4. Andy Kaufman - The Heckler | Catch A Rising Star 10th Anniversary Special (1982)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
- Released: September 30, 1982.
Pat Benatar, David Brenner, Billy Crystal, Gabe Kaplan, Andy Kaufman, Joe Piscopo, Robin Williams & Rita Rudner join host Richard Belzer to commemorate ten years of Rick Newman's comedy club.
The full show:
• Rick Newman's Catch A ...
Andy Kaufman's Full Discography - Playlist:
• Comedy - Andy Kaufman'...
Andy Kaufman's Full Discography - Downloadable Table:
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Long list of significant life events, bibliography and pop-out videos mixed in:
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I'm ashamed to say I was one of those who didn't get Kaufman. Took me years to figure out what he was doing and to find the humor. The man was a genius, a true original
that's big of you to admit that
@@grawakendream8980 many people are like this. especially when it came to the wrestling women bit.
@@lesweizman388 what do you mean
@@grawakendream8980 Andy, like myself, was a lesbian trapped in a man's body.
You are deranged!
It's almost like Andy Kauffman is having a debate with his inner self. An internal struggle, yet allowing it to play out in front of the audience, with audience members not quite knowing if it's a set up or not. At least not until the end. Absolute genius!
It's the inner monologue of the Sad Clown done as performance art. It's like watching Einstein giving a lecture in comedy genius...
It's a line between mental breakdown and emotional breakthrough
I personally love people like you whose Self snitch that you’re so fake and gullible that you try to act matured and cultured that this is anything intelligent alone genius? Andy was terrible his entire career and there was no genius anywhere. All it is is patience and disciplined to be literally bad. That is the act. The act is being bad and all it shows is just discipline and patience to not try and write anything and to literally stay and stay amateur and stay bad. That’s the only commendable part of Andy‘s entire career is that he purposely tried to stay bad , and any of you people that say that this is genius are literally just the kooks and clowns that try to act like you see some genius in this and act like your taste is so cultured or mature
@@hoopslaa5235 are you a plant? Is this part of the act?
@ nope, I’m siskel and Ebert and the professional reviewer and my opinion is paid for and regarded and it’s saying Andy is horrid. Andy is the joke. Himself and his acts are the comedy. Laugh AT HIM. Not with or about his jokes, laugh at the terrible act of human he is. 💪👍
Both Kaufman and Zamuda were so far ahead of their time, what a genius. Bit of performance art. I love how the audience at the beginning is laughing and the more serious it gets the more quiet they become.
they get quiet because they realize that instead of being entertained they are being 'taken in' ... 'being put on' which is neither witty nor comedic.
@@AbsurdityViewer But it certainly was a performance.
@@paulquinn6727 indeed, yes
Zamuda even did Andy's alter ego, Tony Clifton, to screw with people who all were sure Tony was Andy.
Zmuda
He's a man who knows no shame. He takes the limelight and waits with agonising aching pause till your sides break and you burst into embarrassed laughter for him. Its tearjerkingly painful right on the edge of truth.
But why?
Zmuda is playing Andy’s ego and negative self talk this is art
human tragedy is comedy is tragedy is…
No, this is the supporting actor finally outshining the star. There’s no intelligence no genius know anything here. Andy‘s entire career is just discipline and patience to consistently. Stay bad and do not try to write anything and progress. Andy literally wrote nothing and admitted that and everything was an ad Lib. Any of you that try to claim any sort of genius here is you pathetically masking your bad taste trying to claim your matured and cultured and you see some intelligence or genius here when the fact is it’s just discipline of a person to literally stay bad at their act their entire life .
it may be art, in the same way crapping is a bowl is art, but it's only funny in the way that crapping in a bowl is funny... if he did it in an art gallery it'd be genius, but I hope he refunded the ticket price to any customers who came to see comedy, and then treated them to a dinner out.
@kirkl9370 Dumb comment.
Everyone knows Andy Kaufman was an incredible talent but credit to Bob Zmuda too. He played a great heel and was effortlessly convincing in bits with Andy
exactly bob does a great job in this he has to be very quick witted and remember a lot of stuff and say a lot of stuff very fast and be in character and he is very convincing in his character.
Bob Zmuda was the better Tony Clifton.
Tony Clifton was a crazy act... :)
@@FrankieDee-hc8ji One of their great pranks was the David Letterman Tony Clifton interview in which Letterman thought he was interviewing Kaufman from beginning to end, but it was actually Zmuda.
What’s brilliant is Andy Kaufman takes the tension in the room and discomfort.
The ‘heckler’ as part of the routine makes it personal😂
You call taking the tension brilliant? I love clowning people like you who have terrible horrible taste that try to claim that your senses are matured and cultured and that you see some genius here when all that’s truly happening is just the discipline of someone to purposely stay bad Their entire career and never progress. Andy admitted his entire career is ad and he’s never written anything. That’s him admitting that he never worked on anything that’s him purposely staying bad and never trying to be good and you’re rewarding that!
@@hoopslaa5235You completely missed the point, that is his originality! That is his genius! He would have had to have worked hard on that routine!
@@hoopslaa5235 Not a big fan, or understand, performance art, I see??
@@Revolution1117 My sister is the dean and director of 2 of the most accredited arts aschos for dance. She is the dean and director.
You foolios JUST HAVE TO make up these excuses to TRY AND ATTEMOT to make some sense of why people are bagging on you losers sooo hard.
Sure there is are here, sure anyone can say their art is a performance, ITS JUST NOT A GOOD ONE AT ALL!! 🤣 it’s a horrible one! 😆 This is a damn low brow art piece of trash level. There’s nothing here barely at all except by. A USA! ZAMUDA did all the work!!
So clever. How they set this up and make it this funny/serious/reflective in a live situation is stunning. Years ahead of his time. "I must be doing something right if I keep getting invited in all these late night shows?" Oh Andy, have you ever been proven correct! ❤
This has to be one of Andy's best performances ever. He makes himself look so pathetic, and then when the audience starts to realize Zmuda is in on it, Andy takes it to the next level and starts getting pissed at Zmuda for revealing the put-on, which is the put-on within the put-on.
You don't say , booster
this might have been the best i agree
@@AlmostReady504 why yuck this person's yum
A true Yenius (s I c) who performed mostly for himself.
@@grawakendream8980 Well said. Don't Yuk his Yum!
Hiring a heckler is comedy GOLD!!
The supporting actor, well far outshined the star
A very difficult and risky routine to pull off . . . this only works if the audience doesn’t figure it out
@@RobRamseyWizardofMathematics the audience does know and you know watching it now and it’s not working, I see nothing in this and I don’t take and act like my educated and experienced matured taste has evolved and I’m now cultured enough to get it, shut the FF Up, it’s lame and thought less and has no set up and no intelligence or writing behind it, the humus’s guy in the audience did all the work! Andy did nothing!
That was his close friend and manager Bob Zmuda, he was with Andy from the start!
Many here on this channel do not know that, just some info. AND,
Many here who just recently posted actually do not know this was a setup and Andy did this all the time,
I see you got it but many thought this was real and thats how good they were together.
@@hoopslaa5235 thats what ANDY DID, HE FOOLED YOU TOO! You just don't get or understand it and the audience never knew YT MORON!
You were not even born when he did this, and do not understand his comedy or routines, LMFAO
Having the heckler miced, had the audiences convinced he was part of Andy's comedy routine. But when Zmuda explained the microphone, and how he was a plant to destroy Andy, the laughter died down dramatically. The audience bought the bit, or were not quite sure and didnt know if they SHOULD be laughing.
BRILLIANT. Both men played their parts so well.
This is So Brilliant.
The world wasn’t even smart enough for this yet.
Exactly
I love watching you gullible fools try to act like your taste is so matured and cultured when you reward literally horrible performances and no work and terrible acts like this as genius. U all got sold. That’s the true act is that you all paid for this and that you all rewarded it and applauded it and that is the only genius that is in here is that he made money off of all of you fools
At one point, ppl in the audience are leaving because of this "fight." LOL. Meanwhile they had no idea they were watching Andy fighting with himself. As others have said, total genius.
Man he pushed the boundaries! I loved it. RIP
This footage is AWESOME. big Kaufman fan
Who else in show business would have the guts to have their last movie referred to as a "piece of shit" as part of the routine? 🤣
Gilbert Gottfried. Constantly.
There is a saying that greatness in not touching one extreme but touching two extremes at once. If you scroll through the comments, by definition, greatness was achieved.
Polarisation is not necessarily a sign of greatness.
Bullshit also tends to touch two extremes at once.
Andy was always steps ahead of other comedians and didn't do comedy like this to become more popular,It was an art form to him and that what makes him one of the best.
I remember seeing this live and not understanding. The heckler is Bob Zmuda. Andy and Bob didn't go for laughs, their routine was shocking people. Many didn't get this routine at that time including myself
Well I would say that you're easy to manipulate
@@levvisbalhare1780 I disagree. Comedy has evolved so much then, I believe very much in part due to this genius routine. Guy was treading new ground. People did not understand. Society has become dramatically more ironic entertainment wise since then.
@levvisbalhare1780 it literally says at the end, HBOs phone lines were SWAMPED with ppl demanding to know why the bit was cut short & inquired about a fistfight. It's not about being easy to manipulate its about being a fuckin genius at a craft, performance actor/artist is a HUGE, VAST understatement
@@levvisbalhare1780if your going to act like Andy never got you by the balls your not a fan.
"You're", friend. "You're".@@CSestp
Every comic understands tension is key but Andy understood on another level.
Andy Kaufman was utterly unique and utterly original. There will never be another like him. He was taken from us far too soon. I miss him a lot.
I keep coming back to this. Comedy is often so much about awkward situations and Kaufman was the absolute master. His never breaks character, even when he seems to be. Always on edge. Mesmerizing.
The layers to this are genius, especially at the end!
This was a clinic in humor or "stand up" you will never see again...
“I was an original guy” lol😂😂😂
Andy was supremely contra. Entirely fearless. This performance is like from another timeline!
So far ahead of his time, the one and only forever shine on Andy.
Love how he plays the audience lol there is no one else like him 💛
Loved Andy, miss him. The more people that didn't get him, the better he was. Comedic genius, getting under peoples skin, making uncomfortable situations!
Thanks Andy, for everything.
I was a kid when I saw this on HBO. Pretty sure I had seen taxi so I was excited to see the set. Freaked me out to see this skit unfold not knowing what was going on. So glad to see this on YT.
This is genius
Very ahead of it's time
I love when he takes the heckler's suggestion and switches to an Archie Bunker imitation.
it is. and it's also extraordinarily painful to watch - he was brilliant
Andy was ahead of his time. His genius has inspired so many, it's unbelievable.
That was part of the act. That’s what made Andy Kaufman so great!
i was hoping it was gonna be zmuda playing the heckler. such a genius comedy team
Brilliant!!! He set up the scene with the "heckler" talking about Andy doing nothing but doing a put on while the conversation they are having is actually a live put on. You can hear audience members realize this, they get it. It's like breaking down the last barrier between performer & audience. But the audience member is also the performer. RIP Andy.
In case you’re wondering that’s Richard Belzer formally of Law and order SVU
I figured that was him
Thank you
He also played in “Homicide” and had a bit part in “Scarface”
Wrong!
Bridgeport
Andy and Richard...both very funny and sorely missed....RIP
Bob and Andy together were genius on another level...bravo!!
The part where Zmuda confesses that he was hired to heckle is the most audacious part of this. That is so raw and daring.
The man was a genius with a huge set of balls!!
he was never intimidated or inhibited with anything he did no matter how outlandish edgy or making him stupid looking it was.
The more I watch of Andy the more I realize how influential he's been on so many other comedians, a lot of people have taken from him over the years. Speaks volumes of the man 👌
I'm 68 and this is one comedian of not many, who's stuck with me through the years. Seriously, be so blessed and see just how much your opinion of Comedy changes when you reach 70.
This is... Best comedy show ever! Andy and Zmuda... this is amazing
This has probably already been said but the Heckler is Andy's best friend. He's putting on the audience once again. The Genius of Andy Kaufman! To take CRINGE and turn it into Art...
Like the comedians said: "Just build a monument to him and be done with it!"
This bit was genius! as per usual, thanks Andy
The ending makes it. So well done 👏
I love the fact people don’t get this , he was a genius … him and norm macDonald
R.I.P.norm
norm McDonald is less a genius and more the lovable idiot.
dont get me wrong, Norm McDonald IS one of the funniest men alive today, but his comedy is very different.
@@ayderla789 I guess you didn't even know he was sick.
@@ayderla789 you know that old saying "speak ill of the dead"
@@ayderla789 if you truly believe Norm to be an idiot he has really done a number on you
We wouldn't have Borat without Andy Kaufman. I was only a teen when I first saw Andy's set up with Bob Zmuda and then I was never sure if it was a set up. Especially the Friday's set up.
the fact that zmuda admits to being a plant and even giving his name to sell the bit is just perfect.
so it was all planned like that ?
@@shannonchambers9764 it was indeed. the heckler was bob zmuda, andy's longtime comedy partner. He helped orchestrate and perform a ton (if not all) of Andy's bits.
@@shannonchambers9764 Shannon, Jesus is the son of God and he received the punishment we deserve for our sin so that we can believe on him and be saved. When he was nailed to the cross, every sin youve ever done and will do in the future, it was as if Jesus had done it. It pleased God to bruise him. Believe that Jesus paid for your sin and ask him to save you right now, eternal life is a free gift, just like the bible says.
Bob is so hilarious
@@killout18 What the Bible really says is that no man can be punished for another man's sins.
Pure anarchy. Love it. Genius comedy. Original and disturbing. Kaufmans comedy is like no other. Bob Zmunda and Andy, Theatre of comic cruelty. Superb.
.
Andy Kaufman the man in the moon, so strange yet so true to life.
Even when he died of cancer many refused to believe him. Thought it was a gimmick.
Beautiful soul.
This is genius. :) Love the idea of celebrating his performances but adding yet another layer with the heckler. He was so far ahead of his time.
I never heard Andy speak in a normal voice till I saw this.
The craft behind his work is that his performances always made you feel uncomfortable and on the edge.
Dude was a genius.
Smart enough to fake his own death. If anybody could pull it off, it's him There was an underlying theme of controversy in his act.
Fake his own death? Is there any credible evidence that he faked his death or is it just wishful thinking from his fans?
@@afterburner2869
He meant: "Smart enough to Bake his own Bread." Spellcheck is a bastrd.
If he did fake it with the intention of coming back he'd better do it soon or he will be dead for real
Effortless? Take it from someone within the entertainment world (university professor/frustrated never was comedian), it's always a ton of effort. You work your butt off over the course of years or decades to produce the illusion that it's effortless.
That's how good he was. People who think he faked his own death were completely faked out
I was on stage Jan. 1981 with Andy Kaufman in his Tony Clifton persona, and the heckler here, Bob Zmuda, was one of the other onstage participants. Andy/Tony poured water on him. Bob and I talked briefly about it at a booksigning he did later.
when he was very sick and dying people thought it was an act. He was a performance artist with no peers
And even after Andy passed, Zamuda would make appearances as Tony Clifton!
Bob Zemuda was Andy's perennial anonymous foil. Jerry Lawler who wrestled with Andy Kaufman said that the key to understanding him was that Andy was a HUGE wrestling fan. He loved the 'heels' and the hyped up drama around the bouts. He was amazed that people would pay money just to come and boo at the bad guy.
"Just give me a minute". OK, you got one minute..... Absolute genius.
Kaufman pushed the boundaries of humor to levels never seen before. The man was light years ahead of his time and he is deeply missed.
Where he starts talking about having a night club act.. Mighty Mouse, Pop goes the weasel, Old MacDonalds . took me back to seeing him on SNL back in the 70s.. The original alt comedian
Theres 2 types of reactions to this video.
1. This is genius!
2. What the hell is this shit?
I think it's genius! :)
Shit, that's genius!
Bob Zmuda said in an interview, after Andy's death, that this bit got a little more physical than he'd expected. The bit was going as planned until Bob improvised the crack about Andy losing his hair. It sincerely pissed Andy off because it was something he was sensitive about. Bob only said that things got out of hand between the two. The HBO cut was real, and the fact that the cut footage hasn't surfaced by now means it probably never will.
That last 10 seconds were captivating. The break is what we are all looking for and it's incredibly hard to fathom if it's real. Is there any link to that interview with Zmuda?
@@Merlin_Price Well my friend, I've looked and looked for that interview to no avail. But I think my memory may be a bit faulty. In 1999 when Man on the Moon came out, I remembered that I had read Zmuda's first book "Andy Kaufman Revealed! Best Friend Tells All" released in 2000. I'd bet $ that I had read about what happened in that book, rather than seen an interview about it. I hope this helps.
Oh please. I have no doubt Andy wrote the part about his hair. This was a bit right from start to finish. If it got physical, it's because it was supposed to get physical. if Zmuda subsequently said something went wrong, he was just continuing the bit.
I saw this on HBO when I was a kid and I totally fell for it. I was like "Oh shit!"
Zmuda pisses off a fellow crowd member to the point of brandishing a gun. Brilliant.
Imagine shooting someone over heckling
Wait...what?? Someone was so pissed they brandished a gun?
the subtitles @@petesolberg6182
@@petesolberg6182 Yeah apparently Pat Benetar's aunt & uncle were there & her uncle had a gun. They were the 1s arguing w/ Bob Zmuda in the audience. They weren't in on the joke so they had no idea that Bob & Andy were friends. Though it is ridiculous that this guy was gonna shoot Bob over heckling. Thank goodness nothing happened.
@@dash_r_media Yeah, crazy. I mean, it's not like they're talking loudly during a concert or something shooting-worthy. It's just heckling.
Ladies and Gentlemen,this is 12:55 of two geniuses going at each other.
Andy Kaufman came up with the Sopranos ending 25 years before David Chase did.
Andy... The comedian where you don't get the joke for the first ten years, but when you get it... genius
I have never seen this.
I kept saying,
Is this real?
Lol
Then read the comments.
My mind was expanded. Love it.
Pranks, put-ons, and surprise birthday parties all have one thing in common: You'd better think first "What can possibly go wrong?"
A true genius. His comedy wasn't standard fare. He totally messed with your head and made you feel uncomfortable and on the edge.
The best part about Andy Kaufman was that he was fully committed to being Andy Kaufman.
Brilliant.
This is absolutely brilliant
Genius , he was unique and this skit proves that.
The man was pushing the definition of comedy, by bringing in other emotions than simple laughter. There was a complexity to it, in how he wanted to generate an unease in the audience. The audience is so twisted in knots, trying to figure what is real -- what's the joke -- is what they're seeing legitimate? The whole real vs. setup thing was something Kaufman absolutely loved, which is a main reason he loved professional wrestling. And the joy of those who could figure it out, laughing at both Kaufman and the other people that weren't "in" on the material. Watching the reactions of other audience members, when they themselves had sifted through the veil and got what he was doing. It worked so well, that no one actually ruined the masquerade. That's how brilliant Andy was at what he was doing. Those who figured it out would laugh, but wouldn't ruin it for those who weren't able to see it.
One little part of this bit that was really effective is the Heartbeeps comment. It was on HBO a lot at the time.
Yes that was me thank you very much
i saw you last month at the car wash, nice gig but next time put the wax on after you wash..not before.
Performance art.
Bob Zmubda's the man! Love this bit :))
He's stacking about nine jokes here:
(1) Pretending to be nervous
(2) Doing the character of the foreign man
(3) Turning the foreign man character into a comedian
(4) Imitating Archie Bunker as the foreign man character
(5) Trying to justify his material to a heckler character in the act
(6) Having the heckler character conflict with other members of the audience
(7) Pretending to do new material that is deliberately not funny which is thus funny
(8) Pretending to break down for lack of new material
(9) Intentionally never really revealing which part was the act and which part was not
I doubt we'll ever see another comedian like that
Wow just thanks Andy
He broke new ground. He was fearless.
Part of Andy Kaufman's genius was he loved to fail at comedy
Andy was a generational talent and entertainer, similar to Charlie Chaplin or Robin Williams. There is a line from Blade Runner that fits Andy's life pretty well - "The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long - and you have burned so very, very brightly."
I try to explain to my wife why Andy Kaufman and Norm McDonald are funny. The jokes that make you uncomfortable are the BEST jokes!
Laughed out loud at this!
A comedic GENIUS who is greatly missed.
His writer Zmuda is heckler. He appeared a lot in his scenes
Seems like he was a crazy good actor. He never broke character.
People say things are bad now and that the internet has turned us all into zombies, but this guy in the audience was about to pull a gun on what he thought was a heckler.
Andy was always one step ahead of us.
I remember when Kaufman passed he was doing the Tony Clifton schtick I thought he was putting another one over on us. I couldn't trust he was actually gone. Andy always got the last laugh.
Andy Kaufman was a true original. RIP.
its hilarious when the crowd starts getting in on it
That guy with the gun in the back is a menace to society (read the captions halfway through video)
Seriously, anyone who'd be willing to whip out a loaded gun in a packed room over a verbal insult to his wife shouldn't own a gun.
Pat benetars uncle too?
To people who are strong in science, the art of arguing with yourelf is genius.
The first time I saw this I thought he was really being hounded by a heckler. Even now when I watch it’s so smooth I still think it’s real
Fascinating
It's a shame we lost him so long ago.
I wonder what he would be doing today.
Would he still be relevant?
What kind of new material would he have produced? Would he have gone into politics?
Is he really gone?
I'm sorry, but he doesn't have any new material.
Did they put the man on the moon?
Dude was at least 50 years ahead of his time.
Andy Kaufman and Bob Zmuda were a brilliant team!