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Enjoy Your Symptom!: Jacques Lacan in Hollywood and Out (Routledge Classics Ser.)
by Slavoj ZizekThe title is just the first of many startling asides, observations and insights that fill this guide to Hollywood on the Lacanian psychoanalyst’s couch. Zizek introduces the ideas of Jacques Lacan through the medium of American film, taking his examples from over 100 years of cinema, from Charlie Chaplin to The Matrix and referencing along the way such figures as Lenin and Hegel, Michel Foucault and Jesus Christ. Enjoy Your Symptom! is a thrilling guide to cinema and psychoanalysis from a thinker who is perhaps the last standing giant of cultural theory in the twenty-first century.
Event
by Slavoj ZizekProbably the most famous living philosopher, Slavoj i ek explores the meaning of events in this short and digestible book An event can be an occurrence that shatters ordinary life, a radical political rupture, a transformation of reality, a religious belief, the rise of a new art form, or an intense experience such as falling in love. Taking us on a trip that stops at different definitions of event, i ek addresses fundamental questions such as: are all things connected? How much are we agents of our own fates? Which conditions must be met for us to perceive something as really existing? In a world that's constantly changing, is anything new really happening? Drawing on references from Plato to arthouse cinema, the Big Bang to Buddhism, Event is a journey into philosophy at its most exciting and elementary.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Lacrimae rerum: Ensayos sobre cine y ciberespacio
by Slavoj ZizekConsiderado el «séptimo arte», el cine ha sido y sigue siendo uno de los medios de comunicación de masas más importantes. <P><P>Desde la primera función en el sótano del Grand Café des Capucines de París hace algo más de cien años, hasta las grandes superproducciones de Hollywood que dominan las pantallas del mundo, el cine ha sido técnica e industria, entretenimiento y vehículo de expresión de ideas y sentimientos. <P><P>Partiendo de estas consideraciones y estudiando la labor de reconocidos directores, el filósofo y psicoanalista Slavoj Zizek, profundo conocedor del universo cinematográfico y de la influencia de los medios de comunicación en la sociedad contemporánea, reflexiona sobre los temas principales de estos maestros y sus motivaciones a la hora de situarse detrás de la cámara. <P><P>De la imposibilidad de hacer remakes de las películas de Alfred Hitchcock al pesimismo en la obra de Krzysztof Kieslowski; de la imagen de la mujer, la irracionalidad y la angustia en los trabajos de Andrei Tarkovski y David Lynch a la posibilidad imaginaria o real de desplazarse a través del tiempo y el espacio como los personajes de Matrix, Zizek desarrolla su imaginación crítica y su agudo sentido literario para atrapar al lector con imágenes, ideas y revelaciones que sorprenderán no solo a los buenos aficionados al cine, sino también a todos aquellos que deseen acercarse a los clásicos de la pantalla de la mano de este original y provocador filósofo.
Fuck You: Rock and Roll Portraits
by Neil ZlozowerFor more than 30 years, legendary music photographer Neil Zlozower has shot a who's-who of rock and metal titans. When the session demands, Neil has been known to yell, "Give me some fucking attitude!" The go-to gesture in the next photo frame is nearly always the rocker giving Neil the finger. Fück Yöu assembles a veritable R 'n' R hall of fame of musicians flipping the birda playful parade of obscenity and a celebration of pure rock attitude. Here and telling the world to fuck off are Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Judas Priest, Slipknot, Ratt, Motley Crue, Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, Korn, Bon Jovi, Slayer, Anthrax, and many more, sharing the love with each flying finger.
Andy Kaufman Revealed!: Best Friend Tells All
by Bob ZmudaBest known for his sweet-natured character Latka on Taxi, Andy Kaufman was the most influential comic of the generation that produced David Letterman, John Belushi, and Robin Williams. A regular on the early days of Saturday Night Live (where he regularly disrupted planned skits), Kaufman quickly became known for his idiosyncratic roles and for performances that crossed the boundaries of comedy, challenging expectations and shocking audiences. Kaufman's death from lung cancer at age 35 (he'd never smoked) stunned his fans and the comic community that had come to look to him as its lightning rod and standard bearer.Bob Zmuda -- Kaufman's closest friend, producer, writer, and straight man -- breaks his twenty-year silence about Kaufman and unmasks the man he knew better than anyone. He chronicles Kaufman's meteoric rise, the development of his extraordinary personas, the private man behind the driven actor and comedian, and answers the question most often asked: Did Andy Kaufman fake his own death?
Andy Kaufman: The Truth, Finally
by Bob Zmuda Lynne MarguliesFor the first time ever, the two people who knew Andy Kaufman best open up about the most enigmatic artist of our generation. Comedian and Taxi star Andy Kaufman, known for his crazy antics on screen and off, was the ultimate prankster, delighting audiences with his Elvis and Mighty Mouse impressions while also antagonizing them with his wrestling and lounge lizard alter ego, Tony Clifton. In 1984, some say he died while others believe he performed the ultimate vanishing act. At last, in Andy Kaufman: The Truth, Finally, Bob Zmuda, Andy’s writer and best friend, and Lynn Margulies, the love of Andy’s life, reveal all, including surprising secrets that Andy made Lynne and Bob promise never to tell until both of his parents had died. Hilarious and poignant, this book separates fact from fiction, and includes a candid inside take on the Milos Forman film Man on the Moon, which starred Jim Carrey as Andy, Paul Giamatti as Zmuda, Courtney Love as Margulies and Danny DeVito as Andy’s manager, George Shapiro. Zmuda and Margulies reveal what was truthful and what wasn’t and share their behind-the-scenes Kaufmanesque antics they concocted with actor Jim Carrey, keeping him in character, at times, much to the chagrin of studio chiefs. Andy Kaufman also exposes intrigues of some of the biggest names in Hollywood. Finally, Bob Zmuda shares-in detail-the reasons he believes Andy Kaufman did, in fact, fake his own death, including exactly how he did it and why Andy will return.
School of Dragons #1: Volcano Escape! (DreamWorks Dragons)
by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld Random HouseAn all-new nonfiction series featuring DreamWorks Dragons! Hiccup, Toothless, and other exciting characters from DreamWorks Dragons help readers discover the real-life science and history behind volcanoes! Filled with full-color photos and lots of fun facts, these 80-page books based on JumpStart's School of Dragons online game are the perfect way to help young readers soar into the world of nonfiction.From the Trade Paperback edition.
School of Dragons #3: Storm Approaching! (DreamWorks Dragons)
by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld Random HouseAn all-new nonfiction series featuring DreamWorks Dragons!Hiccup, Toothless, and other exciting characters from DreamWorks Dragons teach readers about tornadoes, blizzards, hurricanes, and more of Earth's deadliest weather! Filled with full-color photos and lots of fun facts, these 80-page books based on JumpStart's School of Dragons online game are the perfect way to help young readers soar into the world of nonfiction.
Elvis in Vegas: How the King Reinvented the Las Vegas Show
by Richard ZoglinThe story of how Las Vegas saved Elvis and Elvis saved Las Vegas in the greatest musical comeback of all time.The conventional wisdom is that Las Vegas is what destroyed Elvis Presley, launching him on a downward spiral of drugs, boredom, erratic stage behavior, and eventually his fatal overdose. But in Elvis in Vegas, Richard Zoglin takes an alternate view, arguing that Vegas is where the King of Rock and Roll resurrected his career, reinvented himself as a performer, and created the most exciting show in Vegas history. Elvis’s 1969 opening night in Vegas was his first time back on a live stage in more than eight years. His career had gone sour—bad movies, and mediocre pop songs that no longer made the charts. He’d been dismissed by most critics as over the hill. But in Vegas he played the biggest showroom in the biggest hotel in the city, drawing more people for his four-week engagement than any other show in Vegas history. His performance got rave reviews, “Suspicious Minds” gave him his first number-one hit in seven years, and Elvis became Vegas’s biggest star. Over the next seven years, he performed more than 600 shows there, and sold out every one. Las Vegas was changed too. The intimate night-club-style shows of the Rat Pack, who made Vegas the nation’s premier live-entertainment center in the 1950s and ‘60s, catered largely to well-heeled older gamblers. Elvis brought a new kind of experience: an over-the-top, rock-concert-like extravaganza. He set a new bar for Vegas performers, with the biggest salary, the biggest musical production, and the biggest promotion campaign the city had ever seen. In doing so, he opened the door to a new generation of pop/rock performers, and brought a new audience to Vegas—a mass audience from Middle America that Vegas depends on for its success to this day. A classic comeback tale set against the backdrop of Las Vegas’s golden age, Richard Zoglin’s Elvis in Vegas is a feel-good story for the ages.
Hope: Entertainer of the Century
by Richard ZoglinThe first definitive biography of Bob Hope, featuring exclusive and extensive reporting that makes the persuasive case that he was most important entertainer of the twentieth century.Born in 1903, and until his death in 2003, Bob Hope was the only entertainer to achieve top-rated success in every major mass-entertainment medium, from vaudeville to television and everything in between. He virtually invented modern stand-up comedy. His tours to entertain US troops and patriotic radio broadcasts, along with his all-American, brash-but-cowardly movie character, helped to ease the nation's jitters during the stressful days of World War II. He helped redefine the very notion of what it means to be a star: a savvy businessman, pioneer of the brand extension (churning out books, writing a newspaper column, hosting a golf tournament), and public-spirited entertainer whose Christmas military tours and tireless work for charity set the standard for public service in Hollywood. But he became a polarizing figure during the Vietnam War, and the book sheds new light on his close relationship with President Richard Nixon during those embattled years. Bob Hope is a household name. However, as Richard Zoglin shows in this revelatory biography, there is still much to be learned about this most public of figures, from his secret first marriage and his stint in reform school, to his indiscriminate womanizing and his ambivalent relationship with Bing Crosby and Johnny Carson. Hope could be cold, self-centered, tight with a buck, and perhaps the least introspective man in Hollywood. But he was also a dogged worker, gracious with fans, and generous with friends. Hope is both a celebration of an entertainer whose vast contribution has never been properly appreciated, and a complex portrait of a gifted but flawed man, who, unlike many Hollywood stars, truly loved being famous, appreciated its responsibilities, and handled celebrity with extraordinary grace.
Rom Com
by Daniel Zomparelli Dina Del BucchiaAt precisely the cultural moment you were hoping for, a dream team of smart, sexy, brunette, West Coast poets of Italian descent has passionately co-authored an intelligent collection of poetry that both celebrates and capsizes the romantic comedy.From the origin of the genre (It Happened One Night) to its contemporary expressions (Love Actually), the poems in Rom Com trace the attempt to deconstruct as well as engage in dialogue with romantic comedy films and the pop culture, celebrities, and tropes that have come to be associated with them. These irreverent, playful, weird, and comedic poems come in a variety of forms, fully engaging in pop culture, without a judgmental tone. They see your frumpy expectations and raise you issues of sexuality, consent, sexism, homophobia, race, and class. They explore the highs and lows of romantic relationships and the expectations and realities of love, tackling real emotional worlds through the lens of film.Two cool people wrote it. Dina Del Bucchia, the fashionable and voluptuous, is a woman on the go, brazenly hosting literary events and tweeting about otters and award shows. Daniel Zomparelli, the handsome and dashing, is a young, gay man-about-Vancouver who somehow also quietly edits (in chief) a semi-annual poetry journal. (Ship them all you want, fools.)How to tell if you are compatible with this book: Are you equally versed in literature and pop culture? Are you a film-savvy fan of contemporary poetry? Are you an academic with interest in literature and cultural studies? Are you in general a cool, sad person? This book might just be the sassy best friend you've wanted.
The Adventure Bible Book of Daring Deeds and Epic Creations: 60 ultimate try-something-new, explore-the-world activities (Adventure Bible)
by ZondervanBegin your adventure here! The Adventure Bible Book of Daring Deeds and Epic Creations: 60 Ultimate Try-Something-New, Explore-the-World Activities contains lessons on knot tying, writing coded letters, building tree swings, and more, perfect for kids ages 8 and up. Boys and girls will love this interactive book filled with step-by-step guides and fun, full-color illustrations, and parents will enjoy the key verses and biblical takeaways that make this the perfect companion to the NIV Adventure Bible, the #1 Bible for kids. From easy, do-it-yourself crafts to fun outdoor activities, this book will show kids how to find adventure indoors and out.Adventures include:Top-secret coded lettersGeocaching funIdentifying animal tracksCamping like a proLearning sign languageBible arts and craftsAnd more!
Ready, Set, Find Bible Stories: 22 Look and Find Stories (Ready, Set, Find)
by ZondervanGet ready to read through 22 of the most famous Bible stories in the Ready, Set, Find Storybook Bible, the next book in the beloved Ready, Set, Find brand. Children will be immersed and engaged in each story as they look for more than 190 different objects to be found in this exciting book. Featuring classic stories including the Creation Story, Noah and the Ark, the birth of Jesus, and more, this lively and colorfully illustrated Bible is sure to be a favorite for young readers to ready, set, find!
Ready, Set, Find David and Goliath (Ready, Set, Find)
by ZondervanDavid is only a young boy, but he is about to fight a giant! Even though Goliath the giant is big, strong, and scary, David isn&’t afraid. He knows God is on his side. And guess what? You can help David too! See if you can spot the 48 hidden items in this book—like a slingshot and stones—so David can defeat Goliath.Ready, Set, Find as you read the story of David and Goliath in this interactive book for young readers.
Ready, Set, Find Noah's Ark (Ready, Set, Find)
by ZondervanA faithful retelling and exploration of the story of Noah and the Ark for young children, Ready, Set Find Noah&’s Ark follows Noah as he does an important job for God. Noah has an important job. He needs to build a huge ark and fill it with animals too. Now there are things and animals along the way he needs your help to find, like the hammer, the hen, and the hedgehog. Are you ready to help Noah? If so, on your mark, Ready, Set, Find! Read the classic story of Noah&’s Ark in this engaging look-and-find book for young children.Ready, Set Find Noah&’s Ark:Perfect for families to share in the storytelling processIncludes Scripture references for further readingChildren will love the interactive component of finding the hidden objects
3DIY: 3D Moviemaking on an Indy Budget
by Ray ZoneA must-have read for anyone looking to take their independently-produced film or video into the 3rd dimension. The text features technical, practical, and inspirational insight from the visionaries who've been producing 3D film and video for decades, not just in the recent past. They offer low-cost techniques and tricks they've been implementing themselves for years. A variety of styles are discussed, from full CG to time lapse - even a film made during a freefall skydive jump! The filmmakers discuss * Options for on-set playback* Preparing for final playback in various formats* Adapting existing technology to your needs* Post production software choices* Working with computer graphics in 3D This book includes 3D glasses and a companion YouTube channel featuring the work of the filmmakers featured in the book (which you can view in 3D with the glasses), as well as the opportunity for you to upload your own videos for critique and feedback from the author and others. 3D glasses are not included in the purchase of the e-book of 3-DIY. If you have purchased the e-book, and would like a pair of 3D glasses, please contact the publisher at Dennis.McGonagle@taylorandfrancis.com
Last Shot
by Jock ZonfrilloA coming-of-age memoir of addiction, ambition and redemption in the high-stakes world of Michelin star kitchens. From reckless drug addict to one of Australia&’s top chefs and television stars: MasterChef judge Jock Zonfrillo's powerful life story will shock and inspire. Jock&’s life spiralled out of control when he tried heroin for the first time as a teenager while growing up in 1980s Glasgow. For years he balanced a career as a rising star amongst legendary chefs with a crippling drug addiction that took him down many dark paths. Fired from his job at a Michelin star restaurant in Chester, England, after a foul-mouthed rant, Jock made his way to London looking for work and found himself in front of the legendary Marco Pierre White. He credits White for saving his life, but Jock continued to struggle with addiction in a world of excess, celebrity, and cut-throat ambition. On New Year&’s Eve 1999, Jock shot up his last shot of heroin before boarding a plane to Sydney, where he would find passion and new meaning in life in the most unexpected places. There would be more struggles ahead, including two failed marriages, the closure of his prized restaurant during COVID-19, his time on-country, and some very public battles. This is his unforgettable story. Foreword by Jimmy Barnes. Praise for Last Shot "If you get to see yourself in someone else&’s book it&’s a bit of a gift and it is the mark of a good storyteller. I&’m sure as you read this book you will see a bit of yourself too. This is a story of hope. A story of perseverance and resilience. A story of passion and love. A remarkable tale of a remarkable man who took the hard, hard road and made it his own." Jimmy Barnes "Last Shot is Trainspotting meets Kitchen Confidential. Jock&’s ability to not sugarcoat the truth and his brutal honesty about his struggle with his inner demons will resonate with so many people. That coupled with his absolute passion for food, his commitment to highlighting the culture and food of Australia&’s First Nations People and his pure love for his family makes this a truly stunning book. I loved it.&” Actress, Rebecca Gibney&“Oh my goodness what a book. I&’ve just finished it, devoured it in under four hours. I laughed and cried and marvelled at him.&” News Corp's National Entertainment Writer, Lisa Woolford
Disney and the Dialectic of Desire
by Joseph ZornadoThis book analyzes Walt Disney's impact on entertainment, new media, and consumer culture in terms of a materialist, psychoanalytic approach to fantasy. The study opens with a taxonomy of narrative fantasy along with a discussion of fantasy as a key concept within psychoanalytic discourse. Zornado reads Disney's full-length animated features of the "golden era" as symbolic responses to cultural and personal catastrophe, and presents Disneyland as a monument to Disney fantasy and one man's singular, perverse desire. What follows after is a discussion of the "second golden age" of Disney and the rise of Pixar Animation as neoliberal nostalgia in crisis. The study ends with a reading of George Lucas as latter-day Disney and Star Wars as Disney fantasy. This study should appeal to film and media studies college undergraduates, graduates students and scholars interested in Disney.
The Cinematic Superhero as Social Practice
by Joseph Zornado Sara ReillyThis book analyzes the cinematic superhero as social practice. The study’s critical context brings together psychoanalysis and restorative and reflective nostalgia as a way of understanding the ideological function of superhero fantasy. It explores the origins of cinematic superhero fantasy from antecedents in myth and religion, to twentieth-century comic book, to the cinematic breakthrough with Superman (1978). The authors then focus on Spider-Man as reflective response to Superman’s restorative nostalgia, and read MCU’s overarching narrative from Iron Man to End Game in terms of the concurrent social, political, and environmental conditions as a world in crisis. Zornado and Reilly take up Wonder Woman and Black Panther as self-conscious attempts to reflect on gender and race in restorative superhero fantasy, and explore Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy as a meditation on the need for authoritarian fascism. The book concludes with Logan, Wonder Woman 1984, and Amazon Prime’s The Boys as distinctly reflective fantasy narratives critical of the superhero fantasy phenomenon.
Hollis Frampton (October Files #26)
by Michael ZrydThe first collection of critical writing on the work of experimental filmmaker Hollis Frampton.Hollis Frampton (1936–1984) was one of the most important experimental filmmakers and theorists of his time, and in his navigation of artistic media and discourses, he anticipated the multimedia boundary blurring of today&’s visual culture. Indeed, his photography continues to be exhibited, and a digital edition of his films was issued by the Criterion Collection. This book offers the first collection of critical writings on Frampton&’s work. It complements On the Camera Arts and Consecutive Matter, published in the MIT Press&’s Writing Art series, which collected Frampton&’s own writings. October was as central to Frampton as he was to it. He was both a frequent contributor—appearing in the first issue in 1976—and a frequent subject of contributions by others. Some of these important and incisive writings on Frampton&’s work are reprinted here. The essays collected in this volume consider Frampton&’s photographic practice, which continued even after he turned to film; survey his film work from the 1960s to the late 1970s; and explore Frampton&’s grounding in poetics and language. Two essays by the late Annette Michelson, one of the twentieth century&’s most influential writers on experimental film, place Frampton in relation to film and art history. ContributorsGeorge Derk, Ken Eisenstein, Hollis Frampton, Peter Gidal, Barry Goldensohn, Brian Henderson, Bruce Jenkins, Annette Michelson, Christopher Phillips, Melissa Ragona, Allen S. Weiss, Federico Windhausen, Lisa Zaher, Michael Zryd
Hollis Frampton: Navigating the Infinite Cinema (Film and Culture Series)
by Michael ZrydHollis Frampton was an American filmmaker, photographer, and theorist who bridged the experimental film and contemporary art worlds in the 1960s and 1970s. Best known for avant-garde films including Zorns Lemma (1970) and (nostalgia) (1971), Frampton spent his later years working on the unfinished epic Magellan, a monumental cycle that used the metaphor of Ferdinand Magellan’s circumnavigation of the world to rethink the natures and meanings of history, modernity, and cinema. Frampton’s career was cut short by cancer at age 48, with his vast ambitions for the project left incomplete.This book is a groundbreaking and comprehensive account of this remarkable figure’s work in its totality, from Frampton’s earliest films through Magellan. Michael Zryd explores the connections linking Frampton’s art and thought to other media forms, histories, and cultural frameworks. He foregrounds Frampton’s notion of the “infinite cinema,” which redefined the parameters of the medium to encompass all forms of moving image and sound media across the past and future of cinematic possibility. Zryd analyzes Frampton’s ambivalent relationship with modernism and the Enlightenment, showing how the artist navigated between attraction to radical artistic investigation and awareness of this tradition’s implication in colonialism and other oppressive power structures. Shedding new light on Frampton’s project of exploring and critiquing how cinema attempts to capture and understand the world, this book also considers his significance for contemporary art.
There'll Be Peace When You Are Done: Actors and Fans Celebrate the Legacy of Supernatural
by Lynn S. ZubernisFifteen years. Two brothers. Angels and demons. A story like no other. And one of the most passionate fan bases of all time. That's Supernatural. There'll Be Peace When You Are Done: Actors and Fans Celebrate the Legacy of Supernatural is an emotional look back at the beloved television show Supernatural as it wraps up its final season after fifteen unprecedented years on air. With heartfelt chapters written by both the series' actors and its fans—plus full-color photos and fan illustrations—There'll Be Peace When You Are Done traces Supernatural's evolution, the memorable characters created by its writers and brought to life by its talented actors, and the many ways in which the show has inspired and changed the lives of both its viewers and cast. Both a celebration of Supernatural and a way of remembering what made it so special, this book is a permanent reminder of the legacy the show leaves behind and a reminder to the SPN Family to, like the series' unofficial theme song says, "carry on." Featuring chapters from Jared Padalecki ("Sam Winchester") and Jensen Ackles ("Dean Winchester"), which include some of the most heartfelt and emotional things they've previously said about Supernatural that they want fans to remember—plus new reflections about Sam and Dean's legacy, There'll Be Peace When You Are Done also includes original contributions from: • Richard Speight, Jr. ("Gabriel") • Chad Lindberg ("Ash") • Julie McNiven ("Anna Milton") • Tahmoh Penikett ("Gadreel") • Shoshannah Stern ("Eileen Leahy") • Rick Worthy ("Alpha Vamp") • David Haydn-Jones ("Arthur Ketch") • Lauren Tom ("Linda Tran") • And many more, including a special message from Misha Collins ("Castiel") Edited by Lynn S. Zubernis, a clinical psychologist, professor, and passionate Supernatural fangirl, There'll Be Peace When You Are Done is the ultimate send-off for this iconic show that has touched and changed the lives of so many fans across all walks of life.
Secret Lives of Great Filmmakers
by Mario Zucca Robert SchnakenbergStrange-But-True Tales of Cross-Dressers, Drug Addicts, Foot Fetishists, and Other Legendary Filmmakers. With outrageous and uncensored profiles of everyone from D. W. Griffith to Quentin Tarantino, Secret Lives of Great Filmmakers reveals the little-known secrets of all your favorite directors. Why did Charlie Chaplin refuse to bathe for weeks at a time? Was Alfred Hitchcock really missing a belly button? Is Walt Disney's corpse preserved in a state of suspended animation? And why on earth did Francis Ford Coppola direct a 3-D pornographic movie? The legends of the silver screen will never be the same!
In the Company of Actors: Reflections on the Craft of Acting (Stage And Costume Ser.)
by Carole ZuckerIn the Company of Actors is a wonderful ensemble of entertaining and illuminating discussions with sixteen of the most celebrated and prestigious actors in contemporary theatre, film and television. The impressive list of actors includes: Eileen Atkins, Alan Bates, Simon Callow, Judi Dench, Brenda Fricker, Nigel Hawthorne, Jane Lapotaire, Janet McTeer, Ian Richardson, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Rea, Fiona Shaw, Anthony Sher, Janet Suzman, David Suchet, and Penelope Wilton. Carole Zucker covers a wide range of topics including the actors' main childhood influences, their actor training, early acting experience, preparation for roles and sound advice for coping with actors' problems such as creative differences with other actors or directors.
Surely You Can't Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane!
by David Zucker Jim Abrahams Jerry ZuckerNAMED ONE OF THE BEST COMEDY BOOKS OF 2023 AT VULTURESurely You Can't Be Serious is an in-depth and hysterical look at the making of 1980's comedy classic Airplane! by the legendary writers and directors of the hit film.Airplane! premiered on July 2nd, 1980. With a budget of $3.5 million it went on to make nearly $200 million in sales and has influenced a multitude of comedians on both sides of the camera.Surely You Can’t Be Serious is the first-ever oral history of the making of Airplane! by the creators, and of the beginnings of the ZAZ trio (Zucker, Abrahams, Zucker) – charting the rise of their comedy troupe Kentucky Fried Theater in Madison, Wisconsin all the way to premiere night. The directors explain what drew them to filmmaking and in particular, comedy. With anecdotes, behind the scenes trivia, and never-before-revealed factoids – these titans of comedy filmmaking unpack everything from how they persuaded Peter Graves to be in the movie after he thought the script was a piece of garbage, how Lorna Patterson auditioned for the stewardess role in the back seat of Jerry’s Volvo, and how Leslie Nielsen’s pranks got the entire crew into trouble, to who really wrote the jive talk. The book also features testimonials and personal anecdotes from well-known faces in the film, television, and comedy sphere – proving how influential Airplane! has been from day one.Four decades after its release, Airplane! continues to make new generations laugh. Its many one-liners and visual gags have worked their way into the mainstream culture. This fully organic expansion of the ZAZ trio’s fan-base, prompted solely by word-of-mouth, comes as no surprise to longtime fans. When all around us is in flux – laughter is priceless.