The Cowboy Wally Show by Kyle Baker was an instant classic when it was printed in 1988. It then fell out of print for a the better part of a decade before re-appearing for those of us who missed it the first time around. The book features broad humor starring a fat comedian and is utterly hilarious. Unfortunately it has fallen out of print again, but you should track it down and get ready to laugh.

Interviewer: Not bad for someone Dick Cavett once described as “the stupidest man on the face of this planet.”
Cowboy Wally: Stupid? I don’t know the meaning of the word.

The basic concept of the novel is Cowboy Wally has an interviewer over to go over his life and career. In the process we see the fat, stupid comedian in all his glory and shame. From his humble beginnings, blackmailing his way onto TV, through his glorious peak, hanging on the talent of a better writer and actor, through the present day, on a TV show so popular that no advertisers could afford to advertise on it, we see Cowboy Wally insulting, bullying and being stupid through his life.

Cowboy Wally: Our next guest is a man who catches bullets in his mouth.
BLAM!
Cowboy Wally: Oh, I’m sorry. That’s tomorrow night.

I could spend paragraphs explaining the plot, but that doesn’t do the book justice. The book is full of comedic situations and one-liners that just leave you gasping for air. It’s one of the funniest (in a non-political way) books you will read and deserves much more praise and following that it received. It’s a hidden treasure in the comic book world and should be much more widely read. The writer/artist Kyle Baker is someone who’s career I have followed for years now. Almost everything he writes is worth reading. Highly recommended.