Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life

Steve Martin burst into the comic scene in the mid-1970s. By 1978 he was the biggest concert draw in the history of stand-up. He permanently resigned in 1981. According to him, the narrative in this book explains "why I did stand-up and why I walked away."

Martin has always been a writer. She is the recipient of many Emmy and Grammy Awards, the author of the critically acclaimed New York Times bestsellers Shopgirl and The Pleasure of My Company, and a frequent contributor to The New Yorker. His autobiography of his years doing stand-up comedy is frank, very funny, and well written.

Martin began working at Disneyland at the age of 10, selling guidebooks at the recently established amusement park. In the decade that followed, he worked in the Disney magic shop and the Bird Cage Theatre at Knott's Berry Farm, performing his first magic/comedy act a dozen times a week. The account of these years spent honing his trade is inspiring and enlightening. The dedication to excellence and innovation is formed at an astonishingly early age and never wavers or wanes.

Martin sheds light on the selflessness, self-control, and creativity that shaped his legacy and continue to influence his work now. Being this skilled and performing so often was a solitary and lonely experience. Martin relates the tale of how it took him decades to get back in touch with his parents and sister with such sensitivity. Martin also paints a portrait of his times-the era of free love and protests against the war in Vietnam, the heady irreverence of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in the late sixties, and the transformative new voice of Saturday Night Live in the seventies.

Martin has included pictures, many of which have never been seen before, throughout the narrative. Born Standing Up is a fantastic illustration of the unwavering perseverance, determination, and audacity of one of the most influential and legendary comedians in history.