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A review by jtcmedia
American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson
2.0
Craig Ferguson's "rags-to-riches" story is actually quite unremarkable. I found this book a bore and it reminded me again how overpaid and self absorbed entertainers are.
Two thirds of the book are spent in his twenties (because once someone becomes a multi-millionaire, their life just isn't as interesting). So most of the book talks about his aimless life during that time (and if you have seen his talk show, he reminds the audience all the time about being a recovered alcoholic). But seriously, who wasn't an alcoholic, at least briefly, in their twenties? There really isn't anything atypical about someone finding themselves while in their twenties and doing a lot of drugs and alcohol along the way. Many people I know, myself included, drank heavily and experimented with drugs during that time. I guess we should all boast about being a recovered alcoholic and write autobiographies. He ended up in rehab only because he's in the entertainment business and his entertainment business friends sent him there. He's been sober since thirty-two. Thirty-two! When he has gone on again and again about being a recovered alcoholic, I assumed that meant something out of the ordinary like till he was forty!
Anyways, once he got on Drew Carey, he became a millionaire (his words,not mine)! Two things he doesn't mention and you have to infer from the book is that he worked really, really hard honing his comedic skill, even in his torrid twenties. The other thing which becomes apparent through the book (and if you saw him on his talk show), is he is a very likable fellow and made several friends in the industry which helped get him where he is.
And of course he was obsessed with coming to America. Geese, never heard that before in the Entertainment industry.
The take-away I got from this book is you can be a complete mess in your twenties and still jump into the entertainment business and become a multi-millionaire and land a hot wife!
Two thirds of the book are spent in his twenties (because once someone becomes a multi-millionaire, their life just isn't as interesting). So most of the book talks about his aimless life during that time (and if you have seen his talk show, he reminds the audience all the time about being a recovered alcoholic). But seriously, who wasn't an alcoholic, at least briefly, in their twenties? There really isn't anything atypical about someone finding themselves while in their twenties and doing a lot of drugs and alcohol along the way. Many people I know, myself included, drank heavily and experimented with drugs during that time. I guess we should all boast about being a recovered alcoholic and write autobiographies. He ended up in rehab only because he's in the entertainment business and his entertainment business friends sent him there. He's been sober since thirty-two. Thirty-two! When he has gone on again and again about being a recovered alcoholic, I assumed that meant something out of the ordinary like till he was forty!
Anyways, once he got on Drew Carey, he became a millionaire (his words,not mine)! Two things he doesn't mention and you have to infer from the book is that he worked really, really hard honing his comedic skill, even in his torrid twenties. The other thing which becomes apparent through the book (and if you saw him on his talk show), is he is a very likable fellow and made several friends in the industry which helped get him where he is.
And of course he was obsessed with coming to America. Geese, never heard that before in the Entertainment industry.
The take-away I got from this book is you can be a complete mess in your twenties and still jump into the entertainment business and become a multi-millionaire and land a hot wife!