tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post4118409907330432932..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: Friday QuestionsBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-17300062080856094632018-08-21T05:46:34.535-07:002018-08-21T05:46:34.535-07:00A Friday question for September. John Ritter would...A Friday question for September. John Ritter would have been 70 on September 17. He died on September 11, 2003 (age 54). Any thoughts on him generally and specifically on MASH. Also, thoughts on incorporating his character's death on 8 Simple Rules.Roger Owen Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05298172138307632062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-7485974326613809612018-08-19T15:04:15.059-07:002018-08-19T15:04:15.059-07:00A Friday question: Do you think it was easier to m...A Friday question: Do you think it was easier to make a show [less network interference, not as many crew members, etc.] in the earlier days of TV as compared to today or maybe 30 years ago? And, I guess this could be a second question: What shows from radio [pre-TV] do you think didn't make the transition to TV very well and should have remained on radio or relegated to the dustbin of history? (Yes, I know you're not THAT old but you seem more qualified than others to answer that question.)YEKIMIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01921751875397071034noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-91897576893913282282018-08-19T13:36:52.179-07:002018-08-19T13:36:52.179-07:00In a number of series I see many performers sharin...In a number of series I see many performers sharing the stage with other performers they have appeared with before. BBT at times seemed over run with roseanne refugees. On MOM I have seen "Chelsea" and "Candi" appear not to mention Jon Cryer etc.<br />The question is does this occur because the shows are using the same agents/talent reps as the previous shows or do the performers make recommendations ( i.e. "Hey so and so worked with me in the past and they were great") and/or do ensemble teams grow out of this? As an example it seems James Gardner had an ensemble he brought with him. <br />So is this planned, serendipitous, performer driven or agent driven? Or some blend of all above.Knoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-27837211843221982802018-08-19T06:04:49.485-07:002018-08-19T06:04:49.485-07:00I am taking the Steve Martin Masterclass. I would ...I am taking the Steve Martin Masterclass. I would say it's worth the money for it. I've learned a lot. It seems silly to think you could teach comedy - and really, his class is more about honing and developing comedy than out and out teaching it. Some of what he teaches is developing a stand up act, characters, editing, scripts (it includes a copy of his screenplay for Roxanne). It's a good class.Justin Piattnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-84845610966255062502018-08-17T23:11:05.882-07:002018-08-17T23:11:05.882-07:00The genius of Mamet and Sorkin is economy of langu...The genius of Mamet and Sorkin is economy of language, although Sorkin can get carried away with long speeches (still generally economical). Aspiring writers should study their work. The broader your vocabulary, the more words from which to choose, depending on how your character speaks. Lorimartiannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-14508732550587414542018-08-17T18:56:20.488-07:002018-08-17T18:56:20.488-07:00Janet Ybarra, thank you for mentioning the Burns a...Janet Ybarra, thank you for mentioning the Burns and Allen Show. I watch it on Antenna TV all the time and laugh out loud at Gracie's antics and George's expressions. And look forward to the times when George speaks directly to the audience.CarolMRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06357698369178272616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-13694566762475839892018-08-17T17:55:51.128-07:002018-08-17T17:55:51.128-07:00Depending on your tolerance for Anthony newly, you...Depending on your tolerance for Anthony newly, you might check out Gurney slade which starts with the lead character getting bored and walking off the set in the middle of a sitcomMarkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14705408455380402571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-51860648304521469822018-08-17T17:50:27.601-07:002018-08-17T17:50:27.601-07:00Although it's underrated, I think the Burns an...Although it's underrated, I think the Burns and Allen show was one of the greatest sitcoms of all time.<br /><br />And where did they hone their craft? Vaudeville. On stage. They had their own set of skills.<br /><br />I think that is one of the biggest drags on most of the current sitcoms... the idea you find attractive "celebrities" who simply can be fed canned lines.<br /><br />That's why so much stuff out there just sounds canned.Janet Ybarranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-23132171123909896732018-08-17T16:33:54.607-07:002018-08-17T16:33:54.607-07:00@VP81955
And Dobie could be as meta as they come. ...@VP81955<br />And Dobie could be as meta as they come. <br />Broke the fourth wall as well as any show ever (with the possible exception of Burns and Allen).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-15569620046026937752018-08-17T14:45:40.681-07:002018-08-17T14:45:40.681-07:00Coincidentally, we did a post on shows with legs a...Coincidentally, we did a post on shows with legs as context for our Netflix thread. <br /><br />http://observationalepidemiology.blogspot.com/2018/08/shows-with-legs-more-background-on.html<br /><br />but it was mainly just an excusse to embed some MeTV promos (particularly the Kirk and Spock visit Mayberry massh-up).Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14705408455380402571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-85944835350237411082018-08-17T14:20:45.451-07:002018-08-17T14:20:45.451-07:00While many series have a season arc, showrunners a...While many series have a season arc, showrunners also create a few episodes that don't have to air in order of production. I attended the first "Mom" filming of the third season ("Sawdust And Brisket," July 31, 2015) and at the time didn't think it was strong enough for a season opener. When the season began in early November (delayed by CBS Thursday night NFL coverage), the premiere ep starred Ellen Burstyn as Bonnie's dying, estranged mother (and Christy's grandmother). The "brisket" ep didn't run until Thanksgiving night, VP81955https://www.blogger.com/profile/11792390726196611188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-86033410840009155682018-08-17T14:18:56.530-07:002018-08-17T14:18:56.530-07:00Stu West,
I found the Mamet class to be a lot lik...Stu West,<br /><br />I found the Mamet class to be a lot like seeing one of his classic plays for the first time: "what the hell is going on here?"<br /><br />I had to watch it twice. Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00107309396839340695noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-53932579773516948472018-08-17T14:10:39.254-07:002018-08-17T14:10:39.254-07:00Ken, you mentioned millennials and "Bilko.&qu...Ken, you mentioned millennials and "Bilko." In the mid-'80s, I had a similar experience when I attended grad school at Iowa State and took a course on writing for broadcast. Early in the semester, the instructor brought in a VCR with a tape of a "Dobie Gillis" ep, about 20 years after its last episode aired. ("Dobie" was the first prime-time series I regularly watched.) The students were about a decade younger than I was, and initially didn't think much of a black-and-white show, but the pace was so fast and the writing and actors so good -- to heck with Gilligan, Maynard G. Krebs remains the <i>definitive</i> Bob Denver character -- that they got into it. I later interviewed Dwayne Hickman and the dearly missed William Schallert, and both asserted that breakneck pace (think "His Girl Friday" as a sitcom) made the show such a success. VP81955https://www.blogger.com/profile/11792390726196611188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-11260256900956486132018-08-17T13:16:34.292-07:002018-08-17T13:16:34.292-07:00Roseann,
An all access pass for a year is $180. C...Roseann,<br /><br />An all access pass for a year is $180. Considering that one class is $90, take three classes and you're ahead of the game! Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00107309396839340695noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-1018222106871165782018-08-17T12:22:16.525-07:002018-08-17T12:22:16.525-07:00Andy: Even more oddly, the two Prisoner episodes t...Andy: Even more oddly, the two <i>Prisoner</i> episodes that are without a doubt sequential - the last two in air order, "Once upon a Time" and "Fall Out" - were written and produced many months apart, such that Leo McKern (the Number Two for these episodes and an earlier one) had to shave off his beard for another ongoing role in the meantime. This was dealt with by showing McKern apparently being "shaved" as part of his "resurrection" scene near the beginning of "Fall Out."gottacooknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-35726177804492469802018-08-17T11:34:45.312-07:002018-08-17T11:34:45.312-07:00Ken, as always, thanks for taking the time to answ...Ken, as always, thanks for taking the time to answer my F.Q. And thanks to Matt & Roseann for responding.<br />M.B. Mike Bloodworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04755626259169126800noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-40028323792608365332018-08-17T11:31:41.493-07:002018-08-17T11:31:41.493-07:00So far I've started the Mamet, Sorkin and Shon...So far I've started the Mamet, Sorkin and Shonda Rhimes Masterclasses and I was impressed by two of them.<br /><br />Sorkin starts by talking straight to camera and giving advice on everything from his working method to tips on writing good dialogue. Then he gets a group of young writers together, critiques their spec screenplays and gets them to work on writing a resolution to the cliffhanger he left when he stopped writing The West Wing at the end of season four.<br /><br />I thought the part where he was giving the writers feedback on their specs was just going to be filler but it is actually really interesting. For example, one guy in the group has written a piece of straight-to-video trash, something that doesn't even rise to the level of a Jason Statham vehicle, and instead of telling him it's total junk Sorkin manages to give pretty constructive pointers on how to make it better. That impressed me.<br /><br />I've found the Shonda Rhimes class really interesting. A lot of the early videos are her giving advice on how best to approach running your own show. Which, fair enough, she is maybe the best-qualified person in the world to talk about that but I did find myself wondering occasionally how useful it's going to be to the people watching. At least some of the audience is going to end up writing for pay (I know I have) but how many of them are going to run their own show?<br /><br />On the other hand, if Netflix keeps commissioning series at their current rate maybe the answer is that in the future everyone will get their own show for 15 episodes (but not be picked up for season two).<br /><br />I haven't got very far with the David Mamet class. I admire a lot of his (earlier) plays and screenplays but he mostly comes off as a crank in what I've seen here. One of the videos is taken up by a diatribe about that time Mike Pence went to see Hamilton on Broadway and the cast made a speech. (Mamet thinks they should not have made a speech.) As someone looking to improve my craft, I didn't find it tremendously useful. I'll probably go back to it eventually. Maybe it improves.Stu Westhttp://www.twitter.com/stuwestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-80178398676800195202018-08-17T11:26:29.559-07:002018-08-17T11:26:29.559-07:00Why 1950's and (earlyi) 60's sitcoms were ...Why 1950's and (earlyi) 60's sitcoms were superior:<br />1) Phil Silvers and Jackie Gleason were seasoned, world-class comedians with plenty of experience in every kind of venue (movies, radio, Broadway, vaudeville) in getting laughs. Nothing like having a real comic at the center of a show.<br />2) These shows were written by (again) seasoned, veteran comedy writers who were used to writing 39 shows a year for great radio comics like Jack Benny, Fred Allen, Burns & Allen, etc. The breadth and depth of their experience was invaluable.<br />3) Many fewer network execs back then, with almost no idiotic demographically-driven criteria other than, "Is it funny?" Imagine that.<br /><br />Nobody looked at Sgt. Biliko and said, "Is this going to appeal to 18-34 year olds who consume at least three fast-food meals a week? What if we gave him a long-lost 7 year old daughter? Would that make him more likable?"Richhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08600688674236630281noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-2478879752690925112018-08-17T11:22:20.001-07:002018-08-17T11:22:20.001-07:00I know Aaron Sorkin wrote a couple of good movies ...I know Aaron Sorkin wrote a couple of good movies and TV shows but why is he always considered the term of reference for a good writer? There are so many who have a bigger better body of work like yourself Ken, but why is he always mentioned whenever anything related to writing is spoken about?<br /><br />I was watching this clip of Family Guy and the "Family Guy writer" shown in the episode injects himself with 'Sorkin Genius Juice'.<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTsDzwk4CPQ<br /><br />Jakenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-52525075260183194272018-08-17T10:25:44.235-07:002018-08-17T10:25:44.235-07:00Even on non-serialized shows, airing out of order ...Even on non-serialized shows, airing out of order can cause problems. On the second season of the Dukes of Hazzard, the producers decided to change one of the signature vehicles at the same time they were dealing with temporary walkouts by two cast members and the extended illness of a third. They concocted cover stories for everything, but CBS decided they didn't want a lot of consecutive episodes without the full cast and shuffled the air order. So in one episode, Sheriff Rosco is away for police training, then he's back in the next episode, then he's inexplicably in training again in the following episode. Daisy gets a new Jeep after her car is destroyed, then is seen driving the car again two shows later, etc.<br /><br />For the old British show The Prisoner, there is a production order, an air order, and at least two different fan-preferred sequences for the episodes. Unfortunately, none of them completely eliminates plot continuity errors.Andy Rosenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-5629394843938235222018-08-17T10:13:27.630-07:002018-08-17T10:13:27.630-07:00Friday question: I've been trying to figure th...Friday question: I've been trying to figure this information out, but it's complicated. When did shows start being room-written? That is, I know I Love Lucy also had a "writer's room" (if you can call three people that, but it was essentially a collaborative effort) but I know you mentioned a bunch of times that back when you started out, a "written by" credit actually meant the writer came up with the story, then went off and wrote it on his own, and re-writes were usually done by the showrunners on their own.<br /><br />I know Seinfeld was a very bizarre experience since by the 90s it had become the only show not to have a room where writers competed side by side to get the best joke in every line. Everyone involved mentioned it was a unique experience, never to be encountered again post-Seinfeld.<br /><br />So my question would be, when and why did people start gravitating towards the writer's room for most of the writing (breaking stories, re-writing, etc) and why has that happened, especially considering writing shows became easier since seasons went down from 39 episodes to 23-26, then 22?Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05429876901503785669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-39114249664088694492018-08-17T09:48:25.915-07:002018-08-17T09:48:25.915-07:00Ken not a question but a request. Please can you m...Ken not a question but a request. Please can you make a list of the most painful movies you have ever watched. <br /><br />Seeing 'Dirty Grandpa' and 'Snatched' in the last 2 days, made me ask this :(<br /><br />Lukenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-88241579458347974242018-08-17T09:22:29.132-07:002018-08-17T09:22:29.132-07:00If I may ask, how much did it cost? A general idea...If I may ask, how much did it cost? A general idea would be helpful.<br /><br />Lisanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-67067733599345466142018-08-17T08:17:04.469-07:002018-08-17T08:17:04.469-07:00I second what Matt said. I second what Matt said. Roseannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08393487748949411049noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-9234317819484128192018-08-17T07:59:03.558-07:002018-08-17T07:59:03.558-07:00I've taken several of the MASTERCLASSES (my wi...I've taken several of the MASTERCLASSES (my wife got me a yearlong pass). I've taken the Aaron Sorkin and David Mamet class. They're interactive, you can submit writing samples, leave comments etc. The only thing I wish they'd do is make a Roku app. Otherwise you watch on your computer, iPad or Phone.<br /><br />All of the classes have a "workbook", and under the resources tab some have have scripts for downloading. Sorkin's class has "A Few Good Men", "The Social Network" and "Steve Jobs". To be fair, these are widely available a hundred other places. Mamet just has the workbook, but Shonda Rhimes has a fair amount of resources:<br /><br />*Grey's Anatomy Story Bible<br />*Scandal 301 script<br />*Scandal Pilot: Alternative Opening Scenes<br />*Scandal Pilot: Early Draft<br />*Scandal Pilot: Final Draft<br /><br />A Ken Levine MASTERCLASS would be pretty cool. The resources tab could have Larry Gelbart's handwritten draft of "The More I See You", as well as the final draft. I've got the final draft and would gladly contribute! With the many hours you and David have contributed to television history, the Ken Levine-David Isaacs MASTERCLASS is needed. <br /><br />:-)Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00107309396839340695noreply@blogger.com