Saul Austerlitz

Part-time Faculty
swa204@nyu.edu
431 - 1 Wash Pl

Office Hours
Monday 3:30-4:30

B.A., Film Studies, Yale University, 2001
M.A., Cinema Studies, New York University, 2003

Saul Austerlitz teaches a course in writing about comedy. He is the author of three books: Sitcom: A History in 24 Episodes from I Love Lucy to Community (Chicago Review, 2014), Another Fine Mess: A History of American Film Comedy (Chicago Review, 2010), and Money for Nothing: A History of the Music Video from the Beatles to the White Stripes (Continuum, 2007). His work has appeared in The New York Times, New York Times Magazine, Slate, The New Republic, the Los Angeles Times, and other publications. He is at work on a new book about the story of the ill-fated Altamont concert of 1969.

Books

2023

Kind of a Big Deal: How Anchorman Stayed Classy and Became the Most Iconic Comedy of the Twenty-First Century

Saul Austerlitz's Kind of a Big Deal: How Anchorman Stayed Classy and Became the Most Iconic Comedy of the Twenty-First Century was published by Dutton.

2019

Generation Friends: An Inside Look at the Show That Defined a Television Era

Saul Austerlitz's Generation Friends: An Inside Look at the Show that Defined a Television Era was published by Dutton.

2018

Just a Shot Away

Saul Austerlitz's Just a Shot Away: Peace, Love, and Tragedy With the Rolling Stones at Altamont has been released by Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s. The New York Times Book Review called the book “revelatory” and “the most blisteringly impassioned music book of the season.” In July, Amazon listed Just A Shot Away as one of the Best Books of the Month: Nonfiction.

2014

Sitcom: A History in 24 Episodes from I Love Lucy to Community

Saul Austerlitz's Sitcom: A History in 24 Episodes from I Love Lucy to Community was published by Chicago Review Press.

2010

Another Fine Mess: A History of American Film Comedy

Saul Austerlitz's Another Fine Mess: A History of American Film Comedy was published by Chicago Review Press.