Shandling Says Private Eye Smeared Him

He's the first big celebrity to testify in the Pellicano trial
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 14, 2008 10:41 AM CDT
Shandling Says Private Eye Smeared Him
Garry Shandling attends a post-debate political party at the Roosevelt Hotel on Jan. 31, 2008 in Los Angeles.   (Getty Images)

Comedian Garry Shandling took the stand yesterday and accused Los Angeles private eye Anthony Pellicano of using underhanded tactics to "smear" him. Shandling’s former manager hired Pellicano after promising to “make my life miserable,” Shandling said. The FBI soon told Shandling that the detective had rifled through confidential police files, looking for dirt on him and his friends, and planted negative stories in the media.

Shandling is the first celebrity witness in what promises to be a star-studded trial. Asked what he did for a living, he drew laughs by replying, “That’s a bad sign. I'm a comedian.” But the rest of his testimony was serious and even emotional, the LA Times reports. Pellicano faces more than a century in prison on 110 counts of wiretapping, conspiracy, and racketeering, among other charges. (More Garry Shandling stories.)

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