NEW YORK (AP) – Richard Zoglin's new book, "Comedy at the Edge: How Stand-up in the 1970s Changed America'', has been getting a warm reception.

At a recent book party in Zoglin's honour, veteran comedian Robert Klein told the guests that he planned to sue. He cracked that, having read what the book said about him, his next stop was "a Jacoby & Meyers at a Sears store in New Jersey''.

Actor-comedian Richard Belzer toasted Zoglin with a graphic description of the sexual abuse he said was part of Zoglin's interviewing style.

As for Jerry Seinfeld, he thanked Zoglin graciously for writing the book.

Coming from these guys, Zoglin must have gotten the message: mission accomplished.

And so it is. In "Comedy at the Edge" (Bloomsbury, 256 pages, $24.95), he identifies an era of pioneering stand-up that "helped create the world we live in," he writes, "and the way we look at it''. Then he vividly brings that era back to life with its characters, quantum leaps in creativity, and ample craziness.

He interviewed nearly every major living figure from those days. George Carlin, Steve Martin, Albert Brooks, Robin Williams, Jay Leno, Larry David and Billy Crystal are among his many witnesses. Into his narrative he weaves representative comedy bits, which by itself is a worthy feat of scholarship.

But Zoglin, who has covered entertainment for Time magazine for 20 years, is also able to tap into his own memories. He was there, haunting New York comedy clubs in the 1970s, when the revolution hit its peak.

By his reckoning, it began with Lenny Bruce in the early '60s, and concluded with "Seinfeld" – which, after all, was an enormously popular TV comedy about the offstage life of a stand-up comedian, played by a real-life stand-up comic with an eye for sundry details of his everyday existence.

No wonder Lenny Bruce was the supreme comedic catalyst: "He invented the idea of the stand-up comic baring himself on stage," says Zoglin – "not telling jokes, but talking about himself. He showed that stand-up comedy can be a form of self-expression."

Meanwhile, Bruce was establishing the idea of the comedian-as-rebel – questioning, if not outright disputing, everything in reach. Younger comedians rallied to his cause, even after his death in 1966.

"No one had ever written about stand-up comedians as a kind of movement," Zoglin said during a recent chat, explaining his book's origin. "No one takes stand-up comedians as seriously as moviemakers and rock stars. But I think they were just as important in the counterculture revolution of the '60s and '70s as the rebel filmmakers or musicians of that era."

He began the book confident in his theory, but uncertain how many of those pioneers would make themselves available.

What about pivotal figures who had long since moved beyond their stand-up period, like Martin, Williams and actor-filmmaker Albert Brooks (now barely known for his brief stand-up phase, yet considered by Zoglin to have been among the best)? Would they pooh-pooh their early efforts?

"On the contrary," says Zoglin. "They were really eager to talk about it. They felt they made a real contribution and were happy to see it recognised."

Even the interview-averse David Letterman sat down with him, explaining, "It was an era that I'm very proud of and meant a lot to me."

TV, of course, played an important role in promoting the new age of stand-up. In particular, Johnny Carson's "Tonight Show" introduced a number of unique comic voices, among them Carlin, Klein, Brooks and Martin.

At the same time, Carson served as a redefining force with his nightly monologues, Zoglin says.

"He wasn't just a guy telling jokes, but a guy making jokes about telling jokes, especially when one of his jokes didn't work: 'Hey, look at me up here on stage, bombing'. Carson was constantly bringing you into the act while making fun of himself. He invented the stand-up comedian as a character, playing himself as a character on TV.

"That had a huge effect on younger comedians."

Then along came Letterman, who went a step further: "He did a talk show that made fun of talk shows."

But television also played a key role in undermining stand-up as an art form. Comedians like Gabe Kaplan and Freddie Prinze ditched stand-up for sitcoms in the '70s and became TV stars. Then, with his sitcom smash in 1984, Bill Cosby changed the business forever.

"It made comedians decide that stand-up wasn't an end in itself anymore, just the road to sitcom stardom," says Zoglin. "It devalued stand-up.

"You like to think that any art form can constantly renew itself," he adds hopefully – but he isn't holding his breath.

Even Seinfeld, who remains committed to stand-up even after his stupendous TV success, is a mainstream entertainer and has never suggested otherwise.

You'll have to read how, in the era he brought to a close, stand-up comedy was seized by the rebels and took a bold new stand.