Benchley Roundup : A Selection by Nathaniel Benchley of his Favorites

Robert C. Benchley's sketches and articles, published in periodicals likeLife,Vanity Fair, andThe New Yorker, earned him a reputation as one of the sharpest humorists of his time; his influenceon contemporaries such as E. B. White, James Thurber, and S. J. Perelman, or followers like Woody Allen, Steve Martin, and Richard Pryorhas left an indelible mark on the American comic tradition.The Benchley Roundupcollects those pieces, selected by Benchley's son Nathaniel, "which seem to stand up best over the years"-a compendium of the most endearing and enduring work from one of America's funniest and most penetrating wits."It took me fifteen years to discover that I had no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up because by then I was too famous."Robert Benchley

Robert C. Benchley (1889-1945), a premier humorist of his time and member of the Algonquin Round Table, wrote for the New York World and New York Tribune Graphic as well as many other periodicals; his work was widely syndicated and anthologized.