A comic’s life.

Steve Martin writes — in Born Standing Up — of his childhood & teenage years, then his nearly two decade-long struggle to become a successful performer. In this story, he reminds us of the importance of being fearless. And persistent.

Mixed reviews continued. At the end of my closing-night show at the Troubadour, I stood onstage and took out five bananas. I peeled them, put one on my head, one in each pocket and squeezed one in each hand. Then I read the last line of my latest bad review: “Sharing the bill with Poco this week is comedian Steve Martin … his twenty-five minute routine failed to establish any comic identity that would make the audience remember him or the material.” Then I walked off the stage.