Comedy History 101

Stan Zimmerman was a writer for The Golden Girls, Roseanne, Gilmore Girls, and the feature film, A Very Brady Sequel. He is also the author of the new book: The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore.

We do a deep-dive on TV comedy writing, pitching, and what it was like working on the Russian version of Roseanne.

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Jim Vallely was a writer/producer on the iconic comedy show: Arrested Development – which earned him an Emmy.

Jim also worked on The Golden Girls, Two and a Half Men, The John Larroquette Show, and got his start on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson - with his comedy duo: The Funny Boys.

We do a masterclass deep-dive with Jim on comedy writing, producing, and what it was like having Larry David as a neighbor.

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Joel Thurm was the casting director for such iconic movies as Airplane, Grease, Rocky Horror Picture Show, as well being the head of NBC casting for a solid decade. He is also the author of the new book, Sex, Drugs, and Pilot Season.

We do a deep dive into casting in Hollywood, turning down Tom Cruise and Madonna, and insider stories on Taxi, David Hasselhoff, and what role Bob Hope played in getting Seinfeld on the air.

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Moms Mabley bridged the gap between vaudeville and modern standup comedy. She was the first successful female standup comedian who had a career that spanned over 50 years.

Our guest Rhonda Hansome, who has appeared on SNL, The Arsenio Hall Show, and has performed with Aretha Franklin and Diana Ross, recently portrayed Moms on stage, and we do a deep dive into the history of this iconic comedian

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CH101 Select: The Kids in the Hall are one of the most iconic sketch comedy groups in history. We do a deep dive into their origin story with Paul Myers - who knew KITH in their early days.

Paul is the author of The Kids in the Hall: One Dumb Guy, the executive producer of the documentary The Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks, as well as the brother to Mike Myers - and he gives insights into what it was like to see the group emerge onto the Toronto comedy scene.

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MAD Magazine poked fun at everything - and changed the comedy world. And we talk to Alan Bernstein, director of the documentary When We Went MAD. Modern satire, from The Simpsons to The Daily Show was influenced by MAD.

Alan's documentary celebrates the nutty geniuses behind MAD, and features interviews from such fans as Bryan Cranston, Gilbert Gottfried, Judd Apatow, and Quentin Tarantino.

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CH101 Select: The Edinburgh Fringe Festival is the biggest performance festival in the world. It takes place during August and has launched the comedy careers of Monty Python, Eddie Izzard, Fleabag - and just about every major comedy figure in the UK. It's where comedians go to get their Beatles' 10,000 hours of Hamburg performing skills.

The Edinburgh Festival is both amazing and soul-crushing at times. And on this CH101 Short, Irish comedian Johnny Candon and I highlight the grueling grind of the festival - that makes you a better performer.

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Sean Cullen is a Canadian comedian, actor, and author - who you might know from his numerous TV appearances on The Tonight Show, MadTV, The Ellen Show, and with his legendary musical comedy group, Corky and the Juice Pigs.

We do a deep dive into comedy Sean's history, the Canadian comedy scene, and how he had to turn down Lorne Micheals when offered a spot on SNL.

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Adam Spiegelman was a comedy producer for Jimmy Kimmel Live. He was there right from the start - and he’s our guest today. Adam gives us a deep dive into producing comedy and

and comedians for this iconic late-night talk show, where he brought such comedians as Neil Hamburger, Eddie Pepitone, and Andy Dick to the airwaves.

Adam gives the lowdown of what he looked for when booking standup comedians for the Kimmel show.

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Dan Dion is the world’s most prolific comedian portrait photographer. He has photographed such icons as Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Maria Bamford, Zack Galifianakis…

His work has been exhibited at the Gotham Comedy Club, Montreal’s Just for Laughs, and the Edinburgh Festival – and we are pleased to have him as our guest today on Comedy History 101.

Dan dives deep into his process of photographing the most iconic comedians on the planet.

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