An Improvised Life

Alan Arkin

When he was 5 years old, Alan Arkin knew what he wanted to do with his life.He did it. Acting was his whole life. In fact, it was such a focus in his life that he didn't realize until he was in his early 30's that he had no real life outside of his career. Who was this man, Alan Arkin?

In An Improvised Life, Arkin looks at acting, especially his career, and sees how it shows and develops life. He describes the beginning of his career, and how he fell into the jobs that ended up furthering his own ability as an actor. Although there are many references to his work and accomplishments, this book isn't about them after he was established. It's about his craft and how he approached it throughout his life. This isn't a "look at me" type of biography. Nor is it a confession of his failures, although those in his personal life are referenced.

Instead, this is more about what Arkin has learned in his life and how it has affected him. From there, he takes the extra steps of how the things he has learned can be applied to anyone examining his or her life. Near the end he writes,

"'It's all psychodrama!" If you're not living your life with that in mind, you're coasting through. Trying to sneak by. But as they say, 'The unexamined life is not worth living.' If you want to sail through this existance having fun devoid on consequence, go watch TV. Your life with catch up with you sooner or later, whether you like it or not."

An Improvised Life is a small book, quickly and easily read. Arkin keeps his prose simple. I didn't know he was part of the original Second City group that made the United States take notice of the troupe. That improvisional work held through the rest of his life. He finds that staged, written shows are harder for him because he uses unpredictability to keep him fresh on stage. Movies are a bit different because once one is done, it's done. He doesn't have to repeat the same role, movements, and words night after night without change.

Don't look for celebrity gossip in An Improvised Life. Instead, Arkin tells the lessons he learned in his life and how he is now able to help others look at their own lives. He talks about revelations he has had over the years and how they affected him. Alan Arkin sounds like a person I wouldn't have wanted to know for the first half of his life. But now, I wouldn't mind ending up in one of his improvisational workshops.