David Steinberg
David Steinberg
David Steinbergis a Canadian comedian, actor, writer, director, and author. At the height of his popularity, during the late 1960s and early 1970s, he was one of the best-known comics in the United States. He appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson more than 130 timesand served as guest host 12 times, the youngest person ever to guest-host. Steinberg directed several films and episodes of television situation comedies, including Seinfeld, Friends, Mad About You, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Designing...
NationalityCanadian
ProfessionComedian
Date of Birth9 August 1942
CityWinnipeg, Canada
CountryCanada
The worst thing that can happen to a comedian is to do a documentary on your life and you're watching it with an audience and there's not a laugh.
My influences were Woody Allen and Lenny Bruce.
Great Canadian comics are often outsiders and insiders at the same time. That's a great perspective for a comedian.
Being a lawyer in New York sucks because you're working eighty, sometimes a hundred hours a week.
The odd thing about comedy is that the more personal you are, the larger the audience.
I don't believe any particular ethnic group is smarter than any other group.
I don't really dissect comedy. Nothing kills off humor more than overanalyzing it.
A spontaneous interview feels differently than anything else you see on television.
The interesting thing about improvisation is you're making something up in front of the audience. Now music helps you out a little bit because you have an instrument that'll separate you from the audience.
Here's the rule that I set for myself, and I believe it - even on a show like 'Curb Your Enthusiasm': the more personal you are, the wider your audience.
Silences are the most underrated part of comedy.
I rewrote it and I took all your notes. Read it again, that kind of persistence paid off.
Comedians talk to other comedians the way jazz musicians can talk to each other.
My father was a rabbi and had a little synagogue in Canada, so I'm from Canada. I left there at 16.