Time for a Good Laugh, part 1

     If ever we needed a laugh, it's now. 2020 has been rough for all of us. Over the last year, I've read several books by and about comedians.  They are a lot of laughs, of course, but they are also great entertaining stories, with some good life lessons imparted as well. 

    I actually listened to all of these, narrated by the authors themselves, and I highly recommend this route. It was great to hear the subjects tell their own stories. 

    

    Eddie Izzard's Believe Me definitely falls into that arena. As he narrates the book, Izzard often goes off text, on tangents that he didn't include in the book. It's a really entertaining look into how his mind works. Izzard is a British comedian and actor who is known for several things like performing in women's clothing, performing his stand-up in multiple languages around the world, and running 27 marathons in 27 days for charity. In his book, he writes frankly about his childhood, his career, and his alternative sexuality. Izzard has a fan base that crosses all demographic lines because he has the ability to reach practically any audience.

    Are you one of the people who discovered actor Leslie Jordan from his quarantine videos on Instagram and other social media?  Probably not. Like me, you've probably seen him in his fantastic scene-stealing roles on sitcoms in the last 2-3 decades. It seems he's been on every sitcom there is, and he even made an appearance on an episode of  Star Trek: Voyager.  During the COVID quarantine, he started posting hilarious videos of random thoughts, and he became a viral social media phenomenon. If you haven't seen one (language warning):

My Trip Down the Pink Carpet  is the hilarious story of his career.

    Name Drop is a collection of stories of comedian Ross Mathews' encounters with celebrities during his career. It is really a fun, fast read.

    One of the greatest storytellers or raconteurs alive today in my opinion is movie director John Waters. He's published several books, and he does an annual speaking tour around Christmas. We've seen his show in Atlanta a couple of times. He's always entertaining, even if you don't particularly like his movies. Mr. Know It All is his latest memoir.