Publishers Weekly
08/08/2022
The life of Shari Lewis (1933–1998), a pioneering puppeteer and creator of Lamb Chop, gets a perhaps too loving ovation from historian Segaloff (Arthur Penn: American Director) and Lewis’s daughter Mallory. The book is less a straightforward biography and more a collection of fond reminiscences, accomplishments, and behind-the-scenes anecdotes. Born Phyllis Naomi Hurwitz, Lewis was encouraged by her parents to pursue a career in show business (it didn’t hurt that her father was the “Official Magician of New York City”). She changed her first name in her teens, and her last name later on to avoid antisemitism in the business. Her TV career included The Shari Lewis Show from 1960 to 1963 and Lamb Chop’s Play-Along from 1992 to 1997. The Lamb Chop character is the cornerstone of Lewis’s legacy, though she also wrote dozens of children’s books and toured with musicals. The pastiche of vignettes, unfortunately, tends to be repetitive and prone to gaps; the authors’ claims, for instance, that Lewis created children’s “edutainment” aren’t significantly explored. While readers will get a peek at the personality behind the puppet—Lewis liked to shock people by ordering lamb at restaurants—there’s more admiration than analysis on offer. This one’s for fans only. Photos. (Oct.)
Gary K. Wolf
Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop cofounded Toontown. Without Shari—her incredible imagination, and her wonderful sock puppet sidekick Lamb Chop—Roger Rabbit, Jessica Rabbit, and the other denizens of Toontown simply would not exist. I owe Shari Lewis a lot. She did something for me that no adult had ever done before; she sparked my imagination. She showed me a world in which the fantastical could be true. A world where humor can be clever and literate. A gentle world of equal opportunity for all. She showed me the door to Toontown, and I went through. I'm glad Shari Lewis is finally getting the biography she so richly deserves. Without Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop, the world would be a much drearier place.
Katharine Ross
Shari was a true pioneer in a field dominated by men. Her story illustrates how important family is in helping to empower us and give us strength to be and to do. What a wonderful homage!
Michael Scott
Growing up watching Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop, never, for a single moment, did we doubt that Lamb Chop was real. That's how good they both were! Subversive and cheeky, educational, and just plain fun, they respected the audience and in return, we loved them. This is not only a biography of a master ventriloquist and her indomitable puppet but also a compelling and often funny biography of a woman who took control of her life, her career, and her legacy.
Betty Aberlin
"In the early days of television, before the era of public relations and branding, Shari Lewis, renaissance workaholic, by force of will and velocity of talent, made a home for moxie, wit and tenderness in many a human heart. This book is her daughter's love-gift and a parable of sacrifice."
Fred Rogers
What wonderful gifts [Lewis] gave to generations of children.”
television pioneer Sonny Fox
I had enormous respect for what she did. The energy that radiated from her was absolutely nonstop,”
Library Journal
10/01/2022
Celebrated ventriloquist Shari Lewis (1933–98) was ubiquitous on kids' TV programming for generations. Now her daughter Mallory, a ventriloquist, puppeteer, and prolific children's author (Stop That Orangutan!) has teamed with Shari Lewis & Lamb Chop producer Segaloff (also a biographer of filmmaker Arthur Penn) to recount her career and explore the history of women in television. Shari Lewis, born Phyllis Hurwitz, came from a Jewish American family steeped in the entertainment world. She first took the stage as a toddler and came to ventriloquism early, unusual for a young girl at that time. This book suggests that her singular focus on her show-business career shaped her marriages, her approach to motherhood, and her daily life. Readers are also treated to Mallory's discussion of her own life as Lewis's only child. Her life's convergences and divergences with her mother's reveal the differences in entertainment and Jewish life between the mid-20th century and now. VERDICT Anyone who loved Lamp Chop as a child (or an adult) will likely enjoy this biography of Lewis. It may be also of interest to readers of the history of Jewish entertainment and early television.—Margaret Heller
