Earlier today, comedy legend Garry Shandling passed away at the age of 66. Los Angeles police issued a statement saying Shandling had been rushed to hospital after suffering “a medical emergency.” Twitter, which is home to a long line of famous comedians, is today paying tribute to Shandling with an outpouring of love.
The Emmy-winning comedian behind It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, which aired from 1986-1990, was known for popularizing his brand of meta-comedy, breaking the fourth wall to directly address the audience long before it became popular on film and TV. He followed up his breakout series with the critically acclaimed Larry Sanders Show, which ran from 1992-1998.
The likes of Ricky Gervais (who has always cited Shandling as a huge influence on his work), Amy Schumer, Steve Martin, and Judd Apatow have all tweeted their memories of the comedy great. Check out a few of the top posts from the aforementioned celebrities, alongside messages from Marc Maron, Albert Brooks, and Seth MacFarlane, below.
https://twitter.com/SteveMartinToGo/status/713117416990093313
Absolutely can't process the loss of Garry Shandling. Such a genius, such a wonderful man, such an inspiration. I was so honored to know him
— Paul Feig (@paulfeig) March 24, 2016
https://twitter.com/amyschumer/status/713102939158499329
— Judd Apatow 🇺🇦 (@JuddApatow) March 24, 2016
RIP the great Garry Shandling. Surely, one of the most influential comedians of a generation.
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) March 24, 2016
Garry Shandling was one of my absolute favourites and ahead of his time. So sad.
— Jemaine Clement (@AJemaineClement) March 24, 2016
https://twitter.com/SethMacFarlane/status/713104900696121346
Shocked and saddened to hear about Garry Shandling's sudden death. I was honored to get to work with him. He will be missed.
— Ellen DeGeneres (@EllenDeGeneres) March 24, 2016
Dammit. He was the best. So sad. RIP Garry Shandling
— marc maron (@marcmaron) March 24, 2016
Additionally, comedian Kevin McDonald has posted a series of anecdotal tweets recalling the time director Judd Apatow offered to introduce him to Shandling. Fellow comic Dave Foley replied to Mcdonald with his own memory of the actor and comedian.
I cannot believe that Gary Shandling is dead. He was a genius who changed comedy and TV comedy for the better. Once I was doing a pilot…
— Kevin MCDonald (@kevinthekith) March 24, 2016
@kevinthekith … "Do you want to meet Gary Shandling?" But there was a lot of noise and I thought he said "Have you ever met Gary…
— Kevin MCDonald (@kevinthekith) March 24, 2016
@kevinthekith … Shandling?" So I said no. Judd looked confused and walked away and I never met Gary Shandling. This is a giant loss…
— Kevin MCDonald (@kevinthekith) March 24, 2016
@kevinthekith Gary came by to help on the NewsRadio pilot. I did meet him. Remember how much we loved "It's the Gary Shandling Show"?
— Dave Foley (@DaveSFoley) March 24, 2016
Apatow, who worked closely with Shandling as a producer on several episodes of Larry Sanders Show, also retweeted a couple of video clips. The first is from an episode of The Green Room with Paul Provenza featuring a conversation with Apatow, Shandling, Bo Burnham, Ray Romano, and Marc Maron. The second tweet features a scene from Apatow’s cult TV show, Freaks and Geeks, that pays homage to Shandling’s stand-up routine.
https://twitter.com/mikewarburton/status/713128418251038721
https://twitter.com/BillGrayHaHaHa/status/713118097994022914
The touching tributes show how widespread Shandling’s influence truly was, and how much he will be missed.
