Exclusive: Truly Tasteless Jokes, a series of slim paperbacks that became a publishing juggernaut in the 1980s, is the subject of a new documentary feature just acquired by Virgil Films.
Tasteless, directed by Jeff Cerulli and Matt Ritter, traces the history of not only the books themselves but the way the material — much of it crude and controversial — has aged over the decades. The author of the books, Ashton Applewhite (who used the pen name Blanche Knott), later became a feminist and activist. She conceived of the original volume while making $8,500 a year as an entry-level employee in book publishing.
In a 2011 reminiscence she wrote for Harper’s magazine, titled “Being Blanche,” Applewhite reprised many of the jokes that filled the books, the first of which was the best-selling mass-market title of 1983. The punchlines started fairly PG-rated — “What’s the difference between garbage and a girl from New Jersey? Garbage...
Tasteless, directed by Jeff Cerulli and Matt Ritter, traces the history of not only the books themselves but the way the material — much of it crude and controversial — has aged over the decades. The author of the books, Ashton Applewhite (who used the pen name Blanche Knott), later became a feminist and activist. She conceived of the original volume while making $8,500 a year as an entry-level employee in book publishing.
In a 2011 reminiscence she wrote for Harper’s magazine, titled “Being Blanche,” Applewhite reprised many of the jokes that filled the books, the first of which was the best-selling mass-market title of 1983. The punchlines started fairly PG-rated — “What’s the difference between garbage and a girl from New Jersey? Garbage...
- 7/8/2019
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.