Table of Biography
Garry Shandling is a late American actor, comedian, writer, director, and producer. Garry Shandling is best recognized for his super successful shows, “It’s Garry Shandling’s Show” and “The Larry Sanders Show.”
Early Life
On the 29th of November 1949, Garry Shandling was born in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States of America. He passed away at the age of 66 years old and held American nationality. According to the astrological chart, he has a zodiac sign Sagittarius and grew up in a Jewish family. His birth name is Garry Emmanuel Shandling.
He was born to his parents; Irving Shandling (father) and Muriel Shandling (mother). By profession, his father was the owner of Shandling Lithographic, an art and academic print shop. On the other hand, his mother served as the proprietor of Muriel Shandling’s Animal Fair, a pet store.
Caption: Garry Shandling with his mother (Source: Daily Mail)
When he was still young, he relocated with his parents to Tucson, Arizona. He grew up with his elder brother Barry Philip. Meanwhile, his brother was suffering from cystic fibrosis and sadly he died soon.
He attended Palo Verde High School. Later, he enrolled at the University of Arizona in Tucson, for a major in electrical engineering. However, he dropped out and pursued a marketing degree instead. Meanwhile, he even pursued postgraduate studies in creative writing for a year. He began writing humorous articles for small magazines.
Garry Shandling – Death
Shandling died of a heart attack on March 24, 2016, at the age of 66, in Los Angeles, California. His death came as a surprise and sent shockwaves throughout the entertainment industry.
Professional Career
Garry Shandling moved to Los Angeles in early 1973, and worked at an advertising agency for a time, then sold a script for the popular NBC sitcom “Sanford and Son.” Later, he wrote scripts for the sitcom “Welcome Back, Kotter” and attended a story meeting for “Three’s Company.”
Frustrated by the formulaic writing of situation comedies, he began doing stand-up comedy, which featured his whining self-deprecation and self-absorption. Shandling made his television stand-up debut on “The Tonight Show” in the year 1981. By 1983, he was a regular guest host and a potential successor to regular host Johnny Carson.
Caption: Garry Shandling’s It’s Garry Shandling’s Show (Source: Network 33)
“It’s Garry Shandling’s Show” that premiered in 1986. Shandling starred as Garry Shandling, a character who was aware he was on a television sitcom and frequently broke the “fourth wall,” addressing the audience as he walked from one set to the next. The series aired until 1990. Instead of hosting his own “real” talk show, he took over as host of “The Larry Sanders Show” for the HBO cable channel in 1992.
Though the show was fictional, it was set in the real entertainment world, providing a razor-sharp look at the siege mentality of television production, including narcissistic celebrities, greedy agents, misanthropic writers, and long-suffering staff; Jeffrey Tambor starred as Sanders’s unaware sidekick, and Rip Torn portrayed the overbearing producer.
Continued his successful career
Shandling convinced his Hollywood friends to appear on the show as themselves, and approximately 200 celebrities accepted his invitation. The show was a critical success, receiving Emmy nominations for outstanding comedy series in each of its six seasons on the air. In addition, he and writer Peter Tolan won an Emmy in 1998 for outstanding writing for a comedy series.
He appeared in a number of films, including “Hurlyburly” (1998) and “Trust the Man” (2005). In addition, he voiced a turtle in the animated “Over the Hedge” (2006) and a computer-animated porcupine in the live-action “The Jungle Book” (2016). He wrote and starred in “What Planet Are You From?” (2000), but the science-fiction comedy failed to find an audience.
Further, he played Senator Stern in Iron Man 2 (2010) and reprised the role in Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014). In The Dictator (2012), he made an uncredited cameo as a health inspector.
Confessions of a Late Night Talk Show Host, Larry Sanders’ autobiography “as told to Garry Shandling,” was published in 1998. The documentary The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, directed by Judd Apatow, was released two years after Shandling’s death in 2016.
This man hosted the Grammy Awards in 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994. Similarly, he hosted the Emmy Awards in 2000 and 2004 and co-hosted (doing the opening monologue) in 2003.
Awards
Caption: Garry Shandling after his 1998 Emmy win (Source: The Mirror)
This late actor was nominated for 19 Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards during his four-decade career. He also received two British Comedy Awards, twelve CableACE Awards (eight for The Larry Sanders Show and four for It’s Garry Shandling’s Show), a BAFTA Award, and nominations for two Writers Guild of America Awards for The Larry Sanders Show.
He received three American Comedy Award nominations, two Satellite Award nominations, and the Outstanding Television Writer Award from the Austin Film Festival in 2004.
Relationship Status
Till the time of his death, Garry Shandling was never married and single. He was living with his fiancee Linda Doucett, an actress. From 1987 to 1994, they were together.
They ended their conversation on a sour note, with Doucett allegedly accusing him of sexual harassment. He had hyperparathyroidism, a fatal condition.
Garry Shandling – Body Measurements
Caption: Garry Shandling posing for a photo (Source: GQ)
Shandling stands 5 feet 10 inches (1.79 m) and weighs around 85 kg (187 lb). In addition, he has a pair of blue eyes with brown hair colour and wears a shoe size of 9 US.
Social Media
This American actor is currently not active on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. In addition, he lived a private life and maintains a low profile till the time of his death.