Richard Belzer Books

If you need to laugh, and who doesn't(?) get these tapes! They are too funny to describe here - just trust me on this. You'll feel better in the morning if you take two of these before bed!

This stuff is hilarious! I don't know how they do it. John Pinette at the buffet and his hottest day of the year in the amusement and water park are some of the funniest things I've ever heard, and each tape is somehow better than the previous one, Brian Regan, Pablo Francisco, Richard Jeni - just thinking of them makes me want to listen again. I laughed so hard I cried. I needed that. Don't miss this set. Beg, borrow, (well, don't steal), but get them.

I was making an all night drive down I-40 and I was sleepy when I started. I stopped at a truckstop in Little Rock and found these, or who knows, maybe God led me to them cause they kept me wide awake all night long. You'll never buy this many of your own chuckles, peels of laughter, and gallons of giggles for this little money - EVER - again in your whole life. That makes this tape set the best deal on the net.

I'm buying a new set for myself and several sets for christmas gifts. But let me warn you, don't ever give out a tape from your own set because no one ever returns them!

An interesting analysis of the warped world we live in. If you, like many others, wonder how "the President of the United States can die of a frontal wound inflicted by a sniper shooting from behind" then look no further. Belzer, probably known better for his stand up and roles on shows such as Homicide, is one of that dying breed - an actor who doesn't sound like a total baseless ninny even when examining odd topics.
Not that he doesn't enjoy his soapbox, mind you. With 118 pages on the JFK assassination and 92 on the alien phenomenon, he has quite some room to rant with his slightly acidic tone on the sheer stupidity and gall of those in a power to distort the media and keep witnesses under their thumb. I'm not normally into this sort of thing, but the sheer amount of evidence was amazing. Marvel at the various incarnations of the Zapruder film, JFK's dissapearing (and conflicting) autopsy records, how 77 actual witnesses to Kennedy's assassination died under mysterious circumstances after testimony, Lee Harvey Oswalds aplenty (long story), that pesky magic bullet, and yes, J Edgar Hoover (featured mostly under the section "I'm Strictly a She-Male G-Man"). Stand in awe of statements given by Reagan, Truman, George Bush, and other presidents and luminaries regarding actual extraterrestrial policy.
A call to question with an open mind and interpret openly, the book is a great warning for anyone. And for those that don't, Belzer has his own warning - "Elvis just might be showing up soon at a location near you."

This thing is hilarious but too short. I wish it was as big as the real WSJ so I could slip it into a stack of papers at the office and watch what happens.

Just got a copy of this thing and couldn't stop laughing. OK, I was stuck on the line drawing of Ann Coulter in the buff and then just kept on going. Felt like an even better Onion, so I didn't mind paying for it.

Very very funny !!! Definitely worth the $. Not for young kids.

My Wall Street Journal

At last some humor with a edge. If you like the Onion, you'll love this parody of Rupert Murdoch's new toy -- makes fun of right-wing loonies and financial miscreants all in the same swipe. It had me laughing out loud as a I read it -- especially the vision of the Virgin at Merrill Lynch and Kim Jong-il's get-rich-quick schemes. This is truly a collector's item. Highly recommended.

I don't give a care about whether or not Elvis abducted JFK, this was just a fun book to read. Belzer is actually more enjoyable as an author than he is as a stand-up, which is odd considering that you're picturing his delivery the whole time you're reading it.

It's a quick read. Environmentalist might be upset that there's a lot of blank space (for your own notes I'm sure). Also, he has tangent boxes throughout even though each chapter is only about 3 pages long. Those who feel that tangent boxes are designed to make it feel like you're taking a break might instead feel like they're trying to read two books at the same time.

It's hard to believe that this book is meant to be taken seriously even though the author might be a conspiracy buff. The conspiracies range from the ridicilous to the completely absurd. Some conpiracies are even contradictory, USA faked all Moon missions or Neil Armstrong encountered a moon full of aliens and their structures. The book offers a lot of opinions and wild stories presented as fact without any proof. Belzer's fellow "conspiracy researcher" Jim Marrses theories presented in the book are the most absurd. The Moon is a spaceship built by aliens because it couldn't have formed any other way and its gravity is too weak to hold it together. Sounds really good, if you don't know what a Physics book looks like. Belzer also mentions many times that ancient texts are full of referances to aliens. The only proof being that, when you forget about the ancient culture's gods, rulers, complex mythology and take the texts and images completely out of context and forget about what real historians say, the images and text might talk about aliens. Belzer also says that aliens don't land on the White House lawn for all to see because they don't want to and sane credible people see aliens all the time but don't want to tell anyone. This kind of circular logic also proofs that pink flying elephants are real.

A great read, very funny. I doubt it would make good reference material for academics. I Loved reading it, it makes me think that I would really love to sit down and have beer or coffee with the Belz.

When I first saw this title I thought that Richard Belzer had written a funny book filled with witty musings about little green men and movies in which Kevin Costner has a bad haircut." Belzer has made a turn toward the dramatic with his portrayal of detective John Munch in "Homicide" and "Law & Order SVU", a role he has had since 1993. However, this is still the same guy that was in the 1988 classic "The Wrong Guys". I was in no way prepared for what I was about to read.

Within the first few pages I was reading details about claims of heinous atrocities and government conspiracies. This was not the lighthearted work that I expected. From the very beginning, Belzer makes his goal clear. He urges the reader to "seek out suppressed evidence ... interpret independently everything you hear, read, and even what you see ... question authority."

Even if you are not a conspiracy theory enthusiast, it is hard not to get caught up in the unexpected depth of Belzer's research and his insights on the JFK assassination and alien visitors. I wasn't exactly "transformed from a cheerful trusting soul with unflagging faith in the powers that be into a suspicious, angry skeptic and cynic that can't sit through a 30-second news teaser," as Belzer promised, but reading the book has made me think and look at the situations in question in a new light.

For those who are not big on conspiracy, the information is presented in a way that would make even Lee Harvey Oswald chuckle. The book is both informative and entertaining, with sections with names such as "The Fluke of Earl" and "Just a Simple Nightclub Owner with a Dream". This book had me laughing one moment and somewhat scared the next. If you are not familiar with Belzer's comedy routine or acting, you might not appreciate this book as much as if you were. It makes it easier to tell when Belzer is joking around and when he is serious.

This book is a fast paced read, and told to us in a way that you can almost imagine the Belz is actually there reading it to you. He reveals a great many things about the assassination of JFK that I had and had not heard over the years. Most notable are the similarities between Lincoln and Kennedy.

He delves into everything possible from the Warren commission, to there being as many as 60 men posing as Oswald in the months leading up to the assassination. Plus listing other conspiracy's as to who might have had a hand in Kennedy's death. The way he lays the info out there will make you wonder....is he right?

Go read it and decide for yourself....as for me I'm a believer! (But does that make me another lone nut? Read it and you really may just join the rest of us nuts.)

I purchased this book via Bookcrow, an Amazon partner who shipped it rapidly. I received it in exactly the condition stated, which was also a plus.

My only disappointment is that it wasn't made clear Richard Belzer was the ghostwriter. Now, I have no problem with that, because I'm a big fan of his writing style, attention to detail and warmth; all of these things Mo Mowlam's story certainly required and deserved. For those looking for a clue to Belzer's involvement, you need only look at the back cover's clever nod to him.

What I had hoped for, in seeing both Belzer and Mowlam as co-authors, was some kind of backstory (even in an Introduction) giving us a brief account of how the two met, and why they decided to collaborate on this book. To those who only know Belzer for his comedy or his role as Det. John Munch on a host of TV shows, you may not be familiar with Belzer's political leanings. From a political standpoint, he is a fascinating figure in his own right, and I would have liked to have seen his take on Northern Ireland's politicians and plights in addition to Ms. Mowlam's.

Pushing my disappointment along those lines aside, I can tell you this is a wonderful book. It's well worth the read to get to know Ms. Mowlam and what her life was like during a pivotal time in history. This book would not have been nearly so incisive, so endearing, nor so detailed if it hadn't been written by these two caring intellectuals.

It leaves you feeling the absence of Ms. Mowlam, whose passing seemed far before her time.

I was disappointed at all the four letter words, vulgarity and the mention of one night stands while he is married. I felt it was also degrading to women. I love Richard Belzer as an actor but as a writer I was disappointed in the book. Does he want his two daughters to read his book?

While reading this book is mildly amusing, you will not learn how to construct a joke or bring out your funny side by reading it. In short you won't learn much about "how to be a stand up comedian". I was disappointed because I do think Belz is a funny guy. I just didn't think the book was very instructive.

First of all, I had a terribly hard time locating this book... For good reason it turns out. Although published in 1988, 'How To Be a Stand Up Comic' appears to be a remainder from an earlier, long forgotten era. Shoddy production value, crappy packaging and all together amateur layouts do little to improve this book's allure - once opened it can be read in a single bowel-movement. Not to say that this book is entirely disappointing, it isn't. Richard Belzer is a master of his craft. Being a Stand Up Comic. Writing and assembling a book which captures his celebrated, irreverent wit proves daunting. Entirely devoid of substance this 208 page collection of cheap, grainy B&W photos masquerades as a `book,' containing no more than 6 pages of text. What fills up the remaining 202 pages are a serious of poor-quality black and white photographs of `The Belz' in a series of `comedic' skits. Whereas these pictures could ideally have served to coincide and reinforce the text, Belzer uses them as a way to replace his written word leaving the `reader' cheated. This is basically a scrappy attempt at a half-hearted and entirely unrealized premise. Rarely do you see a talent such as Richard Belzer's so blatantly betrayed. I anxiously await the publication of his next work `Conspiracies You Don't Have To Be Crazy To Believe' which will hopefully ameliorate my current feeling of betrayal.