Bob Hope's radio shows brought stand-up to the masses

Will Rogers' political humor was an early predecessor to stand-up

Rogers got his start spinning ropes for circus shows and broke through his association with Florence Zeigfeld's Follies and Frolic. It was his humorous political commentary, though, that would solidify his celebrity status. His goodhearted ribbing of society's "big men" predated the common notion of stand-up comedians as truth-telling jesters.

How HBO pioneered the hourlong stand-up comedy special

Stand-up comedy was already on television in the 1970s thanks to Johnny Carson, but comics were limited to clean sets that typically lasted five minutes. HBO, on the other hand, offered stand-ups the opportunity to air their unadulterated material like they would at a club.

Stand-up became more popular during the Great Depression

The stock market crash of 1929 caused vaudeville theaters to shutter. Audiences were looking for lighthearted distractions from the country’s financial problems, though, and stand-up became more popular, albeit in very different venues.

HBO premiered the modern stand-up special in 1975

When they appeared on TV, stand-ups were typically limited to five-minute spots on late-night talk shows, like "The Tonight Show." That changed with the fledgling HBO, which offered comics hourlong slots. The first was "An Evening with Robert Klein," a special that would define "the hour" for decades.

Mark Twain was an early influence on stand-up

The writer’s live lectures looked a lot like modern stand-up comedy specials. Twain’s world tour in the 1890s featured 90-minute performances in which he stood alone on the stage, delivering long, comedic monologues with his hand perched on his chin.

Radio quiz shows took off in the '40s

The concept took hold during the Great Depression, with 50 shows on the air by 1940, because they allowed families to imagine a financial windfall was just a few questions away. Although the genre had a slight downturn during World War II, it experienced a resurgence by the end of the decade, with 200 shows on the air.

Stand-up arrived in the late 19th century

Vaudeville theaters featured family-friendly comics, often working in teams, to execute tightly written comedic back-and-forths. Burlesque, vaudeville’s bawdier offshoot, often featured single comics delivering rapid-fire, joke-filled sets.

Mel Brooks got his first big break in 1950 as a writer on Sid Caesar's 'Your Show of Shows,' a pioneering TV variety show.

Stand-up comedy podcasts have realigned political campaigns

Some of the world’s most popular podcasts, like “The Joe Rogan Experience” and “This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von,” are hosted by stand-up comedians. They also now play a role in American politics, with representatives, senators, and even presidents taking part in their freewheeling conversations

Johnny Carson was a stand-up kingmaker

While it was on the air, “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” was a prime outlet for stand-up comedy. Getting invited over to Carson’s couch meant he’d enjoyed the set—and that the comic was destined for great success.

Edgier burlesque shows helped define the form

Stand-up came into its own at burlesque shows, thanks to audiences who sought humor that reflected the hectic, urban settings where they lived. According to historian Joseph Boskin, “The tempo of the comedy, like the movement of city streets, was swift and jolting and possessed highly recognizable parameters.”

At its core, stand-up is about a comic making a crowd laugh

The performance style typically features a single performer who aims to make an audience laugh. It evolved from 19th and 20th-century American comedy traditions and has since grown into an influential—and commercially successful—international artistic form.

Lenny Bruce's stand-up challenged US law

Bruce came up in burlesque theaters, but began to find success as stand-up comedy developed a more political and subversive bent. His sets often satirized what he believed to be an oppressively conformist society, which led to his arrest on several occasions.

In the 2000s, Dylan began hosting a weekly radio show

Bob Dylan remained unpredictable, even 40 years into his career. Look no further than his satellite radio show from the 2000s, which found the legendary singer-songwriter riffing on a different theme every week. In this episode that theme is “Nothing.” He talks about Dr. Dre’s “Nuthin’ but a G Thang,” quotes several lines from Shakespeare, and speaks at length about his love for the musical “Porgy and Bess.” It’s a wild, unpredictable ride, just like the rest of his career.

Stand-up Marc Maron invented the modern comedy podcast

In 2009, Marc Maron created his podcast “WTF,” featuring the stand-up holding long, candid conversations with an eclectic selection of guests. That template now defines modern podcasting, including some of the medium’s most popular shows.

Comedic roasts, an ironic inversion of toasting, took off in the 20th century

Ribbing amongst friends likely goes back to the dawn of man, but formalizing the act caught on with fundraisers held by the Friar’s Club, a New York organization for theater agents. Rather than raising their glasses to good fortune and health, comics eviscerate an “honoree”—along with everyone else on stage—though they usually conclude with an earnest toast.

Chris Rock believes TV ruined stand-up

Chris Rock is one of comedy’s stand-up superstars, breaking through with several specials in the ‘90s. In this interview with stand-up legend David Steinberg, Rock explains how comics began working towards landing a spot on TV rather than focusing on creating a long, inspired stand-up set.

'Vox Pop' gave ordinary contestants the chance to win quick cash

The radio show began in 1932 with man-on-the-street interviews in Houston, but soon began traveling to different locations around the country. The show became known for its quiz feature, which offered $1 for each question randomly picked people answered correctly. The show was a hit, not only because audiences could imagine themselves in the contestants’ shoes, but also because it was relatively inexpensive for the network to produce.

Before he was known as a folk singer, Woody Guthrie was a popular radio host in Los Angeles.

Bob Newhart was the first comedian to have a chart-topping album with his 1960 record 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart.'

Vaudeville performer Charley Case is widely considered the first stand-up comedian.

Jean Carroll was one of the first women to make a name in stand-up comedy

Carroll cut her teeth in vaudeville alongside Buddy Howe, her husband, who later became her manager. Despite operating in a male-dominated field, she became a popular headliner and was a mainstay as a stand-up on "The Ed Sullivan Show," which led to her own sitcom.

One actor made a career out of playing Mark Twain

Hal Holbrook toured in the one-man show “Mark Twain Tonight!” for over six decades. In the performances, Holbrook wore Twain’s iconic white suit and offered witticisms similar to Twain’s famous lectures. Holbrook won a Tony Award in 1966 for a Broadway run of the show.

'Truth or Consequences' was the first TV quiz show

The game—which forced contestants who answered questions incorrectly to face "consequences" in the form of wacky stunts—debuted in 1941 with a one-off experimental broadcast on WNBT, then reappeared on NBC in 1950. In 1956, a fresh-faced Bob Barker made his television debut as the show's new host.

Franklin D. Roosevelt used radio to connect directly with Americans through his 'Fireside Chats'

Beginning in 1933, FDR harnessed the new medium of radio to explain policies and reassure the public during the Great Depression and World War II. His conversational fireside chats revolutionized presidential communication.

Learn about the history of soapbox speeches in the United States

From the 1890s to the 1960s, soapbox oratory was common across the US, with speakers gathering crowds in public spaces to share political, religious, and philosophical views.

Mel Brooks got his start in comedy by accidentally flubbing a scene in a play and turning it into a fourth-wall-breaking joke, something that would later become a hallmark of his humor.

'The Larry Sanders Show' redefined the American sitcom by removing audience laughter, a move that seemed counterintuitive for a television comedy.

Modern improv comedy, which eschews scripts and emphasizes listening, was developed by University of Chicago students in the early 1950s.

Soap operas were especially popular in the '70s and '80s

Shows like "As the World Turns" and "Love of Life" attracted tens of millions of viewers and had many high-profile fans, including Andy Warhol, Sammy Davis Jr. and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. This Time cover story from 1976 explores the pop culture phenomenon.

Dolly Parton hosted two separate variety television shows called 'Dolly.'

Steve Martin was vying for love on 'The Dating Game' before he was selling out arenas

In 1968, the 21-year-old Martin was a writer for the Smothers Brothers, who had a popular variety show. He appeared on “The Dating Game” as one of the bachelors, attempting to impress the twin sister of his childhood crush. (Spoiler: It worked.)

Steve Martin was a wildly successful stand-up—and abruptly quit doing it

In the ‘70s, few stand-up comics were bigger than Steve Martin, who released multiplatinum albums and regularly sold out arenas. As he detailed in his 2007 memoir, Martin had grown disillusioned with his success as a stand-up and pivoted into film.

Winning a Steve Martin look-alike contest led Bill Nye to pursue comedy

Doing impressions helped Nye realize he enjoyed making people laugh, and he pursued stand-up and comedy writing gigs while working at Boeing after college. On October 3, 1986, he left his engineering job to pursue a full-time career in the entertainment industry.

Watch a 1934 short film starring Cab Calloway

Singer and bandleader Cab Calloway was a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance's music scene. He was also one of the biggest names in jazz's swing era and would go on to be the first Black American to have a nationally syndicated radio show and the first to sell a million copies of a record. In this 1934 short film, "Cab Calloway's Hi-De-Ho," he reenacts his upbeat performances at Harlem's Cotton Club.

Mort Sahl released the first stand-up album

There were comedy records that came before “The Future Lies Ahead,” but Sahl’s 1958 album, released by jazz imprint Verve, was the first official recording that captured a complete stand-up set.

10 ways David Letterman changed late-night TV

Late-night TV is an American institution with its own tropes and traditions. While Johnny Carson is often noted as the model for late-night hosts, the modern notion of the format owes just as much (if not more) to David Letterman, who redefined the model in the early 1980s. This list from ABC News ranks the 10 ways Letterman accomplished that, using one of Letterman's classic bits to honor the man's legacy.

Hear Roosevelt's first 'Fireside Chat'

The president's casual radio addresses ditched the language of sloganeering and politiciking, intentionally framing the broadcasts as conversational explanations of current events and politics. The inaugural episode was broadcast in 1933, during the Great Depression, and outlined his plans to restore faith in the banking system.

Calvin Coolidge brought the State of the Union to the radio age

On Dec. 6, 1923, President Coolidge delivered his Annual Message from the US House chamber as millions listened by radio—crowds gathered outside with amplifiers—making it the first nationally broadcast address and the only in-person State of the Union of his presidency.

Watch Jon Stewart's unifying opening monologue during his first show back after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

A blend of brilliance and humor made Stephen Hawking's cameos unforgettable

Throughout his life, he appeared in numerous pop culture moments—from "The Simpsons" to "The Big Bang Theory"—showing his talent for comedy and his love of science outreach. He was the only person to play himself on "Star Trek: The Next Generation," even writing some of his own lines.

SNL's history in 60 seconds

Saturday Night Live has been a fixture of American comedy since 1975. Created by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol, the show was designed as an alternative to late-night reruns, blending live sketch comedy, political satire, and celebrity impressions.

'SNL' began as a low-budget replacement for reruns of 'The Tonight Show'

Johnny Carson, host of "The Tonight Show," asked NBC to move his reruns to weeknights instead of weekends. That freed up a weekend slot and the network decided to try a new live show.

Before 'SNL,' producer Lorne Michaels was a performer

Michaels was a costar on "The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour," a popular show on the Canadian network CBC. As these clips show, it was a standard variety show, something Michaels would intentionally react against with "SNL."

'Jeopardy!' was conceived as a way to earn back skeptical audiences' trust

In the wake of the ‘50s scandals, networks were reluctant to greenlight new quiz shows. Merv Griffin’s wife suggested he flip the formula on its head, providing contestants with the answers (the exact act that had led to the scandals) and asking them to provide the questions. “Jeopardy!” premiered in 1964, effectively reviving the genre. It eventually became the top-rated quiz show in history with 23 million viewers.

Watch Hank Azaria perform classic sports rants as 'Simpsons' characters

The actor has voiced some of the show's most beloved characters, including Moe Szyslak and Chief Wiggum. In 2025, he joined "The Rich Eisen Show" and used those voices to reimagine some of the sport's world's most ridiculous speeches.

Conan's 2000 commencement speech offers comfort and humor to young Harvard graduates

In the spring of 2000, famous late-night talk show host and comedian Conan O'Brien gave a hilarious, thoughtful speech to the graduating class at Harvard, where he graduated from in 1985. He warns that once adult life begins, any stupid mistakes made by a Harvard grad will be severely mocked. He also recounts his post-grad failures and how important they were in his success. The speech has been noted ever since as a classic example of both wisdom and foolishness.

A low-budget, Seattle-based comedy show launched Bill Nye's on-camera career

"Almost Live!" began in 1984 as a Sunday evening talk show before evolving into a sketch comedy show that served as the lead-in for "Saturday Night Live" on NBC's Seattle affiliate station. Besides Nye, TV stars Joel McHale and Lauren Weedman were regular cast members.

Existential dread still informs popular comedies

Although the Theater of the Absurd was primarily a 20th-century trend, a similar kind of existentialist-minded comedy still exists in popular culture. Films like “Everything Everywhere All At Once” and television shows like “BoJack Horseman” tackle the same issues that existentialist thinkers like Sartre, Beauvoir, and Camus explored, transforming those profound questions into thought-provoking and crowd-pleasing works of comedy.

Marc Maron helped define the modern podcast with 'WTF'

In 2009, Marc Maron began the "WTF" podcast, hosting a wide range of interesting celebrities in his garage studio. The extended format and unscripted conversations helped define the modern podcast.