Review Corner: FIVE MINUTES, MR. BYNER! by John Byner with Douglas Wellman #review #memoir #entertainment

 

Title: FIVE MINUTES, MR. BYNER! A LIFETIME OF LAUGHTER
Author: John Byner with Douglas Wellman
Publisher: WriteLife Publishing
Pages: 244
Genre: Celebrity Memoir

Veteran entertainer John Byner, a man of many voices and characters, from impersonating the slow, rolling gait and speech of John Wayne, to lending his voice to The Ant and the Aardvark cartoons has penned (with Douglas Wellman) his biography FIVE MINUTES, MR. BYNER! published by Boutique of Quality Books. His dead-on impersonations, as well as his unique talents as a character actor, have put him on the small screen in peoples' homes, the big screen in theaters, and no screen on Broadway.

“. . . John has had a remarkable career spanning decades, from doing comedy in small clubs in Greenwich Village to The Ed Sullivan Show. . . Ed loved him. . . to The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, to Steve Allen, who basically invented the talk show, to The Carol Burnett Show, to just about every major variety show or situation comedy there was on the air, to hosting his own variety show and introducing Bob Einstein as Super Dave Osborne, and on and on. . . . And he’s still going strong, as funny and as kind as ever.” – Nathan Lane

Growing up in a big family on Long Island, John discovered his uncanny ability to mimic voices as a child when he returned home from a Bing Crosby movie and repeated Bing’s performance for his family in their living room. He discovered his talent made him the focus of everyone’s attention, and allowed him to make friends wherever he went, from elementary school to the U.S. Navy. John started his career in nightclubs in New York, but soon found himself getting national acclaim on The Ed Sullivan Show. With that he was on his way. This memoir is the best and funniest moments of his life, career, and relationships with some of the biggest names in entertainment, both on and
off the screen. “I thought of doing a memoir a year before I began writing it. My friend (co-author), Doug Wellman, suggested years before that if I wanted to write a book he would assist me,” remarked Mr.Byner.

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I was so excited to get my copy of FIVE MINUTES, MR. BYNER! A LIFETIME OF LAUGHTER and it did not disappoint. I remember Mr. Byner's infectious charisma on big time stages like The Ed Sullivan Show and his 37 appearances on The Tonight Show. What I remember the most about Mr. Byner are his impersonations - John Wayne and Ed Sullivan (I bet it was this impersonation that made the cut for his first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show) to name a few.

Reading his background - family life - was so interesting and was glad he included it in the book. I love reading about how TV personalities got their start, but their background, their childhood, is where they give you a taste of their character - even if it's not so pretty. But, John is quick to point out he came from a normal loving family. He was the fifth of six children growing up in New York. His father died the same year he was born but he talks fondly of his immigrant father from Germany who sought America for fame and fortune. Mr. Byner calls his childhood 'a Tom Sawyer childhood.'

A very entertaining read from a very talented entertainer!