{"product_id":"the-improv-isbn-9781942952435","title":"The Improv","description":"\u003cb\u003eFeatured in the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e 2017 \"Holiday Gift Guide for Hardcover Fans\"\u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGet an insider's oral history of the World's most iconic comedy club, featuring exclusive interviews with today's most hilarious stars recalling their time on stage (and off) at the Improv.   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn 1963, 30-year-old Budd Friedman—who had recently quit his job as a Boston advertising executive and returned to New York to become a theatrical producer—opened a coffee house for Broadway performers called the Improvisation. Later shortened to the Improv, its first seedy West 44th Street location initially attracted the likes of Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Albert Finney, and Jason Robards, as well as a couple of then-unknowns named Dustin Hoffman and Bette Midler.   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile it drew near-capacity crowds almost from day one, it wasn't until comedians began dropping by to try out new material that the Improv truly hit its stride. The club became the first venue to present live stand-up in a continuous format, and in the process reinvented the art form and created the template for all other comedy clubs that followed.   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrom the microphone to the iconic brick wall, the Improv has been the launching pad for practically every major name in American comedy over the last five-plus decades. Now, in \u003ci\u003eThe Improv\u003c\/i\u003e, Friedman, along with a Who's Who of his most famous alumni—including Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Jimmy Fallon, Larry David, Billy Crystal, Lily Tomlin, Judd Apatow, Al Franken, Paul Reiser, Howie Mandel, Bob Saget, Drew Carey, and many more—tell it like it was in the first-ever oral history of how this game-changing comedy club came to be.\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Improv\u003c\/i\u003e gives readers an exclusive look at what really happened onstage and off-mic at one of America's most venerable institutions. \"The Improv was a cauldron of talent. Whetsell writes about it wonderfully and with respect for its importance to comedy.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Robert Klein\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"They used to say that if you made it New York you could make it anywhere. Maybe so, but if you didn't make it at the Improv, it was time to pack your bags and move to ‘anywhere.'\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Richard Lewis \u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"This book is a great walk down memory lane for me. All hail the Improv and all the laugh-filled times and wonderful nights that happened in front of those brick walls.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Bill Maher\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The Improv played a vital part in my early stand-up days as it did in the careers of the dazzling array of stars, eccentrics, and colorful characters whose stories adorn this bright and greatly entertaining book. Get at \u003ci\u003eleast\u003c\/i\u003e two copies, in case you lose one.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Dick Cavett\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Here's a book I'll probably never finish, because for years to come I'll be picking it up again and again and rereading parts over and over, whenever I need perking up. It's the history of an art form, though that sounds way too stuffy, and of an institution—the great American comedy club, especially the Improvs of New York and LA.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Tom Shales, Pulitzer Prize–winning former television critic for \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post \u003c\/i\u003eand #1 bestselling coauthor of \u003ci\u003eLive from New York \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThese Guys Have All the Fun\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"\u003c\/i\u003eAn entertaining ride through the glory years—the people, the stories, the feuds, the laughs—of the club that started the stand-up comedy boom in America.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Richard Zoglin, author of \u003ci\u003eHope: Entertainer of the Century \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eComedy at the Edge: How Comedy in the 1970s Changed America\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The Godfather of the comedy club is finally called to testify . . . and he sings like a canary.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Bill Knoedelsder, author of \u003ci\u003eI'm Dying Up Here: Heartbreak and High-Times in Stand-Up Comedy's Golden Era\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eBudd Friedman\u003c\/b\u003e, the man who could well be called the father of the modern comedy club, was born in Norwich, Connecticut, moved to New York, fought in Korea and returned to Manhattan, where he obtained a degree in Advertising and Marketing from New York University. Less than enthralled with advertising, he hit upon the idea that was to become the Improvisation. The rest, as they say, is history. Ever the entrepreneur, Budd produced a political\/satirical theatrical revue in New York entitled \u003ci\u003eWhat's a Nice Country Like You Doing in a State Like This? \u003c\/i\u003eHe became Jay Leno and Bette Midler's first manager, and in 1975 he opened a West Coast branch of the Improv on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBudd auditioned for and won the coveted role of \"Budd Friedman\" in \u003ci\u003eMan on the Moon\u003c\/i\u003e, the biopic about Andy Kaufman starring Jim Carrey and Danny DeVito. In 2002, he hosted and executive produced a one-hour primetime special for NBC celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Improv. He also co-created and executive produced National Lampoon's \u003ci\u003eFunny Money \u003c\/i\u003efor the Game Show Network. More recently, he reprised his role of \"Budd Friedman\" in Judd Aptow's \u003ci\u003eFunny People\u003c\/i\u003e. He continues to bring stand-up into the hearts and minds of everyone in the United States. As of 2015, there were 22 Improv comedy clubs in 12 states.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTripp Whetsell\u003c\/b\u003e is a New York-based author, entertainment journalist and critic specializing in comedy, television, film, music and pop culture history. His work has appeared both in print and online for such publications as VanityFair.com, \u003ci\u003eTV Guide\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNew York Post\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNew York Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNew York Daily News\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eCloser Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Los Angeles Times \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Hollywood Reporter\u003c\/i\u003e. This is his third book.","brand":"BenBella Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46301795418341,"sku":"NP9781942952435","price":26.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781942952435.jpg?v=1742925120","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-improv-isbn-9781942952435","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}