Rubber Arrow Through the Head Slays Thousands. A Review of Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life by Steve Martin

Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
by Steve Martin
Scribner; Reprint edition
September, 2008

When I planned this week’s column, I didn’t realize that James McCormick was going to discuss, and perhaps mourn, Steve Martin’s later movie career in his piece The Column With No Name: I Miss Steve Martin. It’s a fairly fair look at the declining performances in Steve Martin’s later work in front of the camera, and it rightly praises much of his earlier, even ground breaking, work. We both praise his contributions to modern banjo music.



But that’s not what I’m here about. For this week’s review, I’m offering up one of the better autobiographies of a comic force I’ve come across in recent years—Steve Martin’s Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life.

One problem with autobiographies is that they are rarely complete. By definition alone, an autobiography can’t be complete as the writer is usually still alive. (I am not counting autobiographies published posthumously with an editor filling in those last days.) But that said, this is definitely an autobiography worthy of reading. Martin doesn’t attempt to cover the entire span of his life. I’m sure he’s still mulling over what the past 30 years mean to him. Instead, this is book covers his early years, from childhood up to the filming of The Jerk—a definite arc in his career focusing primarily on the development of his comedy through his experiences as a struggling, and then successful stand-up comedian.

I’ve often heard about Martin’s time at Disneyland working in The Magic Shop, but never got a chance to catch any real details. I think spending one’s teen years working at Disney must have an effect. It probably says more about me than Martin that I’m surprised the experience didn’t turn him into a bitter crank. Still, it seems to have been a very positive time for him. He followed that experience by taking some of what he learned watching performers at Disney to the infamous Knott’s Berry Farm where he got his chance to get up on stage and get a real taste for performing before an audience.

It’s the story of a young man who had set himself on a definite path—even if he wasn’t entirely sure where that path would lead. While at Knott’s Berry Farm, Martin also started hitting the folk clubs with his comedy and banjo act. Mind you, this was before comedy clubs. Stand-up comedy hadn’t really come into its own, and folk clubs were often the only places around for inexperienced performers to develop their stagecraft. They were rarely paid, and often played to very small audiences. It took someone with a thick skin to survive these experiences.

One interesting revelation was how Martin came to the decision to explore and transform his act with surreal comedy. Stand-up comedy was still pretty conservative in its format. Sure, folks like Richard Pryor and George Carlin were working off Lenny Bruce’s breakthrough, but that was the minority. Nontraditional comedy was still a risk. But by mixing Martin’s vaudevillian influences from Disney and Knott’s Berry Farm with some of the experimental comedy he’d been exposed to on the road, Martin forged ahead to make comedy a weirder and more thoughtful experience.

He wasn’t always successful. He was sometimes wildly successful. It took a lot of bravery, I think, to try out new, unfamiliar material in front of an audience you can’t see from stage. As his act developed, he dropped a lot of the old "safe" routines and wrote bolder material, keeping careful notes, and was on the very crest of the new form of comedy that was arriving in America.

Still, the road was a hard place, and Born Standing Up describes the many trials and challenges Martin faced. In addition to professional hurdles, Martin unflinchingly talks about the estranged relationship he had with his family, difficulties in keeping a steady relationship going, and living with an uncertain future.

There’s a happy ending, isn’t there? Martin made The Jerk which, while getting mixed, uneven reviews, has ended up becoming a recognized comedy classic. Martin, recognizing that he’d done as much as he could or wanted to with stand-up comedy, successfully crossed over into other arenas. He became Saturday Night Live’s most beloved guest host. He’s made many great movies—high on my personal list...My Blue Heaven, is an accomplished writer, and a celebrated musician.

But I’m not here to sing Steve Martin’s praises, nor dwell upon his failures. I’m talking about his autobiography, Born Standing Up:A Comic's Life which gives great insight to the Martin’s thoughts on his past—where he’s come from. As the reader, we can extrapolate how that may have influenced his later years. Maybe that will be another book from Martin.

I’d buy it.

As for recommending this. Well, I’m not going to say it’s for everyone. Not everyone is a fan of Steve Martin. If you are, then by all means—check it out now that it’s available in trade paperback. (I’m a fan, but I guess not a big enough one to have shelled out for the hardcover last year.) If you’re into stand-up comedy, it’s culture and history, you’ll find a lot to enjoy here.

Now if you’ll excuse me...I’m going to try my hand at playing “The Crow”. No need for rubber arrows through the head. Not anymore.

Cheers!

(Next week’s review will commemorate April as Poetry Month. See you then!)

For information on how to get your book, comic, movie, whatever reviewed on Falling Off the Shelf, or to send hate mail, feel free to contact me at john (at) johnteehan (dot) com.