Alan Zweibel

On his early life and influences; on discovering he was funny as a kid, and on writing funny songs a la Allan Sherman; on the influence of The Dick Van Dyke Show, and on his friendship with Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks

On deciding he wanted to be a television writer, and on the influence of That Was the Week that Was; on his college experience, and on sending jokes in to various talk shows; on learning to write jokes by watching shows like The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and The Dick Cavett Show

On early on writing jokes for Borsch Belt comedians; on writing jokes for Rodney Dangerfield; on his stand-up act alongside Richard Lewis

On Larry David's early stand-up act, and on his comedy mentors like Garry Shandling; on meeting Lorne Michaels and being hired to write for Saturday Night Live; on being offered a job to write for Paul Lynde on The Hollywood Squares

On jokes he wrote for Lorne Michaels to audition to be a writer on Saturday Night Live; on his experience with NBC's then-vice president of late night, Dick Ebersol, early in his tenure at Saturday Night Live; on the initial cast and writing staff of the show, and on working with writer Herbert Sargent

On meeting Gilda Radner on Saturday Night Live, and on his working relationship with her; on writing the character "Roseanne Roseannadanna" with Gilda Radner for Saturday Night Live, and on their writing process

On the first episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by George Carlin, and on how Lorne Michaels handled it; on Billy Crystal being cut from the first episode of Saturday Night Live; on the live aspect of the show

On the individual early Saturday Night Live writers, including Michael O'Donoghue, Anne Beatts, Marilyn Suzanne Miller, and Al Franken and Tom Davis; on Chevy Chase being the first breakout star of Saturday Night Live; on a typical production week in the early years of the show

On the disastrous, primetime Saturday Night Live "Live from Mardi Gras" special; on the early Saturday Night Live cast, including Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, and Garrett Morris; on the lack of improvisation by the actors on the show

On the early explosion in the popularity of Saturday Night Live, and on the show winning Emmy Awards; on the impact on Saturday Night Live when Chevy Chase left after the first season, and on John Belushi becoming a breakout star; on pieces he wrote for the show that were cut before air

On Saturday Night Live guest-host Milton Berle confirming a big rumor for him; on George Harrison appearing as musical guest the week Paul Simon hosted Saturday Night Live; on co-writing Gilda Radner's "Gilda Live" Broadway show and movie with her

On the fifth season of Saturday Night Live, and on Lorne Michaels announcing he was leaving the show; on being asked to return to Saturday Night Live when Dick Ebersol took over as producer, and on returning to write for the Jesse Jackson episode; on how the culture at the show evolved over time

On writing for the Lorne Michaels produced The New Show; on writing Lorne Michaels-produced pilot Big Shots in America and Steve Martin's Best Show Ever, and various other specials

On how he came to write for It's Garry Shandling's Show; on co-creating with Garry Shandling the meta world of It's Garry Shandling's Show; on the It's Garry Shandling's Show episode "The Graduate," and on the writers of the show

On Gilda Radner's cancer, and on her guest-starring on It's Garry Shandling's Show; on the death of Gilda Radner; on writing the book "Bunny, Bunny" about his personal and professional relationship with Gilda Radner

On being the showrunner for It's Garry Shandling's Show, and on his working relationship with Garry Shandling; on It's Garry Shandling's Show moving to Fox, and how the show had to be altered; on the end of It's Garry Shandling's Show, and on the death of Garry Shandling

On suggesting Jeffrey Tambor for The Larry Sanders Show; on his writing process; on writing things for hire and writing things for himself

On the process of pitching a project; on what he likes about collaborating with other writers

On winning his life achievement award from the Writers Guild; on his work ethic and planned longevity

On his mentors and on being a mentor; on how the industry has changed since he started

On advice to an aspiring television writer; on how he would like to be remembered

On working in studio 8H for Saturday Night Live; on learning about production during his time on Saturday Night Live, and on the logistics of production on the show

On working with Saturday Night Live director Dave Wilson; on Buck Henry being injured during one of John Belushi's "Samurai" sketches on Saturday Night Live; on what makes Lorne Michaels a strong and capable producer of Saturday Night Live

On Garry Shandling breaking the fourth wall on It's Garry Shandling's Show, and on the episode "The Graduate"; on how he and Garry Shandling worked with the writing staff of It's Garry Shandling's Show; on the composition of the writing staff on It's Garry Shandling's Show

On political correctness in comedy; on the legacy of It's Garry Shandling's Show, and on the importance of story in a comedy; on the legacy of Garry Shandling

On meeting Larry David, and writing for Curb Your Enthusiasm; on the process of writing and producing an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm with Larry David; on how the real-life Larry David differs from the Curb Your Enthusiasm character "Larry David"

On favorite episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm; on inspiring Larry David to write "The Pez Dispenser" episode of Seinfeld; on working with Billy Crystal on his one man play "700 Sundays"

On working on Billy Crystal's one-man show "700 Sundays"; on how his writing process varies for different media; on writing the feature film "Dragnet" for Dan Aykroyd

On writing the infamous feature film "North" directed by Rob Reiner; on his experience appearing on and writing for Late Show with David Letterman; on what he likes about being a writer

START OF ZOOM INTERVIEW DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: On Alan's latest book, Laugh Lines: My Life Helping Funny People be Funnier, and the challenges of promoting a book during the pandemic; on the recent death of his mother and trying to find the funny in it all

On his new Friday ritual - a Zoom cocktail party with Rob Reiner, Billy Crystal, Barry Levinson, Albert Brooks, and Martin Short and their wives (they select a movie to view and discuss at these virtual parties)

On how he has been coping with the daily challenges of the pandemic; on how the pandemic has affected his work; on how humor can help people cope, as it did during the Holocaust; on his thoughts on the new Saturday Night Live At Home episodes; on how it's difficult for performers to navigate this "new normal"; on the loss of his mother and how the memorial services have changed for grieving families; on how he believes there will be a greater appreciation for human connectivity because of the pandemic stay-at-home rituals; on how he navigated a "Zoom kaddish" for his late mother; on the disconnect happening now and his hope that something positive may still result from the current situation

On how Lorne Michaels hired him to be on the original writing staff of Saturday Night Live on his birthday in 1975; on how he wants to celebrate his upcoming 70th birthday this year; on what he is grateful for