Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show 46 times. I’m sure I saw all 46 because my parents were big fans of The Ed Sullivan Show and watched it faithfully. And, of course, my brother and sisters and I watched it, too.
Stiller and Meara’s son, Ben Stiller, during the Pandemic, decided to make a documentary film about his famous parents.
Ben Stiller does not sugar-coat his parents’ relationship–which was rocky at times. Anne Meara developed a drinking problem. Anne Meara also had acting ambitions and considered comedy inferior to “real drama.”
Jourdain Searles of RogerEbert.com gave the film three out of four stars and wrote that it’s “a fascinating snapshot of American comedy history, illustrating how much the industry has evolved over time.
I found Stiller & Meara: Nothing is Lost (2025) deeply personal and honest. Ben Stiller presents his parents in sharp detail. Nothing is Lost and nothing is hidden in this brilliant documentary. GRADE: A
I’d like to see those SULLIVAN clips again. But my question is, whatever happened to Topo Gigio?
Fred, Topo Gigio was immensely popular in his home country and became a worldwide sensation after his recurring appearances, beginning in 1963, on The Ed Sullivan Show, in the United States. Created by a troupe of Italian puppeteers, it took four people to bring the 10-inch-tall (25 cm) character to life: three to manipulate him, and one to create his voice. The puppet stood in a special “limbo” black art stage with black velvet curtains, designed to absorb as much ambient light as possible, which helped hide the puppeteers, who were also dressed in black from head to toe. Each puppeteer operated a different part of Gigio’s foam rubber body by using several wooden dowel rods (also painted black). The illusion was quite remarkable, since unlike traditional hand puppets, Topo Gigio could actually appear to walk on his feet, sing, make subtle hand gestures, and even walk up Ed Sullivan’s arm and perch on his shoulder. Careful lighting and TV camera adjustment made the “black art” illusion perfect for the television audience, though on at least one appearance, Ed asked the puppeteers to come out and take a bow, revealing their black-clad appearance (though deftly hiding Gigio’s mechanisms to conceal the secret). In more than fifty appearances on the show, the mouse would appear on stage and greet Sullivan with, “Hello, Eddie!”. Gigio would occasionally talk about his girlfriend, Rosie. Gigio ended his weekly visits by crooning to the host, “Eddie, kiss me goodnight!” (pronounced as “Keesa me goo’night!”). Topo Gigio closed Sullivan’s final show in 1971.
Not a big fan of Ben, but I’d like to see this. I was a Stiller and Meara fan, and of course, who doesn’t love Frank (Festivus) Costanza?
Jeff, STILLER & MEARA: NOTHING IS LOST is the best documentary I’ve seen in 2025!
I was a big fan of Stiller and Meara and know I’d enjoy this documentary! As for Topo, I’d feed him to a ravenous snake and end his creepy saccharine existence for all time!
Anent nothing, I had my seventh straight winning trip to the Queen today and netted $122!
Bob, you are one lucky guy!
Have liked the work of the whole family. Should see this.
Todd, STILLER & MEARA: NOTHING IS LOST is the best documentary I’ve seen in 2025!