Download or read book A Book about the Film Monty Python s Life of Brian written by Darl Larsen and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2018-02-15 with total page 497 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As a follow-up to their first true feature film, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the comic troupe next decided to tackle a “shadow” version of the Christ story. Shot in the Middle East and produced during Margaret Thatcher’s ascendant years, the film satirized—among other matters—authoritarianism and religious zealotry. Upon its release, Monty Python’s Life of Brian was both a critical and commercial success, and has been since hailed as one of the greatest comedies of all time. But the film also faced backlash from religious groups for its blasphemy, perceived or otherwise. In A Book about the Film Monty Python's Life of Brian: All of the References from Assyrians to Zeffirelli, Darl Larsen identifies and examines the plethora of cultural, historical, and topical allusions in the film. In this resource, Larsen delineates virtually every allusion and reference that appears in the film—from first-century Jerusalem through 1970s Great Britain. Organized chronologically by scene, the entries in this cultural history cover literary and metaphoric allusions, symbolisms, names, peoples, and places, as well as the many social, cultural, and historical elements that populate this film. By closely examining each scene, this book explores the Pythons’ comparisons of the Roman and British Empires and of Pilate and Margaret Thatcher. In addition, Larsen helps to situate Life of Brian in the “Jesus” re-examination of the postwar period, while also taking a close look at the terror groups of first-century Judea and the modern world. A Book about the Film Monty Python's Life of Brian will appeal to scholars of history, film, British culture, and pop culture, as well as to the many fans of this iconic group.

Download or read book The Lives of Brian written by Brian Johnson and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2022-10-25 with total page 409 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Brian Johnson’s memoir from growing up in a small town to starting his own band to ultimately replacing Bon Scott, the lead singer of one of the world biggest rock acts, AC/DC. They would record their first album together, the iconic Back in Black, which would become the biggest selling rock album of all time. Brian Johnson was born to a steelworker and WWII veteran father and an Italian mother, growing up in New Castle Upon Tyne, England, a working-class town. He was musically inclined and sang with the church choir. By the early ’70s he performed with the glam rock band Geordie, and they had a couple hits, but it was tough going. So tough that by 1976, they disbanded and Brian turned to a blue-collar life. Then 1980 changed everything. Bon Scott, the lead singer and lyricist of the Australian rock band AC/DC died at 33. The band auditioned singers, among them Johnson, whom Scott himself had seen perform and raved about. Within days, Johnson was in a studio with the band, working with founding members Angus and Malcolm Young, Cliff Williams, and Phil Rudd, along with producer Mutt Lange. When the album, Back in Black, was released in July—a mere three months after Johnson had joined the band—it exploded, going on to sell 50 million copies worldwide, and triggering a years-long worldwide tour. It has been declared “the biggest selling hard rock album ever made” and “the best-selling heavy-metal album in history.” The band toured the world for a full year to support the album, changing the face of rock music—and Brian Johnson’s life—forever.

Download or read book MONTY Python s Life of Brian written by and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book And Now for Something Completely Different written by Kate Egan and published by Edinburgh University Press. This book was released on 2020-09-21 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examining Monty Python's enduring status as an unconventional, anti-authoritarian comedy touchstone, this book reappraises Python's comedy output from the perspective of its 50 years of cultural circulation. Reconsidering the group's originality, impact and durability, a range of international scholars explores Python's influences, production contexts, frequently controversial themes, and the cult status and forms of fandom associated with Python in the present day. From television sketches, including The Funniest Joke in the World, Hell's Grannies, Dead Parrot and Confuse-a-Cat, to the films Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian and The Meaning of Life, to songs from the albums and live shows, this book is a ground-breaking critical analysis of the Monty Python phenomenon.

Download or read book Very Naughty Boys EBK written by Robert Sellers and published by Titan Books (US, CA). This book was released on 2013-09-24 with total page 429 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The incredible, hilarious insider's story of Britain's favourite film company! It all started when Beatle George Harrison stepped in to fund Life of Brian when Monty Python's original backers pulled out. His company, HandMade films, went on to make some of the best British films of the 80s (Withnail and I, Time Bandits and Mona Lisa among them), but then things started to go wrong... This is the incredible and often hilarious insiders' story of what happened...

Download or read book Blood on the Tracks written by Willson, S. Brian and published by PM Press. This book was released on 2011-08-01 with total page 749 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “We are not worth more, they are not worth less.” This is the mantra of S. Brian Willson and the theme that runs throughout his compelling psycho-historical memoir. Willson’s story begins in small-town, rural America, where he grew up as a “Commie-hating, baseball-loving Baptist,” moves through life-changing experiences in Viet Nam, Nicaragua and elsewhere, and culminates with his commitment to a localized, sustainable lifestyle. In telling his story, Willson provides numerous examples of the types of personal, risk-taking, nonviolent actions he and others have taken in attempts to educate and effect political change: tax refusal—which requires simplification of one’s lifestyle; fasting—done publicly in strategic political and/or therapeutic spiritual contexts; and obstruction tactics—strategically placing one’s body in the way of “business as usual.” It was such actions that thrust Brian Willson into the public eye in the mid-’80s, first as a participant in a high-profile, water-only “Veterans Fast for Life” against the Contra war being waged by his government in Nicaragua. Then, on a fateful day in September 1987, the world watched in horror as Willson was run over by a U.S. government munitions train during a nonviolent blocking action in which he expected to be removed from the tracks and arrested. Losing his legs only strengthened Willson’s identity with millions of unnamed victims of U.S. policy around the world. He provides details of his travels to countries in Latin America and the Middle East and bears witness to the harm done to poor people as well as to the environment by the steamroller of U.S. imperialism. These heart-rending accounts are offered side by side with inspirational stories of nonviolent struggle and the survival of resilient communities Willson’s expanding consciousness also uncovers injustices within his own country, including insights gained through his study and service within the U.S. criminal justice system and personal experiences addressing racial injustices. He discusses coming to terms with his identity as a Viet Nam veteran and the subsequent service he provides to others as director of a veterans outreach center in New England. He draws much inspiration from friends he encounters along the way as he finds himself continually drawn to the path leading to a simpler life that seeks to “do no harm.&rdquo Throughout his personal journey Willson struggles with the question, “Why was it so easy for me, a ’good’ man, to follow orders to travel 9,000 miles from home to participate in killing people who clearly were not a threat to me or any of my fellow citizens?” He eventually comes to the realization that the “American Way of Life” is AWOL from humanity, and that the only way to recover our humanity is by changing our consciousness, one individual at a time, while striving for collective cultural changes toward “less and local.” Thus, Willson offers up his personal story as a metaphorical map for anyone who feels the need to be liberated from the American Way of Life—a guidebook for anyone called by conscience to question continued obedience to vertical power structures while longing to reconnect with the human archetypes of cooperation, equity, mutual respect and empathy.

Download or read book Monty Python s Tunisian Holiday written by Kim "Howard" Johnson and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2008-10-28 with total page 441 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "One of the finest and most accurate records of the making of the film that I have ever read. I just wished I could remember what actually went on then." --Terry Jones "If anyone can remember more about making the Life of Brian than me, it's Kim ‘Howard' Johnson. He came, he saw, he got into costume. While the rest of us were fighting to upstage each other, Howard had a notebook hidden in his toga." --Michael Palin "Since I've forgotten everything, it will be great to read what was actually going on in Tunisia. Just as long as I'm the most quoted, the most vital to the shooting, and the most interesting. You don't have to mention my stunning good looks if you don't want to." --Terry Gilliam "Of all the books that I am planning to read in my dotage, there is none I am more looking forward to than Monty Python's Tunisian Holiday. . . . Not only does ‘Howard' Johnson know more about Python than anyone outside of the IRS, he was in Tunisia for most of the filming of Life of Brian, and is the only person who captured every thoughtless remark, heated exchange, embarrassing detail, petty insult, and spiteful act of indifference." --John Cleese "Kim ‘Howard' Johnson was invented by Graham Chapman during an idle moment on the set of The Life of Brian. ‘Let's invent a person,' he said. ‘An American fan from the Midwest,' chimed in Michael Palin, ‘who keeps a daily diary of Python filming. And then doesn't publish it for years and years.' How we laughed, and each day we'd make up stuff this ‘person' would write about us." --Eric Idle In 1978, Kim "Howard" Johnson ran away to join the circus---Monty Python's Flying Circus, that is. The Pythons converged on Tunisia to film their timeless classic, Life of Brian, and Howard found himself in the thick of it, doubling for nearly all the Pythons, playing more roles in the film than John Cleese, and managing to ruin only one shot. He became the unit journalist, substitute still photographer, Roman soldier, peasant, Biggus Dickus's double, near-stalker, and, ultimately, friend and confidant of the comedy legends. He also kept a detailed journal of what he saw and heard, on set and off, throughout those six weeks. The result is a unique eyewitness account that reveals the Pythons at work and at play in a way that nothing else written about them could do. Now, for the first time ever, the inside story of the making of the film is revealed through the fly-on-the-castle-wall perspective. Even the most diehard fans will get a fresh take on the comedy greats through some never-before-revealed nuggets of Python brilliance: what John Cleese offered to exchange for suntan lotion; Terry Jones directing in drag; Michael Palin's secret to playing revolutionaries and peasants; Graham Chapman gets naked; Terry Gilliam gets filthy; Eric Idle haggles; the secret of the Thespo-Squat; Mrs. Pilate; talk of George Harrison; the cake-flinging that jeopardized the production; badminton, impromptu cricket, and erotic frescoes; and the first-ever presentation of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life." Here, uncensored, are the legendary Pythons in their prime. It was a period of comedy history that will never be duplicated, and Monty Python's Tunisian Holiday captures the wit, the genius, and the sheer silliness of the six men that comprised Python.

Download or read book Always Look on the Bright Side of Life written by Eric Idle and published by Crown Archetype. This book was released on 2018-10-02 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the ingenious comic performer, founding member of Monty Python, and creator of Spamalot (now back on Broadway!), comes an absurdly funny memoir of unparalleled wit and heartfelt candor—now featuring a new afterword. “A hilarious, charming book by this incredible, i̶n̶s̶u̶f̶f̶e̶r̶a̶b̶l̶e̶ interesting genius.”—Steve Martin We know him best for his unforgettable roles on Monty Python—from the Flying Circus to The Meaning of Life. Now, Eric Idle reflects on the meaning of his own life in this entertaining memoir that takes us on a remarkable journey from his childhood in an austere boarding school through his successful career in comedy, television, theater, and film. Coming of age as a writer and comedian during the Sixties and Seventies, Eric stumbled into the crossroads of the cultural revolution and found himself rubbing shoulders with the likes of George Harrison, David Bowie, and Robin Williams, all of whom became dear lifelong friends. With anecdotes sprinkled throughout involving other close friends and luminaries such as Mike Nichols, Mick Jagger, Steve Martin, Paul Simon, Lorne Michaels, and many more, as well as John Cleese and the Pythons themselves, Eric captures a time of tremendous creative output with equal parts hilarity and heart. In Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, named for the song he wrote for Life of Brian and which has since become the number one song played at funerals in the UK, he shares the highlights of his life and career with the kind of offbeat humor that has delighted audiences for five decades. 2019 marked the fiftieth anniversary of The Pythons, and Eric commemorated the occasion with this hilarious memoir chock full of behind-the-scenes stories from a high-flying life featuring everyone from Princess Leia to Queen Elizabeth.

Download or read book A Curious Mind written by Brian Grazer and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2015-04-07 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Brian Grazer knows the one thing that can instantly connect you with anyone: Curiosity. A Curious mind offers a brilliantly entertaining and inspiring account of how his courage and enthusiasm for talking with complete strangers have been the secret of his success as a leading Hollywood producer.

Download or read book My Life as a Foreign Country A Memoir written by Brian Turner and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2014-09-15 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Brilliant and beautiful. It surely ranks with the best war memoirs I’ve ever encountered." —Tim O’Brien, author of The Things They Carried An award-winning poet and former infantry team leader in Iraq, Brian Turner combines his devastating recollections as “Sergeant Turner” with his visions of the experiences of generations of warriors in his family—and even those of the enemy—in a work of profound understanding and shocking beauty.

Download or read book Other Edens written by Benjamin Keatinge and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This new volume of essays provides a critical re-evaluation of Brian Coffey (1905-1995), a leading figure in Ireland's post-Independence poetic avant garde. With contributions from younger scholars as well as veteran Coffey commentators, the book casts new light on one of the most fascinating yet least understood figures in twentieth-century Irish letters. Philosopher, scientist, friend of Samuel Beckett, Denis Devlin and Thomas MacGreevy, Brian Coffey's writing career spanned six decades, two continents, and a vast range of interests and influences. Offering a comprehensive re-assessment of his poetic achievement, the collection seeks to situate Coffey as a distinctive and original voice in Irish poetry whose influence and importance have been overlooked. It also reveals the poet's complex negotiations with Irish identity, Catholicism, and his own condition of unwilling exile. The contributors consider Coffey within broader cultural contexts, examining his collaborations with S.W. Hayter, his activities as a small press publisher, and his position as exemplar for a later generation of Irish and British poets impatient with mainstream poetics. These critical essays are interspersed with a number of personal reflections by friends and family of the poet, providing an intimate portrait of this enigmatic writer. Throughout, the collection displays Brian Coffey as a powerful poet, a profound thinker, and a tireless advocate of the work of others, one with a clear vision of what poetry is and what it can be.

Download or read book Martin Marten written by Brian Doyle and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2015-04-07 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Dave is fourteen years old, living with his family in a cabin on Oregon's Mount Hood (or as Dave prefers to call it, like the Native Americans once did, Wy'east). He is entering high school, adulthood on the horizon not far off in distance, and contemplating a future away from his mother, father, and his precocious younger sister. And Dave is not the only one approaching adulthood and its freedoms on Wy'east that summer. Martin, a pine marten (a small animal of the deep woods, of the otter/mink family), is leaving his own mother and siblings and setting off on his own as well"--

Download or read book Thanks a Lot Universe written by Chad Lucas and published by Abrams. This book was released on 2021-05-11 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now in paperback, a moving contemporary middle-grade novel for anyone who’s ever felt like they don’t belong Brian has always been anxious, whether at home, or in class, or on the basketball court. His dad tries to get him to stand up for himself and his mom helps as much as she can. But after he and his brother are placed in foster care, Brian starts having panic attacks. And he doesn’t quite know if there's something wrong with him . . . Ezra’s always been popular. He’s friends with most of the kids on his basketball team—even Brian, who doesn’t talk to many people. But now, some of his friends have been acting differently, and Brian seems to be pulling away. Ezra wants to help, but he worries if he’s too nice to Brian, his friends will realize that he has a crush on him . . . But when Brian and his brother run away, Ezra has no choice but to take the leap and reach out to Brian. And Brian realizes that he could really use a friend right now. As the two get closer, they’ll have to decide if they’re willing to risk being vulnerable with each other and share parts of themselves they’d rather hide from the world. But if they can be brave, they might just find the best in themselves—and each other. With a lively voice and moving story, Thanks a Lot, Universe is about finding your community and learning to trust your heart.

Download or read book A Book about the Film Monty Python and the Holy Grail written by Darl Larsen and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2015-03-06 with total page 633 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Monty Python’s Flying Circus aired from 1969 until 1974, but the conclusion of the series did not mark the end of the troupe’s creative output. Even before the final original episodes were recorded and broadcast, the six members began work on their first feature-length enterprise of new material. Rather than string together a series of silly skits, they conceived a full-length story line with references to the real and imagined worlds of the mythical King Arthur, the lives of medieval peasants, and the gloomy climate of 1970s Britain. Released in 1975, Monty Python and the Holy Grail was a modest success but has since been hailed as a modern classic. In A Book about the Film Monty Python and the Holy Grail:All the References from African Swallows to Zoot, Darl Larsen identifies and examines the cultural, historical, and topical allusions in the movie. In this entertaining resource, virtually every reference that appears in a scene—whether stated by a character, depicted in the mise-en-scène, or mentioned in the print companion—is identified and explained. Beyond the Arthurian legend, entries cover literary metaphors, symbols, names, peoples, and places—as well as the myriad social, cultural, and historical elements that populate the film. This book employs the film as a window to both reveal and examine “Arthurian” life and literature, the historical Middle Ages, and a Great Britain of labor unrest, power shortages, and the common man. Introducing the reader to dozens of medievalist histories and authors and connecting the film concretely to the “modern” British Empire, A Book about the Film Monty Python and the Holy Grail will appeal to fans of the troupe as well as medieval scholars and academics who can laugh at themselves and their work.

Download or read book The Lives of Brian written by Brian Sherman and published by ReadHowYouWant. This book was released on 2018-11-13 with total page 556 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 1943: shopkeeper's son Brian Sherman is born into a tight-knit Jewish community in a small South African mining outpost. The Holocaust is raging in Europe and the Apartheid regime is at its height. In 1976, with only $5,000 to his name, he moves to Australia with his young family to start a new life. Nothing can prepare Brian for his meteoric rise or for the life-changing tests he will face. At his kitchen table he starts a fund management business with his friend Laurence Freedman. In 1986, they float a novel investment fund on the American Stock Exchange and raise over a billion Australian dollars. More billions follow, and opportunity flows. Brian goes on to direct the finances of the Sydney 2000 Olympics, and together with Laurence, acquires an interest in Network TEN, taking it from receivership to record profits. He chairs the Australian Museum Trust and brings in a heist of priceless specimens. He and gallerist wife Gene become leading philanthropists in the arts, medical science and Jewish affairs while Brian mentors his son, Emile, now an Oscar-winning film producer. Prompted by daughter Ondine, he has an epiphany on animal suffering, and, with her, devotes himself tirelessly to ending factory farming. Triumphant highs are interwoven with profound lows. His beloved twin grandsons are born with a rare and devastating genetic disorder. Brian and his son-in-law, Dror, go all out in search of a cure. Facing his own health challenges, and a lifelong accumulation of unexplored grief, Brian will be tested to the limits of his being.

Download or read book The Life and Opinions of Maf the Dog and of His Friend Marilyn Monroe written by Andrew O'Hagan and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 2010 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Given as a Christmas present to Marilyn Monroe, Maf the dog provides keen insight into the world of the Hollywood starlet during the last two years of her life.

Download or read book The Life of Brian Honour written by John Riddle and published by Andrews UK Limited. This book was released on 2011-07-19 with total page 152 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Brian Honour was born in the former pit village of Horden, County Durham, and his passion from a young age was always to become a professional footballer. Despite the odds and many setbacks, that's exactly what he achieved, giving his all to the game and earning respect from fans, fellow players and the media alike. Many believed his skills would clinch him a place with a Premiership side and, although this was never to be, he is rightly considered a legend and The Life of Brian is a fitting tribute to the man who was affectionately dubbed ‘Mr Hartlepool United'. Brian first became involved in football at the age of four, when Sir Stanley Matthews visited his home. He subsequently signed Schoolboy forms for Aston Villa, where he stayed for three years before being rejected as being too small. He then went for a trial at Darlington and signed as an apprentice, and in 1982, at the age of 18, he obtained a full professional contract. However, his dreams were soon shattered for a second time, when again he was told he was too small by the former Tottenham Hotspur and England fullback Cyril Knowles, then the Darlington manager. Brian moved into non-League football with Peterlee Newtown, before being plucked from the mist at Tow Law by Billy Horner, the Hartlepool United manager. He would stay at the Victoria Ground for almost 11 years as a player before persistent injury forced him to retire. He was voted the supporters’ Player of the Season three times and was a member of the promotion-winning side of 1991. He has proved to be an excellent and inspiring youth coach, and spells in non-League football with Durham City, Horden Colliery Welfare and Bishop Auckland (twice) have run in tandem with his business ‘The Brian Honour Football School’.