Monkey Reading - Steve Martin

I just finished the new Steve Martin autobiography 'born standing up'. The book 'born standing up' is about Steve Martin's early days from his start at Disneyland's magic store, to Knotts Berry Farm, the Bird Cage, and the Boarding House. Then his transistion from writing for tv shows (like the Smothers Brothers), various appearances on the tonight show (appeared 16 times before anyone knew who he was) to doing stand-up to sold out stadiums and eventually working everything into a nice movie career. Having your first movie directed by the great Carl Reiner (Dick Van Dyke show) couldn't have been to bad a start.

The book is only 207 pages but a good smooth read. I know a book is good if it only takes me a week to read (which it did). You end up feeling a little sad that someone at the height of their career could be so lonely. But this is what happens when you become so famous you can't venture outside, every relative you speak to seems to want something from you, and nurse's are asking for your autograph on your heart-rate chart. By the end of the book Steve feels that he is now at the right point in his career. Famous, but not too famous.

MY FIRST ENCOUNTER
It's hard to believe but I first heard of Steve Martin when I was 12 years old. My father had to get his car repaired so we went to a local garage (on S.Main Street in Phillipsburg, NJ). As we waited for the car to be repaired (could have been an oil change) we sat and listened to what was coming out of the speakers. I'm not sure if they were playing the entire album or just part of it but it was Steve Martin's 'let's get small'. It was most likely the local station Z-95 (which still exists and still plays the same songs they were playing in 1977) as opposed to the garage owner spinning an album in the office.

If any kids are reading this an album was made out of something called vinyl. A disc about the size of a pizza, black with grooves in which a needle came down and played songs, words, etc. out of speakers. Ok, it sounds confusing but it was much simplier than trying to figure out my MP3 player.

Anyway, in 1977 I got my first listen of Steve Martin. I soon went out and bought the album. Yes, my parent's did not know or care what I was listening to and the store owner didn't care what I was listening to. And in 1977 I was a year into buying my own albums. With each new Steve Martin album I would have my father or mother run me out to the store (most likely the record section of Laneco). After 4 albums Steve gave up the comedy routine and went into movies.

One of my favorite movies is The Man With Two Brains and I do still watch it once in awhile. The Lonely Guy is another favorite which they used to show on HBO all the time (along with the JERK). I've seen these movies about 10 times over. Steve moved away from 'comedy' movies many years ago and got into mostly family movies or the occasional drama.

One strange movie I saw some years ago was NOVOCAINE (2001) Here is the description: Dr. Frank Sangster is a straight-laced dentist who because of one innocent lie, finds his tidy, prosperous life transformed into a comic quagmire of illicit sex, illegal drugs and inexplicable murder in this brilliantly offbeat, bitingly comedic film!

Steve Martin plays the dentist. And it's kind of ironic since he played a dentist (Orin Scrivello) in Little Shop of Horrors in 1986. It you get a chance rent it!

In ending: Maybe you'll get a chance to read Born Standing Up. Ok, books are those things that are made out of paper with words on it. You do have to pick these up and hold them. You may also need a lamp. They are not self-illuminating (sorry kids). Ahhhhh heck! Go download the audio book to your ipod~!

Below is my autographed/framed photo of Steve Martin. Signed in March of 1999 at the premiere of Cabaret (at the Wilshire Theatre in Beverly Hills).