Comedian/Author Larry Wilde to Give Special Presentation on "The Great Comedians" and National Humor

CARMEL, Calif. - March 21, 2014 - PRLog -- March 3, 2014, Carmel, CA. Comedian/Author Larry Wilde, Director of the Carmel Institute of Humor, will give a very special presentation on Saturday, April 5th at 10:00 a.m. at the Carmel Valley Library, 65 West Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley, CA 93924 (831) 659-2377 (tel:%28831%29%20659-2377) about "The Great Comedians" and National Humor Month. It will also be a kick off event celebrating the release of all 53 of his books on Kindle and The Nook. Larry will give an entertaining and informative talk about many of the 17 comedians he interviewed for his very popular book, "The Great Comedians", including Woody Allen, Jack Benny, Milton Berle, Shelley Berman, Joey Bishop, George Burns, Johnny Carson, Maurice Chevalier, Phyllis Diller, Jimmy Durante, Dick Gregory, Bob Hope, George Jessel, Jerry Lewis, Jerry Seinfeld, Danny Thomas and Ed Wynn. The original tapes of these historical interviews are now part of The Larry Wilde Collection housed in the Library of Congress.

Also....

National Humor Month in April

March 2014, Carmel, CA -- Americans, Canadians, Australians, South Africans, New Zealanders, and the British, from healthcare professionals to scholars to giggling grade schoolers, will be brushing up on the benefits of belly laughs this April in celebration of National Humor Month.

National Humor Month was founded in 1976 by comedian/ author Larry Wilde, Director of The Carmel Institute of Humor. It is designed to heighten public awareness on how the joy and therapeutic value of laughter can improve health, boost morale, increase communication skills and enrich the quality of one's life.

"Since April is often bleak and grim and taxes are due on the 15th, it can be one of the most stressful times of the year," says Wilde. "Besides, it's the only month that begins with All Fool's Day -- a day which has sanctioned frivolity and pranks ever since the 1500's.”

"The idea of laughing and the use of humor as a tool to lift ailing spirits is growing. Scientific research now indicates that the curative power of laughter and its ability to relieve debilitating stress and burnout may indeed be one of the great medical discoveries of our times.

Larry Wilde is the best-selling humor author of all time. Of his 53 books, his “Official” Joke Books series contains most (if not all) of the funniest jokes ever written. While they might be naughty, irreverent, provocative, offensive and 98% politically incorrect they are also undeniably laugh-out-loud funny. With more than 12 million copies sold it is the most popular and enduring series of joke books ever printed.

Until now, this legendary humor collection has been available only in paperback. Now, four decades after their original publication, Laugh.comoffers the entire Larry Wilde “Official” Joke Book series in downloadable e-book format — unedited, uncut, exactly as they appeared in their notorious first editions.

Avid collectors of these joke books include Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak who, as a college student, operated a Dial-A-Joke service using Wilde’s books as source material. Wozniak would later team with Wilde to co-author their best-selling “Official Computer Freaks’ Joke Book.” Famous humor columnist Art Buchwald relied on Wilde’s joke books for daily inspiration. Generations of comedians gleaned material from them. And legions of kids who used to sneak the books under their bedcovers to read by flashlight, still cherish their tattered paperbacks decades later.

While millions loved them, some did not. Critics of the books warned that they would lead to a total breakdown of society. Wilde and his publisher received hate mail and death threats. Lawsuits were filed to halt publication.

In Detroit protesters held a rally in a park and burned books while television cameras recorded this unprecedented event. The following week 28,000 copies were sold.

Larry Wilde has been a multi-faceted practitioner of comedy for more than 50 years. A longtime stand-up comedian appearing in top nightclubs and on television. He’s also a leading motivational humorist, the founder of National Humor Month, and Director of the Carmel Institute of Humor to promote humor as a tool for wellness, productivity and creativity.

Among his 53 bestselling books are two serious works: The Great Comedians Talk About Comedy, and How the Great Comedy Writers Create Laughter featuring interviews with 28 comedy luminaries discussing their craft, including Johnny Carson, Woody Allen, Jack Benny,

Jerry Seinfeld, Milton Berle, Bob Hope, Neil Simon and Mel Brooks. Both books are considered definitive works on the subject, and are perennial standards for students and lovers of comedy alike. The original interviews are archived in the Library of Congress and are available in CDs and downloads from Laugh.com.

Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, Wilde served in the U.S. Marine Corps, and graduated from the University of Miami, (Fla). He lives in Carmel, California with his wife, author Mary Poulos Wilde.