“There’s a moment in your youth where you have your big story. Early on, a lot of people make their Boogie Nights. The level of passion is through the roof. Oftentimes, there are a lot of ideas that can be expressed in the best way the first time. That’s a moment I like being a part of.”
-Judd Apatow, episode 305 of Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
Today, a visit to the office of legendary director and producer Judd Apatow! We talk about his upbringing in Long Island (5:20), conducting interviews with Jerry Seinfeld and Steve Allen as a teenager (5:46), his move to Los Angeles in the early 80s (17:50) where he befriended a young Adam Sandler and Jim Carrey (21:33), and why he began writing material for other comedians (25:13).
On the back-half, Judd reflects on his start at The Larry Sanders Show in 1993 (28:59), the personal memories he excavated in his 2018 documentary, The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling (34:13), and the series’ memorable finale in 1998 (39:30).
To close, we walk through his path from The 40-Year-Old Virgin to Funny People (45:20), his pivot into producing and mentorship (56:47), the legacy of Freaks and Geeks (58:44), and what he hopes to create in the years to come (1:03:27).
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Show-notes:
- Watch The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling (2018) and George Carlin’s American Dream (2022) on HBO.
- Order Judd’s new book, Sicker in the Head.
- See his latest films, The Bubble and Bros.
- Watch S1 E14 of Freaks and Geeks, “Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers”.
- Follow Judd on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
- For more conversations, hear our talks with Lena Dunham, Billy Eichner, Meg Stalter, Nick Kroll, Quinta Brunson, Bill Hader, Abbi Jacobson, Nick Offerman, and George Saunders.
- Order your Talk Easy mug in cream and navy or our vinyl record with Fran Lebowitz.
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Original illustration by Krishna Shenoi. Reference image by Mark Seliger.
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