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From The Archives

  1. from the archives
    The Death and Life of Truman Capote“My life is so strange — it’s not like anybody else’s,” Capote said. And it wasn’t — his friendships and feuds were more intense, his talent greater.
    By Julie Baumgold
  2. from the archives
    Truman Capote Bites the Hands That Fed HimWhy the jet set was outraged by their favorite author in 1976.
    By Liz Smith
  3. reread
    Tom Wolfe’s Worldview Came Into Focus In New YorkThe new documentary “Radical Wolfe” captures a singular writer whose story is bound up with our own—as you can read in his freshly-digitized archive.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  4. from the archives
    The ‘Dead Ringers’ Story: The Strange Death of the Twin GynecologistsA former patient’s notes, published in New York Magazine in 1975.
    By Linda Wolfe
  5. from the archives
    Is Friends Still the Most Popular Show on TV?Why so many 20-somethings want to stream a 20-year-old sitcom about a bunch of 20-somethings sitting around in a coffee shop.
    By Adam Sternbergh
  6. from the archives
    Looking Back at Robert Smigel’s Saturday TV Funhouse PilotFeaturing a young Stephen Colbert as Grimy the Talking Outhouse.
    By Ramsey Ess
  7. snl
    The Long, Intertwined History of Paul Simon, Lorne Michaels, and SNLPaul Simon and Lorne Michaels go way back.
    By Ramsey Ess
  8. from the archives
    Looking Back at I, Martin Short, Goes HollywoodShort’s 1989 special is one of the closest things there is to an episode of SCTV after that series ended in 1984.
    By Ramsey Ess
  9. from the archives
    The Forgotten Film From The Dick Van Dyke Show’s Morey Amsterdam and Rose MarieA look back on the cameo-packed 1966 comedy Don’t Worry, We’ll Think of a Title.
    By Ramsey Ess
  10. from the archives
    Looking for Lost Monty Python Material? Look No FurtherLooking back at the group’s Hastily Cobbled Together for a Fast Buck Album.
    By Ramsey Ess
  11. from the archives
    Looking Back at Jerry Seinfeld: Comedian (Without the Cars and Coffee)Revisiting the 2002 documentary featuring Seinfeld and Orny Adams.
    By Ramsey Ess
  12. from the archives
    The George Carlin Show Introduces Carlin to Television (Briefly)Remembering George Carlin and Sam Simon’s short-lived Fox sitcom.
    By Ramsey Ess
  13. from the archives
    The Making of Tom Wolfe’s ‘Radical Chic’Remembering the story that helped put New York on the map.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  14. Before ‘Rick and Morty,’ Dan Harmon Tried to Reinvent Acceptable […]The idea of entertainment as an entity separate from the internet is one that is for the most part dead. Every movie must have social media […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  15. from the archives
    Garry Shandling and Ricky Gervais’s Epic Sparring MatchLooking back on an incredibly awkward interview between the high-energy Brit and Zen-energy American.
    By Ramsey Ess
  16. An Appreciation of the Button-Down Mind of Bob NewhartQuick Warning: This article spoils a minor plot point from the first episode of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Reading this won’t ruin your […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  17. O.J. Simpson Interview Promoting His Scrapped If I Did It Book Will Finally AirThe controversial interview detailed how Simpson would have killed Nicole Brown Simpson — if he had actually committed the crime.
    By Jordan Crucchiola and Maria Elena Fernandez
  18. Looking Back at Alan Partridge’s First Show: 25 Years of Alan Partridge […]There is a chance, especially if you are living in America, that you may not know who Alan Partridge is. Played by Steve Coogan, Partridge is […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  19. from the archives
    Dave Foley Gets Into the Holiday Special SpiritHoliday specials, for the most part, are a family affair. In general, they are (at best) sweet adventures or (at worst) cloying cash-grabs. […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  20. from the archives
    How the Late-Night Monologue Got TopicalA short history featuring Johnny Carson, Dick Cavett, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, and Stephen Colbert.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  21. Take a Good Look at Ernie Kovacs’ Incredibly Strange Game ShowErnie Kovacs was a genius. There’s no way around that. Carson, Letterman, and Conan have all cited him as an influence, and there have been […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  22. A Lost Script from the Files of the ‘Police Squad!’Airplane! The Naked Gun. Kentucky Fried Movie. When it comes to the classics of modern comedy, Zucker, Abrahams & Zucker were kings. After […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  23. Satirizing Two Birds with One Bush: Looking Back at ‘That’s My Bush!’Anthony Atamanuik’s The President Show is unlike anything else on television right now. It takes a current-day public figure and satirizes him […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  24. twin peaks at 30
    Why Is America So Fascinated With Twin Peaks?Revisiting a 1990 New York magazine cover story.
    By John Leonard
  25. ‘Mystery Science Theater 3000’s Local TV OriginsGuys, there’s so much TV now. There are a million channels, with new ones launching constantly, and then tons of streaming platforms, with new […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  26. from the archives
    That Time Dave Did His Show Inside a Hotel Room“What exactly am I doing here?”
    By Ramsey Ess
  27. from the archives
    Revisiting David Letterman’s 1987 Writers RoomThe relatively normal bunch of guys behind what was perhaps the creative peak of Late Night.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  28. When Feig, Apatow, Cross, and Hodgson Spun the ‘TV Wheel’ What innovations are there in television? Multi-camera filming, laugh tracks, color, the variety show, cable, reality TV, HD, digital […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  29. Celebrate Awards Season ‘98 with ‘Mystery Science Theater 3000’ We are once again firmly entrenched in Hollywood’s favorite time of year: award season. As a nation we will thrill and speculate who will […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  30. There’s Never Been a Better Time to Revisit ‘Rocky and Bullwinkle’ I generally try not to timestamp these articles, because who knows? Someday somebody’s going to be searching for information about Woody […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  31. Unearthing a Rare 1971 Monty Python Film All About Peas Let’s say you suddenly found yourself in charge of a major corporation. If you’re good at your job, imagine you’d probably try to steer the […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  32. There’s Never a Bad Time to Revisit ‘Clone High’ In our current political climate, it’s not surprising that many Americans might be drawn towards the past to compare the great leaders of […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  33. Looking Back at the Albums of the National Lampoon Between Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead and Netflix’s upcoming film about the early days of the National Lampoon, anyone who has, like, four […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  34. Mel Brooks Destroyed at Radio City Music Hall Last NightMel Brooks won’t sit down. The good people at Radio City Music Hall have set up two chairs on stage, one for the moderator Kevin Salter and one […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  35. from the archives
    Looking Back at 40-Plus Years of ‘Fall Preview’ PicksRocky seemed promising! But so did Cop Rock.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  36. Bob Odenkirk, Fred Armisen, and Zach Galifianakis’ 2002 Sketch Show of […] Not long ago, media writers were talking about a “sketch boom” with shows like Inside Amy Schumer, Portlandia, Kroll Show, Key & Peele, […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  37. Looking Back at Bruce McCulloch’s ‘Carpoolers’ Bruce McCulloch has always done things differently, whether it was with The Kids in the Hall, or his comedy albums, or his book or his TV […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  38. Rediscovering Danny DeVito’s Long-Lost Directorial Debut If I had a dollar for every article I’ve tried to write about a piece of comedy that is lost forever due to time, or the constraints of live […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  39. Inside Graham Chapman and Douglas Adams’ Lost Sketch Show ‘Out of the […] In 1974, when Monty Python’s Flying Circus came to a close, without John Cleese, the members of the troupe knew they weren’t quite finished. […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  40. from the archives
    New York’s First Impressions of 9 Legendary TV ComediesLooking back at season one, episode one of Saturday Night Live, All in the Family, 30 Rock, and more.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  41. 25 Years Later: Was ‘Herman’s Head’ Any Good? Before 1989 there were three big television networks and none of them were Fox. Then came The Simpsons and by gum, that put them on the map. […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  42. ‘Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel’: The Lost Radio Show of Groucho and Chico We live in an era in which the idea of a “lost” TV show has completely vanished. I mean, I guess you could have a hard drive crash or […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  43. Looking Back at Martin Short’s First Prime-Time Show Martin Short has had two different programs on TV known as The Martin Short Show: a sitcom in 1994, and a talk show in 1999 (I wrote about […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  44. from the archives
    How New York Magazine Covered the O.J. Simpson VerdictHiring Norman Mailer on a very short deadline.
    By Christopher Bonanos
  45. from the archives
    Broadway’s Survival Was a Legitimate Question 20 Years AgoRevisiting Michael Goldstein’s 1995 New York cover story, “Can Broadway Be Saved?”
    By Christopher Bonanos
  46. Fred Allen, King of Radio, Takes on TelevisionIf you’ve never heard of Fred Allen, “cranky” might be a good introductory word. From 1933-1949 he was one of the comedian kings of radio, but […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  47. Looking Back at Chris Rock the Talk Show Host The Paley Center for Media, which has locations in both New York and LA, dedicates itself to the preservation of television and radio […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  48. When Bob and Ray Stormed Carnegie Hall Sadly, this week we lost a legend of comedy with the passing of Bob Elliott at the age of 92. Bob had a long career in comedy, beginning in […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  49. Mel Brooks’ Forgotten Pilot ‘Inside Danny Baker’ Mel Brooks may not be best known for his television career, but without it we probably wouldn’t have a Mel Brooks. He began as a writer on […]
    By Ramsey Ess
  50. Looking Back at When Andy Richter Controlled the Universe Andy Richter’s career has had many stages. Today he sits alongside Conan O’Brien as he hosts his talk show on TBS which works as a parallel […]
    By Ramsey Ess
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