Description: A study of what made Mark Twain a pioneer of American comedy today
Brief description: Judith Yaross Lee is a professor and director of honors tutorials in the School of Communication Studies at Ohio University. She is author of Twain's Brand: Humor in Contemporary American Culture, Defining "New Yorker" Humor, and Garrison Keillor: A Voice of America, all published by University Press of Mississippi.
Review Quotes: In this lively, lucid and engaging book, Lee gives us an insightful reading of what was innovative about Mark Twain's brand of humor and how its legacies shape the cultural landscape in America today. Her deep knowledge of Mark Twain's work and the history of various forms of humor, combined with her astute observations on contemporary society, allow her to take us on a fascinating journey linking commerce and comedy, artifice and authenticity, stand-up, sitcoms, performance art and parody from the nineteenth century through today. An instructive and enjoyable book.--Shelley Fisher Fishkin, Joseph S. Atha Professor of Humanities, professor of English, and director of the American studies program at Stanford University