Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life by Steve Martin plus some other autobiographies.

Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life by Steve Martin.(2008)
The Abingdon Book Discussion Group meets the third Monday of the month. For September we had read Steve Martin's autobiography. Only one person in the group really enjoyed this book. The rest of us were somewhat disappointed. Perhaps this was partly because as women we look for the relationships between characters (whether in fiction or non-fiction)& we did not find them here. Martin's book explores the reasons he became a comedian, from his days at Disneyland working in a magic shop, through his comedy routines at Knott's Berry Farm, to his time as a stand-up comedian & his eventual success on Saturday Night Live. But, if you are looking for insight into his public life, Martin is very coy. He gives us almost nothing about his two marriages, and does not delve into his friendships. This is a book written by a very private and possibly shy man. It works as a commentary on the hard work and loneliness inherent in doing stand-up, but don't look for Hollywood glitz.

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Neatly combining his personal and professional worlds, beloved comedian, filmmaker, author, magician and banjoist Martin (Pure Drivel) chronicles his life as a gifted young comedian in this evocative, heartfelt memoir, which proves less wild and crazy than wise and considerate-though no less funny for it. The typically reticent performer shares rarely disclosed memories of childhood-his father, a failed actor, harbored increasing anger toward his son through the years-and the anxiety attacks that plagued him for some two decades, along with his early success as a television comedy writer, first for The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, and the evolution of his stand-up routine. Sharp insight accompanies stories of his first adult gig (at an empty San Francisco coffee house), his pioneering "no punch lines" style ("My goal was to make the audience laugh but leave them unable to describe what it was that had made them laugh"), appearances on programs like The Steve Allen Show and breakthrough moments with small, confused audiences. Though vivid and entertaining throughout, Martin doesn't dish any behind-the-scenes dirt from Saturday Night Live or The Tonight Show; rather, he's warm and generous toward everyone in his life, including girlfriends and colleagues. Tellingly, this intimate early career recap ends not with Martin's decision to give up live performance or his film debut The Jerk, but with a visit to his parents and Knott's Berry Bird Cage Farm, where he first performed as a teenager.
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These are some other autobiographies you might try:

The best I have read in ages, for being sincere, humorous, and modest.
Sit, Ubu, Sit: How I went from Brooklyn to Hollywood with the Same Woman, the Same Dog, and a Lot Less Hair by Gary David Goldberg.(2008)
I recently had to fly to Cincinatti & was looking for something to read on the plane. I picked up this book by chance, and thought it sounded good - at that time I had no idea who Gary Goldberg was. It is such a lovely book, easy to read, funny and a wonderful tribute to his wife who has supported him throughout his career.

From Publishers Weekly
Goldberg, a TV scriptwriter and producer, fondly recalls his rocky, improbable route to Hollywood success, including the people who helped him along the way. Funny, dry and self-deprecating, Goldberg cuts swiftly through the years, from the mid-1950s growing up in a loving extended Jewish family in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, to his scruffy vagabonding in 1972 in Europe with his pregnant girlfriend, Diana, and their canny Labrador dog, Ubu. He sold his first scripts to TV shows in the 1970s, prompting his move from New York to California with Diana, who opened a day-care center. Goldberg took a class with scriptwriter Nate Monaster, who motivated him and helped submit his work to Los Angeles producers. Soon enough, Goldberg's scripts for the Bob Newhart Show, the Tony Randall Show and the MTM empire gave him the clout to start his own company, UBU (named for the beloved dog he eventually gave away, by the by), launching such pilots as Family Ties for the networks. Indeed, Goldberg's memoir is a kind of love letter to longtime partner Diana as well as to Michael J. Fox, with whom he later worked on Spin City. His professed guilt for making fistfuls of money while making people laugh renders this work effortlessly likable. (Feb.)
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Up Till Now: The Autobiography by William Shatner and David Fisher (2008)
A likeable book, his autobiography includes Shatner promoting Priceline & the various sites that sell Star Trek memorabilia in a humorous & self-deprecating manner. His style is chatty, you feel as if he is in the room with you, and he includes many funny anecdotes. However, there is no mistaking how hard he worked and how he lived on very little money for many years before he became rich & famous. Not just for Trekkies, this is a heartwarming and interesting reflection on the drive that is needed to succeed as an actor as well as the sacrifices that are often made in the early years.

From Publishers Weekly
Working with various collaborators, Shatner has previously written science fiction (the TekWar series) and science fact (I'm Working on That), and ventured into memoir with Star Trek Memories. Embarking on a full-scale autobiography, he begins with his Montreal childhood doing children's theater, then covers comedies with the Canadian National Repertory Theatre, lead roles with the Stratford Shakespeare Festival and live TV in New York City in 1956: I became one of the busiest actors in the city. At that point Shatner opens a Pandora's box of self-deprecating humor and fascinating anecdotes about the hilarious goofs, on-camera accidents and stage fright during the live TV era. Obsessed with work, Shatner took any job that came his way, from dog shows to reality TV. Some of his tales are quite funny, such as doing an entire feature film, Incubus (1965), in Esperanto: No one understood their lines. Covering his multiple careers of acting, writing and directing, he never pulls his punches, describing humiliations as well as triumphs. Shatner's sincerity, honesty and heightened sense of humor all come across at warp speed in this entertaining memoir. (May 13)
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For you Anglophiles
Home: A Memoir of My Early Years by Julie Andrews(2008)
The first part of the book that deals with Andrews' childhood is very interesting as it reflects the war years (WWII) and their aftermath in Britain. Although sometimes a little long, and sometimes going into more detail of her singing practices than I needed, when I reached the end I still wanted more. This autobiography ends with Julie's role as Mary Poppins, and for any of her fans, I hope she writes a second memoir as I am sure you will all want to know about her later acting and writing career.

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Andrews, who has written several children's books (The Great American Mousical; Mandy), both solo and with her daughter, now dances in a different direction with this delightful remembrance of her own childhood and engrossing prelude to her cinematic career. Spanning events from her 1935 birth to the early 1960s, she covers her rise to fame and ends with Walt Disney casting her in Mary Poppins (1963). Setting the stage with a family tree backdrop, she balances the sad struggles of relatives and hard drinkers with mirthful family tales and youthful vocal lessons amid rationing and the London Blitz: My mother pulled back the blackout curtains and gasped—for there, snuggly settled in the concrete square of the courtyard, was the incendiary bomb. A BBC show led to a London musical at age 12: My song literally stopped the show. People rose to their feet and would not stop clapping. Her mother's revelation of her true father left her reeling when she was 15, but she continued touring, did weekly BBC broadcasts and was Broadway-bound by 1954 to do The Boyfriend. The heart of her book documents the rehearsals, tryouts and smash 1956 opening of My Fair Lady. Readers will rejoice, since Andrews is an accomplished writer who holds back nothing while adding a patina of poetry to the antics and anecdotes throughout this memoir of bittersweet backstage encounters and theatrical triumphs. (Apr. 1)
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