June 28, 1999
Television actor Belzer (he played Detective John Munch on Homicide) began his career as a comedian, working in the same dark political vein as Mort Sahl and Dick Gregory. He brings this skeptic's tone to his discussion of the questions raised by popular American conspiracy theories: Who really killed President Kennedy?, Do UFOs exist? and the ilk. Reading, he comes across as a friendly guy with a healthy anti-authority streak. He poses himself as a people's advocate, at one with all the loonies who believe the U.S. government is involved in cover-up upon cover-up. Much of the program is devoted to attacking the facts of the Kennedy assassination. He makes light of all the loose ends and contradictions (to the occasional sound effect of a whizzing bullet). Later, he discusses whether the Apollo space program was a sham, then delves into the even more far-fetched topic of sex with aliens (he calls it "intergalactic buggery"). Here, he finally sheds his high-handed tone and allows himself to become downright giddy in his conjectures. Based on the 1999 Ballantine hardcover.
May 3, 1999
First Mort Sahl, now Richard Belzer. Every now and then a political comedian finds himself obsessed with the murder of John F. Kennedy--and sacrifices the funny in the process. Though this book is categorized as humor, it offers sarcasm but few laughs. And why should it? Belzer, now best known as Detective Munch on TV's Homicide, is serious here. Obsessed with conspiracies, he apparently read a bunch of books (many from fringe publishers) on the subject and decided to share the fruit of his musings. Most concern the assassination, and, indeed, many aspects remain in dispute. But when he declares Gerald Posner's Case Closed "a grossly overstuffed suitcase," Belzer doesn't inspire confidence, and he doesn't offer footnotes so readers can check his sources. The second half of the book relies significantly on conspiracy expert Jim Marrs, author of Alien Agenda. Belzer relates that many people who've consented to alien experimentation have told Marrs they don't consider it a violation. No wonder Belzer says, "I believe that history--past and current--is just a collection of accepted lies." He wrote this book, he claims, to inspire us to question authority. Mr. Belzer, tell jokes. Author tour.
May 1, 1999
Best known for his role as Detective Munch in the TV police drama Homicide, Belzer was originally a stand-up comic. Here he confronts the two biggest conspiracy theories of our time, JFK's assassination and UFOs. Elvis is mentioned only in the context of George Bush's response when asked if there might have been a conspiracy involved in the JFK assassination: "There are some people who still think Elvis is alive." With a deft and entertaining combination of satire and in-your-face facts, Belzer challenges his audience to accept the extent of alleged government cover-ups. The first half of the book on JFK is more interesting than the second half on UFOs, but seasoned conspiracy theorists will find no new revelations in either case. Belzer tries to goad casual skeptics into becoming more passionate about their doubts over "official" explanations such as the Warren Report. Even the veracity of NASA's lunar landings are once again called into question. The bibliography is a welcome and useful addition. Popular fare for public libraries.--Joe J. Accardi, Northeastern Illinois Univ. Lib., Chicago
Copyright 1999 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
May 15, 1999
Belzer, best known for his role as Detective Munch on TV's "Homicide," delivers a witty rant in which he proclaims that all the conspiracy theories you've ever heard about the Kennedy assassination are true (even, apparently, the ones that contradict each other) and that UFOs and their occupants are pretty much everywhere. Belzer began his career as a comedian, so it's easy to assume he's just putting the reader on with some of his "over the top" theories (the Nazis were behind the plot to kill Kennedy; "Men in Black" were seen hanging around with Thomas Jefferson), but no, his paranoid perspective seems entirely genuine, if comically expressed. Like his less-waggish fellow conspiracy buffs, he simply wants Americans to know what their government--the shadowy "they" behind most everything--is up to. Only Gerald Posner's book, "Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK" (1993), gets any kind of refutation; otherwise, Belzer just throws a lot of stuff against the wall. The scary part is that some of it sticks. ((Reviewed May 15, 1999))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1999, American Library Association.)