Curated playlist
American comedy writers
- Woody AllenWoody Allen failed a film production course at New York University, then went on to direct Annie Hall.
- Adam SandlerAdam Sandler once made a Western comedy that critics almost universally panned. On the 6th of January 2016, Netflix announced that the film, The Ridiculous 6, had been watched more times in thirty days than any other movie in the service's…
- Stephen ColbertAt a 2006 dinner, Stephen Colbert roasted President Bush to a cold room. His show's ratings jumped 37% the next week.
- Ben StillerBen Stiller's films have grossed more than $2.6 billion in Canada and the United States, an average of $79 million per film. Behind that figure stands Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller, an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is known…
- Mel BrooksMel Brooks was 14 years old when he climbed onto a diving board at the Butler Lodge, a second-rate hotel in the Borscht Belt. He worked there as a pool-side tummler, an entertainer hired to keep the guests amused. On this day he wore a…
- David LettermanDavid Letterman got fired from campus radio for treating classical music irreverently.
- Conan O'BrienConan O'Brien went from writing The Simpsons to hosting late night, and critics said he would fail.
- Pat ProftPat Proft helped write the Naked Gun films, yet his name is in none of their titles. He also worked on Police Academy.
- Lorne MichaelsLorne Michaels once offered The Beatles $3,000 to reunite on live TV. It came in Saturday Night Live's first season.
- David X. CohenDavid X. Cohen has a middle initial that stands for nothing at all. He is an American television writer, and his name appears on episodes of both The Simpsons and Futurama. Those two shows sit at the center of a career that began somewhere…
- Bruce VilanchWhen Jack Palance did one-armed push-ups at the 1992 Oscars, Bruce Vilanch wrote new jokes on the spot.