Benchley Roundup : A Selection by Nathaniel Benchley of his Favorites

by Benchley, Robert

• ISBN13: 9780226042183
• ISBN10: 0226042189
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1983-11-01
• Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr

Summary

Robert C. Benchley's sketches and articles, published in periodicals likeLife,Vanity Fair, andThe New Yorker, earned him a reputation as one of the sharpest humorists of his time; his influenceon contemporaries such as E. B. White, James Thurber, and S. J. Perelman, or followers like Woody Allen, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryorhas left an indelible mark on the American comic tradition.The Benchley Roundupcollects those pieces, selected by Benchley's son Nathaniel, "which seem to stand up best over the years"-a compendium of the most endearing and enduring work from one of America's funniest and most penetrating wits."It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by then I was too famous."Robert Benchley

Author Biography

Robert C. Benchley (1889-1945), a premier humorist of his time and member of the Algonquin Round Table, wrote for the New York World and New York Tribune Graphic as well as many other periodicals; his work was widely syndicated and anthologized.

Table of Contents

Foreword

""Take the Witness!"

"How to Get Things Done

The Social Life of the Newt

Football Rules or Whatever They Are

The Tortures of Week-End Visting

From Nine to Five

Shakespeare Explained

Christmas Afternoon

Family Life in America

Do Insects Think?

The Stranger Within Our Gates

Opera Synopses

Malignant Mirrors

How to Understand International Finance

Kiddie-Kar Travel

Uncle Edith's Ghost Story

French for Americans

Is This the Missing Link?

The Mystery of the Poisoned Kipper

""Ask That Man""

Editha's Christmas Burglar

What Does it

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