If You Don't Buy This Book, We'll Kill This Dog!: Life, Laughs, Love, and Death at the National Lampoon

This chatty, anecdotal account of the rise and demise of the humor magazine National Lampoon also serves as a reminder that, even in its most freewheeling, iconoclastic forms, the entertainment business is just that--a business. As the founding publisher of the Lampoon , Simmons has worked with many of the great humorists of our time, and his colorful stories about P. J. O'Rourke and John Belushi--to name only two--make amusing reading. But money remains one of the chief concerns of Simmons's memoir. While he is proud of the magazine's funniest moments, the talents it nursed and the successful projects it spawned--the hit movies Animal House and National Lampoon's Vacation , among others--he also makes it plain that success in the publishing and film industries is dependent partly on the ability to wheel and deal. Bad or unlucky financial planning brought the company repeatedly to the brink of bankruptcy, and the latter part of Simmons's book is mired in accounts of endless power struggles, takeover bids and financial concerns. But as a cautionary tale on surviving the vicissitudes of the entertainment biz, the book is instructive. Photos not seen by PW. (Apr.)