>> "the dick van dyke show" was laugh out loud funny. >> "the dick van dyke show!" >> i can clearly remember it was "the dick van dyke" show, black and white. that's what got me into sitcoms. that was ground-breaking. >> first of all, you had carl reiner. >> carl reiner got his start on "your show of shows" with imogene coca and sid caesar. >> which was not a sitcom, it was a variety show. >> it's supposed to be tent. >> the writers' room abounded in talent. it just imbued carl with, that's a place, that's a gold mine. a writers' room is a gold mine. >> i remember talking to myself on the way home and i said, what piece of ground do i stand on that nobody else stands on? so i'll write about the life of a writer. >> writers are lazy. people write what they know. >> we got a sketch due.