Don't Tread on Me: The Selected Letters of S. J. Perelman

by S.J. Perelman, Prudence Crowther (Editor)

A literary event--the hilarious, revealing, poignant correspondence of one of the greatest American humorists of the twentieth century. 8 pages of black-and-white photographs.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

372 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Sidney Joseph Perelman, almost always known as S. J. Perelman, was a Jewish-American humorist, author, and screenwriter. He is best known for his humorous short pieces written over many years for The New Yorker. He also wrote for several other magazines, as well as books, scripts, and screenplays.

Reviews

[Larry Hostetler · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was both interesting and amazing to read how much of a life can be enjoyed through the reading of letters. It was also sad to know that this form of communication has gone the way of the dodo. I cannot imagine anyone collecting emails (or want to) as a means of understanding a person, or Facebook or LinkdIn posts.

What a life he lived; writer, screenwriter, traveler, friend with so many famous folks, from Groucho Marx to Paul Theroux (and those are just the ones whose names end in x). The reader gets insight into so many parts of life from 1928 to 1979 that it not only becomes a vicarious adventure but a historical record. S.J.'s wit and humor is exhibited in a more unexpurgated form in his letters, and is a delight throughout.

It was enjoyable to read of S.J. Perelman's life through his own words, and I am cognizant of the work that would have gone into collecting and sorting the letters, then editing them into a cohesive unit that also makes for good reading.

My congratulations to Prudence Crowther (though she doesn't need mine) on what must have been yeoman's work that also seemed to be a labor of love.

Definitely a good read.

[Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

A major disappointment.

There are some occasionally amusing letters, especially on the Marx brothers’ shortcomings. But most are just feature length complaints. Perelman mentions his stomach bugs more often than WW2 and Korea combined.

Perelman was masterful and witty but also an embittered miser with little love for even his own children.

[Mark Nutter · Rating 4 out of 5]

S.J. never finished his autobiography, so we'll have to settle for these slices of his personal life, which show him to be as articulate, funny, curmudgeonly, and lecherous as you hope he would be.

[Michael Cahill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gathering together of the wittier scraps of Mr. Perelman’s life may seem at first blush anything but blushing. Rather, it’s a forthright and varnish-free depiction of how a writer works his way through the regularity of making one’s daily bread, his disappointments, short lived successes, and never ending deadlines, all while managing something of a family into the bargain. These unguarded missives grant us a gander behind the curtain, revealing a dragging in the dirt of the real underbelly of a working writer’s life. [Aside from a wealth of published essays, he was a screenwriter for several Marx Bros. movies.] Looking into the dusty mirror of his personal correspondence unpeels the onion nicely, capturing a flawed but very human being—not to mention a superior intellect panning for pith and occasionally striking it rich.

Few writers have managed more insightful turns of phrase while plumbing the varying deepnesses of affection, levity, lyricism or lust. The price of the book alone is worth stumbling across diamonds like: “Love isn’t always found in the distant strain of violins, but sometimes in the triumphant twang of the bed spring.”

“Don’t Tread on Me” is an enjoyable read, brimming with candor that has long gone out of style and Perelman’s is a comic voice that harkens back to a gentlemanly sort of ham-handed charm that will never call again.

[Algernon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of letters start in Perelman's twenties, when he was an up and coming writer starting a family, to his last days, living by himself in a hotel room in Gramercy Park, New York City.

There are instances of his humor and wordplay throughout, yet the letters hint at Perelman's troubled family life and his own difficult personality. They catch the New York literary scene of which he was part and his travels around the world in search of inspiration and content.

[Mim · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable read. It was fun reading letters by a person who was witty and knowldegable. He wrote about his travels, his work, Hollywood, people. I didn't realize that I knew who he was until I started to read the book. I wish I could write letters like this. I've registered this book on BookCrossing and am setting it free at the Barksdale Theatre tonight.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are very few writers I've appreciated more after learning more about their lives. The deeper you probe, the less likable they become. But these letters from Perelman don't leave as nasty an aftertaste. True, he wasn't always the most gracious guest or correspondent, but who, having read his pieces, would expect him to be?

[Bud Rowe · Rating 1 out of 5]

yawn.