>> garry shandling kept diaries his whole life so i made a documentary about his life and a lot of them telling the story of his life through his diary, so he had a real interesting buddhism and eastern religion so he was this great comedian but, privately, was struggling with containing his ego and trying to evolve as a person and becoming a more loving person. >> stephen: we have a couple of -- these are what -- these are the diaries, like that. these are just a couple of quotes you thought were particularly amicabl applicablee story you want to tell about gary. >> well, this one is the second one there, and he wrote, maybe your comedy is a natural gift to be given to others with joy to help them through this impossible life, and you sharing it with no desire of getting anything. >> stephen: wow. that's very generous. >> i knew him for 25 years, and, you know, when you open some of his diaries, you don't know what you're going to read. it could be terrible. and that's what it was. >> stephen: you worked on this show, the larry sanders show. there's you. >> yeah. ( cheers and applause

he's the tv alter ego of comedian garry shandling. >> garry shandling wanted to do a show that deconstructed you're talking to me till we're off the air so it won't seem weird. >> okay. blah, blah, blah, blah. >> "the larry sanders show" was sort of cathartic. because in the world of "the larry sanders show," there was a network. >> you want me to [ bleep ] your budget? is that what you want me to do? >> so it became this weird funhouse mirror thing, where you could use stuff from your misery, your career, as fodder. >> don't take this as a threat but i killed a man like you in korea, hand to hand. my boy doesn't want to do any more commercials. >> larry sanders to me was, aside from being a brilliant television show -- >> can you say, hey now. >> hey now. >> it was my everyday life. >> i'm here for three good reasons. last show. big ratings. movie coming out. bim, bam, boom. >> "the larry sanders show" was very unique in that it was very deadpan. and really groundbreaking in its day. >> i think it made people really go, that's the level of work you may be able to do on a cable network. >> "

. >> it's the garry shandling show. >> people were taking the old principles of comedy and trying toramas and talk shows and we knew them by heart, that if somebody played on that and parodied it, we got it instantly. >> i appreciate you coming in under these conditions, lewis, i really do. you want to hold the credits? we were going to show the credits and you screwed that up because you're late. >> "the garry shandling show" was aware that it was a situation comedy. it highlighted the cliches in funny ways. >> are you looking into the camera? >> no. no, i didn't -- >> don't look into the camera. >> i didn't. >> don't. you don't come in here and look into the camera. >> i didn't. >> i'll bop you. i will. if i see a tape of this show and you're looking into the camera -- >> well, it's about that time. >> "pee-wee's playhouse" on cbs, a so-called saturday morning kids' show that adults could watch and wink at each other as they were watching it is very clever. >> good morning. >> what's today's secret word? >> the secret word is -- good! >> it was a show certainly for kids, and it was