39 Years of Short-Term Memory Loss: The Early Days of SNL from Someone Who Was There Audiobook (Unabridged)

" I absent-mindedly started this in the middle. Each chapter holds it own which isn't too surprising since Davis has written for SNL etc. I should start on chapter 1 soon so I can start writing a real review. But I've enjoyed the fast pace and easy style of Davis so far. "

" For a writer from SNL I was surprised at how much I didn't enjoy his writing. I guess you could give some leniency...it was written in an ADD/drug addled memory sort of way that is kind of the point of the memoir...but I still couldn't get that into it. "

" This often hilarious memoir weaves together the coming-of-age stories of a comedy writer and the television institution he helped spawn. When Saturday Night Live first hit the airwaves, Gerald Ford was president. No one expected it to run for decades; least of all, footloose midwestern hippie and cutup Tom Davis. Perhaps best remembered today as the other half of the Franken & Davis comedy team, Davis won four Emmy Awards during the '70s, but his free-spirited 39 Years of Short-Term Memory Loss jogs through the honors, lingering instead on his interactions with Lorne Michaels, John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Chris Farley. "

" An interesting but ultimately unsatisfying memoir. There really isn't any narrative, it is all a series of anecdotes. Each chapter is essentially stand-alone. By itself that wouldn't be too much if a problem, but I found the character introductions to be tedious after a while. For instance, I got real tired of reading "Susan Forristal, Lorne's supermodel girlfriend." I wanted to yell back "yes, I remember her from all the previous introductions!". That, and fact that the chapters are not chronological tend to distract from the actual story. I guess this would be very interesting to a SNL enthusiast, but I didn't find much meat here. There was one line that I loved: "I looked it up in the encyclopedia (for you younger readers, that's a hardcopy search engine)" "

" Often interesting, especially when the author describes adventures with buddies Al Franken and Dan Ackroyd and the other characters and many, many women in his life. Lots of boring paragraphs describing myriad drug experiences. "

" I really wanted to love this book, but it was in desperate need of a good editor. Too much jumping around without a coherent timeline of the stories. Given the number of drugs this guy did, I guess I should be impressed that he remember any of it. "

" Disjointed, rambling, and repetitive. For a book with SNL in its title, I expected more stories actually about SNL, but they were few and far between. Should have been called "I did a lot of drugs and hung out with Jerry Garcia." "

" Not as good as the other books I've read...lots of drug experiences and I had no idea this guy was such a huge fan of Timothy Leary...but I guess that makes sense with all the drugs. some funny anecdotes with the SNL cast. Lots of skipping around, kind of a weird read. "

" self serving book written by a narcistic guy who may have done too many drugs and too many women if that's possible. "

" Way too much of Tom's travel and drug details, not enough SNL. "

" Davis' book is like a window into the world of vintage Saturday Night Live...and his circle of friends is fascinating, ranging from fellow writers and cast members on SNL to pop culture icons like Timothy Leary, Jerry Garcia, G. Gordon Liddy, and the guys from Monty Python. "

" Listened to about 2/3 of this tale of doing drugs and writing and acting comedy with celebrities. A sort of wannabe Hunter Thompson-esque Fear and Loathing in SNL. It's interesting how much Al Franken is part of the story, also drug-addled, since he's now a senator. "

" An excellent read! Lots of behind the scenes antics in this book from someone who was in the thick of it. I enjoyed it immensely. "

" A MUST read for any SNL fan. I don't know how the hell he remembered so much with all the drugs that he did. "

" Lots of real life stories were used for SNL skits. They sometimes were skewed a little. Interesting read. "

" This might have been a great book if only he had an editor and proofreader. It reads like a first draft. His story is great, though. Hilarious and heart-rending by turns and I'd have given it 4 stars if he had finished it. "

" Read this book if you want to know the real Al Franken. He spent so many years drugging and partying that I'm not sure what part of his brain is intact. "

" I can never resist SNL memoirs. "

" Often interesting, especially when the author describes adventures with buddies Al Franken and Dan Ackroyd and the other characters and many, many women in his life. Lots of boring paragraphs describing myriad drug experiences. "

" Great book. I wonder how much more there is that he couldn't recall. "

" It's like the book wasn't edited at all. Tom Davis rambles on about his life, SNL, and his drug problem. Chapters are also divided into people he knows (or knew). It's a terrible mess. I wanted this book to be much better than it is. "

" okay, Tom Davis, thanks for telling us about all the times you were fucked up. Choppy and not as compelling as it should be. "

" Lots of real life stories were used for SNL skits. They sometimes were skewed a little. Interesting read. "

" Some interesting stories, but extremely disjointed. No flow whatsoever — perhaps by design. More than anything it makes you wish you were friends with Dan Aykroyd. "

" Listened to about 2/3 of this tale of doing drugs and writing and acting comedy with celebrities. A sort of wannabe Hunter Thompson-esque Fear and Loathing in SNL. It's interesting how much Al Franken is part of the story, also drug-addled, since he's now a senator. "

" He may be a good comedy writer, but he is not a good author. I think all the drugs fried his brain. I didn't finish this. "