The Larry Sanders Show

infobox television
show_name = The Larry Sanders Show


caption = Larry Sanders Show Logo
format = Comedy
runtime = approx. 25 min.
creator = Dennis Klein & Garry Shandling
starring = Garry Shandling
Jeffrey Tambor
Rip Torn
country = USA
network = HBO
first_aired = August 15, 1992
last_aired = May 31, 1998
num_episodes = 89
list_episodes = List of The Larry Sanders Show episodes
imdb_id = 0103466
tv_com_id = 213

"The Larry Sanders Show" is a satirical television sitcom that originally aired from August 1992 to May 1998 on the HBO cable television network in the United States. It starred stand-up comedian Garry Shandling as vain, neurotic talk show host Larry Sanders, and centered around the running of his TV show, and the many people behind the scenes. It is notable for featuring celebrities as themselves (often parodying themselves, by being themselves) and its character-based humor, which is similar to other series like "Curb Your Enthusiasm", "Entourage" and "Extras", all of which also air or have aired on HBO. The show also made history by being the first cable comedy series to be nominated for an emmy.

The series, in which Shandling used his experience as a guest host on "The Tonight Show", is ranked by various critics and fans alongside "Seinfeld" as one of the best TV comedies of the 1990s. The series also ranked #38 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time and was included in "Time" magazine's list of the "100 Best TV Shows of All Time." [http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/completelist/0,,1651341,00.html]

Premise

Different kind of sitcom

"The Larry Sanders Show" mixed video-taped footage of the fictional broadcast show (which was recorded in front of an actual live studio audience) with "behind the scenes" footage shot on film (for example, Larry talking to his guests during the commercial break or the everyday workings of the office between shows). As such it featured real-life celebrity guests as they appeared on the talk show, but also as they appeared behind the scenes. This gave the writers and the celebrity guests the opportunity to send up their media images while making the show appear more realistic.

Guests

Most episodes featured celebrity guests who usually played themselves appearing on the fictional "Larry Sanders Show", and who were often the primary source of conflict between Sanders and his co-workers. Guests included Robin Williams, David Duchovny, Roseanne Barr, Elvis Costello, Chris Farley, Sharon Stone, Jon Stewart, Danny DeVito, Rob Reiner, Alec Baldwin, Jon Lovitz, David Spade, Dana Carvey, Jim Carrey, John Ritter, Bob Saget, Bruno Kirby, Ellen DeGeneres and Howard Stern, among others. Jeff Cesario was the butt of a long running joke, being frequently "bumped" when booked to appear.

On the season 1 DVD, Shandling says the guests were invariably very happy to parody their media images and generally shared the same sense of humour as himself and the other writers.

Regular cast and characters

In addition to Shandling, the show featured the following regular primary actors and characters [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103466/fullcredits] [http://epguides.com/LarrySandersShow/guide.shtml] :

*Rip Torn as Arthur ("Artie"), the show's producer
*Jeffrey Tambor as Larry's sidekick Hank Kingsley
*Penny Johnson as Larry's personal assistant, Beverly
*Janeane Garofalo as the show's booker Paula (until episode 76)
*Mary Lynn Rajskub as the show's booking assistant/booker Mary Lou (from episode 69)
*Jeremy Piven as head writer Jerry (until episode 25)
*Wallace Langham as writer/head writer Phil
*Linda Doucett as Hank's personal assistant Darlene (until episode 48)
*Scott Thompson as Hank's personal assistant Brian (from episode 50)
*Megan Gallagher as Larry's second ex-wife Jeannie (episodes 1-13, 53)
*Kathryn Harrold as Larry's first ex-wife Francine (episodes 14-30)
*Deborah May as network executive Melanie Parrish
*Bob Odenkirk as Larry's agent Stevie Grant

Crew

Directors and writers of note include Judd Apatow (who also became an executive producer on the show), Todd Holland, Ken Kwapis, David Mirkin, Jon Vitti, Joe Flaherty, Carol Leifer, Jeff Cesario, Adam Resnick and Paul Simms.

Ken Kwapis and Todd Holland, who directed the bulk of the first season, were particularly instrumental in determining the style of the program.

List of episodes

Awards won by "The Larry Sanders Show"

DVD releases

*"The Larry Sanders Show - The Entire First Season" was released on February 26, 2002 by Sony Pictures.

*"The Larry Sanders Show: The Best Episodes" was released by Sony Pictures UK in 2000. It is a compilation containing the following episodes: #302, "Montana" (Robin Williams); #403, "Hank's Sex Tape" (Henry Winkler, Norm MacDonald); #408, "Larry's Big Idea" (Courteney Cox, David Letterman); #412, "I Was a Teenage Lesbian" (Brett Butler). Also included are two first season episodes ("The Guest Host," "The Talk Show"), as well as the second season episode, "The List" (#203) which was left out of the US cable syndication package offered to Bravo. However, it is available to local affiliates.

*A DVD set drawn from all six seasons titled "Not Just the Best of the Larry Sanders Show" was released by Sony Pictures on April 17, 2007. [ [http://www.sonypictures.com/homevideo/larrysanderscollection/because.html Sony Pictures - The Best of Larry Sanders Collection ] ] The 4-disc DVD set features 23 episodes and features 8 hours of bonus material. Shandling re-visits the show's cast and guest stars including Jerry Seinfeld, Alec Baldwin, Sharon Stone, David Duchovny, Carol Burnett, Jon Stewart, Ellen DeGeneres, Jeremy Piven, Sarah Silverman, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Greg Kinnear, and Tom Petty.

*The release of additional seasons has been mentioned by Shandling. The first season was re-released to coincide with "Not Just the Best of the Larry Sanders Show", and season two is said to be next. [ [http://www.avclub.com/content/node/60821 Not Just The Best Of The Larry Sanders Show | The A.V. Club ] ]

Books

* "Confessions of a Late-night Talk-show Host: The Autobiography of Larry Sanders" (ISBN 067102910X) was written by Garry Shandling in-character as Larry Sanders. It was released October 4, 1999. The book was the topic of season five's episode ten, which was also under the same title.

External links

* [http://epguides.com/LarrySandersShow/ Epguides - episodes and air dates guide]
*
* [http://www.sonypictures.com/homevideo/catalog/catalogDetail_DVD043396047594.html Sony Pictures Larry Sanders DVD web page]
* [http://www.maximonline.com/articles/index.aspx?a_id=7526&src=fc Maxim interview with Garry Shandling on Not Just the Best Of The Larry Sanders Show DVD release]

References