Kevin Booth
Bill Hicks: Agent of Evolution (2005)
Author: Kevin Booth (with Michael Bertin)
Genre: Nonfiction (Biography/Oral History)
Book Summary:
Written by long-time friend, Kevin Booth, this is the definitive biography of the late, great comedian Bill Hicks. Bill was just achieving a semblance of national and international fame when his life was cut short by pancreatic cancer at the age of 32. This book weaves the recollections of Bill’s friends and business acquaintances (giving the book a feel akin to an oral history) into a narrative written by Booth and co-writer Michael Bertin. The book delves deepest into Bill’s early years chronicling in detail his immersion into stand-up comedy in high school up through the relentless touring that would finally propel him to stardom just before his death. Bill’s drug use and alcoholism—as well as his later sobriety—are dealt with objectively and without condemnation. Bill was a member of the Houston Outlaws, a group of rowdy, partying, cutting-edge comedians from what they dubbed the “third coast”. The Outlaws differed remarkably from the stand-up in New York and L.A., which was often toned down for television. Their ribald comedy earned them a reputation of hard partying pushers of the comedy envelope. As Bill’s star began to rise, his shirked those who encouraged him to tone his message down for television and delivered some of the most incendiary, hard-hitting comedy ever. When Bill’s 12th appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman was cut in its entirety after being cleared twice by the shows producers, Hicks responded by writing a 32-page, handwritten letter to friend and New Yorker columnist John Lahr. The resulting article brought Bill national attention (he was, at this point, already a star in Canada and England where audiences embraced his venomous, anti-America rants against the Gulf War, apathy, and mediocrity). Unfortunately, Bill was diagnosed with cancer soon thereafter and died at his parents home in Little Rock. Recordings of Bill’s performances have finally brought attention to the message he worked so hard to get out—albeit posthumously. In the opinion of this reader, Bill Hicks is an American hero, and this is an excellent introduction to the fact.
Geographical Location: Little Rock, Arkansas; Austin and Houston, Texas; Los Angeles; and New York City
Time Period: Bill’s life, 1961-1993
Appeal Characteristics:
First and foremost, this book will appeal to fans of Bill Hicks. It will also appeal to those interested in stand-up and the history of stand-up. It also provides an interesting look at life in the 80’s—especially coked-up Houston life. The narrative portions of the book are concise and humorous and do a wonderful job of tying together the personal accounts. It is these personal accounts that make the book so interesting. A great deal of this oral history comes from Kevin Booth—and rightly so. Booth was Hicks’ life-long collaborator and friend. Their friendship dates back to Bill’s arrival in Houston at age 14 up to his death. The played music together, made films together, partied together, explored their spirituality together, and produced Bill’s comedy albums. Also included are accounts of Bill from his fellow “outlaw” comics, his girlfriends, managers, and a surprising contribution from the Late Night producer responsible for cutting Bill’s 12th appearance on the show. Bill’s life was both a celebration and a tragedy, and Booth’s writing gets both moods across. Especially interesting is the candor and objective displayed when describing Bill’s cocaine and psychedelic mushroom use. The cocaine use definitely falls into the category of abuse, but Bill’s attitude toward psychedelics—especially naturally occurring psychedelics—is refreshing. Frowning their reckless recreational use, Hicks and his friends incorporated their ingestion of mushrooms into a spiritual quest preferring the idyllic surroundings of the Booth ranch in south Texas to tripping in the paranoid environs of the city. One final appeal characteristic: Bill’s politics. Bill said that we had reached the apex of our physical evolution; all that was left for us to do was to “evolve ideas”—hence, the title of the book. A major component of this evolution was throwing of the yoke of banality and mediocrity spewing forth from television sets, talking heads, hypocritical religious leaders, and hate-mongering politicians. Some of Bill’s best material slammed Gulf War I, the Waco fiasco, and the hypocrisy of organized religion.
Read-alikes: an excellent companion piece to this book is Cynthia True biography of Hicks, American Scream: The Bill Hicks Story. Essential listening includes Hicks’ last two albums, Arizona Bay and Rant in E Minor. Essential viewing includes the videocassette release Sane Man and the DVD compilation Bill Hicks Live: Satirist, Social Critic, Stand Up Comedian.
Red Flags: Bill loved to use profanity, and it is included here; frank, non-condemnational descriptions of alcohol and drug use and abuse; Bill loved pornography, and that, too, is included in the narrative.
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