Shelley Berman on writing for Steve Allen's Tonight show; on his first appearance on the show and realizing he was a comedian
Shelley Berman on when he realized he had become a comedian through his work at the Compass Players (which later became Second City)
Shelley Berman on becoming a recognized performer and how it affected his performance as a comedian
01:29
Shelley Berman on doing stand-up comedy at the various clubs in New York, San Francisco, and Chicago in the 1950s
Shelley Berman on coming up with new material for his 22 Ed Sullivan performances; on not worrying about censors
06:21
Shelley Berman on playing both comedic and dramatic characters on TV
01:10
Shelley Berman on his advice to an aspiring performer
00:47
Shelley Berman on the type of performer he is, and on developing his early nightclub act
07:39
Shelley Berman on stand-up comedians using a stool, and various other props of the trade, and on the challenges faced by a stand-up comedian
08:00
Shelley Berman on the comedian Jim MacGeorge, and on his own poetry
04:33
Shelley Berman on the source of comedy in a script or situation, and on "teaching" comedy
04:16
Shelley Berman on the construct of comedy, and the difficulty in pinpointing what is funny or why people laugh
03:03
Shelley Berman on the importance in comedy of the audience relating to the comedian, and on the evolution of comedy in terms of explicit language
07:07
Shelley Berman on the importance of comedy in his life, and American life in general
05:07
Shelley Berman on his reputation for being difficult, and on the ups and downs of his life and career, including the loss of his son
23:16
Lewis Black on his early interest in drama, and on becoming a comedian
05:45
Lewis Black on doing open mic nights at Catch a Rising Star in New York City
03:11
Lewis Black on working out his stand-up routine in front of audiences
03:47
Lewis Black on developing his comic persona
05:41
Lewis Black on the source of the anger in his comedy, and learning how to use the anger
07:53
Lewis Black on audience reaction to the evolution of his angry character
01:52
Lewis Black on doing political humor
06:26
Lewis Black on judging how far he can go with audiences
04:03
Lewis Black on whether comedy can be taught
05:54
Lewis Black on dealing with the business end of show business as a comedian
07:21
Lewis Black on longevity in a comedian's career
02:59
Eddie Brill on learning comedy
03:34
Eddie Brill on developing a comedic voice
02:20
Eddie Brill on comedians using blue material
02:34
Eddie Brill on learning from older comedians
01:40
Eddie Brill on comedians being born or made
01:16
Eddie Brill on dealing with the business end of show business
01:57
Eddie Brill on the comedian's relationship to their audience
04:37
Eddie Brill on auditioning, and on working with Aretha Franklin
09:13
Eddie Brill on writing jokes, and on the power of laughter
03:12
Eddie Brill on what he gets out of being a comedian
01:37
George Carlin on getting fired from the Copacabana and being relieved to finally leave mainstream comedy
06:31
George Carlin on the origin of his famous routine "Seven Dirty Words"
04:09
George Carlin on the evolution of his comedy
05:27
George Carlin on getting to write about the "freak show"
02:08
George Carlin on defining himself and his role as an entertainer and a comedian
02:59
George Carlin on his creative process
03:22
George Carlin on why he never gets tired of performing his routines
03:03
George Carlin on advice he gives young comedians: write it down and classify everything
01:28
George Carlin on advice he gives young comedians: write it down and classify everything
01:28
Margaret Cho on what she enjoys about comedy and why performing in front of an audience feels safe
01:12
Margaret Cho on what she learns from bombing on stage
00:57
Margaret Cho on how her act developed
01:19
Margaret Cho on her first comedy show/special after All-American Girl, I'm The One That I Want, and how comedy helped her at that time
02:24
Margaret Cho on the craft of comedy and her writing process
01:57
Margaret Cho on her comedic influences
02:02
Margaret Cho on her comedic influences
02:02
Margaret Cho on getting to work with her mentors
01:01
Margaret Cho on advice from other comedians that she's taken to heart
01:13
Margaret Cho on balancing serious topics and humor in her comedy; on cancel culture and on whether she's ever felt restricted in her comedy
05:43
Margaret Cho on the role of comedy in today's political climate
02:08
Margaret Cho on being a role model for Asian American female comedians
00:41
Margaret Cho on advice to an aspiring comedian
00:30
Margaret Cho on what she wishes she had known when she first started her career
00:18
Margaret Cho on advice for young women entering the industry
00:31
Bill Dana on advice to aspiring writers and comedians
01:14
Bill Dana on founding the American Comedy Archives at Emerson College and on the challenges of being a comedian
03:06
Bill Dana on the importance of having a good agent
02:38
Bill Dana on the difficulties comedians face
02:39
Bill Dana on comedy being a difficult job, and on the most important quality of a comic
02:27
Bill Dana on comedians using situations and constraints to their advantage, and on the impatience of audiences
04:39
Bill Dana on learning to use humor as a weapon to disarm
01:33
Bill Dana on when he first learned he could make people laugh, and on attending Emerson College
03:31
Bill Dana on his early comedic influences
05:24
Bill Dana on what he's learned about the business side of the entertainment/comedy industry
03:13
Bill Dana on comedians stealing each other's material
02:22
Bill Dana on the source of his comedy, and his characters, and on Jonathan Harris as "Mr. Phillips" on The Bill Dana Show
02:26
Bill Dana on his answer to the question "What is funny?"
01:40
Bill Dana on the need for a performer to pay their dues
01:42
Bill Dana on his answer to the question "Was it worth it?"
01:28
Bill Dana on ethnic humor, and on the importance of good representation
04:22
Shecky Greene on why he started in comedy, and on his earliest gigs
05:36
Shecky Greene on the relationship between laughter and depression
03:26
Shecky Greene on developing his comedy act, characters in comedy, and his role in creating the Comedy Store
04:36
Shecky Greene on doing dialects in his act, and on working for the mob
02:03
Shecky Greene on what he has gotten out of his comedy career
02:23
Shecky Greene on his comedic persona, and on appearing on Today with Katie Couric
06:46
Shecky Greene on surviving in comedy
02:34
Shecky Greene on the then-current state of comedy, and on Jewish comedy and the joys of performing
04:29
Shecky Greene on summing up his career
03:08
Dick Gregory on what comedy can do and cannot do for society
03:52
Dick Gregory on what he wanted to accomplish with this stand-up comedy, and on his early experiences with nightclubs
04:47
Dick Gregory on coming up with material for his act
07:13
Dick Gregory on defining what a comedian is
01:47
Dick Gregory on using his life experiences as fodder for his act
09:45
Dick Gregory on advice to aspiring comedians, and on profanity in comedy
05:23
Dick Gregory on comedians developing a technique
08:29
Dick Gregory on the role of the comic in society
07:31
Rose Marie on comedy
01:40
Rose Marie on whether comedy can be learned
04:15
Rose Marie on dealing with the business part of show business
02:20
Rose Marie on what she learned from the great performers, including Milton Berle and Phil Silvers
03:56
Rose Marie on how she knows what's funny
02:13
Carlos Mencia on making a connection with his audience as a comedian, and the commonalities between people of different backgrounds
04:09
Carlos Mencia on the risks and rewards of doing edgy or racial humor
04:43
Carlos Mencia on aiming to inspire people, as well as make them laugh, though his comedy
03:00
Carlos Mencia on how comedy can heal divides, and solve problems in society
03:45
Carlos Mencia on his reaction to the notion of political correctness in comedy, and in life
10:13
Carlos Mencia on using "blue" material in his act, and how the choice of words can affect comedy
02:01
Carlos Mencia on comedians tailoring their acts to their environments
03:00
Carlos Mencia on being responsible to his community in his comedy
01:45
Carlos Mencia on having been accused of stealing jokes from other comedians
08:03
Carlos Mencia on advice to aspiring comedians
04:08
Pat Morita on getting his foot in the door as a comedian, and on knowing Flip Wilson in the early years
02:59
Pat Morita on tailoring his stand up act for television, and on using his Japanese heritage in his act
07:13
Pat Morita on starting to make the transition from comedian to actor
03:23
Jan Murray on how he came up with material for stand-up comedy routines
02:48
Jan Murray on how he came up with material for stand-up comedy routines
02:48
Jan Murray on comedians from different generations, recognizing the great comedians of each one, and the greatness and faults of comedians from the then-current generation
02:07
Jan Murray on becoming the host of Blind Date and on being the first comedian to host a live game show
04:40
Jan Murray on using isolated stories at the start of his routine to get the audience used to his persona
03:56
Jan Murray on learning to adapt his material to the audience when performing in Israel
03:11
Jan Murray on being a naturally funny kid and getting into comedy as a result
01:32
Jan Murray on entertaining in the Cavaliers Social Club early in his career
02:24
Jan Murray on getting his gig working in the Catskill Mountains
04:07
Jan Murray on getting his gig at the Melbourne Hotel and deciding to pursue show business
02:10
Jan Murray on performing for benefits and how it impacts a comedian's business
02:38
Jan Murray on providing feedback to Shelley Winters and adapting a routine they did together
04:24
Jan Murray on performing comedy as medicine
00:19
Louis Nye on his process for learning dialects
03:28
Louis Nye on the Pagliacci syndrome and the prevalence of depression among comedians
01:42
Louis Nye on what drew him to comedy
01:22
Louis Nye on the value of humor
01:11
Louis Nye on bringing back Old Vaudeville in his characters
02:59
Louis Nye on his characters potentially being offensive and on working with Jack Benny, Bop Hope, and Jimmy Durante
02:59
Louis Nye on tools he learned for getting laughs
01:13
Louis Nye on the business of comedy
02:59
Louis Nye on his work in nightclubs and on Broadway
02:34
Louis Nye on how comedy has changed since he started his career
04:02
Louis Nye on advice to students about a career in comedy and on sacrifices he made to be in the business
05:31
Louis Nye on what drove him to be a comedian and on his career longevity
02:01
Louis Nye on people expecting him to be in character
00:34
Louis Nye on originality in comedy
01:23
Louis Nye on whether it was all worth it
02:17
Tim Reid on meeting and becoming comedy partners with Tom Dreesen
04:09
Tim Reid on developing a stand-up comedy act with Tom Dreesen; on honing their act
02:54
Tim Reid on addressing race head-on in his stand-up comedy act with Tom Dreesen
06:23
Tim Reid on the end of his partnership with Tom Dreesen
01:27
Tim Reid on comedians today that push boundaries and the power of comedy and storytelling
08:20
Tim Reid on learning a valuable lesson from Jack Benny about performing
03:15
Tim Reid on learning from those who came before and passing on advice to others
03:49
Paul Rodriguez on developing his early stand-up routine, and on being Richard Pryor's runner
05:02
Paul Rodriguez on being inspired by Richard Pryor to use his Mexican heritage and identity in his act, and on the language he uses in his act
05:32
Paul Rodriguez on the importance of comedians taking chances, and on basing his comedy routines around his life
06:57
Paul Rodriguez on dealing with agents and managers in his career, and on longevity in his career
06:04
Robert Smigel on the "modern" type of "so bad it's good" comedy he was interested in early in his career; catching the comedy bug after performing and winning a comedy standup contest at NYU; "I was stung, I was infected"; on getting to perform at The Comic Strip in New York city; on his closing bit as Ronald Reagan (foreshadowing a later TV Funhouse sketch "The X Presidents"); on getting more gigs after that; on being a fan of comedy that "tore everything down and made fun of itself"
14:35
Robert Smigel on wanting to be a comedian since he was three years old
01:34
Robert Smigel on joining a sketch comedy program (The Players Workshop) at Second City in Chicago; on his love of Chicago and how the experience at Second City helped build his confidence as a comedian; on gravitating towards sketch comedy over improv; learning how to develop writing sketch comedy from the players at Second City like Dan Castellaneta; on his early sketch comedy ideas; on meeting Dan Crowley in Chicago and joining his comedy group (All You Can Eat) as his replacement; on Al Franken and Tom Davis, original writers from Saturday Night Live, coming to Chicago to see a show Smigel had created, "All You Can Eat and the Temple of Doom"
18:58
Robert Smigel on whether there is a disconnect between himself and his character "Triumph the Insult Comic Dog" and how his identity merged with "Triumph’s" character; on his feeling "Triumph" has more irony and absurdity than an insult comic, which makes "Triumph" less biting or mean
03:29
Keenen Ivory Wayans on finding out about the Improv in New York and changing his life to move back to the city and become a standup; how it changed his approach to comedy
03:09
Keenen Ivory Wayans on the advice his mentor Chris Albrecht gave him about comedy; make it specific
01:46
Keenen Ivory Wayans on the "comedian's code" during his time at The Improv in New York; about stealing jokes
01:48
Keenen Ivory Wayans on his stand-up act then and now
08:03
Larry Wilmore on doing his early stand-up comedy routines and on doing improv
04:28
Larry Wilmore on his comedic influences
04:12
Larry Wilmore on his stand-up act
08:47
Larry Wilmore on transitioning from writing jokes for himself to writing them for other people, and on finding his voice as a comic
04:25
Larry Wilmore on considering himself to be primarily a producer, and on his kinship with standup comedy
01:38
Steven Wright on the first joke he ever performed and on unknowingly learning techniques by listening to comedy performances on the radio
05:13
Steven Wright on every comedian being a teacher and a student at the same time
01:48
Steven Wright on his delivery
01:27
Steven Wright on starting to tell jokes with longer setups, on pauses in delivery, and on waiting out a laugh
04:38
Steven Wright on a comedian's relationship with the audience
03:59
Steven Wright on his love of words when he was young
01:35
Steven Wright on his advice to anyone with a goal - take the risk
01:44
Steven Wright on how he creates his material
03:32
Steven Wright on advice to aspiring comedians
02:12
Steven Wright on the four things he would't talk about in his act and his rules for performing -- and when/why he would break his own rules
06:30
Steven Wright on his nerves when he first started doing stand-up -- on differences between being funny amongst friends vs. on a stage
01:47
Steven Wright on the challenges of starting out in stand-up
00:56
