Sick in the Head: Conversations About Life and Comedy by Judd Apatow

How do comedians live and think? Do they walk around all day spewing pithy and witty comments at an alarming speed? Are they spiritually broken geniuses? Probably not. These statements are all exaggerations, but different forms of this stereotyping remain in the public sphere.

The reality is that comedians are, yes, naturally funny people, maybe a bit neurotic, but their dedication to the craft is all-consuming. It’s really hard work, and they need to prove that their brand of humor is prescient and on-trend for an industry known to chew up and spit out extraordinary talents every other minute.

Sick in the Head: Conversations About Life and Comedy aims to explore these issues and how each comedian deals with them in their own unique way. Arguably the most successful producer, director, and comedian of the aughts are Judd Apatow, who built a mini-empire and helped discover plenty of fresh talents while nailing down his own unique comedic style.

In this book, he leads penetrating and astute conversations with both his comedic idols, fellow colleagues, and even some of his proteges including Seth Rogen, Sarah Silverman, Amy Schumer, Steve Martin, and Spike Jonze, amongst many others. The kind of talent he corrals to this project is dizzying, spanning across generations, and different approaches. 

Unsurprisingly, the book proved to be a major hit upon its release in 2015 and made many “Best Of” end of the year lists in numerous publications. The conversations featured in the book are illuminating, warm, and, of course, hilarious.

While the initial impetus behind the book is to get comedians to reveal their thoughts about the comedy world, it ends up moving into a new and intriguing direction where each comedian describes their drive, creativity, spirituality, and get into the nitty-gritty of what makes them adore making people laugh. Comedians, like most artists, operate from a place of intense vulnerability.

But, unlike most artists, they continue to put themselves out there on stage and try everything they can to make people laugh, suffering through being heckled, booed, and more. Yet, they keep coming back. It’s an odd compulsion, and one that is explored with great clarity in Apatow’s Sick in the Head: Conversations About Life and Comedy.