Back in the golden age of humour books (late 1920s-early 1950s), when wits of the pantheon like Robert Benchley, James Thurber and S.J. Perelman were producing their signature works, there was another singular satirist who more than held his own with such fast company. Named Will Cuppy (1884-1949), this factual funnyman’s metier is dark comedy that flirts with nihilism. His agenda is baldly stated in such classic Cuppy book titles as How to Be a Hermit (1929), How to Tell Your Friends from the Apes (1931), and The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody (1950). This biography doubles as a critical study of a satirist whose shish-kebabing of humanity was often done through the veiled anthropomorphic use of animals.

Whether Will Cuppy directly derails man or lesser creatures on the evolutionary chain, there is always a generous helping of dark comedy. For a biographer, the man represents a treasure trove of possibilities. Cuppy is a great humourist, with most of his best work still in print, yet he has yet to be profiled in a book-length study. The interest factor of a mesmerisingly complex and eccentric private life can actually trump the accomplishments of a high achieving public persona.