The Greatest Bob Newhart Story Ever
I was sad to hear of the death of Bob Newhart yesterday. He was not only a comedy legend, but also a money-in-the-bank guest, as he proved when he told me this story about his 1970s sitcom.
Stop Working The Crowd
I was sad to read about the increasing number of standup comics who do crowd work in their sets. Most aren’t very good at it, but feel the need to constantly create content for TikTok. Here are several reasons it annoys me.
Andy Kaufman, Over-Indulged Nut
On the 40th anniversary of Andy Kaufman’s death, here’s a piece I wrote about him in 2000 explaining why I was not a fan.
Dave Attell’s “Hot Cross Buns”
I’m a long time fan of veteran standup comedian Dave Attell. Here’s my review of his new Netflix special.
Movie Review: “Steve!”
I have a few thoughts about “Steve!”, Morgan Neville’s two-part documentary on Apple TV+ about Steve Martin.
Richard Lewis
Here are a couple of stories about my encounters years ago with Richard Lewis, a one-of-a-kind comedian and actor who died this week at 76.
David Bianculli on The Smothers Brothers
In the wake of the death of Tommy Smothers this week, I’m reposting my conversation with David Bianculli about his book, “Dangerously Funny,” a history of the Smothers Brothers’ TV show.
Tommy Smothers
I’m saddened to hear of the death of Tommy Smothers at the age of 86. Here’s a conversation I had with him in 2007 about his long career with brother Dick — and the time he taught John Lennon the right way to play a song.