Sign-In
Cart
Flying Funny: My Life Without a Net
Paperback
Entertainment & Performing ArtsGeneral Drama
Publisher Price: $15.95
ISBN13: 9781517900946
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press
Published: Mar 16 2027
Pages: 160
Language: English
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 risqué 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.
1 different editions
Also available
Also in
Entertainment & Performing Arts
Kitchen Confidential Annotated Edition: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly
Bourdain, Anthony
Paperback
A Screaming Life: Into the Superunknown with Soundgarden and Beyond
Thayil, Kim
Tepedelen, Adem
Hardcover
The Last Kings of Hollywood: Coppola, Lucas, Spielberg--And the Battle for the Soul of American Cinema
Fischer, Paul
Hardcover
Dolly Parton Songteller: My Life in Lyrics: My Life in Lyrics
Parton, Dolly
Oermann, Robert K.
Hardcover
North of Ordinary: How One Woman Left It All Behind for Wilderness and Wonder in Alaska's Frozen Frontier
Aikens, Sue
Hardcover
Lil' John: Laughing My Way Through Life: Stories from an Accidental Career on Cleveland Tv--And More!
Rinaldi, John
Paperback
Bottom of the Pyramid: A Memoir of Persevering, Dancing for Myself, and Starring in My Own Life
Sioux, Nia
Hardcover
Remember the Time: Protecting Michael Jackson in His Final Days
Whitfield, Bill
Beard, Javon
Hardcover
Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black, New Edition: Collected Stories
Mueller, Cookie
Paperback
Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of the Strokes (and Rock 'n' Roll)
Hyden, Steven
Hardcover
Future Boy: Back to the Future and My Journey Through the Space-Time Continuum
Fortenberry, Nelle
Fox, Michael J.
Hardcover
A Place Both Wonderful and Strange: The Extraordinary Untold History of Twin Peaks
Meslow, Scott
Hardcover
Don't Buy What I'm Selling: On Breaking Up with Advertising and Finally Learning to Love My Whole, Fat Self
Chekowsky, Lu
Hardcover
From Here to the Great Unknown: Oprah's Book Club: A Memoir
Presley, Lisa Marie
Keough, Riley
Paperback
Martin Scorsese All the Films: The Story Behind Every Movie, Episode, and Short
Devillard, Arnaud
Schaller, Nicolas
Bousquet, Olivier
Hardcover
Jess and Norma: A Lifetime of Laughter and Our Unbreakable Bond
Burton, Norma
Asquith, Jessica
Paperback
Book Meets World: The Definitive Inside Story of the Hit Sitcom Boy Meets World
Strong, Rider
Friedle, Will
Fishel, Danielle
Hardcover
The Extended Universe: How Disney Killed the Movies and Took Over the World
Osterweil, Vicky
Hardcover
House of Psychotic Women: Expanded Edition: An Autobiographical Topography of Female Neurosis in Horror and Exploitation Films
Janisse, Kier-La
Paperback
Funny Business: The Old-School Wedding Crashers and Knocked-Up Virgins Who Changed Comedy Forever
Singer, Matt
Hardcover
Every Time a Bell Rings: The Legacy of It's a Wonderful Life, America's Most Beloved Holiday Film
Theisen, Lauren
St James, Emily
Hardcover
Lucas Wars: The True Story of George Lucas and the Creation of Star Wars
Hopman, Laurent
Roche, Renaud
Hardcover
The Way Love Goes: A Guide to Building a "Beaurtiful" and Everlasting Relationship
Da Brat &. Judy
Hardcover
As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of the Princess Bride
Elwes, Cary
Layden, Joe
Paperback
Holy Disruptor: Shattering the Shiny Facade by Getting Louder with the Truth
King, Amy Duggar
Hardcover
Love Johnny Carson: One Obsessive Fan's Journey to Find the Genius Behind the Legend
Malkoff, Mark
Hardcover
Everything I Need to Know I Learned from Dolly Parton: Country Wisdom for Life's Little Challenges
Sharaf, Juliana
Hardcover
100 Rules for Living to 100: An Optimist's Guide to a Happy Life (Large Print Edition)
Van Dyke, Dick
Hardcover
The Love Producer: My Unscripted Journey from a Reality TV Career to My Own Happily Ever After
Laplaca, Julie
Paperback
Infinite Steps: Thirty-Three Dancers and Their Lives in Ballet
Schiavone, Gene
Larsen, Gavin
Paperback
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood: Nina Simone, Langston Hughes, and the Birth of Black Power
Miller, W. Jason
Hardcover
It's Not Easy Bein' Me: A Lifetime of No Respect But Plenty of Sex and Drugs
Dangerfield, Rodney
Paperback