Phil Rosenthal, creator and executive producer of “Everybody Loves Raymond,” was on my show today with some behind-the-scenes stories about running that show and his book, “You’re Lucky You’re Funny.”
We talked about his battles with the network over an actress he didn’t want to play Debra Barone, why he cast Brad Garrett as Robert, why he told the writers to go home and fight with their wives, and why there wasn’t a spinoff when “Raymond” went off the air.
I also asked him about his job interview with David Letterman and his lunch with Johnny Carson, which happened after he did President Clinton’s funny “Final Days” video for the White House Correspondents Dinner in 2000.