When Garry Shandling passed away in 2016, we didn’t just lose one of the greatest comedians of all time, but a man who had turned into a mentor for so many other stand-up comics. Judd Apatow, a student and close friend of Shandling’s, eulogizes the comedian in the excellent documentary The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, which premiered on HBO this spring and is available today through digital download. (A DVD release was pushed back to an undetermined date later this year.) Zen Diaries is a loving but honest look at a man whose influence on comedy was greater than many today realized, and a fantastic coda to the uncompromising career that gave us the classic sitcoms It’s Garry Shandling’s Show and The Larry Sanders Show.
The digital release includes the original film, which runs for over four hours, along with a variety of new bonus features. Those bonuses include expanded interviews, a conversation between Shandling and Jerry Seinfeld, a never-before-seen interview with Jeff Goldblum, and, what we’re most excited for, classic Shandling stand-up performances that aren’t available anywhere else. Here’s a short clip from that footage, available exclusively here at Paste, with Shandling telling some extremely relatable stories about his dad’s eating and bathroom habits. You can check that out below and find all of The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling on digital outlets today.
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