Brief, but Spectacular 

Growing up during the Great Depression, the screenwriter, actor and director Carl Reiner signed up for a drama class sponsored by the Works Progress Administration. He said the WPA, which ran from 1935-43, was instrumental in steering him towards a comedy career. Reiner credited President Franklin D. Roosevelt as one of the people who helped him break into showbiz. The New Deal’s support for the arts launched a thousand careers. Carl Reiner’s spanned a lifetime. He died last month at age 98. We could all use a good laugh. Watch: Brief and Spectacular. (5 minutes)