Other comedians cry on the inside, but Rodney Dangerfield built his entire act around his sad life. Get to know this legendary comic who was nearing 50 when he got his break, in this classic episode recorded live in LA.
AI Summary
# Stuff You Should Know - Rodney Dangerfield (Live from LA Podcast Fest 2015)
Chuck and Josh dive deep into the life and comedy of Rodney Dangerfield during this live episode recorded at the LA Podcast Festival, where they cover his rough childhood, his unlikely comeback as a comedian in his 40s, and his rise to major stardom through films like Caddyshack and Back to School. They explore how Dangerfield transformed genuine pain and neglect from his early life into comedy gold, peppered throughout with some of his most memorable one-liners and jokes about his miserable existence. Along the way, the hosts celebrate how this sweaty, tie-tugging comic legend became a tastemaker in comedy by opening his own New York club and launching the careers of future superstars like Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock.
Almost Famous
2000
R
2h 4m
★ 7.5
"Ben Fong Torres, who is in Almost Famous — Ben Fong Torres, the Rolling Stone editor who wrote about Dangerfield, appeared in Almost Famous."
— Josh
Back to School
1986
1h 36m
★ 6.3
"I've talked to at least a couple of people who have not seen Back to School. — Josh mentions that Back to School is one of Rodney Dangerfield's most famous films but is increasingly underappreciated."
— Josh
Caddyshack
1980
1h 38m
★ 6.6
"his huge breakthrough came in Caddyshack. — Caddyshack was Rodney Dangerfield's major film breakthrough where he struggled with learning how to act on camera."
— Josh
Dirty Dancing
1987
1h 40m
★ 7.3
"Have you guys ever seen Iron Man? Meet sturdy dancing. That mash up. — Josh mentions a bizarre mashup video combining Iron Man and Dirty Dancing as a tangential reference while discussing Rodney Dangerfield's early work in the Catskills."
— Josh
Easy Money
1983
1h 35m
★ 6.0
"in 1983, he wrote a movie called Easy Money. — Dangerfield wrote and starred in this film where he played an Italian-American character named Monte Capilletti."
— Josh
Iron Man
2008
2h 6m
★ 7.7
"Have you guys ever seen Iron Man? Meet sturdy dancing. That mash up. — Josh references an Iron Man and Dirty Dancing mashup video he found online."
— Josh
Natural Born Killers
1994
1h 59m
★ 7.1
"Mr. Oliver Stone called him up one day and said, I had this role for you in a movie called Natural Born Killers. — Oliver Stone cast Dangerfield as a sadistic, incestuous father in this film, which featured a disturbing sitcom-style scene."
— Josh
"It was behind Top Gun platoon. Karate Kid Two, star Trek Four. — Platoon is mentioned as a top-grossing film of 1986, ranked higher than Back to School."
— Josh
Rover Dangerfield
1991
1h 14m
★ 5.3
"he produced and wrote the movie Rover Dangerfield, the animated classic about a dog who gets no respect. — Dangerfield wrote and produced this animated film about a dog as a spin-off of his comedy persona."
— Josh
The Killing
1956
1h 25m
★ 7.6
"He was actually cast first by Stanley Kubrick in The Killing. — Rodney Dangerfield had an early film role in Stanley Kubrick's The Killing before his major comedic career."
— Josh
The Projectionist
1970
1h 28m
★ 5.6
"and then he was in another movie. What was the other one called? The Projectionist. — Dangerfield played a movie projectionist's boss in this small film, learning little about filmmaking."
— Josh
The Scout
1994
1h 41m
★ 5.2
"a shocking amount mentioned that he was well known for his role in the Scout. He wasn't in the scout. — Josh corrects the misconception that Dangerfield appeared in The Scout, which he was originally intended for but didn't do."
— Josh
"He was on The Simpsons, I think, a couple of times — Dangerfield appeared on The Simpsons in 1996, playing Mr. Burns' illegitimate son Herb Powell."
— Josh
Too Close for Comfort
1980
★ 6.3
"you can watch too close for comfort and get just as much as you want — Josh compares a subplot in Caddyshack to the TV show Too Close for Comfort, suggesting it's redundant."
— Josh
Top Gun
1986
1h 50m
★ 7.1
"It was behind Top Gun platoon. Karate Kid Two, star Trek Four. — Top Gun is mentioned as one of the highest-grossing films of 1986, ahead of Back to School."
— Josh
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