Isaac Sidney "Sid" Caesar (September 8, 1922 - February 12, 2014) was an American comic actor and writer, best known for the pioneering 1950s live television series Your Show of Shows and its successor Caesar's Hour, which influenced generations of comedians. He also acted in films, including the 1963 screwball comedy, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.
Caesar was considered a "sketch comic" and actor, as opposed to a stand-up comedian. He also relied more on body language, accents, and facial contortions, than simply dialog. Unlike the slapstick comedy which was standard on TV, his style was considered "avant garde" in the 1950s. He conjured up ideas and scenes, but didn't write scripts," using writers for creating the dialog. Among the writers who wrote for Caesar early in their careers, were Mel Brooks, Neil Simon, Larry Gelbart, Carl Reiner, Michael Stewart, Mel Tolkin and Woody Allen. "Sid's was the show to which all comedy writers aspired. It was the place to be", said Steve Allen.