Steve Martin’s autobiography left me with the impression that he is someone who had talent and intelligence, but achieved success primarily through hard work and a driving work ethic. The formula that led to his eventual success was developed over his entire life beginning with magic shows as a teenager, brief comedy acts opening for folk music performers, and road tours of night clubs in the mid 1970’s. In particular, the road tours gave him the opportunity to experiment with comedy in ways partially driven by a college interest in psychology and philosophy.
Autobiographies always make me wonder how truthful the author is being. When you get a chance to showcase yourself, you can choose what to emphasize to insure you are presented as you want to be, and perhaps not how you actually are. However, I guess the same would be true with any biographer.
This book was well written, it had plenty of dry humor and interesting stories, and I enjoyed it. It is worth checking out if you have an interest in Steve, stand-up comedy, performance art in general, or an American celebrity with more depth than may be immediately apparent (at least to someone who was not around in the 1970’s).
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