My Wonderful World Of Slapstick (Da Capo Paperback) (ISBN 0306801787)

Very Well Written:
Many people rave about Buster Keaton's work in the silent era and very few are fans of his work during the talkies. For those people, this book is an excellent read because the bulk of the material is about the gags in his silent films, various pranks played on other people of the profession, and his start on the stage. Unfortunately, this book does not delve into all of Buster's life and sometimes only gives a short overview of specific events, some good and some bad. Fans of The General will be disappointed that the only information given about the film is that it was one of Buster's personal favorites. Thankfully, though, some films get extra special attention like The Navigator, Seven Chances, Steamboat Bill Jr., and The Cameraman. The book has an added feature. Keaton writes very well (although some credit should be given to co-write Andy Samuels). None of the dialogue is too highbrow to read, but it is intelligent stuff. Our author has certainly given his life some thought. He could have spent more time talking about his later life, but Keaton takes the route of Mickey Rooney and simply explains that the reason he made so many bad films later in life was because of his desperate need for money. Thankfully, he is optimistic, and leaves the reader uplifted instead of brought down. This book is highly recommended.

My Wonderful World of Keaton:
Yes Keaton could have told us more about his problems, but I don't think that Keaton actually dwelt on his problems as much as some of us dwell on Keaton's problems, he would rather talk about all the good things that have happened to him and there was a lot. In one of the chapters he talks about how he would like to be a millionaire, but he points out he has many things in his life that he is very happy about, his pretty wife, new car, nice house etc. I loved this book you can hear Keaton's voice in every word written and isn't that really what you want from an auto-biography.

Wonderful!:
I really enjoyed reading this book. This should be the first book anyone reads when researching Keaton's life and trying to get a sense of his personality. You will be left with questions after finishing the book. Keaton obviously leaves out details and names in a lot of his stories but you can always fill in the gaps with another book about his life. He didn't dwell too much on the bad times in his life but he openly tells the story about his battle with alcoholism. I applaud him for showing respect to those people in his stories for which he doesn't name. These were people who hurt him in his past but he didn't bad-mouth them and never did-publicly or privately. This fact alone tells a lot about what kind of man he was. This book is a must-read for all Keaton fans.

In His Own Words:
It's always interesting to read how a celebrity describes his or her own life, especially when that person's on-screen persona has captivated audiences worldwide and over several generations to such a degree as Buster Keaton has. With such a reputation, namely as the most famous comedian alongside Charlie Chaplin, it's very appropriate that his autobiography should be entitled "My Wonderful World of Slapstick", and throughout the book the focus is on this style of comedy, both on-screen and off. Obviously a natural and born comedian, Buster fondly recalls many private, off-screen gags, practical jokes and other funny moments, even telling more serious events of his life with a tongue-in-cheek sense of humour. So for those expecting more laughs and other funny stories about his films, this book won't be disappointing. But for those seeking some more in-depth, personal revelations or just the man behind the screen image, it might be a bit frustrating how Buster skims over family matters and refers to his second wife in just one sentence, namely "that second marriage of mine did not last long, which is the nicest thing about it I remember." On the other hand, Buster does not flinch or hold back in honestly recounting his worst years when he lost everything in his divorce and became an alcoholic landing in clinics and institutions, and the mere fact that he struggled to climb back out of this dark hole and returned to acting also speaks highly for him. This straightforward honesty and the stories of his successful early years in Hollywood were the highlights of this book for me personally. Reading about his childhood in vaudeville shows and then his success in films from 1917 onwards allows the reader to briefly go back in time to another world where things were obviously very different, such as simply the nature of vaudeville and some slapstick, which for us today may seem very crude, violent and distasteful at times. It was interesting to read, however, that as Buster was growing up, several new laws came into force to protect children from being literally thrown about in vaudeville shows. But lucky for us, perhaps, Buster grew up in such an environment and only went to school for one hilarious day in his life, which built the foundation for his keen sense of comedy and his physical skills in tumbling, falling and other dangerous stunts just to make us laugh. These things he also describes in some detail, as well as special people he knew such as Harry Houdini, some behind-the-scenes goings-on and the sad story of his friend, Roscoe Arbuckle's demise. While none of these contain any special insights for us today, they are nonetheless Buster's own views, and although co-authored, this book reads smoothly and fluently as if Buster himself were sitting comfortably in your lounge, telling you his life story in a fairly casual, rambling manner in that deep, slow monotone voice of his. Anyone fond of Buster - and most people are - would enjoy at least some aspects of his book, if not all. My only quibble is that the few photos in the middle are grainy and not very clear, but for a soft-cover book published first in 1960, with many historic titbits and anecdotes of days gone by, this is still a very enjoyable and special little book.

Something Missing....:
Though this book was well written, entertaining and enjoyable.... Buster never wrote about THE GENERAL! (except to say it was one of his best films) Hello!!!!!! How could he not even write one paragraph about the best-known movie he created? That would be like William Shatner forgetting to mention Star Trek...... For that reason, I cannot honestly give this book more than 3 stars, much as I enjoyed it! S