In"" Damn! That's Funny!, "" readers learn from a true pro what makes readers laugh, how to write humorous pieces, how to add humor to serious articles, and how to market their material. Written by television comedy writer Gene Perret, a three-time Emmy Award-winner and longtime head writer for Bob Hope.
Ideal for aspiring authors who only dream of actually finishing their works in progress, this guide features proven, field-tested tools guaranteed to successfully complete that romance, expert guide to business success, or great American novel. The chapters simplify the writing process by breaking it down into a series of discrete tasks, from creating a schedule in order to finish within a reasonable time, brainstorming sections of the book, and organizing ideas into chapters to rewriting, editing, submitting for publication, and even marketing. This reference is tailored to help writers avoid distractions and delays by establishing and maintaining a powerful writing momentum, thereby carrying their projects to completion. The psychological blocks that prevent writers from completing their manuscripts as well as how to combat them are also explored.
28 hilarious "self-help" lessons for seniors who've heard it all. With age comes wisdom. Mostly, we become wise enough to realize that we can’t do some of the things we did so well when we were young. The beloved comedian George Burns said it quite eloquently: “I can do anything at eighty that I could do when I was twenty. That gives you an idea of what terrible shape I was in at twenty.” Self-help books offer solid, beneficial techniques, but they really only work for the young. Award-winning comedy writer Gene Perret reveals that more mature devotees must adjust these techniques, tweak them, alter them, and in some cases, ignore them completely. New Tricks for Old Dogs points out some of the flaws in the self-help philosophy. It tempers the advice with common sense. The battle cry of this volume is “Do it, but don’t overdo it.” Sometimes, after we reach a certain age, the best exercise program is a good, brisk nap.
Beginning comedy writers and performers may think funny can't be taught, but legendary comedy writer Gene Perret, winner of three Emmy Awards, tells otherwise in this guide to what makes a good joke work. Outlining the 10 commandments of comedy, the unbreakable rules that every gag must follow in order to be funny, this book liberates readers and allows them to immediately begin writing better and funnier comedy material. By following Perret's commandments, readers will better understand how to write jokes that connect with audiences and discover why unsuccessful material isn't working and how it can be fixed. From the First Commandment (""Thou Shalt Surprise"") to the Tenth (""Thou Shalt Be Clever""), this work stands as a fast guide to the essentials of humor that is perfect for business presenters, after-dinner speakers, professional comedians, and anyone who wants to be funny.
This is the HARDBACK version. Two questions that people ask television comedy writers repeatedly are: "How do you guys ever think them up?" and "Is writing for a television show anything like it was on the old Dick Van Dyke Show?" Tales from the Script invites you inside the writing rooms and into the writers meetings for such legendary television shows as The Carol Burnett Show, Laugh-In, Mama's Family, Welcome Back Kotter, Three's Company, the variety shows of Bill Cosby and Tim Conway. You'll also be part of the planning, preparation, and production of almost all of the Bob Hope Specials, including his Christmas shows entertaining America's troops around the world. As a reader, you'll step onto the stage with the writing teams to accept "your" Emmy for "Outstanding writing in a Comedy-Variety Series." You'll also know what it feels like to be nominated, but have to sit in the audience and try to look gracious while another team steps up to accept the award. After reading Tales from the Script, you'll be able to answer for yourself whether it was anything like the old Dick Van Dyke Show or not. As to the second question - "How do you guys ever think them up?" - you'll discover...well...you'll probably discover, as most comedy writers already have, that nobody knows the answer to that question. Foreword by Jim Nabors!
Three-time Emmy Award-winner Gene Perret's ""Comedy Writing Step by Step"" has been the manual for humor writers for 25 years. In this new book, his first update, Perret offers readers a treasure trove of guidelines and suggestions covering a broad range of comedy writing situations, along with many all-important insights into the selling of one's work. Perret covers all aspects of comedy writing in his uniquely knowledgeable and anecdotal fashion.
Gene Perret left a successful career as an electrical engineer to pursue his dream of being a comedy writer. He left Philadelphia, PA for Hollywood and since then has worked for many legendary comedians including Bob Hope and Phyllis Diller, won three Emmy Awards for his work on "The Carol Burnett Show," and has authored over 50 books. The secret of switching from what you're doing to what you want to do is a steady, persistent, "doing" . . . but doing what? This book will answer that question for the readers. It offers practical, doable, step-by-step suggestions. The author recognizes the value of self-improvement books and recommends several of them early in this volume. But the inspiration of those books, sooner or later, requires action. Someone has to take the steps that produce achievement. That someone, the author explains, is you. This book presents sixteen specific steps that will guide the reader in a career change. These steps take time and effort. They require patience, persistence, perseverance, along with a hard-nosed acceptance of reality. But they will enable you TO DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO IF WHAT YOU'RE DOING AIN'T WHAT YOUU WANT TO DO.
Two questions that people ask television comedy writers repeatedly are: "How do you guys ever think them up?" and "Is writing for a television show anything like it was on the old Dick Van Dyke Show?" Tales from the Script invites you inside the writing rooms and into the writers meetings for such legendary television shows as The Carol Burnett Show, Laugh-In, Mama's Family, Welcome Back Kotter, Three's Company, the variety shows of Bill Cosby and Tim Conway. You'll also be part of the planning, preparation, and production of almost all of the Bob Hope Specials, including his Christmas shows entertaining America's troops around the world. As a reader, you'll step onto the stage with the writing teams to accept "your" Emmy for "Outstanding writing in a Comedy-Variety Series." You'll also know what it feels like to be nominated, but have to sit in the audience and try to look gracious while another team steps up to accept the award. After reading Tales from the Script, you'll be able to answer for yourself whether it was anything like the old Dick Van Dyke Show or not. As to the second question - "How do you guys ever think them up?" - you'll discover...well...you'll probably discover, as most comedy writers already have, that nobody knows the answer to that question. Foreword by Jim Nabors!
Enjoy this sidesplitting collection of hundreds of fast, funny remarks and observations. Spanning a wide range of topics, and including one-liners from Milton Berle, George Bums, Bob Hope, and other great comedians past and present, this witty compilation is a gold mine for speakers, writers, and anyone who likes to laugh.
Speakers, writers, and everyone who likes to laugh will grab this witty compilation of fast, funny remarks right off the shelf. The humorous collection, with amusing illustrations throughout, includes side-splitting quotes and comic observations from Bill Cosby, Rodney Dangerfield, Jerry Seinfeld, Groucho Marx, Lucille Ball, Mae West, Oscar Wilde, and many others. In addition to the roasts and toasts, there are one-liners perfect for easing a situation and charming an audience.
What do you say when people make rude remarks about your brains, your looks, or your style? Here are hundreds of fast comebacks, quick zingers, and clean, cutting answers that will knock their socks off! 60 illustrations.
Provides practical exercises designed to develop one's comedy-writing skills, shares the secrets of great comedians, and offers advice on creating one-liners, formula jokes, humorous anecdotes, and monologues
From absenteeism to ambition, from Blue Mondays to Thank God, It's Friday, from golf to office parties, Gene Perret has culled from a variety of business-related situations and topics to create this collection of office humor.
Harvey Green eats everything in sight from fish to meat to pies, including the dishes, until one day when he eats too much and something unexpected happens.
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