In On The Joke The Original Queens Of Standup Comedy 1st Edition Shawn Levy by Shawn Levy 9780385545792, 9780385545785, 9782021013207, 2021013200, 0385545797, 0385545789, 2021013201 instant download after payment.

A hilarious & moving account of the trailblazing women of stand-up comedy who broke down walls so they could stand before the mic—perfect for fans of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel & Hacks   

Today, women are ascendant in stand-up comedy, even preeminent. They make headlines, fill arenas, spawn blockbuster movies.  But before Amy Schumer slayed, Tiffany Haddish killed, & Ali Wong drew roars, the very idea of a female comedian seemed, to most of America, like a punch line. And it took a special sort of woman—indeed, a parade of them—to break & remake the mold.   

In on the Joke is the story of a group of unforgettable women who knocked down the doors of stand-up comedy so other women could get a shot. It spans decades, from Moms Mabley’s rise in Black vaudeville between the world wars, to the roadhouse ribaldry of Belle Barth & Rusty Warren in the 1950s & ’60s, to Elaine May’s co-invention of improv comedy, to Joan Rivers’s & Phyllis Diller’s ferocious ascent to mainstream stardom. These women refused to be defined by type & tradition, facing down indifference, puzzlement, nay-saying, and unvarnished hostility. They were discouraged by agents, managers, audiences, critics, fellow performers—even their families. And yet they persevered against the tired notion that women couldn’t be funny, making space not only for themselves, but for the women who followed them.   

Meticulously researched & irresistibly drawn, Levy’s group portrait forms a new pantheon of comedy excellence. In on the Joke shows how women broke into the boys’ club, offered new ideas of womanhood, & had some laughs along the way.  

Shawn Levy is a former film critic for The Oregonian & the best-selling author of Rat Pack Confidential & Paul Newman: A Life. He reviews movies for KGW-TV & lives in Portland, Oregon. www.shawnlevy.com