Man on the Flying Trapeze: The Life and Times of W. C. Fields

by Simon Louvish

Book Overview

Man on the Flying Trapeze is the first biography in decades -- and the only accurate one -- of the beloved cinematic curmudgeon and inimitable comic genius W. C. Fields. Simon Louvish brilliantly sifts through evidence of Fields's own self-creation to illuminate the vaudeville world from which Fields sprang and his struggles with studios and censors to make his hilarious films-in the process confirming suspicions (yes, he did drink) and confounding...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393318400
• ISBN13: 9780393318401
• Release Date: March 1999
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 576 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.2" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

The great prevaricator

Simon Louvish sets out to separate the facts from the fiction of W.C.Fields and, as others have noted, has covered much of the same ground that Field's grandson Ronald has covered. Fields shrewdly understood human nature in that well told lies are much more interesting than the truth, which is prosaic and often ambiguous. Louvish shines in his account of how Fields career evolved and how it belied F. Scott Fitzgerald's idea that there are no second acts in American life. Fields had flourished on the vaudeville stage with routines that had been honed and tested with audiences around the world. He had faced hostility and even outright sabotage from promoters like Ziegfeld, who thought the only role for comedians was to fill the stage until the girls had changed clothes for their next number. It was on the stage that Fields developed most of his comic themes using the writer J.P McEvoy. McEvoy was no Mahatma Kane Jeeves (My hat, my cane, Jeeves); McEvoy was a real comic writer who wrote the Comic Supplement, which was the source material for much of comedy in the classic film It's A Gift. Fields bombed in his silent movie career. He was no Charlie Chaplin. It wasn't until that voice with its raspy cynicism matched up with his sense of words and language did his comedy really come alive. It also becomes clear that Field's last film, Never Give A Sucker An Even Break, is his monument to all the directors and producers who tried to wreck his movies, and above all, to Joseph Breen, the censor, whose inane morals enforcement sucked the life out of the movies. In fact, I too would like to drink a toast to Breen with a double shot of nanny goat's milk...if I had any.

"Woo-hoo!" "Don't let the posie fool ya!"

I really cannot understand why someone would give this book a bad review.FIRST - It is rare that there is a book written about THE GREAT MAN. We should give a hearty handclap to those who take the time to revisit such a great comedian and orginal personality.SECOND - It is rare that a book would be honest enough to say where it's shortcomings may be. Meaning that, much to my and I'm sure other peoples amusement, our friend W.C. did a lot of tall-tale telling in his day. It is hard to decifer where truth on his life lay. Louvish checks with all resources to find whre the turth may be. He had access to family members, W.C.'s own scrapbooks, library archives, etc. He presents the book in the begining as a sort of mystery - and that's what it is. Even W.C.'s own authorized bio is full of holes and tall tales - and Louvish proves it. Those who are familiar with THE GREAT MAN know that even he fouled up his own tale telling at times.THIRD - This book is not only a biography but a historical account. A good biography should not only tell the story of a person but should also give you points of reference in regards to time, event, people & places. Louvish does this. He gives you helpful background on key people and places in W.C.'s life. It allows the reader to understand the subject clearer. And this information is presented clear and concise - not as a "filler" for the text.FOURTH - For those who feel that Louvish is being a "wiseguy" by the way he writes I ask you to think about who the subject matter is! One of the biggest and most original wiseguy of them all. I feel it makes the book more personal and fun to read.If you're a fan of Fields you read it & judge for yourself. However, unlike some more ignorant folk, you must remember that ANY biography is not an "end all" to who that person is. A personality is a many layered thing, and so is telling the story of someones' life.Take the book as it is. An enjoyable journey into the world of W.C Fields. You may learn something new, or you may not. However I'm sure you'll enjoy!

You can't help but love this book

In addition to providing a well written and thoroughly researched portrait of the big-nosed curmudgeon, you'll laugh your way through the the snippets of sketches Fields mapped out for his routines. It's a wonderful, unusual biography that never glorifies an all too human subject.

Meet the W.C. Fields you never knew...

Outstand biography of W.C. Fields. The first half chronicles the now-forgotten world of vaudeville and Fields' various world tours. This book dispels many of the myths contained in Robert Lewis Taylor's bio from the 1940's. Louvish shows how Fields' vaudville routines influenced his Broadway shows, and how these later turned up in his silent and sound films and even his press releases. While the book concentrates Fields' life more than his stage appearances, some films like the lost TWO FLAMING YOUTHS, are studied in depth.

First-rate

This book is a pleasant change from the usual run of show-biz biographies, most of which seem to concentrate on dishing the dirt. I remember one fantastically irritating bio of Danny Kay, which spent most of its length speculating on Kay's sexual orientation, the only issue that appeared to interest the author. Mr. Louvish, however, is a gentleman, in the best sense of the word. His interest is not in scandal, but in what made Fields famous in the first place--his work. He doesn't stint Fields' dark side, but his sympathy and intelligence never leads him into excess, either. He shows how Fields' experiences shaped his comic persona and takes a certain pleasure in exploding--very plausibly--several myths that Fields carefully constructed. His research includes a careful study of Fields' silent films and shows how Fields' film work was based on his stage work. It is a heroic story, really, of how this uneducated but gifted man triumphed over poor health, an unhappy marriage, the censors, his alcoholism and especially, himself, to create lasting pleasure for millions. You will understand and appreciate a lot more about Fields and his work after you read this book, which is the definition of what a biography of any artist should be, but too seldom is. Undoubtedly the definitive biography.