''It's Garry Shandling's Show'' is an American

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

that was initially broadcast on

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

from September 10, 1986 to May 25, 1990. It was created by Garry Shandling and

Alan Zweibel Alan Zweibel (born May 20, 1950) is an American television writer, author, playwright, and screenwriter whom ''The'' ''New York Times'' says has “earned a place in the pantheon of American pop culture." An original ''Saturday Night Live'' ...

. The series is notable for breaking the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

Synopsis

The series stars Garry Shandling as himself: A neurotic,

sardonic To be sardonic is to be disdainfully or cynically humorous, or scornfully mocking. A form of wit or humour, being sardonic often involves expressing an uncomfortable truth in a clever and not necessarily malicious way, often with a degree of sk ...

stand-up comedian who just happens to be aware he is a television sitcom character. Garry spends just as much time interacting with the studio audience as he does the regular cast members, performing monologues and show-closing summations of the episode's events (much like

George Burns George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film and television. His arched eyebr ...

on ''

The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', sometimes called ''The Burns and Allen Show'', was a half-hour television situation comedy broadcast from 1950 to 1958 on CBS. It starred George Burns and Gracie Allen, one of the most enduring acts in ...

''). However, on Garry's show, all the supporting characters know they are on a TV show, not just Garry; and the studio audience (itself a character) is often in the storyline. At the time of the series' production, Shandling actually lived in Sherman Oaks, California, just like the character on the series. His condominium on the series was styled to be just like his real-life condo, down to the room layout and the furnishings. Storylines were often manipulated by Shandling to create more favorable outcomes or simply to speed the story along. One episode ended years later, for example. Another allowed Shandling to tell the audience that time had passed in order to console an angry neighbor whose wall he had damaged; by the time the scene transitioned, the workmen had already fixed the wall. On America's presidential election night in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

, Showtime presented a live episode wherein Shandling brought in '' Soul Train'' host

Don Cornelius Donald Cortez Cornelius (September 27, 1936 – February 1, 2012) was an American television show host and producer widely known as the creator of the nationally syndicated dance and music show ''Soul Train'', which he hosted from 1971 until 1993 ...

to incorrectly announce that

Michael Dukakis Michael Stanley Dukakis (; born November 3, 1933) is an American retired lawyer and politician who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975 to 1979 and again from 1983 to 1991. He is the longest-serving governor in Massachusetts history a ...

had soundly defeated George H. W. Bush. The series'

theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...

is "This Is the Theme to Garry's Show", sung by Los Angeles musician Bill Lynch. The song's lyrics are self-referential, explaining how the song came to be ("Garry called me up and asked if I would write his theme song") and asking what the listener thinks of it. Considered a critical and

niche Niche may refer to: Science *Developmental niche, a concept for understanding the cultural context of child development *Ecological niche, a term describing the relational position of an organism's species *Niche differentiation, in ecology, the ...

success, ''It's Garry Shandling's Show'' ran 72 episodes and was on the air for four seasons (1986–1990). The show was later picked up by the broadcast

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

network from 1988 to 1990 as part of its Sunday night lineup with minor cuts for language and advertising breaks; Fox began airing the show from the beginning, but due to longer seasons for network shows versus

cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

, had caught up by the time the show left Fox in March 1990. New episodes continued for a few months thereafter on Showtime. The series put Shandling on the

A-list An A-list actor is a major movie star, or one of the most bankable actors in a film industry. The A-list is part of a larger guide called ''The Hot List'', which ranks the bankability of 1,400 movie actors worldwide, and has become an industry ...

and prompted the success for his run as Larry Sanders on HBO's ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO ...

''.

Cast and characters

Throughout the series, the cast was divided into the "Starring" cast, whose names were featured in the opening credits; the "Co-Starring" cast and the "Guest Starring" cast, both of which had the actors' names featured in the end credits.

Starring

* Garry Shandling as Garry Shandling - Immature star / host of the show. Constantly obsessed with his hair. * Geoffrey Blake as Lewis (early season 1) - Garry's ladies' man best friend. Dropped from the series after the first run of six episodes. *

Molly Cheek Molly Cheek (born March 2, 1950) is an American actress. A Connecticut College graduate she worked in ‘dinner-theater productions and summer stock’ before finding television and film work. Cheek is best known for her roles in the televisio ...

as Nancy Bancroft - Garry's "attractive, but non-threatening, platonic neighbor." *

Jessica Harper Jessica Harper (born October 10, 1949) is an American actress and singer. Harper began her feature film career with a starring role in Brian De Palma's ''Phantom of the Paradise'' (1974), ''My Favorite Year'' (1982), as well as a role in '' Inser ...

as Phoebe Bass (season 4) - Garry's girlfriend and eventual wife. * Scott Nemes as Grant Schumaker - Garry's neighbor, son of Pete and Jackie Schumaker. * Michael Tucci as Pete Schumaker - Garry's best friend and neighbor. Father of Grant and husband of Jackie. Very nerdy and clumsy. Leads his son's Cub Scout troop.

Co-starring

* Bernadette Birkett as Jackie Schumaker (mid-season 1 through season 4, recurring guest early season 1) - Garry's neighbor, Pete's wife and Grant's mother. *

Ian Buchanan Ian Buchanan (born 16 June 1957) is a Scottish television actor who has appeared on multiple American soap operas including ''General Hospital'', ''Port Charles'', ''The Bold and the Beautiful'', ''All My Children'', and ''Days of Our Lives''. ...

as Ian McFyfer (mid-season 3 through season 4, recurring guest early season 3) - Nancy's boyfriend and eventual husband. *

Barbara Cason Barbara Cason (November 15, 1928 – June 18, 1990) was an American character actress. Life and career Cason was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the daughter of Helen Louise (Phebus) and Charles Carroll Cason. She began her career appearing in thea ...

as Ruth Shandling (seasons 2–4, recurring guest season 1) - Garry's mother. * Paul Willson as Leonard Smith (mid-season 1 through season 4, recurring guest early season 1) - The president of the condo association that Garry lives in, who frequently drops by uninvited so that he can end up on-camera on Garry's show. He is a nuisance to Garry and his friends.

Recurring guest stars

Bruno Kirby Bruno Kirby (born Bruno Giovanni Quidaciolu Jr.; April 28, 1949 – August 14, 2006) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in ''City Slickers'', '' When Harry Met Sally...'', '' Good Morning, Vietnam'', ''The Godfather Part II'', and ...

as Brad Brillnick (seasons 3–4) - Garry's agent. *

Richard Fancy Richard Ronald Fancy (born August 2, 1943) is an American actor and comedian known for his long recurring role on ''Seinfeld'' as publisher Mr. Lippman, Elaine Benes's employer. Early life Fancy was born August 2, 1943, in Evanston, Illinois, ...

as Mr. Stravely (seasons 3–4) - Network boss. *

Roy Brocksmith Roy Brocksmith (September 15, 1945 – December 16, 2001) was an American actor. Life and career Brocksmith was born in Quincy, Illinois, the son of Vera Marguerite (''née'' Hartwig) and Otis E. Brocksmith, who was a mechanic. He graduated from ...

as Mr. Guest (seasons 3–4) * Chi Ngo as Kim Moon (seasons 3–4) *

Danny Dayton Danny Dayton (born Daniel David Segall, November 20, 1923 – February 6, 1999) was an American actor and television director. Beginning in the 1950s, he played many roles in film and on TV. He had a recurring role as Hank Pivnik on ''All i ...

as Mr. Peck (seasons 2–3) - Comedy club owner. *

Rob Reiner Robert Norman Reiner (born March 6, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence with the role of Michael "Meathead" Stivic on the CBS sitcom ''All in the Family'' (1971–1979), a performan ...

(seasons 1–3),

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the la ...

(seasons 2–3), and

Martin Mull Martin Eugene Mull (born August 18, 1943) is an American actor, comedian and musician who has appeared in many television and film roles. He is also a painter and recording artist. As an actor, he first became known in his role on '' Mary Hartman ...

(seasons 3–4) as themselves While fighting

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...

, Gilda Radner guest-starred as herself in the series in 1988 in what would be her final television appearance. When Shandling asked her why she had not been seen on television for a while, Radner replied, "Oh, I had cancer. What did ''you'' have?"

Episodes

Release

Broadcast

In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, the series aired on

. The first season aired on Wednesdays and the rest of the series aired on Sundays. It was originally picked up for 6 episodes. After the success of them, Showtime ordered 12 more (although only 10 were produced). To bolster its Sunday night lineup,

secured the rights to air reruns of ''It's Garry Shandling's Show'' not long after they aired on Showtime. The reruns aired Sundays on Fox at 9:00–9:30 from March 1988 to July 1989, at 9:30–10:00 in July 1989, at 10:00–10:30 from July to August 1989, and at 10:30–11:00 from August 1989 to March 1990. The series was aired in the United Kingdom on BBC Two from 1987 to 1990.

Home media

On October 20, 2009, Shout! Factory released ''It's Garry Shandling's Show: The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1. The 16-disc set features extensive bonus features including featurettes, commentaries and outtakes. ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' praised the set's release, writing "As self-referential comedies went, you never meta better one," while ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...

'' named it one of the best TV on DVD releases of 2009. The first season of the series was released as a standalone title in America in April 2010. In Region 2
Fabulous Films
has released the first two seasons on DVD in the UK. In Region 4, Shock Entertainment has released all 4 seasons on DVD in Australia.

Awards and nominations

The series was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards. It won five

CableACE Awards The CableACE Award (earlier known as the ACE Awards; ACE was an acronym for "Award for Cable Excellence") is a defunct award that was given by what was then the National Cable Television Association from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in Ame ...

(three for Best Comedy Series and two for Garry Shandling). It won an

American Comedy Award The American Comedy Awards were a group of awards presented annually in the United States recognizing performances and performers in the field of comedy, with an emphasis on television comedy and comedy films. They began in 1987, billed as the "f ...

for Funniest Male Performance in a Comedy Series-Cable or Syndicated, and an award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1988 from the

Television Critics Association The Television Critics Association (TCA) is a group of approximately 200 United States and Canada, Canadian television television criticism, critics, journalists and columnists who cover television television programme, programming for newspapers, ...

References

External links

* * {{TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy 1980s American sitcoms 1986 American television series debuts 1990s American sitcoms 1990 American television series endings English-language television shows Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Metafictional television series Showtime (TV network) original programming Television series about television Television series by Brad Grey Television Television series by CBS Studios Television shows set in Los Angeles