Not Just A Laughing Matter

Author : Joseph Heller,Speed Vogel
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 293 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 2004-12-15
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9780743272612

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No Laughing Matter by Joseph Heller,Speed Vogel Pdf

An uproarious and frank memoir of illness and recovery, No Laughing Matter is a story of friendship and recuperation from the author of the classic Catch-22. It all began one typical day in the life of Joe Heller. He was jogging four miles at a clip these days, working on his novel God Knows, coping with the complications of an unpleasant divorce, and pigging out once or twice a week on Chinese food with cronies like Mel Brooks, Mario Puzo, and his buddy of more than twenty years, Speed Vogel. He was feeling perfectly fine that day—but within twenty-four hours he would be in intensive care at Manhattan's Mount Sinai Hospital. He would remain hospitalized for nearly six months and leave in a wheelchair. Joseph Heller had Guillain-Barré syndrome, a debilitating, sometimes fatal condition that can leave its victims paralyzed from head to toe. The clan gathered immediately. Speed—sometime artist, sometime businessman, sometime herring taster, and now a coauthor—moved into Joe's apartment as messenger, servant, and shaman. Mel Brooks, arch-hypochondriac of the Western world, knew as much about Heller's condition as the doctors. Mario Puzo, author of the preeminent gangster novel of our time, proved to be the most reluctant man ever to be dragged along on a hospital visit. These and lots of others rallied around the sickbed in a show of loyalty and friendship that not only built a wild and spirited camaraderie but helped bring Joe Heller, writer and buddy extraordinaire, through his greatest crisis. This book is an inspiring, hilarious memoir of a calamitous illness and the rocky road to recuperation—as only the author of Catch-22 and the friend who helped him back to health could tell it. No Laughing Matter is as wacky, terrifying, and greathearted as any fiction Joseph Heller ever wrote.

Author : King-fai Tam,Sharon R. Wesoky
Publisher : Springer
Page : 176 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2017-08-28
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN : 9789811049606

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Not Just a Laughing Matter by King-fai Tam,Sharon R. Wesoky Pdf

This book offers the first comprehensive and in-depth exploration of the way Chinese humor fits into broader discourses on Chinese identity and modernity in an increasingly globalized world throughout the period of modern China. It brings together the expertise of scholars from a variety of disciplines – history, literature, linguistics, anthropology, sociology and the study of popular culture – to examine the many forms and modes in which political humor is expressed in modern China: films, cartoons, the visual arts, oral performances and online satire.​

Author : Peter Guttridge
Publisher : Speck Press
Page : 292 pages
File Size : 42,9 Mb
Release : 2004
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 0972577645

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No Laughing Matter by Peter Guttridge Pdf

When a naked woman flashes past Nick Madrid's fourteenth floor hotel window it's quite a start to the Just for Laughs Festival. The management is horrified to have a celebrity death fall into their laps, that is, into their pool, and the mess in the shallow end is no treat either. But the big question is: was Cissie Parker pushed or did she fall? Nick, a journalist easily distracted by his intense and painful yoga practices, turns gumshoe to answer the question. Madrid and his cohorts -- the caddy Frank and the ciggie-smoking, platform-sole wearing Bridget -- pick up the deadly breadcrumb trail, each carrying their own suspicions as to who killed Ms. Parker. The fine lines of comedy and tragedy are smeared as the killer's trail leads them from Montreal to Edinburgh to the ghastly-lights of Hollywood.

Author : Ted Cohen
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 112 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2008-04-15
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780226112329

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Jokes by Ted Cohen Pdf

Abe and his friend Sol are out for a walk together in a part of town they haven't been in before. Passing a Christian church, they notice a curious sign in front that says "$1,000 to anyone who will convert." "I wonder what that's about," says Abe. "I think I'll go in and have a look. I'll be back in a minute; just wait for me." Sol sits on the sidewalk bench and waits patiently for nearly half an hour. Finally, Abe reappears. "Well," asks Sol, "what are they up to? Who are they trying to convert? Why do they care? Did you get the $1,000?" Indignantly Abe replies, "Money. That's all you people care about." Ted Cohen thinks that's not a bad joke. But he also doesn't think it's an easy joke. For a listener or reader to laugh at Abe's conversion, a complicated set of conditions must be met. First, a listener has to recognize that Abe and Sol are Jewish names. Second, that listener has to be familiar with the widespread idea that Jews are more interested in money than anything else. And finally, the listener needs to know this information in advance of the joke, and without anyone telling him or her. Jokes, in short, are complicated transactions in which communities are forged, intimacy is offered, and otherwise offensive stereotypes and cliches lose their sting—at least sometimes. Jokes is a book of jokes and a book about them. Cohen loves a good laugh, but as a philosopher, he is also interested in how jokes work, why they work, and when they don't. The delight at the end of a joke is the result of a complex set of conditions and processes, and Cohen takes us through these conditions in a philosophical exploration of humor. He considers questions of audience, selection of joke topics, the ethnic character of jokes, and their morality, all with plenty of examples that will make you either chuckle or wince. Jokes: more humorous than other philosophy books, more philosophical than other humor books. "Befitting its subject, this study of jokes is . . . light, funny, and thought-provoking. . . . [T]he method fits the material, allowing the author to pepper the book with a diversity of jokes without flattening their humor as a steamroller theory might. Such a book is only as good as its jokes, and most of his are good. . . . [E]ntertainment and ideas in one gossamer package."—Kirkus Reviews "One of the many triumphs of Ted Cohen's Jokes-apart from the not incidental fact that the jokes are so good that he doesn't bother to compete with them-is that it never tries to sound more profound than the jokes it tells. . . . [H]e makes you feel he is doing an unusual kind of philosophy. As though he has managed to turn J. L. Austin into one of the Marx Brothers. . . . Reading Jokes makes you feel that being genial is the most profound thing we ever do-which is something jokes also make us feel-and that doing philosophy is as natural as being amused."—Adam Phillips, London Review of Books "[A] lucid and jargon-free study of the remarkable fact that we divert each other with stories meant to make us laugh. . . . An illuminating study, replete with killer jokes."—Kevin McCardle, The Herald (Glasgow) "Cohen is an ardent joke-maker, keen to offer us a glimpse of how jokes are crafted and to have us dwell rather longer on their effects."—Barry C. Smith, Times Literary Supplement "Because Ted Cohen loves jokes, we come to appreciate them more, and perhaps think further about the quality of good humor and the appropriateness of laughter in our lives."—Steve Carlson, Christian Science Monitor

Author : Angus Wilson
Publisher : Faber & Faber
Page : 512 pages
File Size : 40,6 Mb
Release : 2012-03-15
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9780571281213

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No Laughing Matter by Angus Wilson Pdf

A panoramic novel that stretches from 1912 to 1967 No Laughing Matter is perhaps Angus Wilson's most autobiographical novel. The novel chronicles the end of the bourgeois way of life as seen through the lives of the six Matthews children and their dysfuntional middle-class family. Their parents - Billy Pop and the Countess - are objects of ridicule to their children who vow never to make their mistakes. Quentin, the eldest, is a socialist who adores women. His fervent views, however, become distilled over the years until he transforms into a cynical TV pundit. Gladys, plump and amenable, is unlucky in love and eventually falls for the charms of a crook. Rupert, the handsome actor, has a successful career until he fails to adapt to the changing theatre. Margaret is a brilliant and highly acclaimed novelist but she becomes bitter as her twin Sukey sinks into domestic bliss, while Marcus, the baby of the family, believes that his career is his life. An ambitious and enriching novel No Laughing Matter is an extraordinary work in its depictions of complex family relationships, where it is just as easy to hate as to love and where everyone struggles to be an individual.

Author : William Saroyan
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 218 pages
File Size : 43,5 Mb
Release : 2014-12-18
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781448214761

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The Laughing Matter by William Saroyan Pdf

When Evan Nazarenus returns from a teaching post at the summer school in Nebraska, he cannot wait for a couple of blissful weeks spent with his wife and two children in Clovis, a small town where his brother has a summer house. But soon after they arrive for the long awaited holiday, Swan, Evan's wife, announces that she is expecting a child ... who is not fathered by Evan. This news shocks and hurts Evan deeply, but for his children's sake he decides to keep it to himself through the holidays they dreamt of for so long. But a family secret of such calibre is difficult to hide and the curious small-town neighbours begin to notice that something is amiss with the couple. The Laughing Matter, first published in 1953, is a disturbing family drama set against the landscape of a small Californian town, with a close-knit community who embrace new-comers with the curiosity of those hungry for gossip. William Saroyan draws his characters with immense sensitivity for human erring and self-inflicted suffering.

Author : Marguerite J. Utley
Publisher : Marguerite Jones Utley
Page : 166 pages
File Size : 46,8 Mb
Release : 1995
Category : Medical
ISBN : 0964332817

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Narcolepsy by Marguerite J. Utley Pdf

A book about narcolepsy, a little-known neurological sleep disorder, characterized primarily by excessive daytime sleepiness & cataplexy. Written in layman's terms, it gives accurate up-to- date facts about all aspects of the disorder. The author also shares her personal experiences, telling how she has coped with all the symptoms for over 30 years. Interesting facts combined with a sense of humor & amusing stories provide easy reading. The comprehensiveness & organization of the book make it an excellent reference source for people with narcolepsy & their families, health care professionals & the general public. M. J. Utley is on the Board of Trustees for Narcolepsy Network, Inc. & serves as the editor of their newsletter. What doctors in Sleep Medicine have to say about the book: "This book fills a yawning gap. It is warm & wise."--Charles P. Pollak, M.D. "Mrs. Utley provides an amusing, interesting & needed introduction to the fascinating world of narcolepsy."--James G. Minard, Ph.D. "Awesome,"--Gila Lindsley, Ph.D., A.C.P. Order from: M.J. Utley, P.O. Box 1923, DeSoto, TX 75123-1923; FAX: (214) 223-6696.

Author : Talia Hunter
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 46,9 Mb
Release : 2020-12-27
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 0648534030

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No Laughing Matter by Talia Hunter Pdf

Author : Anthony Cronin
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 392 pages
File Size : 51,9 Mb
Release : 2019
Category : Authors, Irish
ISBN : 1848407149

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No Laughing Matter by Anthony Cronin Pdf

Flann O'Brien's writing career was launched in 1939 with his brilliant first novel AT SWIM TWO BIRDS--a cult classic praised by James Joyce--quickly followed by other influential novels. But O'Brien lived a dark and tragic life, his writing obscured by various pseudonyms. Here Anthony Cronin, a member of O'Brien's intimate circle, offers a remarkable and fascinating portrait of the writer. photos.

Author : Robert R. Provine
Publisher : Penguin
Page : 324 pages
File Size : 55,7 Mb
Release : 2001-12-01
Category : Psychology
ISBN : 9781101659250

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Laughter by Robert R. Provine Pdf

Do men and women laugh at the same things? Is laughter contagious? Has anyone ever really died laughing? Is laughing good for your health? Drawing upon ten years of research into this most common-yet complex and often puzzling-human phenomenon, Dr. Robert Provine, the world's leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates such aspects of his subject as its evolution, its role in social relationships, its contagiousness, its neural mechanisms, and its health benefits. This is an erudite, wide-ranging, witty, and long-overdue exploration of a frequently surprising subject.

Author : Patch Adams
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 256 pages
File Size : 46,7 Mb
Release : 1998-10-01
Category : Health & Fitness
ISBN : 9781620551127

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Gesundheit! by Patch Adams Pdf

The inspiring and hilarious story of Patch Adams's quest to bring free health care to the world and to transform the way doctors practice medicine • Tells the story of Patch Adam's lifetime quest to transform the health care system • Released as a film from Universal Pictures, starring Robin Williams Meet Patch Adams, M.D., a social revolutionary who has devoted his career to giving away health care. Adams is the founder of the Gesundheit Institute, a home-based medical practice that has treated more than 15,000 people for free, and that is now building a full-scale hospital that will be open to anyone in the world free of charge. Ambitious? Yes. Impossible? Not for those who know and work with Patch. Whether it means putting on a red clown nose for sick children or taking a disturbed patient outside to roll down a hill with him, Adams does whatever is necessary to help heal. In his frequent lectures at medical schools and international conferences, Adams's irrepressible energy cuts through the businesslike facade of the medical industry to address the caring relationship between doctor and patient that is at the heart of true medicine. All author royalties are used to fund The Gesundheit Institute, a 40-bed free hospital in West Virginia. Adams's positive vision and plan for the future is an inspiration for those concerned with the inaccessibility of affordable, quality health care. Today's high-tech medicine has become too costly, impersonal, and grim. In his frequent lectures to colleges, churches, community groups, medical schools, and conferences, Patch shows how healing can be a loving, creative, humorous human exchange--not a business transaction.

Author : Jodee Blanco
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 320 pages
File Size : 48,8 Mb
Release : 2022-04-19
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781507217498

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Please Stop Laughing at Me by Jodee Blanco Pdf

"In this timely update of the seminal classic, author and activist Jodee Blanco reveals how she simply set out to share her story-and ended up igniting a grassroots movement in the nation's schools. The first survivor of school bullying to look back on those experiences as an adult, Jodee brings you up to speed on her life and work since the book's initial release with a new chapter, all-new Letter to My Readers, and Reader's Guide. She also offers the latest information on digital and cyberbullying, the Adult Survivor of Peer Abuse, her in-school antibullying program, INJJA (It's NOT Just Joking Around!), and provides discussion questions for schools. While other children were daydreaming about dances, first kisses, and college, Jodee Blanco was trying to figure out how to go from homeroom to study hall without being taunted or spit upon as she walked through the halls. This powerful, unforgettable memoir chronicles how one child was shunned-and even physically abused-by her classmates from elementary school through high school. It is an unflinching look at what it means to be the outcast, how even the most loving parents can get it all wrong, why schools are often unable to prevent disaster, and how bullying has been misunderstood and mishandled by the mental health community"--

Author : Angus Wilson
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 516 pages
File Size : 53,7 Mb
Release : 1967
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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No Laughing Matter by Angus Wilson Pdf

Author : Marcel Gutwirth
Publisher : Cornell University Press
Page : 236 pages
File Size : 53,8 Mb
Release : 1993
Category : Comic, The
ISBN : 0801427835

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Laughing Matter by Marcel Gutwirth Pdf

With the help of theorists in such fields as psychology, anthropology, physiology, sociology, and folklore as well as literary criticism, Gutwirth perceives that writers across history have attempted to explain laughter in one of three ways - focusing on its social or political function, its emotional rationale, or its intellectual dimension. Offering an array of readings of comic texts and incidents, he constructs a general model of laughter which takes into account its causes, immediate effects, and long-range influence on human affairs. In conclusion, he looks at the unique nature of comic wisdom, particularly as reflected in works by Santayana, Cervantes, and Beckett.

Author : Slavoj Zizek
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 162 pages
File Size : 41,7 Mb
Release : 2018-02-23
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780262535304

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Zizek's Jokes by Slavoj Zizek Pdf

Žižek as comedian: jokes in the service of philosophy. “A serious and good philosophical work could be written consisting entirely of jokes.”—Ludwig Wittgenstein The good news is that this book offers an entertaining but enlightening compilation of Žižekisms. Unlike any other book by Slavoj Žižek, this compact arrangement of jokes culled from his writings provides an index to certain philosophical, political, and sexual themes that preoccupy him. Žižek's Jokes contains the set-ups and punch lines—as well as the offenses and insults—that Žižek is famous for, all in less than 200 pages. So what's the bad news? There is no bad news. There's just the inimitable Slavoj Žižek, disguised as an impossibly erudite, politically incorrect uncle, beginning a sentence, “There is an old Jewish joke, loved by Derrida...“ For Žižek, jokes are amusing stories that offer a shortcut to philosophical insight. He illustrates the logic of the Hegelian triad, for example, with three variations of the “Not tonight, dear, I have a headache” classic: first the wife claims a migraine; then the husband does; then the wife exclaims, “Darling, I have a terrible migraine, so let's have some sex to refresh me!” A punch line about a beer bottle provides a Lacanian lesson about one signifier. And a “truly obscene” version of the famous “aristocrats” joke has the family offering a short course in Hegelian thought rather than a display of unspeakables. Žižek's Jokes contains every joke cited, paraphrased, or narrated in Žižek's work in English (including some in unpublished manuscripts), including different versions of the same joke that make different points in different contexts. The larger point being that comedy is central to Žižek's seriousness.