Bruce Vilanch: What Makes an Oscars Host Funny?
The Sam Sanders Show
KCRW & Sam Sanders
4.9 • 707 Ratings
🗓️ 10 March 2026
⏱️ 23 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It’s almost Oscars weekend, so we’re hanging out with the man behind some of the wildest moments in the ceremony’s history.
Comedian Bruce Vilanch spent 25 years writing for the Oscars. He crafted jokes for legendary hosts like Whoopi Goldberg, Steve Martin, Billy Crystal and more. He spoke with Sam last year about his experiences in the job and his advice for aspiring comedy writers.
Bruce Vilanch’s book is called: It Seemed Like a Bad Idea at the Time: The Worst TV Shows in History and Other Things I Wrote
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | First of all, if you remember the 70s, you weren't there. |
| 0:08.2 | Many of these decisions were made in clouds of smoke. |
| 0:11.1 | Okay. |
| 0:11.5 | And many of us were chemically altered at certain times during the process. |
| 0:17.0 | Hey, y'all, Sam Sanders here. |
| 0:18.5 | Thank you so much for checking out my show with KCRW. |
| 0:22.5 | You might have heard the Oscars are airing this weekend. |
| 0:26.9 | In honor of the Oscars, which are kind of like my personal Super Bowl, |
| 0:30.7 | we're going to bring you my conversation with comedian and writer Bruce Belanche. |
| 0:36.1 | Because Bruce Valanche is Oscars royalty. For years, Bruce was the |
| 0:41.2 | head writer for the Oscars broadcast. This means he is the mind behind some of the wildest moments |
| 0:46.9 | in Oscars history, including Rob Lowe's strange and, dare I say, unhinged skit with Snow White, way back in 1989. Yes, Rob Lowe's strange and dare I say unhinged skit with Snow White way back in 1989. |
| 0:57.6 | Yes, Rob Lowe and Snow White on a stage doing a skit. |
| 1:01.6 | Isn't it exciting, snow? |
| 1:04.0 | Isn't it thrilling? |
| 1:05.2 | It gets better. |
| 1:06.8 | Meet your blind date. |
| 1:08.5 | Rob Lowe. |
| 1:10.1 | Bruce talks all about that in this chat, as well as several other Oscar moments. |
| 1:14.6 | He also reflects on those moments and many more. |
| 1:17.6 | In his recent book, which is called It Seemed Like a Bad Idea at the Time, |
| 1:22.6 | The Worst TV shows in History and Other Things I wrote. |
... |
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