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Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir

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  • Create Date：2022-03-01 18:21:40
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Bob Odenkirk
  • ISBN：B093CYK5VV
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Summary

In this hilarious， heartfelt memoir， the star of Mr。 Show， Breaking Bad， Better Call Saul， and Nobody opens up about the highs and lows of showbiz， his legendary cult status as a comedy writer， and what it's like to reinvent himself as a no-holds-barred action film ass-kicker at fifty。

Bob Odenkirk's career is inexplicable。 And yet he will try like hell to explain it here， because that is what memoirs are for。 Charting a "Homeric" decades-long "Odyssey" from his origins in the seedy comedy clubs of Chicago all the way to a dramatic career that is baffling to his friends， it's almost like there are two or three Bob Odenkirks。。。but there is just one and one is enough， frankly。

Bob embraced a life in comedy after a chance meeting with Second City's legendary Del Close， which eventually led to a job as a writer at SNL。 As he weathered the beast that is live comedy， he stashed away the secrets of sketch writing--employing them in the immortal "Motivational Speaker" sketch for his friend Chris Farley， honing them on The Ben Stiller Show， and perfecting them on Mr。 Show With Bob and David， which inspired an entire generation of comedy writers and stars。 Then his career met the hope-dashing machine that is Hollywood development。 But when all hope was lost for the umpteenth time， Bob was more astonished than anyone to find himself on Breaking Bad。 His embrace of this strange new world of dramatic acting led him to working with Steven Spielberg， Alexander Payne， and Greta Gerwig， until finally re-re-inventing himself as a bona-fide worldwide action star for reasons that even he does not fully grasp！ Read this and do your own psychoanalysis--it's fun！

Throughout Bob's travels， his memoir preserves the voice he cultivated from years of comedy writing。 Featuring humorous tangents， joyful interludes， never-before-seen photos， wild characters from his winding career， and his trademark upbeat but unflinching drive， Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a classic showbiz tale--and a moving story about what it's like to risk everything you think you know to make a change。

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Reviews

Chris ，

Awesome memoir， great job！ In all seriousness， its easy to forget what an outsized impact Bob has had on comedy over the past quarter century+。 From the icons he’s rubbed shoulders with （Chris Farley， Adam Sandler， Robert Smigel and all the other SNL greats， David Cross， Ben Stiller， Jack Black， McKean， and the list goes on， lengthily…） to the cultural touchpoints he’s contributed to， reading this memoir became almost a Who’s Who and What’s What of late 20th and early 21st century American comed Awesome memoir， great job！ In all seriousness， its easy to forget what an outsized impact Bob has had on comedy over the past quarter century+。 From the icons he’s rubbed shoulders with （Chris Farley， Adam Sandler， Robert Smigel and all the other SNL greats， David Cross， Ben Stiller， Jack Black， McKean， and the list goes on， lengthily…） to the cultural touchpoints he’s contributed to， reading this memoir became almost a Who’s Who and What’s What of late 20th and early 21st century American comedy。 And then there’s the drama。 A relatively smooth and quick read， Odenkirk gives great insight into his early years， his formative influences， and also spends a good portion of space on the fan favorite projects most readers are picking up because of: Mr。 Show， Breaking Bad， Better Call Saul and Nobody。 。。。more

Ryan Hixson ，

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir by Bob Odenkirk who's famous for playing Saul Goodman in both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul， and has been influential in the Comedy Scene for the last 30 years writing for SNL， writing and performing on the Ben Stiller Show and Mr。 Show with Bob and David。 The book really captured his voice I could not help when I was reading it， hearing it told in Odenkirk's unique voice。 Bob Odenkirk's book title states that this book is 3/4 comedy and 1/4 drama。 So if Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir by Bob Odenkirk who's famous for playing Saul Goodman in both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul， and has been influential in the Comedy Scene for the last 30 years writing for SNL， writing and performing on the Ben Stiller Show and Mr。 Show with Bob and David。 The book really captured his voice I could not help when I was reading it， hearing it told in Odenkirk's unique voice。 Bob Odenkirk's book title states that this book is 3/4 comedy and 1/4 drama。 So if you only know him from Breaking Bad prepare for a lifetime history in comedy before you get to the drama。 I'm a comedy connoisseur and knew Mr。 Odenkirk's career way before Saul， （I watched and loved some of the Ben Stiller Show episodes that made it to air） so I enjoyed the musing about comedy writing， improv， and were familiar with almost every sketch that was discussed。 This is not a mean autobiography， there is no celebrity he goes after for slighting him years ago， he toughest on himself。 He portrays himself has humble and lucky to have the career that he has， he would rather you laugh at his jokes than be able to recognize him and remember his name。 I learned a lot about his career and some of the sketches and shows that I never knew he was a part of。 Mr Show fans will be pleased as the biggest part of the book is dedicated to this and we get a season by season breakdown。 The one thing I was shocked about was it did not discuss his heart attack， which I think would have been a great ender， not to his life but to the book having survived。 I am reading an advanced readers copy， so it could have been added for the print version。 I read this advanced reader's copy thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House。 Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir by Bob Odenkirk is published on March 1 2022。Things That I Learned: Bob Odenkirk was the original writer of Chris Farley's character Matt Foley and Van Down by the River sketch。 Bob started writing a sketch while performing improv with Chris at Second City。 Bob was not a writer on SNL when it aired。 Bob wrote on the second season of one of my favorite cult classic show Get A Life。 He had a small but important part of getting Tim and Eric Awesome Show to the right people to put it on air。 He turned down doing the spin off to Better Call Saul 2 times。 He told SNL kind of sucks now to Loren Michaels face and still hired him years later。 Was roommates with Robert Smigel long time SNL writer and creator of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog。 Was runner up to Steve Carrell for the lead on The Office。 What I Liked: The way he gushes over his co-stars doesn't feel fake but very genuine。 The story of Stephen Speildberg unknowingly casting Bob and David and reuniting Mr。 Show actors on the screen in his serious movie The Post。 The story of when he found out is a good one。 The story of Mr。 Show staying on the air because a grandchild of an executive was watching it。 I loved all the insights and inside stories about the making of Mr。 Show， SNL， and The Ben Stiller Show。 The Stories and self own about the couple of movies he's directed Let's Go to Prison and The Brother's Soloman and how terrible they are， I had no idea he directed them。 I liked how he is a self admitted comedy snob， and most of the confrontations in the book are about comedy。 The story about his confrontation with Jeremy Irons that their using as press for this book is a good one。What I Disliked: Bob uses the phone a friend lifeline a little too much he admits his memory isn't the best maybe due to a drug or two， but he calls friends and has them explain things using their words not his。 I would have like more insight about his first sketch that landed and a little bit more of his early beginnings at Second City。 He briefly talks about dating Janeane Garofalo which feels like such a tease。 Recommendations: If you care about comedy in the last 30 years then you should read this book。 If you're a fan of Mr。 Show with Bod and David then this book is for you。 If you're a Breaking Bad fan and only reading it for that， then you have to decide if you want to read about mainly comedy to get to the inside stories of Breaking Bad。 I'm a huge fan of Odenkirk and his career both comedy and drama so I recommend this book。 If he doesn't talk about his heart attack in this one I'll read more about Odenkirk's career to come。 I rated Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir by Bob Odenkirk 4 out of 5 stars。 。。。more

C B ，

More of a book-length explanation of his odd CV than what most of us would think of as a memoir or autobio。 No gossip， no deep probing into his psyche， and not really any the worse for that， it's just very light。 Characteristically， when you peruse the index and see the heading "I'll marry your stupid ass！" it is referring to the Mr。 Show sketch， and not Odenkirk's own （seemingly very happy， very little-mentioned） marriage。 More of a book-length explanation of his odd CV than what most of us would think of as a memoir or autobio。 No gossip， no deep probing into his psyche， and not really any the worse for that， it's just very light。 Characteristically， when you peruse the index and see the heading "I'll marry your stupid ass！" it is referring to the Mr。 Show sketch， and not Odenkirk's own （seemingly very happy， very little-mentioned） marriage。 。。。more

Staci Suhy ，

I received this book for free as part of a first reads promotion。

Darla ，

Having witnessed firsthand， the Saul Goodman phenomenon， I was anticipating learning more about Bob Odenkirk's life and career before "Better Call Saul。" This book is chock full of the comedy Odenkirk has created and participated in。 His career goes back to the 70's when he was feverishly penning sketch comedy as a teenager。 His professional trajectory includes Second City， Saturday Night Live， HBO， a plethora of gigs at varied venues， FX and more。 One of the most notable things I learned about Having witnessed firsthand， the Saul Goodman phenomenon， I was anticipating learning more about Bob Odenkirk's life and career before "Better Call Saul。" This book is chock full of the comedy Odenkirk has created and participated in。 His career goes back to the 70's when he was feverishly penning sketch comedy as a teenager。 His professional trajectory includes Second City， Saturday Night Live， HBO， a plethora of gigs at varied venues， FX and more。 One of the most notable things I learned about Odenkirk that I did not know was this: He created the "living in a van down by the river" bit that Chris Farley executed with brilliance on SNL。 There were also some interesting facts about working with Jack Black。 I am not a fringe comedy fan， so much of the work Bob is most proud of is material I have never seen。 Seeing the bits described in a book just isn't the same as seeing it live。 I do have plans to view his one and only action movie--Nobody--and I am looking forward to the final season of Better Call Saul。 For the record， Kim Wexler is my favorite character。 She is much too good for Jimmy McGill and they both know it。 Thank you to Random House and Edelweiss+ for a DRC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

Michael Malone ，

Fun and lively look at how Odenkirk made it in entertainment， and pulled off the tricky shift from， as the book title suggests， comedy to drama。 He writes about growing up obsessed with sketch comedy， getting onstage with Second City in Chicago， following Robert Smigel to SNL， then heading to LA。 Ben Stiller Show， Mr。 Show， a bunch of pilots and films you never heard of， and Breaking Bad。 Odenkirk is， surprise surprise， funny， and tells a good story。

Edwin Howard ，

Reading a memoir by such a talented and funny individual like Bob Odenkirk left me laughing all the way through COMEDY COMEDY COMEDY DRAMA。 Odenkirk takes the reader back to his beginnings as a comedian trying to find his place in the entertainment world and continues all the way through to his current successes as a dramatic actor and even an action hero。 It's remarkable to realize how many people he has worked with and how much comedy gold he has been a part of。 The beginning of Odenkirk's ca Reading a memoir by such a talented and funny individual like Bob Odenkirk left me laughing all the way through COMEDY COMEDY COMEDY DRAMA。 Odenkirk takes the reader back to his beginnings as a comedian trying to find his place in the entertainment world and continues all the way through to his current successes as a dramatic actor and even an action hero。 It's remarkable to realize how many people he has worked with and how much comedy gold he has been a part of。 The beginning of Odenkirk's career is fascinating and the reader quickly picks up something the Odenkirk seems to have followed his entire career: early on， even when he felt like he was on the verge of being let go from SNL， Bob was always working and searching to create things that make him happy。 He figured if he kept cranking stuff out all the time and was enjoying himself， enough of what he created will be beloved and propel him forward in his career and his life。 He acknowledges that the core of his comedic sentiment is not for everyone， but by adding his style to all kind of different kinds of comedy， that collaboration has sometimes produced truly wonderful things。 Bob is also self-deprecating and not afraid to acknowledge his limits and his failures， which make him even more relatable and funny。 COMEDY COMEDY COMEDY DRAMA is a gem and anyone whose has consumed pop culture over the last thirty years （which is basically everyone） will enjoy reading about a man who has created so much fun and entertainment for all that time。 Thank you to Random House， Bob Odenkirk， and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review！ 。。。more

Adam ，

An interesting look behind the curtain to see how some of the sausage gets made from one of my favorite working actor-comedians。 What I appreciated most about this book was how far he leaned into his failures， and how he owned his mistakes in retrospect。 What I didn't like as much was how singularly-focused this book was - it was only about his work， with hardly any details about his personal life。 The chapters drifted from project to project to project and while it was interesting and funny fin An interesting look behind the curtain to see how some of the sausage gets made from one of my favorite working actor-comedians。 What I appreciated most about this book was how far he leaned into his failures， and how he owned his mistakes in retrospect。 What I didn't like as much was how singularly-focused this book was - it was only about his work， with hardly any details about his personal life。 The chapters drifted from project to project to project and while it was interesting and funny finding out some good stories， I never felt like I got any closer to finding out who this guy really is。 He seems like a real private person that doesn't like to talk about his home life， be it his youth， his current family， interests， or anything outside his office hours。 He comes off as a passionate workaholic， but the writing， while interesting， was cold and standoff-ish。 Still， it's a very quick read， and he interacts with all the greats in the alt comedy scene -- starting in Chicago's Second City atmosphere and moving to LA to get weird with creative and edgy。 Being a general outlier for most of his life makes for good story fodder， and it's truly impressive how many incredible people he's worked with over the years， from stage improv to HBO to Adult Swim to AMC and now his action films， Quite a remarkable career。 。。。more

Dan ，

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an advanced copy of this entertainment memoir。There is an adage， possibly an adaptation of something Mel Brooks might have said: "Comedy is if someone slips on a banana peel， tragedy is when you slip on it"。 Bob Odenkirk's response to that would probably be it just depends on the delivery。 In his memoir Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama， the actor/ comedian/ producer/ director/ all around nice guy discusses his wor My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Random House Publishing Group- Random House for an advanced copy of this entertainment memoir。There is an adage， possibly an adaptation of something Mel Brooks might have said: "Comedy is if someone slips on a banana peel， tragedy is when you slip on it"。 Bob Odenkirk's response to that would probably be it just depends on the delivery。 In his memoir Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama， the actor/ comedian/ producer/ director/ all around nice guy discusses his work， breaks， and set backs。 and his views on what he has had a hand in creating and messing up。Growing up in the midwest with a difficult father， a loving mother and a lot of siblings， Mr。 Odenkirk learned to love entertaining to make and create jokes and be the center of attention。 A chance meeting with a improv comedy master， and hard work got him a break in Chicago。 Harder work got him a job writing on Saturday Night Live， just as the show was recreating itself。 Using a mix of both uncomfortable humor and tenacity Mr。 Odenkirk moved to Los Angeles， where a comedy renaissance was taking place and he soon found a partner in David Cross， and a new show， the groundbreaking Mr。 Show w/ Bob & David。 After the highs， came the lows until a call asking if he would be interested in a small role on a small show called Breaking Bad。 Mr。 Odenkirk is not shy about sharing his troubles and tribulations， from his childhood in the midwest with his father， his SNL days， to mistakes he made in both jokes， actions and just being a man in an industry like comedy that tends to ignore women。 However what really comes across is a man who was not afraid to try new things， new forms of comedy， drama roles， anything to well not be bored， but to live a life that is interesting and and artful。 Plus hard work。 He does not look at his career as something deserved but as earned， and is grateful for it。 Oh and the book is very funny。 I should not omit that。 The writing is not the usual ghostwritten memoir， but is more Mr。 Odenkirk sharing tales in long car ride。 Very personal and full of bits that only the person who lived it could share。 Again， something rare in most memoirs。 Highly recommended for fans of comedy or improv theater， or entertainment fans。 Also for people who like to read books about people whose success seems well deserved。 。。。more

Diana ，

Graciously received this ARC from Netgalley。 I wish I'd had the audiobook to listen to while I read。 I imagined the whole book in Odenkirk's voice， and it felt like listening to my father talk about his job and accomplishments。 I really， really like Bob Odenkirk， and I wish I'd known about him （and Mr。 Show！） before Breaking Bad， but better late than never。 Throughout， there are lots of name drops （like I said， it felt like listening to my dad talk about old friends and coworkers， assuming I kne Graciously received this ARC from Netgalley。 I wish I'd had the audiobook to listen to while I read。 I imagined the whole book in Odenkirk's voice， and it felt like listening to my father talk about his job and accomplishments。 I really， really like Bob Odenkirk， and I wish I'd known about him （and Mr。 Show！） before Breaking Bad， but better late than never。 Throughout， there are lots of name drops （like I said， it felt like listening to my dad talk about old friends and coworkers， assuming I knew who they all were） and references to skits and sketches。 Most of these were found online， and I kept pausing my reading to watch them。 Hilarious！ Especially Titannica from Mr。 Show。 I really enjoyed this。 :） 。。。more

Ronda Walton ，

Never really paid attention to the name before， but as I read the story of his life， hearing about all the shows and people from his career I have become a fan。 Insightful into the world of comedy。 The book was a little wordy at times， but interesting

Steph Elias ，

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a fantastic memoir by Bob Odenkirk。 It is funny as hell and really easy to read。 I read the entire thing with his voice narrating because it is written so true to who he is。 Just fantastic。 I loved reading about his past and the old sketch shows。 I had no idea of many of them and was pleasantly surprised to find them on YouTube。 Great stuff。 I am so glad he said yes to BB and BCS because they are the best shows out there。 I highly recommend the book to anyone who is Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a fantastic memoir by Bob Odenkirk。 It is funny as hell and really easy to read。 I read the entire thing with his voice narrating because it is written so true to who he is。 Just fantastic。 I loved reading about his past and the old sketch shows。 I had no idea of many of them and was pleasantly surprised to find them on YouTube。 Great stuff。 I am so glad he said yes to BB and BCS because they are the best shows out there。 I highly recommend the book to anyone who is a fan or those looking to find out more about this super funny guy。 。。。more

Kristen Morris ，

Whitty， honest， engaging， smart………。 “Comedy， Comedy， Comedy， Drama” is a well-written memoir by Bob Odenkirk on his life experience （up to this point！）。What I thoroughly enjoyed about his memoir is the way it read。 Being able to “hear” the author’s voice/tone （while not listening to the audiobook of course！） is a whole new level of writing style and was done skillfully！ The memoir felt he was being true to who he is， and he is not apologetic for it （and I mean this in the most positive way）。 How Whitty， honest， engaging， smart………。 “Comedy， Comedy， Comedy， Drama” is a well-written memoir by Bob Odenkirk on his life experience （up to this point！）。What I thoroughly enjoyed about his memoir is the way it read。 Being able to “hear” the author’s voice/tone （while not listening to the audiobook of course！） is a whole new level of writing style and was done skillfully！ The memoir felt he was being true to who he is， and he is not apologetic for it （and I mean this in the most positive way）。 How he got to where he is today， challenges， roadblocks， opportunities， luck， and a lot of laughter along the way。 It is about the journey not the destination， right？ A sincere thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing me an advance copy （ARC） of this memoir in exchange for an honest review。 I am grateful to have had the opportunity to read this book and leave my review voluntarily。 。。。more

Emily ，

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama by Bob OdenkirkGenre: Memoir | HumorPub Date: 01 Mar 2022Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️“Featuring humorous tangents， never-before-seen photos， wild characters， and Bob’s trademark unflinching drive， Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a classic showbiz tale told by a determined idiot。”In classic me fashion， I had to shove one more comedic memoir in before the close of 2021 and this was the PERFECT one for such cramming。 Bob is my hometown hero （shout out to Naperville！） and his voice ec Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama by Bob OdenkirkGenre: Memoir | HumorPub Date: 01 Mar 2022Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️“Featuring humorous tangents， never-before-seen photos， wild characters， and Bob’s trademark unflinching drive， Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a classic showbiz tale told by a determined idiot。”In classic me fashion， I had to shove one more comedic memoir in before the close of 2021 and this was the PERFECT one for such cramming。 Bob is my hometown hero （shout out to Naperville！） and his voice echoes throughout these funny and sardonic pages as if you were listening to the man himself。My favorite thing about a good memoir is you really feel like you're hanging out with a friend--hearing their secret musings and embarrassing inner dialogue and， in this case， the tea on what it's like to carve a serpentine path into NY/LA writers' rooms and eventually on camera。 I really appreciated that Odie， as his friends call him， didn't hold back when it came to how this industry expects artists to curate their voice to an audience--any fans of Mr。 Show will know that wasn't gonna fly and so much for the better。This short read was the perfect end cap to 2021: A year that needed more comedy and less drama。Read if you:🏡Love Saul Goodman 🏡Have thought about doing stand up🏡Are from the Midwest🏡Want a glimpse into Hollywood BTSThank you to NetGalley & Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review。#ComedyComedyComedyDrama #NetGalley #bookstagram #memoir #comedy #drama #book #review #humor #bookstagram #booklover #reading #ilovebooks #currentlyreading #bookreview #books #bookstagrammer #bookrecommendations #bookblog 。。。more

Living My Best Book Life ，

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a heartfelt and humorous memoir by Bob Odenkirk。 Readers can expect the ups and downs of his career and get to know how he became the comedic and drama legend he is today。Bob details his life and the start of his career in a genuine way。 It's fun to read about the many memories and moments that helped shape his career。 The book also feature some awesome photos with legends like Chris Farley and Bob Cranston。I give Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama 4 stars。 It's a really en Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama is a heartfelt and humorous memoir by Bob Odenkirk。 Readers can expect the ups and downs of his career and get to know how he became the comedic and drama legend he is today。Bob details his life and the start of his career in a genuine way。 It's fun to read about the many memories and moments that helped shape his career。 The book also feature some awesome photos with legends like Chris Farley and Bob Cranston。I give Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama 4 stars。 It's a really engaging memoir that you can laugh and smile at。 This is perfect for fans of Bob Odenkirk！ 。。。more

Josh ，

Great insight into Odenkirk's acting life and a fascinating look at some of the most iconic entertainment scenes （SNL， Chicago stand-up， etc。） and creations （Mr。 Show， Larry Sanders， Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul）。 I could hear Odenkirk's voice throughout simply in reading it so I am especially intrigued to check out the audiobook when it releases。 Thankfully， the content is worthy of a second read anyway。ARC provided via NetGalley。 Great insight into Odenkirk's acting life and a fascinating look at some of the most iconic entertainment scenes （SNL， Chicago stand-up， etc。） and creations （Mr。 Show， Larry Sanders， Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul）。 I could hear Odenkirk's voice throughout simply in reading it so I am especially intrigued to check out the audiobook when it releases。 Thankfully， the content is worthy of a second read anyway。ARC provided via NetGalley。 。。。more

Michelle Smith ，

Bob Odenkirk - the collective we are all the richer since he decided to pursue a career in the public arena。 I know that I’m not alone in this sentiment。Did you too watch The Ben Stiller Show as it aired in the early ‘90’s？ Did you too develop a sincere appreciation for Odenkirk’s brand of comedy？ Are you David Cross？ Did you watch Breaking Bad and enjoy the character of Saul Goodman so much that you started watching Better Call Saul as well？ Are you a newer fan， familiar with the Odenkirk mostl Bob Odenkirk - the collective we are all the richer since he decided to pursue a career in the public arena。 I know that I’m not alone in this sentiment。Did you too watch The Ben Stiller Show as it aired in the early ‘90’s？ Did you too develop a sincere appreciation for Odenkirk’s brand of comedy？ Are you David Cross？ Did you watch Breaking Bad and enjoy the character of Saul Goodman so much that you started watching Better Call Saul as well？ Are you a newer fan， familiar with the Odenkirk mostly due to Nobody？ Read this book。 As a longtime fan， I’d definitely say this is a must read for other fans。I was fortunate enough to receive an advance copy and am so glad that I had the opportunity to read this。 I do highly recommend this with one caveat; I wish I’d listened to this instead of reading it。 Odenkirk’s experiences would have been， I feel， better listening with the exact nuances and inflections the author intended when writing。Recommended。 Thanks to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for an eARC of this title。 Opinions shared are influenced by nothing other than my reading experience。 。。。more

C。G。 Twiles ，

I went back and forth on whether to give this fun， light-hearted memoir 4 or 5 stars。 I settled on 4， and will get into the reasons why。 First， let me say if you are a Bob Odenkirk fan， you definitely need this memoir。 It is sassy， conversational， and chock-full of fun and informative anecdotes about his many， many comedy and acting jobs， including writing for SNL during one of its most famous seasons （Sandler， Farley， Spade）， heading up the cult favorite sketch comedy show Mr。 Show， and then ha I went back and forth on whether to give this fun， light-hearted memoir 4 or 5 stars。 I settled on 4， and will get into the reasons why。 First， let me say if you are a Bob Odenkirk fan， you definitely need this memoir。 It is sassy， conversational， and chock-full of fun and informative anecdotes about his many， many comedy and acting jobs， including writing for SNL during one of its most famous seasons （Sandler， Farley， Spade）， heading up the cult favorite sketch comedy show Mr。 Show， and then having later-in-life unexpected massive success with Breaking Bad and its spin-off， Better Call Saul。 To be honest， I was blatantly unfamiliar with Odenkirk's oeuvre。 I don't even watch Breaking Bad。 But I love to read memoirs， especially of entertainers， and of comedians。 I found myself looking up lots of videos as I read （thank god for YouTube） and laughed loudly at sketches like Manson and Change for a Dollar。 I shave off a star because there were quite a few times during the memoir where Bob appeared to be grappling with some "feelings" over not doing more to hire women and POC writers over the years。 I'm not sure exactly what those feelings are- because he brings this up enough that you're aware that he thinks about it， but he doesn't dig deeper into it。 For example， his former girlfriend tells him that he and his friends are cruel to female comedians - he seems to admit this is the case， but doesn't say in what way or how he feels about that now。 He admits that the writers of Mr。 Show were all white men， and that was a mistake。 But that's as far as he goes with it。 Why did he only hire men when he clearly was surrounded by lots of female talent， talent he calls out many times （Sarah Silverman， Jan Hooks， Janeane Garofolo， etc）？ At one point， he backs a comedy troupe of seven white young men and tries to get them a TV deal。 He then admits it failed because seven white men should never be in one place at the same time。 But then he gets back all of the white men from Mr。 Show for a revival。 At the end of the book， his wife， Naomi， suggests he should mention "white privilege" in his memoir but he will only admit to feeling "privileged" for living life he's lived。 Okay， that's not。。。 exactly what she meant。I'm not someone who needs virtue signaling or admissions of privilege in books。 We all know it exists and unless you're going to tackle it in a meaningful way， I don't see the point of bringing it up to earn "woke points。" That's what that felt like here。 That said， I read the book very quickly。 It is an amusing and intelligent jaunt through a comedian and actor's career。 Thank you to #NetGalley， Bob Odenkirk and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

Mandy Hazen ，

I am a huge fan of bob and could not believe all the shows and movies he has not only been in but he has been behind as a writer。 Truly blown away。 To read about his past and coming up as a actor and to see how close we were to potentially not having Saul Goodman in our life is just crazy！！ This is a absolute must read。 I received an advance review copy for free， and I am leaving this review voluntarily。

Gail O'Connor ，

It appeared more in line with a textbook than anything else。 I read a few chapters and put it down。I'm sure others will love the book。 It appeared more in line with a textbook than anything else。 I read a few chapters and put it down。I'm sure others will love the book。 。。。more

Kasa Cotugno ，

I had the pleasure of attending an in-person event in a San Francisco bookstore in which Bob Odenkirk and David Cross and other members were promoting a book they'd written about Mr。 Show。 Ashamed to say， this was my introduction to that work， and I'd been looking forward to seeing Saul， and David Cross's Never Nude from Arrested Development， in person。 What struck me was how personable and friendly they were， and the event was a sheer delight。 As is this book。 Odenkirk reveals his love for sket I had the pleasure of attending an in-person event in a San Francisco bookstore in which Bob Odenkirk and David Cross and other members were promoting a book they'd written about Mr。 Show。 Ashamed to say， this was my introduction to that work， and I'd been looking forward to seeing Saul， and David Cross's Never Nude from Arrested Development， in person。 What struck me was how personable and friendly they were， and the event was a sheer delight。 As is this book。 Odenkirk reveals his love for sketch comedy and lays out his experiences， developments， personal histories， along with that of a very diverse group of friends， always giving credit where it's due （I loved reading about Janeane Garofolo， whose intelligence shines through with every performance）。 Thusly， the lengthy revelations regarding the years leading up to the "drama" section were informative and fun to read， but I must admit to paying closer attention to the chapters involving Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul， two of my favorite shows。 As there are several months before publication， I anticipate an update including his on-set heart attack and the effect it had on his co-workers and family， and hope that the audio version will be read in his warm， distinctive rasp。 。。。more

Jennifer ，

This got a little “Aw shucks” at the end and I will never forgive Odenkirk for saying Bronson Alcott was a cool dude- *but* I enjoyed hearing about his career and really appreciated his honesty。 I still think David Cross is an asshole tho。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0