Judd Apatow
Producer/writer/director extraordinaire Judd Apatow was fixated on comedy from the get-go. “I was obsessed with the Marx Brothers as a kid, and I’d buy every book about them and study them compulsively … I was fascinated by who they really were, and how those movies got made. Looking back, it seems super weird,” he laughs as we chat on the phone.
From then on, Apatow did everything in his power to be close to the comic realm, starting with frequenting the club where his mother worked as a hostess. “I had always been obsessed with comedy, but to see it in a club back then was so exciting because no one even understood what a comedy club was.” He continues: “I was always attracted to this idea that people could express themselves and complain about things — it helps us all process the weird feelings and experiences we were having. I just felt like one of them.” He would launch a stand-up career his senior year of high school.
Although he started small, the funnyman found his niche, and has gone on to spawn his very own subgenre of comedy marked with repeat key players, a rotating cast of familiar faces, and defining themes — Apatow’s works are softhearted at the core, often championing the underdog. Apatow’s latest project, HBO’s Crashing, fits the bill, and at the same time, it celebrates his roots, paying homage to the stand-up scene. “With stand-up comedy, in some ways, I feel like everything else has been a detour. I love all of it, but that was the original dream,” he says.
Executive produced by Apatow and Pete Holmes (and also starring Holmes), the show revolves around a tragically nice-guy comedian who catches his cheating wife in the act. To cope, Holmes’s sweet-to-a-fault, roughly autobiographical character spends his time “crashing” on couches while working the New York stand-up circuit.
“[Holmes’s] life is an original one, with his journey from religious guy to comedy star — it’s really fun and odd in a way that’s enjoyable to watch,” says Apatow on Crashing. “A lot of the show is about a religious person navigating the dark world of comedy where there are a lot of temptations. Even though there are a lot of shows about comedians, there’s some new terrain here …”
In honor of Crashing, which premieres February 19 on HBO at 10:30 p.m., we took a look back at Apatow’s career leading up to this moment.
On December 6, 1967, Judd Apatow is born in Flushing, New York.
As a fifth grader, Apatow creates a 30-page report on the Marx Brothers. He bribes a friend with superior penmanship to write it out for him. “I think I liked that they were chaotic and attacked all the rich, handsome people and I must have related to them in some primal way which is probably why they were popular to begin with,” Apatow recalls.
Apatow devises a plan to actually break into the comedy realm he so badly wants to be a part of. In tenth grade, he starts working at his Syosset, Long Island high school radio station, WKWZ. He dubs his show “Comedy Club.” After contacting comedy publicists to request on-air interviews for the program, Apatow scores several notable comedian guests — including Jerry Seinfeld in 1983.
During the mid-late ‘80s, Apatow pounds the pavement, regularly volunteering for Comic Relief fundraisers, introducing comics at L.A.’s Improv theater, and even appearing on the TV series, Comic Strip Live. When he’s turned down by Jim Henson to appear in a show (although Henson expresses interest in buying his ideas), Apatow realizes his strength is more in writing.
Apatow gets the opportunity to executive produce The Ben Stiller Show, which is canceled after just one season despite scoring a Primetime Emmy. From there, Apatow would join HBO’s The Larry Sanders Show, in its second season at the time, in a writing and production capacity. The show would last six seasons, running through 1998.
Heavy Weights premieres. It’s his first big-screen project — Apatow wrote and executive produced the film. And, an important connection is made: Paul Feig, who would later create Freaks and Geeks and direct Bridesmaids, played a camp counselor in the film.
Freaks and Geeks premieres, which Apatow executive produced. Time crowns it number two on their list of 1999’s best shows (The Sopranos takes the top spot). The now-cult-classic, with a cast of now-major names in comedy, is canceled after only 12 of 18 filmed episodes aired.
After taking a break from writing to read and do stand-up, Apatow produces 2004’s Anchorman. There he’d meet Steve Carell, a muse for his next big project.
2007 is a busy year. Knocked Up, Apatow’s second-ever big-screen project as director premieres. A few months later in August, so does Superbad, which he produced.
Apatow collaborates with Freaks and Geeks creator Paul Feig to produce Bridesmaids, co-written by and starring Kristen Wiig. Bridesmaids (which just so happens to our favorite Apatow film to date) would become his highest-grossing movie at $288 million.
Trainwreck, directed and produced by Apatow, and written by and starring Amy Schumer, premieres. It’s dubbed his most “polished and mature film” by Vulture critics.
A 7-year-old, comedy-obsessed Apatow dresses as Harpo Marx for Halloween. Through the mid- to late-70s, he’d expand his comedy horizons via movies and especially television: Saturday Night Live and SCTV were favorites.
Apatow, now a high-schooler, rubs elbows with the comics that frequent the club where his mother works as a hostess. At this venue, the East End Comedy Club in Southampton, New York, Apatow catches sets from Jay Leno, J.J. Wall, and more. Apatow then accepts a dishwasher gig at East Side Comedy Club in Huntington. Then-up-and-comers like Rosie O’Donnell and Eddie Murphy frequent the club.
High-school senior Apatow begins dabbling in stand-up comedy. Upon graduation in 1985, he heads west to study screenwriting at the University of Southern California, which he’d drop out of after two years. In L.A., he continues to moonlight as a standup comedian.
Apatow, now 23, befriends Ben Stiller after meeting him outside of an Elvis Costello show. During this period, Apatow’s roommate is none other than Adam Sandler.
Apatow marries actress Leslie Mann. The two had first met at Mann’s 1996 audition for The Cable Guy, which Apatow produced. When they first crossed paths, Mann was more into the film’s director, Ben Stiller. In the following years, Apatow and Mann would welcome two daughters, and also collaborate on many projects.
Apatow discovers Seth Rogen at a Vancouver open casting call for Freaks and Geeks. The duo would go on to work on many, many projects together.
On the heels of the cancellation of Freaks and Geeks, Apatow creates sitcom Undeclared. It too would be dropped after just one season.
Apatow makes his movie directorial debut with The 40-Year-Old Virgin, in addition to producing and writing it. The film, starring and co-written by Steve Carell, is a success, racking up nearly $110 million domestically, and $68 million abroad.
2008 brings a slew of big releases with ties to the funnyman: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Pineapple Express, and Step Brothers premiere this year.
In April of 2012, Girls, executive produced by Apatow and created, written by, and starring then-up-and-comer Lena Dunham debuts on HBO. Nearly five years later, the sixth and final season of the critically acclaimed series is upon us.
While shooting Trainwreck, Apatow got back into stand-up by taking the mic at the Comedy Cellar: “I’d go in there every night and do stand-up after the day of shooting. One night, I got bumped for Ray Romano, and then I got bumped for Andrew Dice Clay, so I had to follow both of them,” he recalls. “That’s the kind of thing that only happens in places like the Comedy Cellar. As I was doing my act, Andrew Dice Clay just stood in the back of the room watching, which was both delightful and unnerving, because in high school, I was a dishwasher at the East Side Comedy Club on Long Island, and I used to watch Andrew Dice Clay when he first started doing stand-up.”
The much-anticipated premiere of HBO’s Crashing airs February 19 at 10:30 p.m. With Crashing, Apatow pays homage to the stand-up scene that was his entry-point to a career in comedy. Read our full conversation with Apatow here.
On December 6, 1967, Judd Apatow is born in Flushing, New York.
A 7-year-old, comedy-obsessed Apatow dresses as Harpo Marx for Halloween. Through the mid- to late-70s, he’d expand his comedy horizons via movies and especially television: Saturday Night Live and SCTV were favorites.
As a fifth grader, Apatow creates a 30-page report on the Marx Brothers. He bribes a friend with superior penmanship to write it out for him. “I think I liked that they were chaotic and attacked all the rich, handsome people and I must have related to them in some primal way which is probably why they were popular to begin with,” Apatow recalls.
Apatow, now a high-schooler, rubs elbows with the comics that frequent the club where his mother works as a hostess. At this venue, the East End Comedy Club in Southampton, New York, Apatow catches sets from Jay Leno, J.J. Wall, and more. Apatow then accepts a dishwasher gig at East Side Comedy Club in Huntington. Then-up-and-comers like Rosie O’Donnell and Eddie Murphy frequent the club.
Apatow devises a plan to actually break into the comedy realm he so badly wants to be a part of. In tenth grade, he starts working at his Syosset, Long Island high school radio station, WKWZ. He dubs his show “Comedy Club.” After contacting comedy publicists to request on-air interviews for the program, Apatow scores several notable comedian guests — including Jerry Seinfeld in 1983.
High-school senior Apatow begins dabbling in stand-up comedy. Upon graduation in 1985, he heads west to study screenwriting at the University of Southern California, which he’d drop out of after two years. In L.A., he continues to moonlight as a standup comedian.
During the mid-late ‘80s, Apatow pounds the pavement, regularly volunteering for Comic Relief fundraisers, introducing comics at L.A.’s Improv theater, and even appearing on the TV series, Comic Strip Live. When he’s turned down by Jim Henson to appear in a show (although Henson expresses interest in buying his ideas), Apatow realizes his strength is more in writing.
Apatow, now 23, befriends Ben Stiller after meeting him outside of an Elvis Costello show. During this period, Apatow’s roommate is none other than Adam Sandler.
Apatow gets the opportunity to executive produce The Ben Stiller Show, which is canceled after just one season despite scoring a Primetime Emmy. From there, Apatow would join HBO’s The Larry Sanders Show, in its second season at the time, in a writing and production capacity. The show would last six seasons, running through 1998.
Heavy Weights premieres. It’s his first big-screen project — Apatow wrote and executive produced the film. And, an important connection is made: Paul Feig, who would later create Freaks and Geeks and direct Bridesmaids, played a camp counselor in the film.
Apatow marries actress Leslie Mann. The two had first met at Mann’s 1996 audition for The Cable Guy, which Apatow produced. When they first crossed paths, Mann was more into the film’s director, Ben Stiller. In the following years, Apatow and Mann would welcome two daughters, and also collaborate on many projects.
Apatow discovers Seth Rogen at a Vancouver open casting call for Freaks and Geeks. The duo would go on to work on many, many projects together.
Freaks and Geeks premieres, which Apatow executive produced. Time crowns it number two on their list of 1999’s best shows (The Sopranos takes the top spot). The now-cult-classic, with a cast of now-major names in comedy, is canceled after only 12 of 18 filmed episodes aired.
On the heels of the cancellation of Freaks and Geeks, Apatow creates sitcom Undeclared. It too would be dropped after just one season.
After taking a break from writing to read and do stand-up, Apatow produces 2004’s Anchorman. There he’d meet Steve Carell, a muse for his next big project.
Apatow makes his movie directorial debut with The 40-Year-Old Virgin, in addition to producing and writing it. The film, starring and co-written by Steve Carell, is a success, racking up nearly $110 million domestically, and $68 million abroad.
2007 is a busy year. Knocked Up, Apatow’s second-ever big-screen project as director premieres. A few months later in August, so does Superbad, which he produced.
2008 brings a slew of big releases with ties to the funnyman: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Pineapple Express, and Step Brothers premiere this year.
Apatow collaborates with Freaks and Geeks creator Paul Feig to produce Bridesmaids, co-written by and starring Kristen Wiig. Bridesmaids (which just so happens to our favorite Apatow film to date) would become his highest-grossing movie at $288 million.
In April of 2012, Girls, executive produced by Apatow and created, written by, and starring then-up-and-comer Lena Dunham debuts on HBO. Nearly five years later, the sixth and final season of the critically acclaimed series is upon us.
While shooting Trainwreck, Apatow got back into stand-up by taking the mic at the Comedy Cellar: “I’d go in there every night and do stand-up after the day of shooting. One night, I got bumped for Ray Romano, and then I got bumped for Andrew Dice Clay, so I had to follow both of them,” he recalls. “That’s the kind of thing that only happens in places like the Comedy Cellar. As I was doing my act, Andrew Dice Clay just stood in the back of the room watching, which was both delightful and unnerving, because in high school, I was a dishwasher at the East Side Comedy Club on Long Island, and I used to watch Andrew Dice Clay when he first started doing stand-up.”
Trainwreck, directed and produced by Apatow, and written by and starring Amy Schumer, premieres. It’s dubbed his most “polished and mature film” by Vulture critics.
The much-anticipated premiere of HBO’s Crashing airs February 19 at 10:30 p.m. With Crashing, Apatow pays homage to the stand-up scene that was his entry-point to a career in comedy. Read our full conversation with Apatow here.
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