Robin Williams Thief? Bitter Comedian Rivalries Bared In New Book

In the upcoming book "Comedy at the Edge," which chronicles the rise of stand-up in the 1970s, David Brenner tells author Richard Zoglin he once threatened to attack Robin Williams for stealing his material and using it on HBO. Calling up Williams' agent, Brenner warned, "Tell Robin if he ever takes one more line from me, I'll rip his leg off and shove it up his [bleep]!" Williams tells Zoglin he was simply "sampling" material from others.

Richard Belzer, who plays Det. John Munch on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," was perceived as lazy and full of himself by other comics when he would play at Catch a Rising Star. Paul Reiser told the author, "There were nights people would feel very entitled - I'm a big shot and [bleep] you. A lot of near-fistfights. Belzer was one of those guys who was very indulged. He was given the run of the house, whether high or drunk." Added Bill Maher: "I never once saw [Belzer] do a set sober."

Read more book details here

Comments

[RoddyMcCorley]

I used to do standup in San Francisco, and at the Improv in LA. I used to cross paths with Robin Williams. I can tell you for a fact that he uses other people's material -- he used something of mine in "Good Morning, Vietnam." Now, to be fair, the line in question was also borrowed by a couple of other comics, so maybe he stole it from one of them.

Good times. Good times.

[Steamboater]

Of course there's the crass low-down comedy of years ago too. Anyione remember Belle Barth or Moms Mabley? And Totie Fields was a hoot although not bottom of the barrel riot comedy like Barthe and Mabley.

[PoHo]

I love Jackie "moms" Mabley, probably the funniest person ever on the planet. "I was just a young girl, fifteen going on sixteen, and just as cute as I wanted to be. My hair hanging down my back, I'm part Indian you know, and my daddy made me marry that old man, that old moldy man". Moms on her forced marriage to an old man her father liked.

Truly the funniest of them all, and there was no doubt who her material belonged to, anything Moms touch belonged to her.......God rest your soul moms, you are missed.....

[YellerDawg]

Don't forget LaWanda Page, of "Sanford and Son" fame. Some of her routines still make me blush and laugh my ass off. Moms, Belle, and LaWanda were great, whether they worked "blue" or not.

[ProfessorVP]

Wow, maybe I'm not the oldest person here! I LOVED Moms Mabley on the Merv Griffin Show where she was a regular. One time she told Merv that people in her hometown confused her with Roy Rogers' horse. Moms: "They'd say, 'Hey, Trigger! How ya doin', Trigger?' At least, that's what I THOUGHTS they said."

[Steamboater]

If you want to hear comedy to make you fall down and piss in your pants, get a copy of Elaine May and Mike Nichols doing their bits about a french adulturous affair, a man calling information and the movie star who's publicizing her new film in an interview. They were the best. This generation probably thinks of Mike Nichols as a director only but he and Elaine May were brilliant comedians. I saw their album on both record and DVD at Amazon and ordered it. It's been years since I heard and it's funnier than ever.

[YellerDawg]

Stiller and Meara, too.

[Alvin4NY]

I wonder whatever happened to "Pepper January-Comedy With Spice!"

[grimm]

Most comics I've known are seriously angry, depressed and paranoid. More than one has told me that "they don't call him 'Robin' (robbin') for nothing".

[Steamboater]

Dont'cha just love good dirt?

[Giordano Bruno]

I know Robin Williams, and he is spontaneously funny. I agree with those who say that he can take simple irony and turn it into humor. It is a gift given to paltry few. Furthermore he is a very nice guy. Very nice indeed. It is inconceivable to me that there are any lines which are truly original. The Jesuits told me that Plato said it all, and every thing since is plagery. I think they were right. Giordano

[Metacortex]

I think the jesuits stole that from Alfred North Whitehead who said that all of philosophy stands as footnotes to Plato.

[YellerDawg]

I think Plato is funnier than Robin Williams. If he's stealing his material, he needs to find some other sources.

[WigWamWag]

Richard Belzer is not a comic. He is not funny. He has no good material and and never made me laugh. He is far worse than many lame stand up acts. The bitterness of Richard Belzer is his main attribute.

If Richard actually has a joke or two it would be better told by someone with some actual comic abilty. Richard Belzer has none.

[Fuji]

Emo: My friends will f* with anything that moves, but I never saw a reason to limit myself.

BWAH.

[Fuji]

I hear that the two biggest comedy thieves were and are:

1) Milton Berle (Bob Hope and others used to always talk about THAT GUY who would steal from them) and

2) Carlos Mencia (sp?). He's ripped off some of the best, including Bill Cosby.

[rpence]

The actual spelling of "Mencia"'s name is "Ned Holness."

[Bruupo]

And not only is Ned's invented "beaner" persona a travesty, but just about his ENTIRE act is plagarized. Anyone doubting it should look up the youtube videos of Joe Rogan calling him out.

As Rogan puts it, he is a talented performer, but not at all a comedian. That Comedy Central couldn't find a better replacement for Chappelle Show is sad, that they renewed Mind of Mencia for a third season is a disgrace.

[ChicagoBob]

Are any of you old enough to remember Shelley Berman?

"The Morning After The Night Before."

No swearing, no personal attacks, nothing in bad taste. Funniest stuff every.

[kingofscotts]

Added Bill Maher: "I never once saw [Belzer] do a set sober."

We hear ya Bill, we have yet to see a post by Belzer written while sober. Wow how nice to see that even his "friends" find him to be a pompous self righteous ass. I knew I wasn't the only one.

Belzer is a clown. Everytime Maher has him on Real Time he makes an ass of himself. He is the most uneducated smart guy in the room.

[Bruupo]

Maher's cloying needyness and spackled-make-up vanity are preferable?

Maher's version of political humor invariably involves deliberate misreads and oversimplifications beyond the point of mere distortion for the sake of fitting a news event into some trite wordplay or pop culture reference that, ultimately, does not make poignant comment or distill the essence of the issues involved at all (the way Stewart's or Colbert's does).

He panders and generalizes and condescends in his writing, but aparently wants points for waiting to toke up till his homework is done, and he's on his way back to Hef's mansion to hunt down his next palimony accuser.

There's lots of stuff he comes up with that I find genuinely funny, but his shit stinks as much as the next guy.

[Steamboater]

Shelly Berman was a scream. I remember the bit he did about calling and asking for "mommy" when a little girl picked up the phone, and when she wouldn't put mommmy on the phone and asked who it was Berman said, "This is God and I'm going to kill you!".

[WigWamWag]

I sat at a table at the Windmill Dinner Theater that was next to Shelly Berman. He was loud vain egotistical and obnoxious during the show. The show we were seeing was the last night of Woody Allen's "Don't Drink the Water." It was well received by the audience. Many laughs were filling the room most of the night.

After the show, the MC promoted the next show that was to star Shelly Berman. Berman got up and in a loud voice, said something like the following.

"You people think you know comedy, this crap is not comedy. It is Sh^t. IF you want to see some real comedy come see me in my show starting tomorrow night. I know what comedy is and what you saw tonight was amateurish trash, pure crappy garbage. I am a hell of a lot funner than that sh^t."

You could have heard a toilet flush.
He finally sat down and no one gave him any applause.

Crude behavior whether it is from Shelly Berman, Carlos Mancia or Richard Belzer is not entertaining or respectable. Those jerks are too full of themselves.

[KarenZipdrive]

Most comedians are tortured souls.
David Brenner seems so happy go lucky because he's not that funny.
Richard Belzer makes a better hardboiled detective on Law and Order. He's not that funny.

[MadxAsxHell]

That's the GENIUS of Robin Williams...
He can take a David Brenner line and actually make it FUNNY!

David Brenner is so un-funny it isn't funny. He's un-funny enough to be a Republican comedian (THERE'S an oxy-moron!) like Dennis Miller.

It takes special magic and genius to actually distill David Brenner's material and make it genuinely funny.

I can't imagine anyone less than Robin, or Billy Crystal being able to pull it off!

[MarkEbner59]

Bill Maher would do well to stay far away from a discussion about joke thievery.

[kingofscotts]

Why? Are you going to EXPOSE him.

Douche

[Ozy]

LOL

SO I guess all these people screaming about their jokes being stolen are where now?

Looks like they got mad and ran away. Now thats funny!

[bolobill]

This is not a surprise. I can remember reading that Robin Williams was banned from some comedy clubs back when "Mork and Mindy" was on the air, because comedians were tired of seeing their jokes appearing on his show.