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Inside Comedy

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Inside Comedy
Created byDavid Steinberg
Presented byDavid Steinberg
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes36
Production
Executive producersDavid Steinberg
Steve Carell
Vance DeGeneres
Charlie Hartsock
Running time30 minutes
Production companiesCarousel Productions
Sunset Point Productions
Showtime Networks
Original release
NetworkShowtime
ReleaseJanuary 26, 2012 (2012-01-26) –
June 9, 2015 (2015-06-09)

Inside Comedy is an American television interview program on Showtime hosted and directed by David Steinberg. During each episode, Steinberg interviews popular comedians from the worlds of stand-up, television, and film, showing clips from their careers. The show's first season ran from January 26 to March 29, 2012. Its second season premiered on February 11, 2013,[1] and ended on April 15, 2013. The third season aired from February 3[2] to April 7, 2014. The first three seasons each consisted of 10 episodes. The fourth season had six episodes, premiering May 5, 2015,[3] and ending June 9.

Production

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Inside Comedy was initially intended as a feature-length documentary to be produced by Steve Carell and interviewer David Steinberg.[4] Steinberg and Carell's company, Carousel Productions, raised several million dollars and began filming interviews.[4] After it was decided that too much footage was shot for one film, the project was picked up as a television series by the Showtime cable TV network.[4]

Episodes

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Season Episodes Season premiere Season finale
1 10 January 26, 2012 (2012-01-26) March 30, 2012 (2012-03-30)
2 10 February 11, 2013 (2013-02-11) April 15, 2013 (2013-04-15)
3 10 February 3, 2014 (2014-02-03) April 7, 2014 (2014-04-07)
4 6 May 5, 2015 (2015-05-05) June 9, 2015 (2015-06-09)

Season 1 (2012)

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Inside Comedy season 1 episodes
No. # Guest(s) Original air date
11Don Rickles & Jerry SeinfeldJanuary 26, 2012 (2012-01-26)
22Chris RockFebruary 2, 2012 (2012-02-02)
33Steve Carell & Jane LynchFebruary 9, 2012 (2012-02-09)
44Billy Crystal, Martin Short, & Brad GarrettFebruary 16, 2012 (2012-02-16)
55Larry DavidFebruary 23, 2012 (2012-02-23)
66Sarah Silverman & Garry ShandlingMarch 2, 2012 (2012-03-02)
77Mel Brooks & Carl ReinerMarch 9, 2012 (2012-03-09)
88Ellen DeGeneres & Tim ConwayMarch 16, 2012 (2012-03-16)
99Kathy Griffin & Steven WrightMarch 23, 2012 (2012-03-23)
1010Robin Williams & Jonathan WintersMarch 30, 2012 (2012-03-30)

Season 2 (2013)

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Inside Comedy season 2 episodes
No. # Guest(s) Original air date
111Louis C.K. & Bob NewhartFebruary 11, 2013 (2013-02-11)
122Judd Apatow & Tina FeyFebruary 18, 2013 (2013-02-18)
133Drew Carey & Martin MullFebruary 25, 2013 (2013-02-25)
144Steve Martin & Lily TomlinMarch 4, 2013 (2013-03-04)
155Jim Carrey & Keenen Ivory WayansMarch 11, 2013 (2013-03-11)
166Will Ferrell & Betty WhiteMarch 18, 2013 (2013-03-18)
177Susie Essman & Carol BurnettMarch 25, 2013 (2013-03-25)
188Ben Stiller & Mike MyersApril 1, 2013 (2013-04-01)
199Robert Klein & Bill MaherApril 8, 2013 (2013-04-08)
2010Robert SchimmelApril 15, 2013 (2013-04-15)

Season 3 (2014)

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Inside Comedy season 3 episodes
No. # Guest(s) Original air date
211Jimmy Fallon & Zach GalifianakisFebruary 3, 2014 (2014-02-03)
222Alan Arkin & Jonah HillFebruary 10, 2014 (2014-02-10)
233Bette Midler & Richard BelzerFebruary 17, 2014 (2014-02-17)
244Andrew Dice Clay & Kevin NealonFebruary 24, 2014 (2014-02-24)
255Bob Einstein & Eric IdleMarch 3, 2014 (2014-03-03)
266Julia Louis-Dreyfus & Dick Van DykeMarch 10, 2014 (2014-03-10)
277Garry Marshall, Keegan-Michael Key & Jordan PeeleMarch 17, 2014 (2014-03-17)
288Richard Lewis & Gilbert GottfriedMarch 24, 2014 (2014-03-24)
299Fred Willard & Catherine O'HaraMarch 31, 2014 (2014-03-31)
3010Kevin Pollak, Bob Saget, & Larry MillerApril 7, 2014 (2014-04-07)

Season 4 (2015)

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Inside Comedy season 4 episodes
No. # Guest(s) Original air date
311Stephen Colbert & Jon StewartMay 5, 2015 (2015-05-05)
322Michael Keaton & Dan AykroydMay 12, 2015 (2015-05-12)
333Bryan Cranston & Carol LeiferMay 19, 2015 (2015-05-19)
344Ted Danson & Wanda SykesMay 26, 2015 (2015-05-26)
355Cheech & Chong (Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong) & Dane CookJune 2, 2015 (2015-06-02)
366Conan O'Brien & Jeffrey TamborJune 9, 2015 (2015-06-09)

Steinberg has also filmed interviews with Stephen Fry, Bonnie Hunt, David Koechner, Jon Lovitz, Kathy Najimy, Paula Poundstone, and Tommy Smothers.[5]

Reception

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The show's first season garnered generally positive reviews from critics. Nancy deWolf Smith of The Wall Street Journal praised Steinberg for his interviewing: "He does not focus on himself but is exquisitely tuned in to his subjects, many of whom he knows well. This seems to have relaxed some of his guests to the point where they appear more natural, and less switched on—as entertaining as that can be—than they are with other interviewers."[6] Eric Gould of The Phoenix commented that "Steinberg's sly, understated style gave us a brilliant glimpse into comedy minds put on the spot, and artists at the top of the heap."[7]

Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times applauded the editing exhibited in the show's premiere episode: "Mr. Seinfeld and Mr. Rickles are interviewed separately, and what makes the episode so satisfying is the way their interviews are spliced together and enhanced with clips."[8]

At the outset of the show's second season, Don Steinberg of The Wall Street Journal commended the host's talent for interviewing: "Mr. Steinberg has an easy rapport with subjects. He stays out of their way as they jump to the good stuff, the things you imagine comedy people talk to other comedy people about."[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Ng, Philiana (December 5, 2012). "Showtime's 'Inside Comedy' Sets February Return". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
  2. ^ "Showtime Takes Another Look "Inside Comedy"". CBS. December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
  3. ^ Bibel, Sara (April 16, 2015). "'Inside Comedy' Season 4 to Premiere Tuesday, May 5 on Showtime". Zap2it. Archived from the original on April 16, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d Steinberg, Don (February 7, 2013). "Two Comics Walk Into A Studio". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 8, 2013.
  5. ^ Steinberg, David. "Showtime's "Inside Comedy"". Retrieved February 11, 2014.
  6. ^ Smith, Nancy deWolf (February 10, 2012). "Funny National Treasures". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
  7. ^ Gould, Eric (December 14, 2012). "Tube riches: The best TV of 2012". The Phoenix. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
  8. ^ Genzlinger, Neil (January 25, 2012). "Take My Comedy Influences. Please". The New York Times. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
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