The Comedians

Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels and the History of American Comedy

By: Kliph Nesteroff

Narrated by: Kliph Nesteroff

In The Comedians, comedy historian Kliph Nesteroff brings to life a century of American comedy with real-life characters, forgotten stars, mainstream heroes, and counterculture iconoclasts. Based on over 200 original interviews and extensive archival research, Nesteroff's groundbreaking work is a narrative exploration of the way comedians have reflected, shaped, and changed American culture over the past 100 years.

Starting with the vaudeville circuit at the turn of the last century, Nesteroff introduces the first stand-up comedian - an emcee who abandoned physical shtick for straight jokes. After the repeal of Prohibition, Mafia-run supper clubs replaced speakeasies, and mobsters replaced vaudeville impresarios as the comedian's primary employer. In the 1950s, the late-night talk show brought stand-up to a wide public, while Lenny Bruce, Mort Sahl, and Jonathan Winters attacked conformity and staged a comedy rebellion in coffeehouses. From comedy's part in the Civil Rights movement and the social upheaval of the late 1960s to the first comedy clubs of the 1970s and the cocaine-fueled comedy boom of the 1980s, The Comedians culminates with a new era of media-driven celebrity in the 21st century.

©2015 Kliph Nesteroff. Some of the material herein is based on Kliph Nesteroff's work with WFMU's Beware of the Blog and Classic Television Showbiz. Recorded by arrangement with Grove Atlantic, Inc. (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

History of comedy worth the listen

This audiobook does an outstanding job of going over the history of comedy with a major emphasis on stand-up. The only part that is a little annoying is the narrator trying to recreate the voices of some of the comedians. The impressions aren't the best, but they don't take away from the story.

Lots of past... but compresses the almost present

I learned so much from this telling of comedy. My dad had lots of recordings of these old comedians and I would hunt down and listen to old radio shows or visit these old vaudevillian theaters. So the stories brought so much to life for me. Test as the writer got closer to the present day it was more like a quick snippet of random stories. Perhaps the book was getting too long? Living in Hollywood I have heard plenty of stories that were significant and never mentioned. But as I didn’t write the book, it’s an editors choice. Great reader. Highly encourage reading if this book.

Well Read

While I can see how some people may dislike the different voices, I personally found them very entertaining. Overall, I really liked this audiobook.

Better than an arrow through the head.

for a student of comedy it is excellent listening. Nothing earth shattering but great way to pass the time

Utterly Fantastic

These are the types of books I find fascinating. The behind the scenes stories of how things came to be; where the greats got their starts; the unsung heroes in their field.

I had never heard of Kliph Nesteroff, so I was hesitant to listen, Nesteroff wisely makes reference to that point in the first few pages. He proves himself a viable fountain of well-researched and fabulous stories.

He wrote the book with a flair and and great flow from anyone and everyone you can imagine.

The only thing I would have changed was his attempts at impressions of some comedians. He didn’t have to go into character. Also, he ends the book in the most depressing way possible. Of course, the book being written in 2015, it was bound to happen.