In Hollywood, Bob demonstrated a bullheadedness that would shame Sisyphus himself, and when all hope was lost for the umpteenth time, the phone rang with an offer to appear on Breaking Bad-a show about how boring it is to be a high school chemistry teacher.

While surviving that legendary gauntlet by the skin of his gnashing teeth, he stashed away the secrets of comedy writing-eventually employing them in the immortal “Motivational Speaker” sketch for Chris Farley, honing them on The Ben Stiller Show, and perfecting them on Mr. He somehow made his way to a job as a writer at Saturday Night Live. Charting a “Homeric” decades-long “odyssey” from his origins in the seedy comedy clubs of Chicago to a dramatic career full of award nominations-with a side-trip into the action-man world that is baffling to all who know him-it’s almost like there are many Bob Odenkirks! But there is just one and one is plenty.īob embraced a life in comedy after a chance meeting with Second City’s legendary Del Close.

And yet he will try like hell to explicate it for you. ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022- Entertainment Weekly, USA Today, Parade, The AV Clubīob Odenkirk’s career is inexplicable. “I’ve known Bob Odenkirk for more than thirty years, and yet I had to read this book to believe his stunning career arc.”-Conan O’Brien

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