Garry Shandling Remembered by Bob Odenkirk, David Steinberg, Howie Mandel

The comedy world grieves and pays tribute to one of its greats

Garry Shandling

Garry Shandling, the pioneering comedian who died Thursday at age 66, is being remembered by the comedy world, with colleagues such as Howie Mandel, Bob Odenkirk and David Steinberg, expressing their grief and sharing their memories.

“I can’t believe we’ve lost @GarryShandling. A great mind and heart,” Mandel tweeted on Thursday.

Steinberg remembered Shandling as a “caring and generous person.”

“What a loss. One of the true comic geniuses ever. I can’t  imagine a world without Garry’s take on things,” Steinberg said in a statement. “He was a caring and generous person. I will miss him so much.”

Odenkirk remembered Shandling as “a guiding voice of comedy.”

“He set the standard and we’re all still trying to meet it. He gave us all opportunities to learn how to do the best work of our lives,” Odenkirk said. “But, more importantly, as I knew him these last few years, he was a person who never stopped trying to be a better person. That’s yet another way he inspired me and I’m sure many others who knew him.”

“I am so sad,” Shandling’s “Larry Sanders Show” costar Jeffrey Tambor said. “Garry was my dear friend and was and always will be my teacher. Garry redesigned the wheel of comedy and he was the kindest and funniest of Geniuses. I will miss him so much.”

Kathy Griffin tweeted a recent photo of herself with Shandling and Odenkirk.

“Sunday, my longtime friend Garry Shandling was here, making every1 laugh. I loved him. I’ll miss our talks the most,” Griffin captioned the picture.

In a statement, Griffin added that she was “crushed” by Shandling’s death.

“I’m crushed. That man, made me laugh. Spoke to me as a peer,” Griffin said. “Even though I’ve known him since the 90s, it’s in the last few years that we have had meaningful and memorable one-on-one talks. I had no idea our last one would be four days ago.”

Marc Maron, who interviewed Shandling on his WTF podcast, called Shandling “the best.”

Steve Mosko, the chairman of Sony Pictures Television, which distributed Shandling’s “The Larry Sanders Show,” noted. “Today we lost a comedic genius and a very dear friend. Garry entertained millions of people and was an inspiration to generations of comedians, actors and writers. He will be greatly missed.”

United Talent Agency, which represented Shandling, said that the comedian “brought a smile to our faces on screen and in person.”

“Garry was an irrepressible force in comedy and in life, and his body of work will forever be cherished.  He brought a smile to our faces on screen and in person, and was a most generous mentor to so many talented comedic minds,” UTA said in a statement. “It was a true privilege to have him in our lives as both a friend and client.  We will miss him dearly.”

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