Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life is a memoir, released November 20, 2007,[1] by Steve Martin, an American author,[1] actor,[2] comedian, producer,[2] playwright,[3] musician, and screenwriter.

[2] It chronicles his early life, his days working for Disneyland, working at low tier coffee shops and clubs as a comedy act, his later days at the Bird Cage,[clarification needed] his relationships, his eventual fame, and the reason why he quit stand-up comedy altogether at the height of his fame in 1981.

The book examines Martin's childhood, and his first jobs at the Southern California theme parks Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm.

In that year, Martin retired from stand-up comedy, feeling that he had achieved as much as he could with it, that his routine had become bloated and old, and that he would rather pursue his burgeoning film career.

Through Martin's spare explanations, the reader comes to understand his love for magic, his early gags like the "Happy Feet", and his trademark three-piece white suit.