Life of Python

I found this book very interesting. I liked how Perry wrote an introduction of British Comedy leading up to Python. This gives you an idea of what the Pythons were up against.I also thought it was nice to split up the book into the mini biographies of each Python and then to go into the Python years as a whole. I especially enjoyed the sections on John Cleese and Michael Palin. Perry has a way of picking out the more interesting details. He does a good job of outlining the Pythons early careers in television and comedy. I was also introduced to a few post-Python projects through this book.This is a great book, although there are better in-depth ones. I would reccomend this book for those who are unfamiliar with Monty Python and who want to learn more, but individual biographies of each Python would be better if you want to get a more in-depth view of the Python People. Otherwise, a fantastic resource.

As a college student in the seventies, Monty Python's Flying Circus was part of my growing-up. Their brand of insane humor seems almost natural to me, since it was such a part of my life. This book, however, makes clear how revolutionary it really was.Mostly, though, it's a history of Python, from what led into it both on television and at Oxford and (particularly) Cambridge, how it came about, and what happened afterwards. It discusses who worked with whom throughout (including on the show, which is significant: Graham Chapman and John Cleese were one pairing, Terry Jones and Michael Palin were another, while Eric Idle and Terry Gilliam tended to work alone).It's copiously illustrated, including a demonstration of silly walks in the upper-right-hand corner that one can experience in motion by flipping the pages rapidly. My only quibble is that there seems to be an inordinate fondness for photographs from lesser-known efforts like Erik the Viking and The Missionaries.The text is good overall, though it could be better organized. Early chapters cover the careers of each of the Pythons individually, then return to their history as a group. Since many of the Pythons worked together after the program went off, there's a significant amount of repetition as a result.Overall, though, this is an excellent overview and appreciation of the Pythons and their remarkable accomplishments in bringing us a new brand of comedy.

As a Monty Python follower, I love books like these. Although it's not full of hilarious lines, it does have great bios on all six members of the group. However, it starts with the pages completely out of order. This is apparently on purpose, but it doesn't help the book. I found it somehow easy to get into this book and read through the biographies. This book comes recommended, however, I always seem to get hold of such items right before they go out of stock. This one should still be out there. It's a treasure in my collection of Python books.

I first read "The Life of Python" approzimately one month after my PBS station started running the series. I love it when I can find a book that goes beneath the facade, and shows you the backstage turmoils and et cetera; such is the case with this book. Not only do you get the inside story behind the scenes, but you also get mini-biographies of each of the Python team. This is a spectacular book for any Pythonite.

Perry's first version of this biography of the Monty Python comedy team was published in 1983 and I read it in 1987. Some good friends who knew that I was python phanatic gave me this, not knowing of an earlier version--and how would they, because there is no indication on this book that it is a rewrite/reprint of anything. The indica page even states that this is a first edition and doesn't list the earlier book as the source of any material. Strange are the ways of publishers. The subject of Perry's writing deserves the update. The team has only grown in popularity over the intervening years and the members continue to entertain audiences with new work, from Gilliam's directing/writing career to Cleese's acting. Perry's book reads like a biography of a rock band, which Python actually is more similar to than the traditional comedy group such as the Marx brothers. They are also, like the great rock groups of the sixties, now missing one member, making the chance of a true reformation impossible. Graham Chapman's death is not preventing Eric Idle from attempting a reunion "concert," this time to be presented in Las Vegas (the very idea of which appeals to the members' sense of humor). The basic material of the book is to try to track each member of the group from their comedic beginnings to the formation of the troupe and then to the work following the cancellation of the TV series, all interwoven by time. Sounds like a mess, but it works. Perry interviewed all the members, sometimes more than once, and the book is liberally sprinkled with quotes. This new version has color photos as well as black and white, which fills the book (every page has a picture on it). This is probably the definitive biography of the group, although Kim "Howard" Johnson's The First 20X Years of Monty Python is a close second. (This "review" originally appeared in First Impressions Installment Twenty-Two [http://www.owt.com/users/gcox/fi.contents.html].)