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Flying Funny: My Life Without a Net
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Flying Funny: My Life Without a Net Hardback - 2017

by Dudley Riggs

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From the publisher

The unusual, gravity-defying first act of improvisational theater's founding father--now in paperback

Dudley Riggs didn't have to run away from home to join the circus: home was the circus. Son of the acclaimed aerial flyers Riggs and Riggs, he made his circus debut as a polar prince parading in a wagon pulled by a polar bear. At the age of five, he graduated to a risqu vaudeville act during the circus off- season; at eight, he outgrew his cutes (and his child stardom) and joined his high-flying parents on the trapeze. Eventually he had to learn to "fly funny" because he grew too tall to fly straight. In one way or another, Riggs has been flying ever since.

The rest, as they say, is history. And what a story it is. In Flying Funny, Riggs shares many highs and lows while describing circus life and the evolution of America's popular entertainment during the twentieth century. From his early life in circus and vaudeville to his creation of the Brave New Workshop, we see how his show business experience and instincts helped him create in Minneapolis what became the "next wave" in American entertainment--improvisation.

As a young man, Riggs lost everything in a tornado, got an education on the fly, and sailed with the All American circus to post-war Japan. On a slow boat home and restless about his future, he developed the idea of Word Jazz--creating a script on stage as it is being performed--and shortly after he opened the Instant Theater in New York. Later, he moved to Minneapolis where he founded the Brave New Workshop, launching the careers of comic greats such as Penn and Teller, The Flying Karamazov Brothers, Louie Anderson, Peter Tolan, Pat Proft, Nancy Steen, Liz Winstead, Al Franken and many others. Today, the Brave New Workshop thrives as the longest running improvisational theater in America.

From flying funny on the trapeze to theater without a net, Dudley Riggs's story is filled with hearty laughs and eyebrow-raising insights. With a wry sense of humor and infectious warmth, he shares the exhilaration of flying whether through the air or on the stage.

Details

  • Title Flying Funny: My Life Without a Net
  • Author Dudley Riggs
  • Binding Hardback
  • Pages 160
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher University of Minnesota Press
  • Publication date 2017-08
  • ISBN 9781517901677 / 1517901677
  • Weight 0.88 lbs (0.40 kg)
  • Dimensions 8 x 5.5 x 1 in (20.32 x 13.97 x 2.54 cm)
  • Category Biography / Autobiography
  • Library of Congress subjects Comedians - United States, Theater - United States - History - 20th
  • Library of Congress Catalogue Number 2016059307
  • Dewey Decimal Code B

About the author

Dudley Riggs (1932-2020) was in the fifth generation of a distinguished show business family. He worked in circus and vaudeville as an aerialist, clown, movie actor, comedian, writer, stage director, and producer and founded Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis.

Al Franken, a politician, writer, actor, and comedian, is a former United States Senator from Minnesota. He began his career in improvisational theater and political satire at the Brave New Workshop.

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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net
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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net

by Riggs, Dudley

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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net
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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net

by Riggs, Dudley

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Flying Funny : My Life Without a Net
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Flying Funny : My Life Without a Net

by Riggs, Dudley

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9781517901677 / 1517901677
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Flying Funny : My Life Without a Net
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Flying Funny : My Life Without a Net

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University of Minnesota Press. Used - Good. Former library copy. Pages intact with minimal writing/highlighting. The binding may be loose and creased. Dust jackets/supplements are not included. Includes library markings. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good.
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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net

by Dudley Riggs

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by Dudley Riggs

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Flying Funny
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Flying Funny

by Riggs, Dudley,

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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net
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Flying Funny: My Life without a Net

by Riggs, Dudley

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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