Phyllis Diller 1990: "I Was Afraid of Everything" | Dini Petty

Phyllis Diller, the woman who broke stand-up comedy open for every female comic who followed, in a conversation with Dini Petty that has never been seen since it first aired in March 1990. This is their third sit-down together, and Diller is loose, funny, and unexpectedly raw about the things that shaped her. She talks about a book that changed everything. She talks about plastic surgery with the honesty that made her famous for it. She explains why comedy is a hostile act, and why that makes it an alien act for a woman. Two young female comedians in the audience push back on what it's really like in the clubs, and Diller knows exactly what they mean. She tells the story of her first night at the Purple Onion in San Francisco, a 37-year-old housewife with five kids and one act. Her 52,000-card joke file is at the Smithsonian now. She died in 2012 at 95. CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 0:27 "I don't think there's any such thing as a happy childhood" 1:53 The nicknames: Skinny Connected Gas Pipe, Flat Foot Flugi 3:36 "My defense was comedy" 5:10 Staying in the bedroom with the cloaks at parties 7:06 Richard Jeni and what makes Phyllis laugh 8:02 Fang, two real husbands, and "get the money" 8:42 Plastic surgery: 11 operations and why she never lied about it 10:53 Breaking her nose walking into a wall 13:00 Elizabeth Taylor played by Cher and Roseanne Barr 15:00 The chemical peel that got rid of the freckles 15:48 First night at the Purple Onion, 1955 18:53 Why comedy is a hostile act for a woman 21:40 Blue rooms, ballrooms, and gambling audiences 23:17 Two female comedians on what it's really like 26:54 Following a dirty male comic 28:51 Splendor in the Grass, two days for 30 seconds 31:06 The book that changed her life 34:32 The note she wrote to herself on the Bay Bridge 35:48 Painting abstract faces at 70 40:15 "Did your comedy change since you became so beautiful?" 41:25 "I consider exercise a good brisk sit" 42:18 Bob Hope, Jack Paar, and 40 comedy writers ABOUT THE DINI PETTY SHOW The Dini Petty Show was a Canadian daytime talk show that aired on CTV from 1989 to 1999. Broadcast from Toronto, the show ran for ten years and featured in-depth conversations with Hollywood legends, music icons, politicians, and cultural figures. Dini Petty's warm yet probing interview style earned the show multiple Gemini Award nominations and a loyal audience across Canada. This channel is the official archive of The Dini Petty Show. Most of these interviews have not been seen since their original broadcast. New conversations from the vault are uploaded weekly. Subscribe to never miss a piece of television history. #PhyllisDiller #WomenInComedy #DiniPetty #StandUpComedy #ComedyLegend #PlasticSurgery #MagicOfBelieving #VintageInterview #RareInterview #1990sTV