Dark Side of Comedy

2 seasons available

Featuring different comics and their personal journeys while exploring the internal battles, unexpected fame and societal pressures in the comedy world.
Robin Williams
S2 E1

Robin Williams' suicide shocked the world; while he was a successful comedian, he struggled privately with crushing health and psychological issues.

Sam Kinison
S2 E2

Sam Kinison revolutionizes comedy with a vulgar, sexist act, but his appetite for cocaine and chaos leads to a downfall at the height of his success.

Joan Rivers
S2 E3

Joan Rivers' insults make her a comedy icon, but the pressures of a male-dominated industry leads to eating disorders, self-loathing, and an addiction to plastic surgery.

Carlos Mencia
S2 E4

Carlos Mencia was a big comic in America until accusations of joke theft led to his downfall.

Phil Hartman
S2 E5

Phil Hartman is a beloved "SNL" and "Simpsons" cast member, but his squeaky clean image is at odds with a toxic marriage that descends into a murder-suicide.

Tracy Morgan
S2 E6

Tracy Morgan survived drug-dealing, hyper-competitive "SNL," and substance abuse, but a brutal car accident and two-week coma made him finally confront his childhood demons.

Family Matters
S2 E7

"Family Matters" is a wholesome sitcom of the 90s, but the success of the show led to issues for many cast members who still deal with trauma and addiction.

Ellen DeGeneres
S2 E8

Ellen DeGeneres revolutionized TV with her own brand of positive humor, but behind the scenes, controversy was brewing, one that would tarnish her image.

Norm MacDonald
S2 E9

Norm MacDonald becomes known for his fearless comedy, but his controversial persona conceals a gambling problem and a secret that he takes to his grave.

Gilda Radner
S2 E10

Gilda Radner was "SNL"'s first female star; but her pioneering success was plagued by trauma, eating disorders, heartbreak and cancer, all of which she turned into comedy material.

Chris Farley
S1 E1

Struggling with addiction and a low self-image, Chris Farley's friends at "Saturday Night Live" conspired to help save him.

Andrew Dice Clay
S1 E2

Andrew Dice Clay's controversial brand of comedy found a huge base with white men in America.

Roseanne Barr
S1 E3

Roseanne Barr makes a name speaking her mind, but her impulse may cost her her career.

Artie Lange
S1 E4

Artie Lange enjoys mainstream success as a comedian, but his addiction to heroin, coupled with childhood traumas, threatens to thwart his ambition and life.

Richard Pryor
S1 E5

Richard Pryor confronts America with brutal honesty, but while he fights for a voice on stage, he is losing his own battle to drugs and family trauma.

Dustin Diamond
S1 E6

Dustin Diamond found fame but when it ended, Dustin was lost, descending into one tragic chapter after another.

Greg Giraldo
S1 E7

How comedian Greg Giraldo's career, and life, is sabotaged by a toxic mix of addiction and self-loathing.

Brett Butler
S1 E8

Brett Butler had money, success and respect; how the fiercely original stand-up and sitcom star gained everything only to lose it all.

Freddie Prinze
S1 E9

A working class Puerto Rican kid, Freddie Prinze explodes onto the comedy scene, but his overnight fame comes to an abrupt end.

Maria Bamford
S1 E10

How Maria Bamford channels her mental illness into comedy, and encourages others to do the same.