This is the theme to Garry’s show…
Garry Shandling (Garry Shandling) has decided to start a sitcom. He’s ready. He has his sitcom house and platonic best friend Nancy Bancroft (Molly Cheek) and also get to visit with his best friend Pete Schumaker (Michael Tucci), his wife Jackie (Bernadette Birkett), and their son Gant (Scott Nemes). Garry’s set to explore love, loss, and even will invite the audience along for the journey. It might be Garry’s show but it’s Garry’s neurotic life and problems too.
It’s Garry Shandling’s Show—Season 1 is a post-modern sitcom. The season originally aired on Showtime from September 10, 1986 to April 10, 1987. It was bought by FOX and became an early staple on the network in 1988.
I always knew Vanna was a petty thief!
I loved It’s Garry Shandling’s Show when I watched it on FOX and vividly remember some of the episodes (like the “Laffie” episode). Even though I was young, I knew it was something really different and it was also really fun. It’s Garry Shandling’s Show holds up
The series uses an approach that is somewhat common now (at least in some format) in that the audience and the viewers are part of the show. Garry frequently asks them questions, addresses them, and sometimes scolds them (when the audience makes a mess when Garry is doing something in another scene). It is weird and something that wasn’t being done when this show was made. It is a combination of a talk show and sitcom…and completely original.
Garry…a man of the future!
The series takes its plotlines from sitcom clichés. Garry faces a bully, Garry gets robbed, Garry worries about a psychic prediction, etc. It then takes these tropes and plays with them in a means that is generally smart and clever. There are some jokes and themes in the show that haven’t aged well (like a lot of the comedy of years past), but for the most part there is a wholesome honesty to the show that feels real.
Garry Shandling makes the show. At the time he was heating up, a frequent guest host of The Tonight Show and a potential heir apparent to Johnny Carson. Watching Judd Apatow’s The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, you get some background into the neurosis that drove Shandling and why something like a sitcom could backfire, but in this early season he is still 100% committed to the series. In addition to Garry and the rest of the cast, the show frequently featured guest stars like Vanna White, Norman Fell, Ian Abercrombie, astronaut Pete Conrad, June Lockhart, Rob Reiner, Red Buttons, and Marty Allen (generally playing themselves).
It’s not Jo-Jo, it’s Jodi, asshole
A great example of the show’s innovation is the “It’s Garry’s Problem, but It’s Jo-Jo’s Show” episode which featured an actual cable provider contest winner who was supposed to have a guest spot on the show. Instead the whole show circles around Jo-Jo…until Garry’s own issues sabotage the plans and Jo-Jo is discarded…It is cleverer than most sitcoms today (also, The Graduate episode is a personal favorite).
It’s Garry Shandling’s Show is a series that can seen as an example of how TV can grow and change over the years. Shandling’s unique take to a sitcom not only was one of the best sitcoms of the time, but it was also a standout decades later. Unfortunately for the series, it isn’t easy to come by despite the rise of streaming and the popularity of Garry’s follow-up series The Larry Sanders Show overshadowed this gem…seek it out!
It’s Garry Shandling’s Show—Season 1 Complete Episode Guide:
“The Day Garry Moved In”
1.1 The Day Garry Moved In Airdate: 09/10/86
Garry (Garry Shandling) moves into his new place next to his “platonic” friend Nancy Bancroft (Molly Cheek), but unfortunately while out with his friend Pete Schumaker (Michael Tucci) and his son Grant (Scott Nemes), Garry finds himself the victim of a crime…and is Vanna White to blame? Garry’s luck could change when he lands a date with his cable installer (Shawn Ora Engemann).
“Grant Gets Broken”
1.2 Grant Gets Broken Airdate: 09/17/86
Pete and his wife Jackie (Bernadette Birkett) are having relationship problems…and when Garry uses TV magic to arrange a getaway for them, he finds himself watching Grant for the weekend…but disaster strikes.
“Garry Throws a Surprise Party”
1.3 Garry Throws a Surprise Party Airdate: 09/24/86
Garry’s got a surprise for his mother (Barbara Cason) for her birthday…but his surprise could be fatal.
“Foul Ball”
1.4 Foul Ball Airdate: 10/01/86
A foul ball breaks Pete’s nose in front of Garry, Grant, and his Cub Scout group…having Pete worrying that Grant doesn’t respect him. Garry meets his head of the condominium association Leonard Smith (Paul Willson) who seems to have an interest in television.
“The Graduate”
1.5 The Graduate Airdate: 10/08/86
Garry learns It’s Garry Shandling’s Show has been picked up for a full season, but Garry finds his life complicated when his mother’s friend Mrs. Robertson (Bibi Besch) tries to seduce him.
“It’s Garry’s Problem, But It’s Jo-Jo’s Show”
1.6 It’s Garry’s Problem, But It’s Jo-Jo’s Show Airdate: 10/15/86
Jodi Jones (Jodi Jones) has won a contest to star in It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, and Garry is trying to make her comfortable…unfortunately Nancy’s friend Morgan (Christine Kellogg) has stopped by, and Jo-Jo might be sidelined.
“Garry Met a Girl Named Maria”
1.7 Garry Met a Girl Named Maria Airdate: 01/23/87
The set maid Maria Herrera (Kamala Lopez) is being deported to Guatemala, but Nancy’s suggestion that Garry marry Maria could backfire.
“Grant’s Date”
1.8 Grant’s Date Airdate: 01/30/87
Grant’s going on his first date, and Garry has agreed to chaperone. Grant’s date Kim Stevens (Priscilla Weems) might not be the best influence, and her crush on Garry could be a problem.
“Pete Has an Affair”
1.9 Pete Has an Affair Airdate: 02/06/87
Pete is a wreck after he cheats on Jackie, and Garry has to decide what he’s going to do about it.
“Fate”
1.10 Fate Airdate: 02/13/87
A psychic predicts that Nancy will be hurt on a date in the fifth act, and Garry tries to hold off Fate…who is played by Ian Abercrombie.
“The Morning After”
1.11 The Morning After Airdate: 02/20/87
Pete and Jackie have an anniversary party for Pete’s parents…but Garry learns something happened at the party that he doesn’t remember (and the flashback machine doesn’t work on).
“Sarah”
1.12 Sarah Airdate: 03/06/87
One of Larry’s great loves is returning to the area. In the hopes of starting their relationship again, Larry asks Sarah (Shawn Ora Engemann) out for a date…but Sarah has other ideas.
“Laffie”
1.13 Laffie Airdate: 03/13/87
When Garry and Nancy find a collie they nickname Laffie, their quest to find Laffie’s owner hits a snag when Leonard Smith (Paul Willson) orders them to get rid of Laffie.
“Dial ‘L’ for Laundry”
1.14 Dial ‘L’ for Laundry Airdate: 03/20/87
Garry finds he might have to break his lifelong vow to not fight when he meets a woman named Sylvia (Claudia Christian) while doing laundry and faces her jealous ex (Chris Mulkey). Plus, Rob Reiner is looking for work, and Garry could help.
“Dinner with Garry”
1.15 Dinner with Garry Airdate: 04/03/87
Larry is trying to hook up his mother on a date and sees his doctor Paul Derwin (Dennis Patrick) as a potential romantic match.
“Force Boxman”
1.16 Force Boxman Airdate: 04/10/87
Garry has decided leave his show to make a gritty New York police series called Force Boxman. With Garry gone, Red Buttons has moved in and life goes on…but Garry has regrets.
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