The Improv
Ever hear the one about the aspiring Broadway producer who rented out a recently defunct Vietnamese restaurant in the heart of New York’s theater district and accidentally changed the course of American comedy? It’s no joke—his name is Budd Friedman, and his legendary club helped reshape the stand-up comedy landscape that is still a staple of entertainment today. The Improv is the first-ever an oral history of the most important comedy club in America, emceed by Budd Friedman himself, and featuring in-depth interviews with some of the most important names in comedy—including Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Jimmy Fallon, Bill Maher, Richard Lewis, Robert Klein, Larry David, Billy Crystal, Bette Midler, Lily Tomlin, Judd Apatow, Al Franken, Paul Reiser, Howie Mandel, Bob Saget, Dick Cavett, Paul Provenza, Drew Carey and many more—telling it like it is about how this game-changing entertainment institution came to be.
