Bob Hope's comedy history of the United States Hope, Bob creator Shavelson, Melville text New York, NY Putnam 1990 monographic eng 315 p. black and white portraits 23 cm Don't Shoot, It's Only Me is Bob's story of being there with the jokes at every vital point during the last half-century of America's history. The world is his vaudeville circuit and no one has been safe from his barbs, from presidents to dictators. He has counted among his friends almost everyone worth knowing, from Rita Hayworth to Brooke Shields, from Franklin Roosevelt to George Bush. He risked his career during the McCarthy era with lines like: "Joe McCarthy just got the names of two million more Communists. Someone gave him a copy of the Moscow telephone directory". It's all here, the fun, the laughs, the heartache, the danger, reflected in the longest continuous career at the top of show business since Methuselah was doing two a day: "I've known most of the great personalities of our time, met thousands of men and women in uniform and had as guests on my shows some of the most beautiful women in the world. If I had my life to live over again, I wouldn't have the strength. But I'd like to try." Bob Hope with Melville Shavelson D., 2/04 Hope, Bob United States--Armed Forces--Recreation Entertainers--United States--Biography Comedians--United States--Biography 0-399-13518-9 040225 20250701155444.0