel Brooks has been a scattered affair with Sid Caesar highs and Robin Hood lows. In between has been a rogues gallery of memorable screen characters from Max Bialystock (Zero Mostel) in The Producers to Madeline Kahn's unforgettable Lili von Shtupp in Blazing Saddles with many others along the way including the best film work Dom DeLuise has ever done. This book delves into them all, including Brooks himself, perhaps his best character of all.
It's a page turner and ... Read More
Rating:  - Mediocre Bio on Fascinating Subject
While Parish appears to have done some research (a lengthy bibliography is included), he apparently did little more than read books/articles/reviews and listen to DVD commentaries. The result is an OK clip job that could have been much more---for example, why no interviews with Brooks' living colleagues? And hardly any mention is made of Brooks' three children from his first marriage, although several pages are devoted to his son from his marriage to Anne Bancroft.
The writing is ... Read More
Rating: - This book on Mel Brooks' life falls short of being authoritative, still, author Parish has made a noble effort
He is properly appreciative of Brooks' most wonderful work, but not indifferent to his creative slumps (also known as the eighties). I agree with most of his assertions, but wish he'd credited them more specifically.
Especially since, having no original interviews with his subject, he relies on previously published works. To such an extent I couldn't help but feel a collection of interviews with the hardly press-shy humorist might have served just as well or better for his fans. ... Read More
Rating: - The King is Crowned
Admittedly, Mel Brooks is an acquired taste, because so much of his humor is of the "hit or miss" variety. (Confessed: I'm a Brooks fan - but he can occasionally "miss" even me.) Parish has turned out another one of his excellent books with this biography of funmeister Brooks. Mel's path to fame is an interesting one, and Parish tracks it well. He's one of the rare Hollywood writers - and more experienced ones, too - who doesn't delve into sensationalism in his books. Parish writes "biography" and ... Read More
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