Michael Starr

Nothin' Comes Easy: The Life of Rodney Dangerfield by Michael Seth Starr First-ever biography. Citadel Press, April 29, 2025. Starr’s Dangerfield is not only the man who got no respect. He is Jacob Cohen who became Jack Roy, then Rodney—the anxious kid from a cold home who spent a decade in the toilets of the clubs, sold aluminum siding, and at forty-five became an overnight success after one Ed Sullivan set. Philosophers analyze comedy; biographers track the road. Starr’s claim is that he does both: the fidgety delivery and the catchphrase, and the depression, the debt, the dedicated father, and the mentor to Seinfeld, Carrey, and Carlin who finally got the respect the persona never claimed. The book gives the personal Starr—the New York Post television editor who has written the lives of Rickles, Newhart, Shatner, and others—and the public one: the second act that started at forty-five, the movies from Caddyshack to Natural Born Killers, and the man behind the schlub. Drawn from the first full portrait twenty years after his death. Buy links - Amazon (hardcover): amazon.com/Nothin-Comes-Easy… - Publisher: penguinrandomhouse.com/books… About the author Michael Seth Starr covered television at the New York Post for nearly thirty years as a reporter, columnist, critic, and editor. He is the author of biographies of Rodney Dangerfield, Don Rickles, Bob Newhart, William Shatner, Ringo Starr, Raymond Burr, Redd Foxx, and others. He lives in New Jersey. X: @biowriter61 #BooksAsAGift #UnexpectedReads #BuyTwo 📚 #Authors 🎨 #Artists✨#Creators