Tag: Droodles

Book review: ‘The Ultimate Droodles Compendium’

droodles
Courtesy photo: used with permission.

Roger Price was an American humorist, author and publisher who created Droodles in the 1950s and later collaborated with Leonard B. Stern on the Mad Libs series. Before he delighted fans with Mad Libs, comedian Roger Price invented Droodles – absurdly funny drawings that joined hula hoops and UFOs as one of the biggest fads of the 1950s. His Droodles books sold more than 1 million copies between their debut in 1953 and his death in 1990. On what would have been Roger Price’s 101st birthday, Tallfellow Press released “The Ultimate Droodles Compendium: The Absurdly Complete Collection of All the Classic Zany Creations of Roger Price.” Featuring over 350 hilarious Droodles, it is the first and only full retrospective of Price and his creations.

“The Ultimate Droodles Compendium” is arranged and annotated by Emmy-winning writer Fritz Holznagel and features a foreword by America’s best-known film historian, critic and author, Leonard Maltin. In the foreword titled ‘Roger Price and Me,’ Maltin recalls how he met Price and how he helped him grow up and guided him in his quest to becoming professional writer. In ‘What Are Droodles’ he defines them as “small silly drawings in a square box.” Price, in his 1952 collection “The Rich Sardine,” describes them as “the new IMPROVED way to waste time. You….can show them to other people and waste their time too.” The rest of the book is divided into the different types of Droodles: Droodles, Madison Avenue Droodles and Kinda Croodles. There is even ‘A Brief History of Roger Price and Droodles’ that features his biography and career highlights: Radio Years, Bob Hope years, Nightclubs and Broadway, Television and Books, Droodles and Mad Libs.

Always funny and often provocative, Price was one of America’s most original comic voices. At the peak of their popularity, Droodles had their own TV show, daily newspaper column, bestselling books and even cocktail napkins. This book has something for everyone: more than enough Droodles to tickle the funny bone and a biography and behind the scenes information. It is a one-of-a-kind collection that longtime fans will enjoy while newbies might discover the joys of silly drawings and humor. “The Ultimate Droodles Compendium” is recommended for fans of humor and history of humor and is a definite conversation starter.

*The author received a copy of this book for an honest review. The views and opinions expressed here belong solely to her.

New release: ‘The Ultimate Droodles Compendium’

droodles
‘The Ultimate Droodles Compendium’ is now available everywhere. Courtesy photo, used with permission. 

Roger Price was an American humorist, author and publisher who created Droodles in the 1950s and later collaborated with Leonard B. Stern on the Mad Libs series. His Droodles books sold more than 1 million copies between their debut in 1953 and his death in 1990. His Mad Libs have sold more than 150 million copies, and counting, since he co-created them with Leonard Stern in 1958. On March 6, what would have been Roger Price’s 101st birthday, Tallfellow Press will release ‘The Ultimate Droodles Compendium: The Absurdly Complete Collection of All the Classic Zany Creations of Roger Price.’ It is arranged and annotated by Emmy-winning writer Fritz Holznagel and features a foreword by America’s best-known film historian, critic and author, Leonard Maltin. Always funny and often provocative, Price was one of America’s most original comic voices. (Smith Publicity, 2019)

Before he delighted fans with Mad Libs, comedian Roger Price invented Droodles – absurdly funny drawings that joined hula hoops and UFOs as one of the biggest fads of the 1950s. At the peak of their popularity, Droodles had their own TV show, daily newspaper column, bestselling books and even cocktail napkins. Until now, Droodles, and the remarkable legacy of Roger Price, have been forgotten by all but a few diehard fans. Featuring over 350 hilarious Droodles, from the most popular to the wonderfully obscure and even “Kinda Croodles” that are more than a bit insensitive from today’s modern viewpoint, ‘The Ultimate Droodles Compendium’ is the first and only full retrospective of Price and his creations.

In ‘The Ultimate Droodles Compendium,’ longtime fans and newbies alike will be captivated by this forgotten genius of American comedy. This is a one-of-a-kind collection of humor and history and Millennials and Baby Boomers alike are in for a treat. It is now available in paperback wherever books are sold.