Conversation so far:
What was Rodney Dangerfield's early career like?
In the early 1960s he started down what would be a long road toward rehabilitating his career as an entertainer, still working as a salesman by day.
Why did his career need rehabilitation?
He came to realize that what he lacked was an "image", a well-defined on-stage persona that audiences could relate to.

Question: How did he create one?
Self-contained rewrite: How did Rodney Dangerfield create the rehabilitated career?