Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Samuel French, Inc. (1968), Edition: First Edition, Paperback, 72 pages
Description
Jules Feiffer Full Length, Black Comedy Characters: 6 male, 2 female Interior Set Depressed New Yorker Alfred Chamberlain is engaged to perky, can-do Patsy Newquist. As their wedding day grows near, Alfred finds himself embroiled in an urban nightmare not the least of which is his fiance's family, the possiblity of marriage without Faith, muggings and a sniper's bullet. "Jules Feiffer, a satirical sharpshooter with a deadly aim, stares balefully at the meaningle
User reviews
LibraryThing member grunin
Comedy doesn't get much blacker than this.
Often hysterically funny, with several totally unexpected (and yet consistent) turns in the plot, this is Feiffer's attempt to dynamite the Romantic Comedy once and for all. He fails, of course, but not completely, and in the process produces something far
It starts out as a merely cynical take, a 'romance' between the nihilist Alfred and the optimist Patsy. She has persued him because he was the only man who she hasn't been able to reclaim.
PATSY: You've had it, buster! I'm going to marry you, make you give me a house, entrap you into a half dozen children, and seduce you into a life so remoreselessly satisfying that withing two years under my management you'll come to me with a camera full of baby pictures and say: "Life Can Be Beautiful!"
ALFRED: And ugly. More often ugly.
But surrounding this cliche of a dysfunctional relationship -- recall that this is the author who went on to write Carnal Knowledge -- is not only an equally dysfunctional family, but an even more grossly horrifying society, as we meet the ultraconservative Judge, the existential Priest, the despairing and desparate Police Lieutenant, all with a background of muggings and dodging of bullets.
It was made into a good movie (dir. Alan Arkin), which, even though Feiffer had to do some major rewriting, gives a fair idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the original. [Warning: if you get the DVD, don't look at the leaflet before watching the movie!. The chapter titles thoughtlessly give away a crucial turn in the plot.]
Often hysterically funny, with several totally unexpected (and yet consistent) turns in the plot, this is Feiffer's attempt to dynamite the Romantic Comedy once and for all. He fails, of course, but not completely, and in the process produces something far
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deeper than a mere genre parody.It starts out as a merely cynical take, a 'romance' between the nihilist Alfred and the optimist Patsy. She has persued him because he was the only man who she hasn't been able to reclaim.
PATSY: You've had it, buster! I'm going to marry you, make you give me a house, entrap you into a half dozen children, and seduce you into a life so remoreselessly satisfying that withing two years under my management you'll come to me with a camera full of baby pictures and say: "Life Can Be Beautiful!"
ALFRED: And ugly. More often ugly.
But surrounding this cliche of a dysfunctional relationship -- recall that this is the author who went on to write Carnal Knowledge -- is not only an equally dysfunctional family, but an even more grossly horrifying society, as we meet the ultraconservative Judge, the existential Priest, the despairing and desparate Police Lieutenant, all with a background of muggings and dodging of bullets.
It was made into a good movie (dir. Alan Arkin), which, even though Feiffer had to do some major rewriting, gives a fair idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the original. [Warning: if you get the DVD, don't look at the leaflet before watching the movie!. The chapter titles thoughtlessly give away a crucial turn in the plot.]
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LibraryThing member Devil_llama
Quirky and unusual for its time, this play catalogs the trials of a family as they struggle to accept their daughter's new fiance while dodging bullets on the streets of the city. The play is given a realistic feel, but the over the top quirks of the characters generate a certain surreality. When
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it opened in London, the play was required to make certain changes by the Lord Chamberlain's office, and the letter from them is included in this edition for an additional trace of historical fun. Also included are two letters from the author to a producer staging the play discussing his intentions for the play. A decent afternoon's read. Show Less
Physical description
72 p.; 7.8 inches
ISBN
0394406311 / 9780394406312