John Leguizamo

In this adaptation of his autobiographical stage play, John Leguizamo paints himself as quite the ass. He does such a good job of making himself look so bad for so long in the book that I couldn't buy the speedy turnaround he claims in the end.

Anyhow, everything is just all exaggerated and hyper for comic effect, and it probably works well in a live format (I have not seen the show upon which this is based though I do enjoy Leguizamo as an actor), but it didn't do much for me on the page. There are lots of celebrity cameos at least, including Steven Seagal, Al Pacino, and Patrick Swayze.… (más)

Standup with Some History Tidbits
Review of the Audible Original audio production (Nov. 2019) of the original stage play

There was little actual history here in this studio audio production of Leguizamo's stage act which is built around a supposed search for Latin American historical figures to inspire his son's middle school project. It was peppered throughout with raunchy language which is usually a turnoff for me, but Leguizamo's energetic delivery and huge repertoire of voice characters and speech did win me over somewhat.

Trivia and Links
Two books that were mentioned during the audiobook that might be of interest were Charles Mann's 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus (2005) and Loreta Janeta Velázquez's The Woman in Battle: The Civil War Narrative of Loreta Janeta Velazquez, Cuban Woman and Confederate Soldier (1876).… (más)

I have maintained an intense fondness for Leguizamo ever since A Pyromaniac's Love Story -- a film that everyone else in the world seems to have forgotten, even as it is one of the top three movies I scour any sale of used dvds for. Still, I knew almost nothing about him personally until watching Latin History for Morons. This graphic novel had been calling to me from the library shelves for a while.

Of course, this isn't exactly a memoir, it's a graphic novelization of his Broadway show, Ghetto Klown. And it has all the strengths and weaknesses of such -- bumping and rocketing through some amazing anecdotes, even as I'd lie to occasionally pump the brakes and get some more context. Fair warning -- you'll probably want to at least gently strangle just about everyone in his life except his grandpa and Teeny. (And Wesley Snipes, I guess?) His humor really comes across throughout -- and the art (while sometimes a bit uneven) adds a gritty reality to everything.

Some interesting insights into a complicated person. Recommended to all Leguizamo fans.… (más)