THE JOE E. BROWN FILMS BY James L. Neibaur (hardback)

ISBN  1629337390

Joe E. Brown was the most popular movie comedian in the 1930s, his films being bigger
moneymakers  than those featuring Laurel and Hardy, W.C. Fields, or The Marx Brothers. A regrettable business decision in the middle of the decade resulted in indie productions that relegated Joe to second-feature status. After losing a son in World War Two, Joe became a tireless entertainer for servicemen all over the world, resulting in his becoming one of two civilians during that time to be awarded the Bronze Star. His movie career effectively over by the 1950s, Joe took a supporting part in Billy Wilder’s Some Like it Hot, which ended up becoming the movie by which he remains best known. This book is a film-by-film look at his movies, from his early 1930s heyday through his B movies in the late 30s and early 40s, and finally his film career’s conclusion, only to be reborn with a handful of small parts in the 50s and 60s. Along with his work, this book will deal with Brown’s baseball enthusiasm, his kindness to others, and his lasting legacy.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James L. Neibaur is a film historian and educator who has appeared in video documentaries, given DVD commentaries, contributed several articles to the Encyclopedia Britannica and has authored over 30 published books.

Comedian Joe E. Brown...a reel baseball hero

"The Joe E. Brown Films by James L. Neibaur does a fine job of showing what made the comic a success, and explaining how and why his career fizzled. Neibaur’s assessments of the films themselves are pretty much on target but while he tells us repeatedly how successful the films were, he doesn’t tell us how much they grossed or how much Brown was paid—details that are conspicuous by their absence."

- Jordan R. Young, author of Spike Jones Off the Record: The Man Who Murdered Music