Remembering Garry Shandling, One of TV’s Greatest Artists

Norman Weiss March 24, 2016, 9:05 pm

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Remembering Garry Shandling, one of TV’s greatest artists

It was already unusual enough that Shandling created and starred in not one but two classic TV shows with It’s Garry Shandling’s Show and The Larry Sanders Show, says Matt Zoller Seitz. But, he adds, Shandling also “taught a generation of performers and filmmakers that it was possible to balance daring formal experimentation with character-based comedy that saw through people’s delusions, even as it showed compassion for their loneliness and craving for validation. He made the kind of comedy you could barely stand to look at because it was so mercilessly acute, and that you couldn’t look away from because it accurately reflected the harshest truths of human interaction.” PLUS: You can trace an entire generation of TV comedy to Larry Sanders, Sanders is “almost universally considered a slice of genius,” Shandling was very much a product of the smarm factory he was satirizing, Shandling helped HBO bridge the gap between its CableACE Award days to becoming an Emmy heavyweight, Shandling single-handedly turned cable series from also-rans into must-see TV, Shandling joked about his funeral with Jerry Seinfeld on Comedians in Cars, Jeffrey Tambor says Shandling “was and always will be my teacher,” Shandling mentee Judd Apatow says he “taught me everything I know and was always kind to me. I am just too sad,” Shandling was at Kathy Griffin’s house on Sunday, Shandling recalls his near-death experience at age 27, Howard Stern remembers an “all time great,” Shandling was first offered the Late Night job that went to Conan O’Brien, watch Shandling’s first Carson and Letterman appearances, watch Conan and Shandling on a horse at the beach from the 2002 Emmys, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show had the greatest TV theme song of all time, read celebrity reactions to Shandling’s death, Jeff Garlin says there would be no Curb Your Enthusiasm without Shandling, an appreciation of Shandling in clips, watch Seth Meyers’ tribute to Shandling on Late Night, Conan recalls recovering from The Tonight Show shock with Shandling in Hawaii and remembers his favorite Shandling guest moment, and read Esquire’s 2010 profile of Shandling that he was reluctant to do.

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