Lost in the Funhouse: The Life and Mind of Andy Kaufman

I've read this book and it is a gem. Having kept the flame of Andy's legacy alive on the World Wide Web for the past four years, I must say that I read this book with a little more of a critical eye than your average Andy Kaufman fan. Bill Zehme did not let me down and I am happy to have a copy of this fine book in my possession. Bill's biography is fascinating and sheer poetry. I know that Andy's family loves the book because I've spoken to them and they've told me so. I don't think a writer can receive higher praise than to receive it from the immediate family of the subject. This biography will stand the test of time and years from now will surely serve as the only comprehensive biography of Andy Kaufman. Zehme is the guiding light, the North Star when it comes to the life and times of Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman.Thanks Bill, I wish the movie "Man on the Moon" would have had half the content, spirit and meaning of your fine tome.

Lost in the Funhouse is one of the most interesting biographies that I have ever read. The subtitle could not be more correct. Sure, the writing style is unorthodox, but since when was anything related to Andy Kaufman orthodox? This book takes you into the workings of a mind that was both complex and bizarre and the stylistic freedoms that Bill Zehme takes only help the reader understand the schizophrenic extremes that Kaufman's mind would go to. Andy's life is one that has left people guessing about the details. Mr. Zehme's book begins to help the reader find some answers. Maybe. His extensive research shows throughout while not becoming too overbearing. Do I now know who Andy Kaufman was because of reading this book? No. Do I better understand why he did what he did and what drove him to do them? Yes. That's all that we can realistically ask from a book about one who played with reality as if it were silly putty.

I was never much of a Sinatra fan until I read Zehme's last book. It was so terrific and original that I developed a whole new appreciation for Sinatra. So, when this book came out, I have to say that I was more interested in reading Zehme's writing more than I was in his subject (Kaufman). I was not disappointed. I just finished the book tonight, and while I can't say I was transformed over Kaufman as I was about Sinatra, I can say that Zehme has written something extraordinary here. Around about half way through, as I was marveling at Kaufman's frenetic and madcap life on and off stage, it occured to me that it was Zehme's prose--also frenetic and madcap at times--that gave a compelling portrait of this unusual man. I had almost a visceral response to this book. It moves like a runaway freight. I have read a lot of biographies lately, Guralnick's Elvis and Thurman's Colette, and as good as those are, this is easily the best written. If you enjoy excellent writing, and in this case about a most unusual subject, don't hesitate to get this book.

I heard Bill Zehme interviewed on public radio about Lost in the Funhouse. Zehme was thoughtful and articulate on the program, so I bought the book. Zehme's writing style was not what I had expected. Characters shifting without warning, sentences lasting entire paragraphs, occasional lapses into stream of consciousness, and times when Zehme seemed to make no sense at all. There are passages in the book that that seemed to be written to be outright annoying. I could not believe that this was the same Zehme that I heard on public radio. It was not until I was halfway though the book (duh) that I became convinced that Zehme was writing the autobiography of Kaufman that Andy will never be able to write. It's genius! I recommend this book enthusiastically to anyone interested in learning more about this unique performance artist.

Bill Zehme's book somehow captures the uncapture-able, lending uncanny insight into a very strange, highly talented man who has not allowed death to stop him from continuing to play with our heads. I have rarely read a biography as beguiling and revealing as is "Lost in the Funhouse." You don't have to know Kaufman to appreciate Zehme's mesmerizing style in telling the tale of a performer who may have been crazier than we even thought. Compared to Bob Zmuda's self-serving and tabloidy "Andy Kaufman Revealed!", this book is masterfully crafted--as original as the subject it profiles. Kaufman fans and amateurs alike will be held spellbound, as was I. Bravo, Bill Zehme; you are a true craftsman.