60 Minutes profile of Larry David

Larry David starred in a fictional Broadway production as part of his HBO series, Curb Your Enthusiasm, but he’s really starring on Broadway for the first time this month in a play he wrote that’s already a box-office smash, Fish in the Dark.

And so, Charlie Rose got David to sit down — but not stop chewing gum, apparently — for a 60 Minutes interview and profile.

Rose spent the first part of the segment trying to pin down David on who he really is, making the case on David’s behalf that he couldn’t possibly be the jerk he lovingly portrays or has had Jason Alexander portray him as over the years in both Seinfeld and Curb. And that those TV characterizations allow David to do and say the things he’s unwilling to do and say in real life. For his part, David just smiled and accepted Rose’s case. Also, for reasons that weren’t made clear, part of Rose’s sit-down with David took place in the hallway and underground theater of The People’s Improv Theater (The PIT) in Manhattan. David also accompanied Rose on a trip back to David’s childhood apartment in Brooklyn, which has long since been updated and probably costs 300 percent more in monthly rent since the David family moved out.

Roll the clip!

Here’s a “Correspondent Candid” six-minute clip of outtakes from the interview, in which another CBS News reporter debriefs Rose on the challenge of interviewing David. AND THE GUM CHEWING IS DULY NOTED!