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Craig Ferguson is the host of The Late Late Show. He is the author of the novel Between the Bridge and the River and lives in Los Angeles, California.
American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot
eBook
$8.24
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ISBN-13:
9780061959158
- Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
- Publication date: 09/22/2009
- Sold by: HARPERCOLLINS
- Format: eBook
- Pages: 288
- Sales rank: 187,862
- File size: 2 MB
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In American on Purpose, Craig Ferguson delivers a moving and achingly funny memoir of living the American dream as he journeys from the mean streets of Glasgow, Scotland, to the comedic promised land of Hollywood. Along the way he stumbles through several attempts to make his mark—as a punk rock musician, a construction worker, a bouncer, and, tragically, a modern dancer.
To numb the pain of failure, Ferguson found comfort in drugs and alcohol, addictions that eventually led to an aborted suicide attempt. (He forgot to do it when someone offered him a glass of sherry.) But his story has a happy ending: in 1993, the washed-up Ferguson washed up in the United States. Finally sober, Ferguson landed a breakthrough part on the hit sitcom The Drew Carey Show, a success that eventually led to his role as the host of CBS's The Late Late Show. By far Ferguson's greatest triumph was his decision to become a U.S. citizen, a milestone he achieved in early 2008, just before his command performance for the president at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner. In American on Purpose, Craig Ferguson talks a red, white, and blue streak about everything our Founding Fathers feared.
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The subtitle "Improbable Adventures" actually understates the skittish life path of this book's author. Late, Late Show host Craig Ferguson was born in Glasgow, where he walked mean streets, performed in a punk band called Bastards from Hell, and appeared in alternative comedy clubs as Bing Hitler. From those unremunerative enterprises, he lurched into temporary occupations as a construction worker, a bouncer, and a bartender. In that last job, he seemed to have found his true tragic calling. He became his own best customer, rapidly lapsing into a downward spiral of alcohol and drugs that nearly killed him. Somehow he not only survived and recovered; he found a new career, a new country, and a new sense of purpose. Heartfelt, fun, and inspiring.
Andy Borowitz
There's no one else like [Ferguson] on television, and he's achieved something unusual in late night: a sense of intimacy with his audience. In American on Purpose he establishes a similar bond with the reader. Like Steve Martin in his similarly engaging memoir, Born Standing Up, Ferguson tells the life story of a comedian without letting jokes get in the way.—The New York Times
The Daily Beast
Hilarious and revealing...witty and emotional.People
Hilariously vivid.Chicago Sun-Times
Ferguson has given us a biographical treatment that is both brutally honest and inspirational…American on Purpose is a book that should be read.Associated Press
A fine writer, witty, reflective, and candid.... Ferguson is a kinetic cutup teeming with foolishness, brilliance, defiance, and heart. All this is captured in his book as an entertaining connect-the-dots journey.Associated Press Staff
A fine writer, witty, reflective, and candid.... Ferguson is a kinetic cutup teeming with foolishness, brilliance, defiance, and heart. All this is captured in his book as an entertaining connect-the-dots journey.People Magazine
"Hilariously vivid."Keith Olbermann
Funny and poignant and inspirational and brilliant. Nowhere in his story of emigration and redemption does Craig Ferguson realize that as lucky as he thinks he is to be ‘American on Purpose,’ we are luckier still to have him.Dennis Lehane
With American on Purpose, Craig Ferguson somehow manages to avoid the pitfalls of self-indulgence and self-importance that plague most (okay, all) Hollywood autobiographies. He has, instead, written a book that is hilarious and irrepressibly daft, yet also kind, poignant, and undeniably wise. It was a joy to read.Carrie Fisher
A great read . . . almost as good as my memoir.