Michael starts us off.
I saw a BIG BANG THEORY blooper, where Jim Parsons stopped because he wasn't sure if he used correct word (pictures vs photos). Kaley Cuoco jokingly said "they can be called whatever you want". Parsons responded something liked "no, they worked hard on the words, I want to get them right". Do most actors you worked with have Parsons's attitude or Cuoco’s?
First off, bless you Jim Parsons.
It depends on the show and the relationship the actors have with the writers, but I’ve been extremely fortunate in my career in that all of the actors I encountered were super respectful of the material.
Even if they had a disagreement, their objections were presented respectfully. I sincerely believe the actors I worked with appreciated the writing. Of course it helps that I was lucky enough to work on well-written shows.
Other writers weren’t so fortunate. Roseanne, Cosby, Kevin James, Cybill, Bret Butler — they were nightmares. They thought nothing of just throwing whole scripts out, belittling the writers, just being generally reprehensible. And none of them were worth it.
Another Mike, Mike Bloodworth asks:
Who was your first TV crush? We all know how you feel about Natalie Wood, but she's a movie star.
Mine was Angela Cartwright, "Penny" on "Lost in Space." To a kid in elementary school, she was hot.
Anne Jeffreys from TOPPER (photo above). I think I was 5.
I got to meet her 25 years later when she came in to read for one of our pilots. She still looked great and was a very classy woman. God bless her, she lived to 94.
I had good taste at 5.
Bob K wonders:
I admire how you seemingly are able to almost ruthlessly edit your own material. When I was writing scripts, it was the most difficult thing I had to do. And in most cases, I just wasn’t able to do it properly. Were you always able to do this, or was it a skill learned over time?
Time and experience are big factors. The more confident you are, the more willing you will be to cut or change things.
When writers start out they often obsess over every line and that’s normal. So it could take forever to write a script. David Isaacs and I were sure guilty of this. As time went on we learned to write at a faster pace and that helped enormously. You’re less reluctant to throw out a whole page if it only took you a half hour to write that page not two days.
Experience also teaches you to recognize traps and blind alleys so you have fewer issues that need addressing.
The more you do it, the more ruthless you will become, and isn’t that the goal of every comedy writer?
And finally, from msdemos:
Do you think television (broadcast and/or cable) will eventually reach (and pass) the "tipping point" of having more minutes of commercials for every half-hour/hour vs. the total number of minutes of entertainment (in other words, more than 15 minutes of commercials for every half-hour of television, or more than 30 minutes of commercials for every hour of television)?
No. I think the FCC would step in. They are still public airwaves and must serve the public. That tipping point would trigger license challenges.
But I will say this, networks will go right up to that tipping point. And if they could get away with showing 50 minutes of commercials an hour they would do it in a heartbeat.
What’s your Friday Question? Good luck with your taxes.
66 comments :
In today's FQs, you mention that Cosby and Kevin James were nightmares - any stories? I've never heard that Kevin James was a problem. Thanks!
I've heard, of course, about Roseanne, Cosby, Cybill, and Butler being difficult but never heard it about Kevin James. Interesting!
First TV crush: Susan Dey as Laurie Partridge. I was 6. She was... perfect.
With machine learning technology improving all the time and artificial intelligence able to replicate human activities, do you think it's only a matter of time before some studios will invest in technology that feeds thousands of successful produced scripts into an algorithm so that a computer learns what makes a great script and then generates its own?
I know this sounds dystopian but I can honestly imagine studios going down this route so they can finally cut writers out of the process altogether and thereby save themselves money.
Mine was Shirley Jones and when I finally met her, 50+, years later, she was charming.
Given all of the streaming alternatives networks would lose too many more viewers if they boosted ad time that high.
I've heard, of course, about Roseanne, Cosby, Cybill, and Butler being difficult but never heard it about Kevin James. Interesting!
Brought me up short too. Quite a contrast to his successfully created KoQ/Paul Blart image. And how did Fran Drescher stay off this list?
When Batman (the campy one) first came on TV, I was six years old. My first crushes were Cat Woman (Julie Newmar), and Marsha, Queen of Diamonds (Carolyn Jones). I also had a serious crush on Morticia.
Want more on why Kevin James made the list?
See Ken's post on November 12 2018.
(My first childhood TV crush was Darlene Gillespie, and she is a good example of why TV crushes should remain fantasy.)
Thanks! Happy weekend!
Thanks! Happy weekend!
A quick Google brought up this gem about Kevin James.
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/7sr45r/comment/dt7bdue/
Kevin James is the biggest asshole. Buddy of mine was a waiter for him and when he asked him if he wanted anything to drink, Kevin responds "you were told not to speak to me" Apparently his guards tell all the waiters to stay a distance from him.
I heartell that sticking to the script word-for-word was a big deal on M*A*S*H, especially with Larry Gelbart, who was supposedly adament about the actors not changing a word . . . so much so that, according to Alan Alda, he once came across a word in one of Larry's scripts that didn't make any sense, but he didn't want to argue/debate, so as they filmed, he just said it as it was written. When Larry asked why he said that, and Alan told him it was because it was what he had written in the script, Larry said it was a typo.
Meanwhile, I've also heard stories that some shows, the actors were given a lot more freedom to ad-lib and improvise, as long as they didn't deviate too far away from whatever the point of the script was . . . I could be wrong, but as I understand it, after THE ODD COUPLE switched to multi-cam and a live audience, the writers often would just give Tony Randall and Jack Klugman a basic little premise for a scene (a la Oscar teaches Felix how to play football), then they would just go off and do it their way, and the writers would build the script around that.
I’d love a post on your opinion of Fran Drescher and The Nanny. I think you were working a CBS at the time the world was inflicted with Drescher-mania. Lol
Speaking as one of the Morlocks who only have antenna TV and no streaming, I've seen some things... Fresh in my mind is how my local channel which carried MOM reruns would randomly insert a half hour infomercial in its time slot. The sight of MeTV swallowed whole by ads for sports-betting apps and MyPillow. The only thing the FCC is good for is patrolling for nipples.
As Topper was one of my first-ever favorite shows, Anne Jeffreys has always been a favorite of mine also. I wish she'd worked more. Whenever she did pop up on something, like her one-season arc on Falcon Crest, I was always delighted to see her, and to note how immune to aging she seemed. Though I never met her, several of my friends knew or met her, and all speak of her charm. Her husband, Robert Sterling, was a homebody, whereas Anne loved to go dancing (She was the last person to dance onscreen with Fred Astaire), so Anne would regularly go out dancing with Cesar Romero. As Cesar was well-known to be gay within the industry, there was no jealousy.
Of course, she was also a lifelong Republican, but I try not to think about that.After all, going out dancing with gay men doesn't seem very Republican to me.
"N. Zakharenko said...
(My first childhood TV crush was Darlene Gillespie, and she is a good example of why TV crushes should remain fantasy.)"
Yeah. When I was a kid, I thought Darlene the most-talented of the Mousketeers, certainly the best actress, and she sang better than Annette did. But she grew up to be a criminal sleazebag. She disgraced the Mouseketeers.
And our SAG current president (How did THAT horror happen?) Fran Drescher should CERTAINLY on any list of horrible stars who disrespect their writers and who are hell to work for.
I've never understood the very persistent notion that anything an actor comes up with off the top of his head is bound to be funnier than what a roomful of professional writers spent three days slaving over.
Sue Randall as Miss Landers on LEAVE IT TO BEAVER.
Mine was Joan Staley. Not just a bombshell but a helluva good (and underrated) actress. I finally met her a few years before her death and told her about my boyhood crush. She seemed immensely flattered, as if I were the first person to ever tell her that. Like I said, a terrific actress.
First crush was either Joey Heatherton on the Dean Martin Show, or Jane Fonda in Barefoot in the Park. A few years later it was Valerie Bertinelli. So I guess I didn't have a type.
Ken, Friday question here... most three-camera shows the last decade are simply not funny. They all seem to have forgotten what the "com" in "sitcom" stands for. My question is, did you ever see a situation where a show was reasonable successful but the bosses kept yelling for more jokes? Or are most network people happy with just ratings in general?
My first crush was Danny Kaye. I wanted a DK doll.
Friday question: When you were working as a baseball announcer, did you get get a lot of feedback or critiques from the station and/or team in-season?
I totally get why Jim Parsons wanted to be sure he was using the right word in Big Bang Theory. Imagine him saying the words pictures and photos in Sheldon's voice. In this case, photos definitely comes across as the funnier sounding word. I'm sure he realized that, which is why he wanted clarification.
It's funny how my "first crush" years are far enough back that you'd need the Webb telescope to see them, and yet Lynda Carter came to mind without a moment's hesitation. I had to stop and try to remember the name of the first girl I actually dated, but Lynda is like a memory on speed dial. I even had her poster on my wall for years.
Imagine my joy just a couple years ago when I discovered the movie "Bobbi Jo and the Outlaw", which featured a side of Lynda I'd never seen.
@ Artificial Intelligence said...
"With machine learning technology improving all the time and artificial intelligence able to replicate human activities, do you think it's only a matter of time before some studios will invest in technology that feeds thousands of successful produced scripts into an algorithm so that a computer learns what makes a great script and then generates its own?
I know this sounds dystopian but I can honestly imagine studios going down this route so they can finally cut writers out of the process altogether and thereby save themselves money."
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Have to respond to this anonymously, sorry, but this is important.
There already is such an algorithm. It's called Grammarly. But like all of these programs, it cannot really think intuitively.
I use it as a SUGGESTION but when it was created, my first thought was that inexperienced middle managers would use it to perform inept and damaging edits on other less powerful people's work. It didn't take long. There are several things Grammarly does not accept as regular speech even though the words and phrases are not only completely fine, they clarify and add precision.
One such word is "own" as in "my own" or "their own." Grammarly sees that as redundant. It never forces the change, only suggests it. But when a person who is ignorant of the subtleties of words believes a machine, they get scared and believe the machine instead of the human professional. This recently happened and not only was the meaning of the entire sentence changed, when the project re-emerged later, there needed to be unnecessary verification BY THE PERSON WHO MADE THE CHANGE of the facts because that person read the sentence and believed the changed meaning. By one word.
Beware when you see the same words omitted from your revisions, or too many commas added to compound sentences when you want the sentences to "flow." It is astonishing how they trust anything but the people they pay to do the job -- the ones with the proven experience, and trust a piece of software that will probably be updated every so often and eventually replaced by another product.
The product that will replace it will do all the writing, just as you suggested, AI. The thing that is most frustrating is beyond the attempt to save money, it is the initial lack of trust in a fellow human being.
(My latest was Stana Katic on Castle)
Of course, on TBBT Parsons often didn't understand the science parts of his dialogue (by his own admission), so he was also in the habit of not tinkering on that show.
wg
Joan Parker, the Dodge Fever Girl in those 60's car commercials.
>And if they could get away with showing 50 minutes of commercials an hour they would do it in a heartbeat.
I thought that was allowed (thanks, Reagan), which is why we have "infomercials" cluttering up all the channels.
I am reminded of an article I read about Law & Order where Jerry Orbach talked about what words Briscoe would use and what words he wouldn't use. It reminded me of Dick Cavett's lecture on how in a joke, it mattered whether the number you used was, say, twelve or fifteen. That's why Mr. Clemens said something like this: The difference between the right word and almost the right word is like the difference between the lightning and the lightning bug.
Thanks, Ken. As always. A blessed Pesach and Happy Easter to all.
M.B.
First TV crush? Julie Newmar... but not as Catwoman, seductive as she was on that series. Rather, it was as Rhoda the Air Force-created robot on the one-season "My Living Doll." (Incidentally, it was her who brought the phrase "that does not compute" into the public lexicon.) Julie was great to look at, of course -- statuesque, shapely, leggy (she inspired my fondness for tall women, though I sadly topped out at 5-foot-7, about four inches shy of Julie), but possessed a comedic sense rarely exploited by producers obsessed with her measurements. (She has cited her inspirations were Carole Lombard for comedy and Rita Hayworth for dance.) I've met and interviewed Julie; she's bright and genuinely funny, still worthy of a boyhood crush.
good taste at 5
Agree. At that age (maybe 6) I first saw a playmates mom "that way".
Elly May, Jeannie (in harem pants), Agent 99 - all attractive - but the slammer was The Girl from U*N*C*L*E - Stephanie Powers.
Chag Sameach, Ken
I'm told James Garner was another TV star who preferred that his co-stars respect the writers' work rather than try to improve on the script as written.
Kristy McNichol...cute and could skateboard
My first crush was Amanda Blake--Miss Kitty on GUNSMOKE. Next was Sue Randall--Miss Landers on LEAVE IT TO BEAVER. My Mouseketeer heartthrob was Cheryl Holdridge, who also turned up as Wally Cleaver's girlfriend on LEAVE IT TO BEAVER a few times.
I was thrilled to read your appreciation of Anne Jeffreys - as a child I thought she was the epitome of elegance and class. I followed her from "Topper" to "The Delphi Bureau" (underrated spy drama/comedy) and even "General Hospital" and regret none of it.
I had a number of crushes growing up but my equivalency to Ms. Jeffreys was probably Kevin McCarthy, who usually played corporate types, often villains, but is probably best known for the original "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" in which he was definitely a good guy. He also seemed ageless, and was well-cast in the "Twilight Zone " episode "Long Live Walter Jamison". His private life was interesting, too - he was close friends with the legendary Montgomery Clift and possibly more than just friends.
Here's my Friday statement: I am through with Call Me Kat. It turned into a f***ing soap opera last night, complete with a jilted regular character punching the guy, also a regular, at the other end of the love triangle. And if I'm not watching Call Me Kat anymore, I might as well quit How We Roll. I don't think I'll ever watch a modern sitcom again. I'll stick to cartoons, improv, stand-up, and documentaries. The funnier and less dramatic, the more likely I'll watch consistently.
I guess I should say something relevant now. My first TV crush was Weather Channel meteorologist Jill Brown.
@Michael:
I sort of recall the Cavett lecture about jokes, but I think the secret magic funny number is 32? Or is that from Morey Amsterdam?
As for "50 minutes of commercials", local stations get away with this already with infomercials. I admit that I enjoy watching Emeril Lagasse, though.
First TV crush? Elizabeth Montgomery on Bewitched.
ATTN D McEwan:
Cesar Romero was also a lifelong Republican (in '64 he stumped for George Murphy against Pierre Salinger - which didn't stop him from using Lucky Pierre as his mouthpiece on that Batman episode ...).
Had Shelley Long stayed on Cheers were there any long-term plans for how the Sam/Diane relationship dynamic would have played out? Would it have continued to be on again, off again? Marriage and a baby at some point? I think I've seen you say at some point that it was kind of already getting old (or something to that effect). It's hard to imagine what Cheers would have been like without Kirstie Alley, but what if Shelley had never left?
It wasn't until decades later than I found out that I wasn't the only guy kissing the tv screen during the closeup of Annette Funicello during the "...now it's time to say goodbye to all our family..." closing song on the Mickey Mouse Club circa 1956. I even had dreams that Annette moved to my town and sat in front of me in some of my classes.
Interesting how many of us were attracted to women who - it turned out - wouldn’t be interested in us at all. I was well into my 20s when I first saw the young Katharine Hepburn. I reacted like a Tex Avery wolf.
She’d come around,I know…
Lots of Hollywood types were Republicans back in the day. I daresay that they would be aghast at the criminals and buffoons who make up the GOP these days.
Surprised to hear that about Kevin James...he seems like such a chill dude. Interesting that Roseanne, Cosby, Cybill, and Brett all starred in Carsey-Werner sitcoms. Maybe something in the watercoolers at that office?
First crush: Vanna White. When I was 5, my cousin and I would argue over her during Wheel of Fortune. True story.
Childhood crush? Cher, back when she and Sonny had the first (and the best) of their two variety shows. And this was BEFORE I realized I was gay.
Liz Sheridan, who played Seinfeld's mother, died Friday at 93. Her death comes two weeks after the death at 93 of Estelle Harris, Jason Alexander's mom on the series. Ms. Sheridan was a friend of Elizabeth Montgomery, who would've turned 89 on Friday.
You left out Penny Marshall.
@ Kent
I worked with Shirley Jones in the early 90s, when she guest-starred on a one-season series. She was EXTREMELY unfriendly. The Academy Award winner was still beloved (thirty years ago) as "Mrs. Partridge." Several members of the crew. wanted to talk to her, and get an autograph. "If I give ONE, I'll have to give one hundred." Um, NO Shirley, it was only ten people, and they were the ones lighting the scene, and applying your make-up, etc. GOD. It was awkward.
On the other hand, Ricardo Montalban, was a gracious, classy man. The crew LOVED him. At the end of the day, he would thank EVERY crew member. And he ate meals with us, and told wonderful stories. Celeste Holm was also fantastic. Brendan Fraser, on the other hand...I am not surprised with his career arc...
I remember as a little kid like maybe 10 years old coming home from school and Our Gang comedies would be on and I thought Darla Hood was the prettiest girl I had ever seen. that was likely my first innocent TV crush. Then my mom had to explain that Darla was currently heading for 50 probably. I didn't realize how old those comedies were. Lol I also remember seeing Jessica Lange in the King Kong remake and just thinking wow. This was before she became a serious actress. this wasn't oscar winning jessica.
To Mike Chimeri:
Please watch "Bob <3 Abishola" before giving up on sitcoms.
— Here’s a childhood crush out of thin air. A “Banana Splits” segment was “The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, where live-action teens playing Huck, Becky Thatcher and Tom Sawyer explored animated lands, like a reverse “Roger Rabbit”. As a firs- grader in the 1970s, I had a crush on Becky, played by Lu Ann Halsam, much the way a grade school kid has a crush on his teenaged babysitter.
After rediscovering the show on YouTube this week, I found that Haslam quit acting after that show and became a high school math teacher. Pleasingly, the actors playing Tom and Huck also had solid real-life careers after leaving Hollywood early. Good on all three.
— Re: Jim Parsons, he said that he used musical theater memorization methods for Sheldon’s trickier speeches, such as reciting the rules to “Rock, Scissors, Paper, Lizard, Spock” or drunk Sheldon singing a song including all of the Periodic table at an awards show. As for Kaley Cuoco, it sounded like she preferred to enter table readings fresh instead of reading the scripts the day before, probably to see how an audience watching the episode for the first time would experience it.
— Since Ie heard of both Brendan Fraser and Fran Drescher suffering from sexual assaults, or worse, I’d give them some slack if I ever met them and they gave off a less-than-welcoming vibe.
- I’m waiting till the last minute to file my taxes. Mostly because I took too many tax credits on my health insurance, I owe $2,000.
@ Liggie
Nope, I don't give Fraser slack. His behavior was/is well known. It had nothing to do with that encounter. It happened seven years after I worked with him. He treated crew members terribly.
On the positive side, John Schneider is a really nice guy, aside from the "religious" shield. He went that route, hoping to invigorate his career. We can see how well that worked.
I agree with you about Anne Jeffreys. She was a talented, charming woman.
"Liggie said...
— Since I['v]e heard of both Brendan Fraser and Fran Drescher suffering from sexual assaults, or worse, I’d give them some slack if I ever met them and they gave off a less-than-welcoming vibe."
So suffering a sexual assault gives one lifelong license to abuse one's writers? I suffered a sexual assault when I was 17; does this mean I can now excuse every nasty or mean thing I've ever done in the 55 years since with that?
Here is the link to the post on Kevin James: http://kenlevine.blogspot.com/2018/11/kevin-can-f-himself.html
Ken, What is your personal experience when working with Kevin James?
My Friday Quustion - who was nice to work with? Gary B admitted he was very depressed during MASH and wasn't the greatest person to deal with at the time. Someone I know worked behind the scenes for years on different shows. She said Nathan Fillion, Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler were the sweetest people om earth. Everyone wants to talk about who was awful, who was nice in your experience?
I'll add another positive performer. Matthew McConaughey. Super nice guy. He treated the crew with SO much respect. And that was 25 years ago. Oh, and Ridley Scott. I spent about two hours, thirty years ago, having a great discussion with him, at an Italian restaurant. I was young, and he just listened to what I said.
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Friday Question:
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If tomorrow Major League Baseball installed Ken Levine as the new "dictator" of the sport, replacing Commissioner Rob Manfred, and you no longer were required to answer in any way to the player's union (I know, I know....but just go with me on this one!), and you could do ANYTHING you wanted in order to help the game reclaim it's once lofty position as "America's Pastime", what might be some of the changes to the game that you would institute IMMEDIATELY to help draw more people into "the tent"?
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Director Kevin Smith said Bruce Willis was a nightmare to work with. Ken, did you ever work with Linda Lavin or Polly Holliday? Were they nice? The rumor for years is they couldn't stand each other filming "Alice" and that Linda could be difficult.
FRIDAY QUESTION:
Ken, you often speak of your favorite Classic Hollywood stars (and first crushes). Could you list your top-5 actors and top-5 actresses of the era?
I'm a Garbo-Bacall-Stanwyck fella (the remaining roster rotates). I am curious on your thoughts on Garbo (if any) and the recent biographies on her still exclaiming that 100 years later, she is still THE greatest film actres.
On that "tipping point" between advertisements and entertainment in a 30- or 60-minute window, how much advertising time would viewers actually tolerate? I don't think they would accept 50 out of 60 minutes being commercials in order to watch a 10 minute program. I wonder if they're really accepting of 11 or 12 minutes of ads that we have now in a 30 minute program when there are so many other alternatives out there (including time-shifting on a DVR). Aside from the distraction, having more ad time makes it harder to get engaged in the story and ultimately the characters in order to carry the show (it strikes me that this is something I've learned from reading your blog for the past dozen years).
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