"John Limon's book opens up exciting new possibilities in cultural studies. Stand-up comedy--manic, smutty, abusive, improvisatory--has up to now evaded academic critics, as if its pleasures were too volatile for examination. Limon carries off the feat--rarely achieved by analysts of humour--of taking comedy seriously without spoiling the jokes."--Maud Ellmann, University of Cambridge

Introduction: Approximations, Apologies, Acknowledgments
1. Inrage: A Lenny Bruce Joke and the Topography of Standup
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2. Nectarines: Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks
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3. Analytic of the Ridiculous: Mike Nichols and Elaine May
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4. Journey to the End of the Night: David Letterman with Kristeva, Céline, Scorse
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5. Scatology: Richard Pryor in Concert
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6. Skirting, Kidding: Ellen DeGeneres and Paula Poundstone
Notes
Works Cited

John Limon is Professor of English at Williams College. He is the author of The Place of Fiction in the Time of Science and Writing after War.