I believe it is important for comedians to know who came before them.

I will always love to perform standup comedy.

Incidentally, I'm still looking for acting work, my first love.

I believe it is important for comedians to know who came before them.

I was an actor before becoming a comedian.

My first job was at a Chicago night club called Mr. Kelly's.

I am presently in my thirteenth year of teaching a graduate course at the University of Southern California.

The Steve Allen Sunday night show had the right to two options after my first performance.

I am in the Master of Professional Writing program teaching Humor Writing, Literary and Dramatic.

While you're improvising, you may come up with something which will break him up. As soon as that smile comes out, you know that, hey, we're having fun.

The old problems - love, money, security, status, health, etc. - are still here to plague us or please us.

Though it sold very well, I hated The Edge.

As much experience, education and awareness as one can attain is important for a comedian.

As a culture I see us as presently deprived of subtleties. The music is loud, the anger is elevated, sex seems lacking in sweetness and privacy.

I quit smoking well over twenty years ago.

Outside came in '60. The Edge in '61. All three made Gold, but the biggest seller was Inside.

My whole act is confession.

So that this thing that aired in 1963 would result a few years later in personal bankruptcy, would result in having people be on edge with me, wondering when I'm going to blow up.

Inside was the second LP album of a comedian's performance before an audience.

The most memorable performance was my appearance in concert in Carnegie Hall. The first standup to do so.

I am careful with my material and presentation.

Unquestionably, standup comedy is and has always been an art form.

The old problems love money security status health etc. are still here to plague us or please us.

I mean, all alternative comedy is are comedians that have being doing it for so long, for so long, that they were relaxed enough to start becoming personal on stage.

My favorite comedians were Jimmy Durante, George Burns, senior citizens.

Comedians are not usually actors, but imitations of actors.

Half of the great comedians I've had in my shows and that I paid a lot of money to and who made my customers shriek were not only not funny to me, but I couldn't understand why they were funny to anybody.

I was up until all hours of the night, listening to stories, meeting great old comedians.

It seems like when I first started, people got into comedy because they wanted to be good comedians.

It seemed to me you could do anything in comics. So I started doing my thing, which is mainly influenced by novelists, stand-up comedians, that sort of thing.

I don't know any astronauts. There are a lot of people who say they want to be comedians.

Ever since I was a kid, I just loved those comedians on TV who would just have fun with the language.

I believe it is important for comedians to know who came before them.

The real good comedians, like Chaplin, would make you laugh and a second later, cry.

Whatever talent I had, I'm sure it helped that my parents were in the business and that I grew up around actors, comedians and directors.

Comedians walk out, get a feel for the crowd. If it's not going good, we change directions. If we got to drag your momma into this thing, we will. Whatever we got to do.

But it's fun to be something, have that, and you don't have to be real. It's like, comedians. They go on and they're doing all these jokes. I would be like that if I were more awake.

I thought comedians had to have black on their faces or red beards.

Comedians don't laugh. They're too busy analyzing why it's funny or not.

They don't make you pay for the humor. It's up and down, but they're trying to give you as many laughs as possible in 2 minutes. They are the most honest comedians ever.

That's why modern corporate movie making has become so laborious that comedians are kind of kicked out by 50.

I used to like writing for comedians - I enjoyed the challenge of making other people funny.

It was a decision to work clean. I just prefer to work that way. I have no problem with comedians who don't work that way. There was a temptation in the early '70s to reconsider. I decided against it.

I have worked with a great many comedians as opposed to comics, although I have worked with comics as well, I make the distinction.

You shouldn't listen to us at all if you're looking for information. We don't take ourselves seriously on any level; we're just comedians.

Everything is changing. People are taking their comedians seriously and the politicians as a joke.

Normally, I name my characters after famous comedians.

Sure, the comedians who swear or use scatological humor can get laughs, but they're uncomfortable laughs.

Politics is developing more comedians than radio ever did.