About the book:

The Gag Man: Clyde Bruckman and the Birth of Film Comedy
By Matthew Dessem

“This is much more than the long overdue discovery of Clyde Bruckman and the origins of film comedy. This is a deep insight into the vortex of laughter and death.”
- Werner Herzog (director of Grizzly Man and Aguirre, The Wrath of God)

“Matthew Dessem takes a detour off Sunset Boulevard to recover from the shadows one of Hollywood’s forgotten men. In Dessem’s masterful telling the quest for Clyde Bruckman proceeds from two-reel farce to too-real tragedy with the fateful logic of a detective story. A marvelous job of research and reporting — I couldn’t put it down.
- Lem Dobbs (screenwriter of Haywire and The Limey)

“Wonderfully engaging.”
- The New Republic

Though today he is barely remembered, Clyde Bruckman was a key figure in early film comedy, collaborating with icons like Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, W.C. Fields, Laurel & Hardy, and the Three Stooges. Working while screenwriting was still in its infancy, Bruckman helped shape many influential shorts and films, developed the gags that made them legendary, and eventually became a director himself. But Bruckman’s own life was filled with tragedy and disappointment, from alcoholism to accusations of plagiarism, and over time his story has been relegated to little more than a footnote. Matthew Dessem’s The Gag Man, an expansion of his study of Bruckman for The Dissolve, is the first book-length biography of this fascinating but elusive figure. Drawing on archives, court documents, and of course the films themselves, Dessem brings Bruckman’s story to life and shines a light on an important corner of Hollywood history.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Matthew Dessem’s writing has appear in The Dissolve, Slate, GOOD Magazine and elsewhere.

Rules:

TWO WAYS TO ENTER:
TO ENTER via TWITTER (Four Chances to Win):
1) Follow @ClassicMovieHub on twitter for further instructions
2) Successfully complete a qualifying entry task during the specified contest week within the contest period.
TO WIN: Winner(s) will be chosen at random at the end of each specified contest week within the contest period. Winner(s) will be announced on Twitter the day after each specified contest week ends.
PRIZING: One book will be given away during each specified contest week within the the contest period, for a total giveaway of four books within four weeks.

TO ENTER via FACEBOOK or the CMH Blog (Two Chances to Win):
1) Visit us on Facebook or the CMH Blog for further instructions on how to enter
2) Successfully complete a qualifying entry task during the specified contest period.
TO WIN: Two winners will be chosen at random at the end of the designated contest period and announced on Facebook and the Blog the following day.
PRIZING: Two books will be given away during the designated contest period, for a total giveaway of two books within four weeks.

ELIGIBILITY for both versions of contest (Twitter and Facebook/Blog):
* Limited to Continental United States (excluding Alaska, Hawaii, and the territory of Puerto Rico) and Canada only.
* Must be eighteen (18) years old and over as of the date of entry.
* Only one book per winner.
* BlogHub Bloggers are eligible to enter.
* Giveaway starts Monday June 1, 2015 and ends on Tuesday June 30, 2015 at midnight EST or when all prizes are exhausted (whichever comes first).
* Each winner will be notified by email, Twitter DM or Facebook and will have 48 hours to respond with their shipping information or a new winner may be chosen. If any Prize or Prize notification is returned as undeliverable, the winner may be disqualified, and an alternate winner may be selected.
* Prizes will ship directly after the contest period is over. Please allow up to 2 to 4 weeks for prize delivery.Classic Movie Hub is not responsible for prizes lost or stolen.
* Friends and Family of Classic Movie Hub are not eligible for entry.