Diary of a Young Comic 1979

Billy Gondolstein, Richard Lewis, is a young Jewish stand-up comic from New York City who decides to change his surname to Gondola and try his luck on the Los Angeles comedy scene, much to his family’s dismay.

In Los Angeles, Billy reconnects with his cousin Shirley Gondolstein, who now goes by Shi and believes that essence matters above all else. Shi lives in a bare apartment, and when her boyfriend Fred (now known as Fre) arrives to dump some straw on the floor, Shi tells Billy that the straw is a queen-sized bed.

Essence is all that matters to me anymore.

Shi’s sparse living space contrasts with the bustling, celebrity-obsessed vibe of the city. Billy soon finds that everyone he meets is either chasing limelight or eking out gigs as out-of-work performers with part-time jobs. His landlord, Mr. Porzinski, Stacy Keach, also works as a stunt man, and a taxi ride reveals that his driver is a composer as well, hinting at a city where art and work collide in unexpected ways.

One of Billy’s neighbors, Linda Kerridge, bears the unmistakable resemblance to Marilyn Monroe, a surreal sight that mirrors the film’s fascination with fame and illusion. Billy also visits a psychotherapist, Richard Dimitri, whose office walls are crowded with photographs of the celebrities he has treated, their eyes covered with strips of black tape to shield their identities from view.

On the way out of the therapist’s office, Billy quips, > Say, isn’t that Flipper?

Dom DeLuise, George Jessel, Gary Mule Deer, Nina van Pallandt and Loudon Wainwright III all make cameo appearances in the film as themselves, providing a playful, self-referential look at celebrity culture.