Charlie Hill's stand-up act includes the following lines: " My people are from Wisconsin. We used to be from New York. We had a little real estate problem." Kliph Nesteroff riffs off Charlie Hill's comedic life into a broad overview of Native American comedy in this book.
Kliph Nesteroff shotguns his way through Native American comedy with each short chapter providing a glimpse of a different comedian or historical period. He introduces unknown comedians, such as Jonny Roberts, lesser known groups such as Williams and Ree or the 1491s, and brings in big guns such as Will Rogers and keeps up the examination of Charlie Hill. He also looks into Wild West shows in the 1800's, vaudeville in the early 20th century, Jim Thorpe on American Indians in movies, the role of whites playing American Indians on F Troop and the influence of Davy Crockett.
As the reader travels through the book, wandering off on all the detours but coming back to finish the tale, they should accumulate enough facts to come to this conclusion - Native Americans are human and like to laugh just as much as any one else. Humor and comedy can be culture specific, but it can also reach across cultures and draw disparate people together, if only for a laugh!
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