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    I Must Say: My Life As Humble Comedy Legend
    I Must Say: My Life As Humble Comedy Legend
    I Must Say: My Life As Humble Comedy Legend
    Audiobook8 hours

    I Must Say: My Life As Humble Comedy Legend

    Written by Martin Short

    Narrated by Martin Short

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    “Short’s endearing memoir is, of course, funny, but it’s also a rare thing: the tale of a genuine human being who’s thrived on planet Hollywood.” — Washington Post

    In this engagingly witty, wise, and heartfelt memoir, Martin Short tells the tale of how a showbiz-obsessed kid from Canada transformed himself into one of Hollywood's favorite funnymen, known to his famous peers as the ""comedian's comedian.""

    Short takes the reader on a rich, hilarious, and occasionally heartbreaking ride through his life and times, from his early years in Toronto as a member of the fabled improvisational troupe Second City to the all-American comic big time of Saturday Night Live, and from memorable roles in such movies as ¡Three Amigos! and Father of the Bride to Broadway stardom in Fame Becomes Me and the Tony-winning Little Me.

    He reveals how he created his most indelible comedic characters, among them the manic man-child Ed Grimley, the slimy corporate lawyer Nathan Thurm, and the bizarrely insensitive interviewer Jiminy Glick. Throughout, Short freely shares the spotlight with friends, colleagues, and collaborators, among them Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, Gilda Radner, Mel Brooks, Nora Ephron, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Paul Shaffer, and David Letterman.

    But there is another side to Short's life that he has long kept private. He lost his eldest brother and both parents by the time he turned twenty, and, more recently, he lost his wife of thirty years to cancer. In I Must Say, Short talks for the first time about the pain that these losses inflicted and the upbeat life philosophy that has kept him resilient and carried him through.

    In the grand tradition of comedy legends, Martin Short offers a show-business memoir densely populated with boldface names and rife with retellable tales: a hugely entertaining yet surprisingly moving self-portrait that will keep you laughing—and crying—from the first page to the last.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateNov 4, 2014
    ISBN9780062350855
    Author

    Martin Short

    Martin Short is an Emmy- and Tony Award-winning Canadian-born actor and comic, adored for his work on SCTV and Saturday Night Live, as well as in such acclaimed movies as ¡Three Amigos!, Father of the Bride, and Inherent Vice, not to mention dozens of memorable talk-show, prime-time, and theatrical appearances, from TV's Damages to his one-man Broadway hit Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me. He lives in Pacifc Palisades, California.

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    Reviews for I Must Say

    4.5/5

    399 ratings56 reviews

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    • 5/5
      A great pleasure to have his life story read to me by himself. I loved it! I'm going to go watch my favorite movie as a child "pure luck" now. :)

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      listening to this is like sitting down to your own personal "Martin Short entertainment hour." He tells you about his life, but with lots of song and implied dance. This is a great read, and a wonderful source for the aspiring actors and comedians.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      A recap of Short's comedy career (including stage troupes in Canada and then SCTV, SNL, Broadway, film and TV), plus childhood and marriage/family too, much of it tragic.His performance of so many of his characters and impersonations makes the audio version very entertaining.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Very interesting career for Martin Short. Loved his change of voice narration when he was talking about his characters. Sadness was evident and how he moved forward and became stronger at each turn. If you ever watched SCTV or Ed Grimley a must read. I remember when I was a child I dressed up to look like Ed Grimley. Didn't pull it off but eh I tried. thank you

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      What a privilege to hear Marty tell his story into my ears. These listening hours have filled my heart so that it's brimming with his love of friends, family and funnyness. My eyes are also brimming. These tears burble up from cracking up laughing as well as feeling the deep human condition of palpable loss. Love ya, babe.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      We are entering the phase of exploring the possibility of reviewing this book.
    • 4/5
      I was never a fan of Martin Short's characters; Ed Grimley and such are too broad for me. (Though I could watch the synchronized swimming sketch 1000 times.) When I heard that this audiobook was nominated for an award, I decided to listen. I ended up reading the ebook and listening to the audio, and the audio (narrated by Short himself) was especially funny. The book kept me up late into the night, giggling. Short comes across as interesting, smart, loyal, self-deprecating, funny, and kind . . . and he tells great stories about himself and about the many other famously talented people he knows. This book was alternately hilarious and touching. I laughed, I cried--really!
    • 2/5
      I wanted to like this book but sadly didn't. Seems to be a lot of name dropping and little to no interesting information. Was not a fan.
    • 5/5
      Love this book. So refreshing and great insight. Definitely recommend
    • 5/5
      Brilliant, witty, poignant, insightful, funny and heartfelt. Nancy would be so proud.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful memoire. After listening to it, I’m fairly confident that one day your ship will come in, Martin Short!
    • 5/5
      A joy and a real privilege to listen to. Great book!
    • 5/5
      What a lovely memoir. I have listened to many memoirs in the past few years and this one stands out as a love letter. It might be Martin’s voice or the way he tells the stories, but it just really warmed my heart. Despite the chapter about that poorly aged character that he had in the early 2000s, Short’s book stands out as honest and unpretentious… even whit all that name dropping. Give it a try! It makes you look at him with a different eye!
    • 5/5
      Outstanding biography! Funny, touching, and always interesting. Some great insight into a comedy legend.
    • 4/5
      Enjoyable biography. Full of interesting anecdotes. Particularly thoughtful account of how Martin Short overcame different hurdles & heartbreaks.
    • 4/5
      Great, honest and funny autobiography of a comic legend. A humble one of course.
    • 5/5
      Hilarious and heartbreaking. Now that it’s over, I sense a hole in my life where this book has been the past week.
    • 5/5
      Martin Short’s memoir was both hilarious and heartbreaking. I expected it to just be fun and games, but this funny man has dealt with some pretty heavy stuff is his life but has always kept a positive attitude and a stubborn will to carry on. The audio book is almost 9 hours long, but I was engaged the whole time and by the end, I was left wanting more. If you love Martin Short as I do, you’ll love this book and leave with a greater respect for this talented man.
    • 5/5
      One of my favorite autobiographies (and I read A LOT of them). I've always loved Martin Short but with this book you truly get a sense of the man behind all the laughs and talent. It's very refreshing to hear about someone in show business that leans more on the positive selfless side than the self obsessed negative side. Amazing read and highly recommended! Really funny in spots too!
    • 5/5
      I enjoyed listening to author in his words. Thanks Steven
    • 5/5
      This is not a deep dive into Martin Short and no major insights will likely be drawn on what life events helped create one of the funniest people in entertainment.

      There are dozens of name drops as Martin is connected to many of Hollywood’s elite.

      But there are so many touching moments of his life with his wife. He shares a deep connection to his children, friends and his rise, dip, rise career.

      It’s very entertaining and for his bits of the Ed Grimley voice alone it’s worth the time and deserves a 5-star review.
    • 4/5
      Martin did an excellent job reading his book - he was hilarious and I loved hearing the different voices he used and the musical additions. I think this is probably better suited as an audiobook than a physical book.
    • 5/5
      A fun, funny, poignant, and deeply humanizing memoir by one of my favorite comedians. I'm so glad to have heard the audio book. I truly appreciated the author's reading fully with interludes delivered by Short's various characters we've loved in his decades long career.
    • 5/5
      I was captivated. Well done Martin Short! Has given me a fresh appreciation for his brilliant work and many moments of reflection on life and loss.
    • 5/5
      What a wonderful journey through Martin's Short's life thus far. Including the hardships he's had to sustain. The final chapter blew me away. And Martin Short tells the story so beautifully. 5 stars from me.
    • 5/5
      What an absolute delight. Oh, Martin Short, I have a whole new respect for you. What a touching, sincere, and funny memoir. Get it in audio form if you can, absolutely amazing.
    • 5/5
      This was the first book in as far back as I can remember that I was genuinely disappointed to have end.
    • 5/5
      He's a pretty GREAT story teller, I must say. Thanks!
    • 5/5
      This is a fantastic book ready by the author in a very entertaining style. Very interesting read (listen) - and not just for the Hollywood insider stuff, although that was interesting too.
    • 5/5
      This is a great rendition of Martin Short's life! I absolutely laughed and cried throughout entire book. I love the narration from Martin himself & he made me feel like he was right there reading it to only me as a friend. An awesome book, best listened to.