| In the late 1950s, a fresh, unconventional style of standup comedy emerged in sharp contrast to the standard "Take my wife, please" approach. It tackled such previously taboo subjects as sex, religion, drugs, and politics, and ushered in an avant-garde era of comedy that was decidedly more cerebral, satirical, and improvisational than before. Here are many of the maverick comedians who took those big risks years ago and paved the way for today’s current crop of outrageous, in-your-face comics. Many of these rare television performances have not been seen in 30 or 40 years. Carl Reiner & Mel Brooks (1966) Jackie Mason (1961) Bob Newhart (1966) Shelly Berman (1966) Bill Cosby (1965) Jonathan Winters (1961) Smothers Brothers (1974) Steve Martin (1977) Rowan & Martin (1964) Lily Tomlin (1975) George Carlin (1967 & 1975) Richard Pryor (1967 & 1974) Andy Kaufman (1977) Hendra & Ullett (1966) Billy Crystal (1976) Jay Leno (1978) David Letterman (1979) | |
| Release Date: | Apr 10, 2007 |
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| Director: | |
| Writer: | |
| Genres: | Comedy, Documentary |
| Keywords | |
| Production Companies | Passport International Entertainment, Multicom Entertainment Group |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $0 |
| Updates |
Updated: Jan 29, 2026 Entered: Apr 27, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Bill Cosby | Self (archive footage) |
| Steve Martin | Self (archive footage) |
| Lily Tomlin | Self (archive footage) |
| Mel Brooks | Self (archive footage) |
| Jackie Mason | Self (archive footage) |
| Bob Newhart | Self (archive footage) |
| Carl Reiner | Self (archive footage) |
| Shelley Berman | Self (archive footage) |
| Jonathan Winters | Self (archive footage) |
| George Carlin | Self (archive footage) |
| Richard Pryor | Self (archive footage) |
| Andy Kaufman | Self (archive footage) |
| Billy Crystal | Self (archive footage) |
| Jay Leno | Self (archive footage) |
| David Letterman | Self (archive footage) |
| Dan Rowan | Self (archive footage) |
| Dick Martin | Self (archive footage) |
| Tom Smothers | Self (archive footage) |
| Dick Smothers | Self (archive footage) |
| Tony Hendra | Self (archive footage) |
| Nick Ullett | Self (archive footage) |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Kate Grady | Production Coordinator |
| Jeanette Pugliese | Production Controller |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Dante J. Pugliese | Executive Producer |
| Eduardo Eguia Dibildox | Supervising Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
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| 2024 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 1 |
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| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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| 2025 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 12 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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