Garry Shandling

Comedian, writer and actor Garry Shandling was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in Tucson, Arizona, where he attended Palo Verde High Magnet School. He attended the University of Arizona with a major in electrical engineering, and subsequently attained a degree in marketing. As a post-graduate, Shandling studied creative writing.
Garry Shandling went to Los Angeles in 1973, and worked for an advertising agency. His entry into comedy writing came when he sold a script to the producers of television's popular sit-com, Sanford and Son. Shandling then did comedy scriptwriting for sit-coms such as Three's Company and Welcome Back, Kotter.

In 1978, Shandling began doing his stand-up act at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles. Taking his act on the road for a couple of years, Garry Shandling was discovered by a talent scout from The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, who booked him to guest-host on March 18, 1981. An instant success with his quick wit and affable, self-deprecating style, Shandling then substituted for Carson on a regular basis. He was the Tonight Show's weekly Monday-night guest host until Johnny Carson's retirement..

It's Garry Shandling's Show debuted in 1985, which he co-wrote with Alan Zweibel, comprising seventy-two episodes which ran through 1990. Following that success, Garry Shandling wrote and starred in the long-running The Larry Sanders Show. He was invited to the White House as a favorite comedian of President George H.W. Bush.

Garry Shandling's contributions to television comedy are numerous and varied; his unique persona has had a wide-ranging and positive impact on the entertainment industry.