Overview

The first book to explore their history, legacy, and influence This is a book about the Kids in the Hall — the legendary Canadian sketch comedy troupe formed in Toronto in 1984 and best known for the innovative, hilarious, zeitgeist-capturing sketch show The Kids in the Hall — told by the people who were there, namely the Kids themselves. John Semley’s thoroughly researched book is rich with interviews with Dave Foley, Mark McKinney, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, and Scott Thompson, as well as Lorne Michaels and comedians speaking to the Kids’ legacy: Janeane Garofalo, Tim Heidecker, Nathan Fielder, and others. It also turns a critic’s eye on that legacy, making a strong case for the massive influence the Kids have exerted, both on alternative comedy and on pop culture more broadly. The Kids in the Hall were like a band: a group of weirdoes brought together, united by a common sensibility. And, much like a band, they’re always better when they’re together. This is a book about friendship, collaboration, and comedy — and about clashing egos, lost opportunities, and one-upmanship. This is a book about the head-crushing, cross-dressing, inimitable Kids in the Hall.

Full Product Details

Author:   John Semley
Publisher:   ECW Press,Canada
Imprint:   ECW Press,Canada
Edition:   No Edition
Dimensions:   Width: 14.00cm , Height: 2.00cm , Length: 21.60cm
Weight:   0.408kg
ISBN:  

9781770413054

ISBN 10:   1770413057
Pages:   312
Publication Date:   11 October 2016
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Five Bassists: By Means of an Introduction Chapter 1 — Archaic Heritage: The shared dream of the “beautiful day you beat up your dad” Chapter 2 — Mirror Game: Across Canada, two comedy troupes find each other Chapter 3 — Mergers and Acquisitions: The Kids in the Hall and The Audience join forces Chapter 4 — Cool, Or What?: The Kids in the Hall and the Remaking of Toronto’s Queen West Scene Chapter 5 — How to Break into Showbiz: The Kids get their big break . . . eventually Chapter 6 — Special Unicorn Anomaly: The Kids in the Hall become The Kids in the Hall Chapter 7 — Screw You, Taxpayer!: The Kids get scrappy, brassy, and indulgent Chapter 8 — Resolutely Unheartwarming: In which the Kids’ feature film debut tears the troupe apart Chapter 9 — Kicking and Screaming: The Kids break up, see other people Chapter 10 — Same Guys, New Dresses: The Kids in the Hall hit the road again Chapter 11 — Tours of Duty: The Kids enter a new era of peace and reconciliation Chapter 12 — The Opposite of Life . . . Town: The Kids reunite for their most ambitious project since Brain Candy; naturally, tragedy ensues Chapter 13 — History Repeating: In which the Kids reform, tour, tour again, and remain, forever, a buncha kids Afterword Acknowledgements Endnotes Works Cited

Reviews

Semley s comprehensive and engagingly written book will appeal primarily to fans of the Kids and also those interested in the history of the comedy scene of the 1980s and 1990s. <i>Library Journal</i> Finally!<i>The Kids in the Hall</i>gets the book their legendary body of work deserves. Just like its subject matter, <i>This Is a Book About the Kids in the Hall</i>is funny, insightful, freewheeling, and strangely touching. Tom Scharpling, host of the <i>The Best Show</i> Head-crushingly good! Semley has written an immensely readable exploration of one of the architects of contemporary comedy. Nathan Rabin, columnist, author of<i>You Don t Know Me But You Don t Like Me</i> I liked this booksomuch. I love reading behind-the-scenes dissections of what makes comedy groups work, and I kind of can t believe there wasn t one about the Kids already. Now there is one, and it s delightful! Thank god! Mallory Ortberg, author of <i>Texts from Jane Eyre</i>

Excellent. <i>National Post</i> <i>This is A Book About the Kids in the Hall</i> is a book that fans of the troupe, whether you watched their TV show, caught one of their stage shows and yes, even saw Brain Candy will find as the authoritative story of how five diverse Canadian comedians joined forces to set the gold standard of what modern sketch comedy should be like. <i>Montreal Times</i> Semley s comprehensive and engagingly written book will appeal primarily to fans of the Kids and also those interested in the history of the comedy scene of the 1980s and 1990s. <i>Library Journal</i> Finally!<i>The Kids in the Hall</i>gets the book their legendary body of work deserves. Just like its subject matter, <i>This Is a Book About the Kids in the Hall</i>is funny, insightful, freewheeling, and strangely touching. Tom Scharpling, host of the <i>The Best Show</i> Head-crushingly good! Semley has written an immensely readable exploration of one of the architects of contemporary comedy. Nathan Rabin, columnist, author of<i>You Don t Know Me But You Don t Like Me</i> I liked this booksomuch. I love reading behind-the-scenes dissections of what makes comedy groups work, and I kind of can t believe there wasn t one about the Kids already. Now there is one, and it s delightful! Thank god! Mallory Ortberg, author of <i>Texts from Jane Eyre</i> The personal and interpersonal troubles, network struggles, failures, and triumphs of The Kids in the Hall make the reading absolutely compulsive. Psychobabble

Finally! The Kids in the Hall gets the book their legendary body of work deserves. Just like its subject matter, This Is a Book About the Kids in the Hall is funny, insightful, freewheeling, and strangely touching. Tom Scharpling, host of the The Best Show

Author Information

John Semley is a writer living in Toronto. His work has appeared in The Believer, The New York Times Magazine, Salon, Esquire, The A.V. Club, The Walrus, Reader’s Digest, and a whole bunch of other magazines, newspapers, and websites. He is a regular contributor to the Globe and Mail, Maclean’s, and the Toronto Star.

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