Paul M. Zall

A collection of his anecdotes with notes and sources.

The blending of wit and jest.

"Presents intimate portraits of the new Chinese Americans who face a struggle common to so many immigrants: to reconcile some losses of their old culture in order to embrace their adopted American one. A follow-on interview with artist and architect Maya Lin supplements the program."--Container.

Much has been written of the horror and tragedy of our war; it is refreshing to have this bit of laughter to lighten the shadows. Every Civil War speaker should be grateful to Dr. Zall for his wonderful gathering of wit and humor: many of these stories will find their way into the opening remarks of speakers at Civil War Round Tables and other organizations throughout the country. And the average Civil War buff will probably find this to be an excellent, lighthearted gift for a friend. It is also fitting that through the generosity of Dr. Zall and Rank and File Publications, the proceeds of a book essentially "written" by Civil War soldiers should be used to preserve and commemorate the hallowed grounds where so many of those very soldiers fought and died. Those of us who study the Civil Warr have an obligation to save as many of the actual battlefields as is reasonable and practical. Dr. Zall's concern for battlefield preservation will help in this effort. All in all, Blue and Gray Laughing is a welcome addition to Civil War literature. And a funny one. Civil War soldiers needed humor. In today's world, we probably need more books like this one.

A biography of the First Lady noted for the graciousness and unprecedented elegance she brought to early nineteenth-century Washington.

George Washington laughing? That the venerable Father of Our Country, the austere and unfailingly honest leader of historical record and legend, had a penchant for tall tales and crafty quips seems unthinkable to most Americans, even today. In The Wit & Wisdom of the Founding Fathers, historian and scholar Paul Zall shatters the sober image of American icons George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin to reveal - and celebrate - their natural. Bent for incisive, spirited humor. With ample quotes from personal correspondence and private memoirs, Zall peers behind the staid and serious facade of our first three presidents and demonstrates how each strove to suppress his sense of mirth to maintain a dignified public reputation. By lifting the curtain on our Founding Fathers as they engage in practical jokes and regale friends with humorous stories, Zall opens a window on their personalities otherwise obscured by. Our preconceptions of them as larger-than-life historical figures. While Franklin's humor and wisdom is legendary thanks to his authorship of Poor Richard's Almanac, readers will be surprised to learn that Washington had a penchant for biting sarcasm; that Adams engaged in direct, colloquial, even vulgar, humor; and that Jefferson, our most cerebral president, enjoyed laughing at the absurdity of his own situation as leader of the nation.

Compares humorous stories Twain told publicly and privately with those wrongly attributed to him, and discusses his development as a speaker.

Humor is sometimes a serious business, especially the humor of Benjamin Franklin, a master at revealing the human condition through comedy. For America's bicentennial, Reader's Digest named Franklin "Man of the Year" for embodying the characteristics we admire most about ourselves as Americans--humor, irony, energy, and fresh insight. Recreating Franklin's words in the way that his contemporaries would have read and understood them, Paul M. Zall chronicles Franklin's use and abuse of humor for commercial, diplomatic, and political purposes. Dedicated to Fanklin's uniquely appealing and enduring humor, Zall lovingly samples Franklin's apologues on the necessity of living reasonably even when life's circumstances may seem absurd. - Publisher.